Digital Recruiting

Some desk based nostalgia and reflection

I’m currently doing a bit of office life laundry. Clearing out a desk after 6years, even with two office moves and an additional desk move or two along the way, throws up some interesting items.

Thought I’d share some things I’ve learnt, thoughts I’ve had and questions that have been raised by this whole episode:

1. As my own boss will I ever again need an “emergency tie”? Sure I’ll attend meetings where it may be advisable to ensure first impressions are smart and possibly even formal - but I’m not so sure that I need a tie to make a good account of myself, especially at a meeting called last minute at the behest of a client (potential or existing).
   
2. Shared wisdom is that vitamin pills don’t really go bad / off - watch this space for updates as to whether some labelled best before 01-07 have any noticeable side effects.
   
3. Secret Santa is a lovely idea - but if it gets to February and the thing is still in your desk then don’t worry about hurting that persons feeling and bin the flippin thing! If you haven’t done it by the following December then be environmentally conscious and recycle it for someone new to your particular Secret Santa network and donate your fiver to charity.
   
4. Unlike vitamin pills my recommendation is to pay attention to best before dates on chewing gum. (just trust me on that!)
   
5. I must set about creating a knowledge based wiki for my business before it’s too late and a real effort to do so - so much good stuff has literally been gathering dust on or around my desk or fading as a clipping on the wall next to me. As we work in a knowledge based economy then assimilating what we know and making time to revisit it & keeping it fresh (whilst continuing to learn new and different things of course) has to be pretty damned important, but easily overlooked.
   
6. I’ve been reminded why my first Digital Hire at ThirtyThree got the job. Printed proof reading / attention to detail tests are still a very valid means of assessing junior recruits - well done Mario.
   
7. Where the hell did that time go? Just looking at the photos tell their own tale of the passing years and it’s alarming how this has all been in just a blink of an eye - but nice to be reminded of the memories and a good opportunity to remind myself to ensure making new ones is an absolute priority.

But as a bit of fun - and with the relatively fresh news that one of the industry's nicest and longest standing media guys, I refer of course to Justin Wakeham, has moved on to see if he can teach those yanks a trick or two at CareerBuilder - I thought I’d put a challenge out there. Who’s got the Justin full set of business cards? I’ve got:

• GoJobsite (ahhh - the heady days when life was simple and Havant & Tiptree were the centre of the online recruitment industry)
• Monster
• RetailChoice & CWjobs.co.uk - combined
• Workthing.com - 2 styles of card

Now I know I’m missing one or two (not least the solus CWjobs card - gutted about that), but anyone out there got the full set? I dunno - maybe Justin’s mum is a reader of the blog? Maybe there’s someone else with a collector’s eye / even worse admin than mine.

Or perhaps you have someone else you seem to have tracked (come on - someone’s gotta have a Lister deck that can beat my two?) - or indeed a brand that you’ve seen evolve (I have 3 different styles of Broadbean card - go figure). Go on - give your rolladeck a spin, let the dust settle and take a moment to see which plastic sheath is bulging at the seams ready to burst forth with industry heritage. You know you want to!

The end of the annual CIPD conference? Change just isn't for some people.

At the not so long ago CIPD Guardian recruitment awards I was half involved in a conversation with a bit of a dyed in the wool old styleee agency type and picked up that, well what I thought was being said anyway, the CIPD annual conference was being canned after this year.

I wondered why and what implications for the Recruitment Industry this might have. I’ve only gone twice myself and whilst the social side for agencies is seemingly the reson d’etre, I would have anticipated the days of presentations and networking would surely hold some value for the rank and file (even if the days of the big decision makers attending is probably long passed). Personally I’ve, in recent years, quite enjoyed the Jobsite et al. LondonGate event that has popped up as a bit of an alternative bash for London bound digital types, but I still thought this was quite a big change in the HR & Rec Ad industry calendar.  But I was indeed mistaken by how I read the conversation - it’s Harrogate that’s being canned as the venue in favour of Manchester.

