Talent is Fluid

By Jessica Miller-Merrell

If Talent is a measurement, it is also fluid as there is no real start and stop to the candidate hiring process. While the recruiting process begins when you post for the position, job seekers do not begin searching and sourcing for positions at the same time.  This is why talent is a fluid process and by creating doorways into engagement with those interested parties through a talent network, you can create a more fluid recruitment and talent process for everyone involved. 

Talent Management is defined as the “ongoing process of analyzing, developing, and effectively utilizing talent to meet business needs.” The most important part of this definition is that it is the ongoing process. Even before you post a job online you’ve already started the process. Cultivating job requirements, defining specific duties, and creating a strategy on when and where to post the job are all parts of the actual recruitment strategy. Most companies take job applications prior to opening a specific job to have an ongoing candidate resource pool.

This process should be looked at as an ongoing cycle rather than the isolated event of posting a job online. This is even more crucial when your company relies on networking and employee referral efforts that have historically resulted in hiring a higher quality of candidates. Talent acquisition starts before you post your first job. In order to higher quality candidates you must start networking and engaging in potential recruits to build a talent pool.

Creating a more fluid talent pool is essential in an economy on the rise. Finding and recruiting top talent is the #1 priority of all recruiters and hr professionals. The quality of talent is a reflection of how well the HR department tracks, trains, and recruits. If recruiters are looking to keep top talent and increase the performance of their workforce, it’s essential to understand that talent is measured beyond the traditional concept and that in order to be successful you must always be recruiting and networking with top talent.

Is your talent fluid? What are you doing to keep it more fluid in your workplace?

Jessica Miller-Merrell, SPHR is a workplace and technology strategist specializing in social media.  She’s an author who writes at Blogging4Jobs. You can follow her on Twitter @blogging4jobs. 

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The Importance of Social Sign-in to Your Hiring and Recruitment Process

By Jessica Miller-Merrell

We’ve all dealt with a “YAN” at some point in our life. Whether it is the infamous “Sign Up With Facebook” advertisement or “Gain Access by Signing Up With Your Facebook Account” – we’ve all seen it. The original purpose of a YAN (Yet Another Network) login is to curate mass quantities of data and to collect data that users might forget or leave out when signing up for a service or product. It’s reported that the consumers desire for Social Sign-On has increased to 77% of US Online Buyers in 2011 up 12% from the previous year.

So what does this mean for recruiters and human resources professionals?

DATA. Recruiters and HR Professionals are looking towards the future and are trying to obtain as much data before making a sound hire. In doing so, their turnover rates, productivity, and retention numbers will all show signs of improvement. When using the social sign-in in order to apply for a job, recruiters are able to gain access to data that might not be shown on a general application. Scouring the web is no longer an issue because profiles are connected to applications and recruiters see all that information.

The application itself is where a large portion of candidates drop-off and quit applying either due to length or complications during the process. Allowing candidates to apply by social sign-in makes the application process relatively easy. This same scenario applies to companies who use complicated shopping cart screens. The easier you make it to apply or purchase a product, the lower your abandonment rate will be. When you’re hiring for a workforce of 100+ and looking for specific sets a data, a social sign-on feature is worth not having to look through hundreds of paper applications. This has worked through LinkedIn’s job board and works like a charm.  Applying made easy.

As mobile recruiting starts to get more popular, people are applying for jobs from tablets and even sometimes their smart phone. With the ease of applying through social sign-in more and more job seekers are applying for jobs from anywhere and everywhere. From a candidate experience perspective, it’s important to start thinking about this process for both web and mobile audiences.

Success stories from social sign-in recruiting come from companies like Pizza Hut & Sodexo who have been targeting hourly employees through Facebook. Facebook is the place where minimum wage, hourly employees are most likely to be online. So when companies like Sodexo and Pizza Hut needed employees, that’s where they went. Using third-party landing pages complete with a social sign-on to apply, these companies were able to obtain all the information they need from various profile information. As recruiters are looking to obtain copious amounts of data, the social sign-in is the perfect place to acquire such information.

Does your company allow candidates to apply via social sign-in? Do you find it effective?

Jessica Miller-Merrell, SPHR is a workplace and technology strategist specializing in social media.  She’s an author who writes at Blogging4Jobs. You can follow her on Twitter @blogging4jobs. 

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The Move Towards HR Metrics and Analytics for HR

By Jessica Miller-Merrell

Since 1990 HR metrics have been evolving. Since the introduction of benchmarking in the HR space professionals have been working to prove their value in the business support systems. For nearly a decade benchmarking reigned as the top measurement in the HR world. It wasn’t until the 21^st century when metrics and analytics took over as the number one source of reporting. Human Resources have struggled to prove their value beyond the mundane tasks of paperwork in the hire to retire scenario.

