Job hunting and Web 2.0

"It's not what you know but who you know," is an old saying about job-hunting.

In the world of social networks we "know" more people than ever and we can be connected to the people they know as well, making it easier to find work and hear about people using our personal networks...

See Why 50 is the magic number for job-hunting by Peter Bowes (BBC News) for more details.

Health employer uses YouTube for recruitment

 

A Scottish health board has uploaded a short film to video sharing website YouTube in a bid to recruit new staff.

The video promoting vacancies in NHS Highland's cancer treatment services is the first in a series the board plans to produce to attract new employees.

In the six-minute film, workers seek to dismiss misconceptions about the Highlands...

See NHS Highland uses YouTube in bid to new recruit staff (BBC News) for more details.

Social networking, recruitment and HR podcast

The CIPD, as part of their growing interest in Web 2.0 communication technology, have just released a podcast on the subject of social networking and recruitment.

See Social networking, recruitment and HR - episode 22.

More details:

The web is old news.

Now it’s all about web 2.0.

New CIPD research is looking at the role of web 2.0 innovations in HR.

We asked the Royal Opera House, T-Mobile and IBM for their perspectives.

Get this widget Track details eSnips Social DNA

Should employers be banned from using social networking sites for recruitment?

There are some serious ethical issues involved in searching for extra information on current and prospective employees.

However, before the arrival of Web 2.0, such activities were probably rare and aimed at elite employees.

In today's Times there is a story about some children's charities who are urging ministers to make it illegal for employers to 'trawl' though social networking sites, such as Facebook.

More details:

They say that employers and educational establishments are known to be browsing the internet looking for “digital dirt” on young people who have applied for positions.

The eight charities acted partly in response to a report in The Times that revealed one in five employers used the internet to check on candidates, and two thirds of those who did said that their decisions were influenced by what they found.

At the very least we may get some changes made to data protection law, as a way of making employers seek permission to access online data in the same way that they get permission to approach referees.

It's unlikely to work very well, yet we may end up with a better situation than one we have now.

See Plea to ban employers trawling Facebook by Rosemary Bennett.

Vetting employees through blogs

Today BBC FiveLive took a look at how some employers are starting to vet potential employees through Internet searches, particularly by way of blogs or MySpace.

There is a five minute radio interview that can be accessed here. You may want to listen to it if you have an "on-line life". For more details see a blog posting I did on the subject of "digging for digital dirt" early this year.

I also came across a second blog-related article on the BBC News website.

The article - Voluntary code for blogs 'needed' - suggests blogs and other Internet sites should be covered by a voluntary code of practice similar to that for newspapers in the UK. More evidence that the press are a bit twitchy about the rise and influence of blogs.

Podcasts to give graduate applicants "deeper insight into life the company"

I can't believe it's nearly a year since it was announced that Cadbury-Schweppes would be using blogs as part of recruiting graduate workers.

In last week or so Cadbury-Schweppes have announced an extension of the blogging part of their recruitment strategy - downloadable MP3 files to "allow potential graduates an even deeper insight into life at the company."

The rationale for using blogs and podcasts is as follows:

Today top graduates have a higher expectation of being able to use the internet as a primary source of information and communication. Cadbury Schweppes has therefore created a pioneering, easy to use site that provides all the tools graduates need to get an insight into the company and the graduate recruitment process.

For more information see a press release from Cadbury-Schweppes and an article from Personnel Today - Podcasts help Cadbury's lure new graduate talent (Mike Berry).