Old news now for many of you reading this I’m sure, but it struck me as a clear illustration as to just how uncomfortable change makes so many people feel, demonstrated in the way that they could talk about “the end of Harrogate” as if the whole thing was coming to an end. Perhaps I just haven’t been enough to get so enamored with the event or venue? Maybe I’m just too un-sentimental? Perhaps sentimentality and / or fear of change is so ingrained in Recruitment and HR land that that’s why digital media in our sector is still not embraced as emphatically and widely as it should be?

But at the same time there’s almost certainly a counter lesson - whilst Digital Natives come on stream in the employment world and more and more Digital Immigrants become assimilated - there’s still a massively significant population who want, and will continue to want, their world to be forever Harrogate once a year. And whilst the march of time and technological progress will reduce their numbers, they’re still target candidates for many an employer. The counter lesson then: Don't forget the mix, that's all.

Anyway - whilst I was pondering this I also recalled  a Joel Cheesman update about what I guess would be America’s equivalent event - SHRM - and one particular one where he covered off some of the entertainment that could be partaken in. I think, and I could be wrong, but didn’t one year the Guardian or Evening Standard dust off Tony Hadley (and this was well before 80s revival was cool). Well check out the headline SHRM headliners from this year:

CareerBuilder with a live concert from Maroon 5.

SHRM presents Lionel Ritchie.

Maroon 5?! The real Lionel “All night long / Dancing on the ceiling / Hello” Ritchie!! Flippin nora. I guess if the Americans know how to do one thing - its splash some cash (recession or no). Maybe with the digital recruitment element continuing to outstrip all other growth in our sector (and as it will continue to do so) we can look forward to Coldplay at LondonGate 2009? Although one thing I am is a realist and so as this is the UK I accept that it’s more likely to be Coldplace.

Just how important is being web savvy these days?

Possibly web savvy is over stating it - but given that the internet is accepted as an immensely disruptive global phenomena, then can you hope to appreciate the potential of it and the speed of change it's enabling if you don’t know how to even use a computer? And how important is that for top jobs - or indeed, THE (debatable) top job?

Picked this up from one of the people I’m following on Twitter (am I becoming a twitter fan? Maybe) and think it raises some very very interesting questions. When considering who should be the next “most powerful person (as things stand) in the world” – surely that person needs to at least be able to “get” why the world has changed over the past 10years and why, at this pace of change, it will be a very different place by the end of a double, possibly even just a single, Presidential term.

And you can argue, I think very well, that if one of the candidates doesn’t even know where the on button is on a computer (despite having what I’m sure would be a “great team of advisors and consultants” etc etc etc) then how can they truly “get” where the world is going to a decent enough degree so as to make some pretty important state and economy leading decisions. Or would a political camp actually concede that the presidential position has actually evolved into not much more than just a figurehead role?

If nothing else – I love the passion of this woman. As I believe the say state side – “you go girl!”.

But bringing this back to recruitment (always good to try and do that on a recruitment blog I think) – I wonder how long businesses can function without having Digital Natives or fully assimilated Digital Immigrants at their very heart of their business. And I mean the very heart. Be that Agency, Consultancy or Recruitment Department in a Blue Chip – it’s definitely time to get with the programme (and you still can - it isn't some dark art), or else get people in places to lead and direct your business who themselves “get”, or indeed "are" the programme.

So – onto the video (borrowed from here):

Mark Soohoo, the deputy internet director of the John McCain, was defending his boss for not personally understanding how to use a computer. Tracy Russo, Soohoo's counterpart on the John Edwards campaign (where she was deputy director of online communication), took issue with Soohoo, and then the fireworks started. Here's the video:

Read more on Tracy’s thoughts here 

 

You heard it here first (possibly) - CIPD Awards - the twit from the twit

OK - Head hurts. Quite a bit. Great night though. Don't know if anyone tined in for teh live event, but as promised here are the twits as they happened.