Workforce and Business Analytics 

Workforce and business analytics have been used to establish baselines, help structure, and maintain operational and company efficiencies. We’ll provide insights into this move and what it means for the future of HR and how companies can use their current data and metrics to elevate their workplace. As our world becomes more about how to measure activity it’s important for any HR professional to have a good understanding of proving their value to the company.

As HR becomes more metric driven it will be important to communicate with senior members of your organization to find out which metrics they are interested in and how you can deliver the information. Your CEO, CFO, and COO are all looking at different aspects of the business and it’s vital to tailor reports to fit their specific needs. In a recent case study from Koenig& Associates studied the attitude of CEOs as it pertains to the HR department and hiring.

People within a company account for half or more of a company’s expenses, but 57% of companies don’t track the impact. Understanding how effective a company is spending their money is an important aspect for any business. One of the most important reasons HR should care about metrics is because CEOs and Senior Executives care about how HR impacts business performance. No longer do companies consider HR a soft unavoidable cost, but as a department that has significant influence on how a business is run.

The Importance of HR Metrics 

Metrics in HR are more then reporting number of vacancies, turnover amounts, and absentee dates. We use big data to help companies understand, anticipate, and develop strategies facilitated by HR.  In order to provide value you must not only compare the results from previous time periods, but also ask important questions such as the importance of job roles filled, how long it took to fill the jobs, and how satisfied were direct supervisors with those hires. Diving into the data beyond the surface level statistics is what makes any good HR department, great. As metrics continue to evolve it’s important to understand which metrics have which benefits or negative impacts on the business. Only then will your HR department be able to show it’s true worth.

What metrics do you find most important in Human Resources? 

Jessica Miller-Merrell, SPHR is a workplace and technology strategist specializing in social media.  She’s an author who writes at Blogging4Jobs. You can follow her on Twitter @blogging4jobs. 

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How to Harness the Power of Big Data in HR & Recruiting

By Jessica Miller-Merrell

Since the creation of analytics for human resource professionals and the need to evaluate the workplace, big data is here to stay.  In 2012, the buzz in HR circulated around the need for big data and how to effectively use it in your organization. Since the inception of analytics, reporting, and increasing the need for evaluation, big data has helped the old HR department in multiple ways.

Big Data's Role in Human Resources 

Big data is complex especially in an HR context.  I liken big data to your bedroom closet.  It is unorganized with purses, bags, and shoes thrown everywhere.  You are overwhelmed and don't know where to begin.  

In bigger ways than before, HR departments are tapping into information from job seekers, exiting employees, and current staff using seemingly unrelated data that upon further analysis correlates to one another. Before the use of big data HR was the go to department when something went array. This has caused a shift in the blame game in the workplace.

According to research compiled by Bersin & Associates, 6% of HR departments believe they are “excellent” in analytics and more than 60% feel they are poor or behind. While the trend is still new, most organizations will start investing huge resources into becoming current in big data. HR professionals are flooded with data from all spectrums, from employee data, location data, compensation data and many, many more. In order to help fix your organization, you must look at the problem instead of the data.

Analyzing Human Capital Metrics  

One of the biggest ways to harness the power of big data is to start with the problem and then analyze the data. With tons of information at your disposal unless you know how to use it to better your organization, it’s just data. If your company has problems with turnover, sales productivity, or anything else it’s important to understand which data is important and how to utilize it. Don’t fall into the trap of looking at a wide array of data because it can get expensive. Take the time to build out your platform and make it scalable.  Working in scale is especially important when it comes to human capital and human capital metrics.  

Another way to harness the power would be to clean your data. Since HR companies compile an extensive amount of data it’s important to keep up to date with all the information. Fields change on a daily basis and it’s easy to get buried in the vast amounts of data available. Without a clean and concise set of data all sorts of problems will arise. There are tools out there to help you with this process, but one ex-Google scientist, DJ Patil, once said that this process is ultimately a manual people-intensive process.

The future of Big Data in the HR space is limitless. With companies investing more and research more on the benefits, big data will continue to get bigger. This process is more than just analytics and requires a deeper understanding of the numbers and the root of the problem. If you put the hard work into compiling, analyzing, and researching you will obtain the numbers you need to better your organization. Big data is here to stay, how will you use it?

Jessica Miller-Merrell, SPHR is a workplace and technology strategist specializing in social media.  She’s an author who writes at Blogging4Jobs. You can follow her on Twitter @blogging4jobs. 

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Say Goodbye to Post and Pray Hiring. Build a Network.

By Jessica Miller-Merrell

The Changing Face of Recruitment 

Back in the olden days of recruiting hiring and recruiting was simple; a now hiring sign was simply posted on your door.  In the 2000's we used job boards where we were told if we build it they will come.  In the present day, there are thousands of job boards and employment experts vying for the online attention, relationship, and application of the perfect candidate.  They are in competition with you, the employer.  Employees have options. 

