Recruiters Offer Advice

 

RECRUITERS OFFER ADVICE TO STUDENTS SEEKING EMPLOYMENT

By Stuart Esrock, Ph.D.

Social media will increasingly be an important tool for those seeking employment.  That’s an important finding from a national survey of corporate human resource and recruitment professionals.  Jobvite conducts the survey on an annual basis to determine priorities and concerns of recruiters.  The results reveal important information as well for job seekers.

According to the survey, nearly 80% of respondents said they will increasingly invest during the next year in social media as a recruitment tool and also to screen candidates. Jobvite reports that result extends an already apparent trend; social media has steadily risen over the last three years for recruiting purposes. Social media channels most used for recruiting are LinkedIn (72%), Facebook (60%), Twitter (38%), Instagram (37%), Glassdoor (36%), and YouTube (27%). But other social media channels like TikTok and Snapchat are also being used for positions that are more targeted toward younger job candidates.  Jobvite advises job seekers interested in larger corporations to monitor LinkedIn since bigger organizations are more likely to use that platform. 

The second biggest source for hiring among organizations surveyed was employee referral programs.  Jobvite said that’s just another reason to directly ask your friends and professional network about opportunities within their companies; those contacts can potentially refer you for a job via their company’s referral program. 

If you get an interview, Jobvite reports there is a good chance in the midst of the pandemic that it will be virtual.  The survey indicates two-thirds of recruiters are interviewing using video, and 40% of recruiters believe virtual interviews will be the default moving forward. If you get a virtual interview, recruiters warn you to watch out for several big problems including poor internet connectivity (cited by 37% of respondents), inappropriate attire (25%), and poor eye contact (23%). Remote interviews are also a great opportunity for job seekers to show, first-hand, they are comfortable in the online environment. That’s important since 50% of those surveyed said that open roles at their organization are being hired as remote workers.

The Jobvite survey includes good news about diversity initiatives. A majority of surveyed companies have specific goals for diversity in hiring with respect to race/ethnicity (63%), gender (54%), age (37%), veterans (33%), LGBTQ+ (29%), immigrants (28%), and disability (25%).

Jobvite is an organization that helps companies attract, engage, hire, and retain the talent that will help them grow and succeed.