Hopes, Dreams and Realities of Sourcing on the Internet: Basic Lessons Learned

• Author: Anna Kassulke
• Posted: August 17, 2007
• Category: Recruitment Communications, Sourcing Strategies
• Tags: Case Studies, Internet Media, Recruitment Communications
• Comments:

In Part One we discussed the role of the internet on sourcing, in Part Two I discussed sourcing and website strategy. To wrap up this series of posts, a couple of specific examples of how you could use the internet to your advantage.
 
In April 2006, Apple Computer published an interview with an employee named Dan on their career site. Dan tells us what day-to-day life is like as an Apple Store employee, outlines his most interesting project, compares his experience with other companies he has worked for, talks about the pride that being an Apple employee instills in him. Dan says, ‘the teams I’ve been associated with at Apple are, by far, the most talented, inspiring, eclectic mix of people one could have the privilege of working with.’ What more could Apple need for their website and their brand than human interest stories that delight visitors and praise the company at the same time?
 
You could also include some information about the location and its attractions. The Eastman Kodak careers pages talk about ‘living, working, and having fun at Kodak.’ ‘Work is just part of the picture at Kodak,’ they say. ‘Most of our office and manufacturing space is in or around bustling downtown Rochester, New York. Working at Kodak in Rochester means you get front row seats to quite a bit of business unit activity.’ The page includes photographs of corporate headquarters and fun-loving employees from different backgrounds. Their overall message is: ‘You can enjoy work and life in and outside the office.’ In this way, Kodak speaks to people about their location and environment.

However, do not link to an external site to do this. Although Vince Ryan suggests that you utilize ‘as many hypertext links as possible to other sites and relevant corporate site pages,’ if someone follows a link away from your site, nothing guarantees their return. You do not want to send your potential candidates somewhere else! We believe that your employment page should be as ’sticky’ as possible. Include details of employment benefits, your organization’s vision, relevant and incisive news, white papers, perhaps even games. Offer opportunities for people to provide feedback. Hold online surveys. Track applicants, perhaps by asking them to register in a pop-up. In this way you can monitor traffic, compile raw data (for your talent pool), and determine how many hires you have actually made from this resource that operates 24/7 - without you being there.

A few more examples: Procter and Gamble ran an optional survey/questionnaire via a pop up in April 2006. Interested people could complete the multiple choice questionnaire and were then directed back to the careers page. Here P&G explained their vision, their purpose, values and principles: ‘The core of our PVP [company principles] is personal integrity, respect for the individual and doing what is right long-term. The high caliber of people we hire ensures that our PVP will continue to be the foundation for every action we take and every product we make, now and in the future.’ They explain that this ‘began before 1837, when P&G started making candles.’ P&G is instilling the importance of their values in prospective candidates, as well as some of their history. Over 90 percent of applicants make use of information from companies’ websites for their interviews, so the information you include can be critical.

Exxon focuses on communicating their employer-employee bond with visitors to the site, before it is even forged. They marry their beliefs, enduring responsibilities, and commitments with those of applicants when they write: ‘You have beliefs and values that are core to who you are. ExxonMobil adheres to a set of guiding principles that define who we are. An integral part of those guiding principles is our commitment to set an example. Over the years, we have repeatedly earned our rankings as a top-rated Fortune 500 company by flawlessly executing our business plans and by strictly adhering to our business ethics and standards. By having every employee commit to our standards of business conduct in everything that they do, you can count on us being in those top Fortune 500 ranks again next year… and the year after that…. and the year after that… We think that ExxonMobil is a company that you can be proud of.’ Their honed communication strikes up an instant relationship, even though the meeting has only taken place on a web page.

Sprint realized that career pages do not attract a specific age demographic, and created a specific page for retirees to log in. They have obviously understood about the brain drain that will take place in the coming few years. They announce that ‘Sprint is committed to its employees, potential, current and retired. We believe that when employees retire from employment at Sprint they continue to be core contributors to the organization. Our retirees reflect the core values of Sprint and instill a sense of pride in our communities.’ We should all be mindful of the diversity of the employment pool, and that the fastest growing segment of internet users in the US are aged 55 and over.

Many of us continue to rely on traditional hit-or-miss sourcing. We post on the wrong job boards, we neglect to speak to diverse populations, we ignore the incredible data on the internet, and we put out bland, disengaging careers pages. It is time for recruiters, staffing professionals, and hiring managers to embrace change and take advantage of what the internet truly has to offer. If we are to position ourselves at the forefront in the war for talent, we need to understand that it is not business as usual. Almost everyone in the US has access to the WWW, whether it is at home, at work or elsewhere. Everyone is looking, so have some aces up your sleeves.