The rules of changed.  Say goodbye to your post and pray recruiting strategy.  Build a network, foster relationships, and go where the candidates are. Just like we have a buyer’s market, we are in a job seekers market. With the right experience a job seeker will be able to pick and choose the company they want to work for. As the unemployment rate continues to steadily decrease over 150,000 jobs are being added on a monthly basis. Recruiters are looking for ways to build a candidate pool that exceeds that of their competition.

Talent Networks Bring Job Search Buyers & Sellers Together  

In order to establish a presence with job seekers, recruiters are looking to network, engage, and become more familiar with candidates instead of posting and praying that they will fill needed positions. A talent community or network brings the ‘buyer and seller’ together (job seeker is the buyer and recruiter is the seller).  In a talent community the job seeker doesn’t have to go around each and every major social network to stalk a recruiter. No longer will the job seeker have to wonder if the recruiter will accept their invite to connect on Linkedin or follow them on Twitter. Instead the recruiters are all following kind and placing themselves at the forefront of a talent community.

Talent Communities offer a sense of ownership and professionalism outside Facebook, Twitter, and Linkedin. The goals between these three social media giants are all different and each has their place in networking, but talent networks or communities go one step further. When you join a talent community you have one goal in mind. If you’re a job seeker, you want a job and if you’re a recruiter you want to recruit the best possible talent. In this sense no longer do recruiters need to post and pray and hope a candidate shows up.

Talent communities create a mutual benefit relationship for job seekers and recruiters because everything that is needed is in one place. Every so often job seekers will find a recruiter for their dream company and then stalk them. We all know it happens and I am sure you’ve done it in the past either as a passive or active job seeker. With the creation of a talent community there is no longer the need to passively connect with recruiters all over the web. Connecting with them in the community gives you the ability to network with them outside of your other personal profiles.

What are your thoughts on talent networks? As a job seeker would you visit one to gain more time with a recruiter of a specific company? 

Jessica Miller-Merrell, SPHR is a workplace and technology strategist specializing in social media.  She’s an author who writes at Blogging4Jobs. You can follow her on Twitter @blogging4jobs. 

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5 Essential Characteristics of Your Video Interview Provider

By Jessica Miller-Merrell

Video Interviewing Best Practices 

Video interviewing is one of the most popular recruitment technology tools in our industry today, but not every provider or service is created equally.  We’ll break down five characteristics that are most important to current video interview users and what makes them so valuable to lowering cost of hire and time management. 

• EEOC Compliance. The EEOC is very clear when it comes to technology and discrimination. Regardless of the type of technology you’re using it’s important that you follow all EEOC guidelines as if the interview was face to face. To protect yourself and employer implement best practices to overcome any discrimination lawsuit that might arise especially when interviewing a different way. Best practices include having a written set of criteria, asking a standard set of questions, and making sure there is more than just one person watching video interviews.

• Ability to Provide Multiple Interview Types. Having a pre-recorded set of questions is only one type of video interviewing that happens. You want to make sure your provider has multiple formats in which you’re able to interview potential candidates. Based on the job level and experienced required it’s important to be able to talk with someone live using video interviewing software. Before signing up with a vendor of video interviewing technology you want to make sure they offer an array of services that fits your company’s needs.

• The Share Factor. Sharing is caring. If you’re watching an interviewee in a pre-recorded session and you find someone who stands out, what next? Having the ability to share the video with your manager or another recruiter is essential to make sure the right talent is placed in the right spot. If you feel like someone interviewed well and they fit another position within the company being able to forward the interview with the click of the mouse would be a prime feature in video interviewing.

• The Employee Profile. There are a lot of vendors out there who provide video interviewing technology, but do not provide a network and talent community to gather deeper insights about a candidate. Developing a community that allows the interviewee to create a profile based on interests and qualifications gives the candidate a deeper sense of belonging and will stick around for more opportunities. Jobs are applied for on a whim and many times job seekers go from job board to employer website to a 3^rd party client to fill out the application then they’re stuck in the dark hole of the applicant process.

• Interview and Candidate Notes.  While the ability to share is important, having the ability to leave notes for follow up questions or points of interest you’ve identified in the interview is important not just for sharing with other recruiters or hiring managers but also for yourself.  When you a large number of candidates, it is easy to experience interview halo where the most recent candidates appear to you to be the most qualified.  Adding notes help to evaluate job seekers fairly and organize your thoughts for future interviews. 

While video interviewing is not going away anytime soon, it’s still in its infancy stages. EEOC Compliance standards will likely remain the same as discrimination across any platform is standard. Within the last two years different video interviewing companies have sprouted up while trying to differentiate themselves from each other. Take a look at the features they provide and think about what is important for yourself and your company. Choose wisely.

Learn more about video can be used in driving employer branding awareness and recruitment campaigns by clicking here.  

Jessica Miller-Merrell, SPHR is a workplace and technology strategist specializing in social media.  She’s an author who writes at Blogging4Jobs. You can follow her on Twitter @blogging4jobs.