Crap start. What part of 4pm today is "hopefully by 5.30" for shoe repairers?!

On course again. Now to find @jamieasleonard - whatever state!

Hooked up. Big group. All very respectable. So far. :-)

A gorgeous evening. Last time @ Billingsgate was similar. Infamous Jimmy Carr that night. Here's hoping.

Jamie's secret is out. Clip on tie with one for later to drape. I just feel old - tie tied 1st time :-(

@jamieasleonard is onto his draped bow tie already.is this a good sign?!

Jackie Orme - she says economic slow down is the time for us and business to step up. Hear hear aka bring it on!

Oh dear -8.15 and already terms like "bring it on" are spilling forth. Gonna be a long night!   

Starter - roasted pepper, some houmus and goats cheese. I'm welsh but goats have never done it for me - not a good starter here :-(   

Tables around - monster; mediacomm1; tmp3; tmp4;mediacomm1 - flippin nora - I'm in an enclave!   

Complaint from work employees - not ANY eligible males there. Ask Graeme if this is intentional - difficult question it would seem.   

Beth Rowley backing track for the night. No complaints here.   

Hmm. Hard core twitterring can be bad for your immediate environment - fact. We've only broken the table!   

More breaking industry news. Graeme Wright has never been to the Griffin. That's not an advertising career - it's an existence!   

Steak for main - after table change! - pretty tough, which was a shame. Lewis from Reed vanished. Word is julian clarey is the turn.   

Lewis - he back. Rich choclate mouse for desert. Compact & bijou Maustin - compact & bijou. Nice enough tho.   

Sooooooo. Mark beavan - bristol person locked in the toilet last week. Good networking-.   

And the turn is - - - Shappi Khorsandi. ?? Doing good tho. Tough crowd. - but winning them over.   
"you gonna circumcise your son?" "only if he's really bad" :-D   

And she's done. Short and sweet, but very good. And now - we get . . . . . David Mitchell.   

He's championing the loser - genius! 2/3rds of us tonight will effectively be losers. :-D   

Best general ad - it's claire's Accessories (33). Well that's positive for my last employers :-)   

Best written ad - tmp worldwide - pa to the md.   

Graduate award - qinetiq & aia. One a piece for the awards big names   

Art direction - RBS & TMP (supercar)   

Outdoor award goes to - shell &jwt - can you see through obstacles? I'm thinking I can increasingly   

Digital award - drum roll - Herts Constabulary & Hodes - specials campaign on fish4. Well done media on that particularly   

Literature - paul and 'andsome - More bread mailer. No idea?!   

Best website- ohhhh-- drum roll again - Audit Commission & 33. Well that's nice. Am thinking how different RADS are on evaluating work   

Best campaign - royal opera house & aia.   

Best employer brand - Orange and Wilding Mcardle Wilson   

Best effectiveness - astra zeneca and applied works   

Best diversity - brighton and hove and lawton ware. Nearly there - but quick comment - guess they didn't see the abomination that was the HR campaign for these guys!

And the grand prix is   

Claire's accessories and Bo Selector. Well done 33 and a client who clearly trusted the agency.   

So here's where the Dj kicks in and I check out. Geez it' a tedious undertaking, but as Chrstina plays it's been a interesting experience   

Good night. God bless. Well done 33. Well done CIPD Guardian. And big personal thanks to www.mylonglunch.com

Guardian ADS ad delivery to be switched off

this just came into my email:

After many years of reliable service, the Guardian ADS machines (used for sending us mono ads) are being taken out of commission. The last date we will take ads in this format will be Friday 1 August 2008. Please pass this information on to your production departments.

so why is this statement blog worthy (or at least why did I think it was blog worthy). Well when I started as a mere slip of a thing in Recruitment Advertising @ AIA, ADS was just being brought in - and causing quite a stir as all disruptive technology tends to. Like the bromide machine before it and hot metal press before that, proof that the world revolves and evolves - and much of it for the better.

vive l'evolution.

bye bye ADS - it's good to have you interweb.

The great Twitter - Recruitment Land - CIPD Awards experiment

Or not (if you're confused by the heading - read more here). Seems that with less than 24hours (with just 6 twitter followers of @digitalrecing – and at least 50% I know to be going) I guess we can make a couple of assumptions:

Readers of this blog:

• Are all going to the CIPD awards (?!).
• Aren’t great twitterers.
• Are twitterers but are sulking because they couldn’t get an invite.
• Are twitterers but have a life outside of Rec Ad and are happy to read about the results post event.
• Have better things to do than read a welshman’s increasingly incoherent fat thumbed tweets.
• Leave everything until the last minute and we’ll see a rush of followers signing on in the final hours before it all kicks off.

All very possible, some more so than others – but not one to be influenced by popular opinion (you’d know that if you accessed my iTunes library – or indeed my wardrobe) we’re going to crack on unabated.

As promised – I’ll do my best to keep up with proceedings on the night and then will, as best my faculties will allow, on Friday edit out the truly banal and, if there’s anything left, load onto this blog for general amusement or indeed (probably more likely) mass indifference.

See you there (virtually or in person) or not.

Cheers.

Dangers and Opportunities of the Crowdsourced Company

I think we all generally prefer to try and generate blog posts ourselves rather than just copying – but read this and thought it was simply too pertinent not to share. Have trimmed it a little, and added some of my own thoughts at the bottom, but you can read the whole thing at Web Strategy by Jeremiah_owyang

A new form of the Groundswell has appeared. What’s the Groundswell? We define it as a movement where individuals get what they need from each other, rather from existing institutions. In this case, employees are starting to collaborate, outside of the corporate firewall to connect, share, and learn from each other, here’s a few examples beyond the traditional Yahoo Finance Chat rooms:

Glassdoor: Rate Employers, CEOs, and find out Industry Salaries
This site launched today, although a few of my colleagues were briefed last week. Essentially, to obtain knowledge about company reviews, CEO reviews, and salary information, you have to first submit your information –all anonymously. This stealth startup, which just launched is being discussed on Techcrunch and on Cnet. I just reviewed my former employer to gain access. Essentially, companies are peer reviewed, and you can find out industry averages to see how well you do or don’t measure up to industry peers.

Criticat: Review, Advise and Discuss your employer
This startup, much in the same vein as Glassdoor offers a collaborative view into your company: “Do you feel you have a great solution to a problem in your company but not sure if everyone else will agree with you?”. Essentially, collaboration around company brainstorms happens outside the firewall.

Social Networks: LinkedIn, Xing, Facebook etc.
Of course, it goes without mention that many colleagues are assembling on these social networks, before, during, and afterwork. Some frustrated companies block social networks from their firewalls, while the next generation of workers will simply bypass those shallow walls using mobile devices – the Groundswell is difficult to stop. Instead, brands should lead with policy, embrace, and look for the business opportunities of having a connected workforce.

Dangers and Opportunities of the Crowdsourced Company
The previous examples indicate a trend of what’s happening: The conversations that used to take place at the physical watercooler, has now shifted online, organized, and manifests as something greater. But what are the impacts?

Sometimes false, sometimes inflammatory, and sometimes truthful, yet frustrated sounding information will be posted to these sites from employees, former employees, and customers.

Employees get more control, as their voice will be heard to other colleagues, and in some cases, to the entire internet. Salaries will be puffed, as professionals will seek to demonstrate how much they are valued, I expect salary data to be inaccurate, and inflated.

Candidates will have more bargaining power during hiring process, as they can view not only third party salary.com, but now look at pan-industry salaries –hiring managers and recruiters will refute.
Employees will seek out the hire paying next step job, and develop career-pathing to lead to the larger pot of gold.

Corporations will flinch, and many will setup policies to prevent employees from posting private information outside of the firewall although many of these internal memos will appear within hours on the very sites they seek to stop.

Dissatisfied and passionate employees and customers will assemble on these third party sites to self-support each other, few companies will realize how they need to follow the conversation.

Some savvy brands will get ahead of this Groundswell, and launch their own tools internally and externally, some will successful centralize –then lead –their market conversation.

What other impacts do you see happening from this new pattern of websites that turn power over to employees and customers?

I think that Jeremiah is on the money, as usual, in spotting emerging platforms and trends that are potential landscape changers – and then explaining how. He's just not given it the full consideration that Employer Brand professionals would though – but then that’s not his bag and nor does he profess it is (he’s Product Marketing based so here is straying into “our space”). So whilst he’s focussed on the potential for people using such facilities purely for salary gain, the blunt edge of recruitment and retention, I think those people who get all of this within our space will realise that it’s actually more about e-Employer Brand Management.

Let’s be honest, £5k here or £5k there (pre tax) doesn’t make any much difference (and if you’re a gen pigeon hole subscriber then salary is far less important to GenY than it has been to X or Boomers – although lets see how some economic slow time affects that), however bad recruitment / employee experience (as much as bad customer experience in Jeremiah's experience) has the potential of spreading like wild fire and affecting your potential candidates’ perceptions of working for you. You’ll still generate candidates, sure, but if you're not listening and actively telling your side of the story (as well as ensuring that actually you are a good and / or fair organisation to work for with robust, fair and transparent recruitment processes) then you might just start to find it harder than ever to attract that top talent as word gets out, or at least one strain of your employment truth emerges.

And that’s the point. The digital world broadcasts individual truths – so corporates’ have to get their heads around this and ensure that as well as their employment house being in order (the starting point!) that they are listening, ready and willing to tell me (the potential candidate) their truth.

But remember: that telling of your truth  now happens as a conversation - not a statement.

 

CIPD award twittering – it’s a goer

So despite the underwhelming response to my question about if there was any interest in twittering an awards event – we’re gonna give it a shot anyway. Perhaps Twitts need to be engaged in the twitter space rather than through the blogosphere (or, and probably more likely I concede, perhaps no-one’s really that interested in being a part of the evening if they can’t get horribly drunk at someone else’s expense – sorry – I mean partake first hand in the ambience of the night celebrating the great and the good of our industries creative output), so we’ll see how many followers we get.

But, if you are a Twitt then you’ll need to know that I’ll be covering it under the @digitalrecing profile (I’ve also created a personal one – which seems to have confused the hell out of the Twitter system (freeware – what can you do?!) – but for the event I’ll be going through the one we’ve established just for “official event coverage”).

Big thanks has to go out to Jamie @ mylonglunch who came good with an invite for me (my very own fairy god mother – now there’s a thought to make you shudder). I’m very impressed with how well his business is going that he’s shouting (in terms of paying for – but probably also in terms of “at”) a full table at the event – and I think it’s pretty typical of his forward thinking ways that he’s so excited to have this industry first run from HIS table. Although if we’re honest I reckon he just wanted to concentrate on enjoying himself rather than remembering to Twitter about award results and the like and so was glad to be associated with this without having to stay sober enough to contribute too much himself.

So just to re-cap – CIPD Rec Marketing Awards Event Thursday 19th @ Old Billingsgate. If you can’t be there and want to be (in a very small twitterati sort of way) aware of / part of the proceedings and results then you’ll need to have a Twitter account and make yourself a follower (or something like that – still early days for me) of @digitalrecing.

Don’t expect a lot of activity from that account on an everyday basis – it’s purely set up for twittering at events such as this (if you want to follow “real people” then from this blog then at the moment you’ll be looking for: @mattalder; @carveconsulting; @alexhens). And then as the fuzzy head really kicks in (as I’m sure it will do having opened myself to partake in some of the legendary Leonard hospitality) then I’ll transcribe (well copy & paste) the night’s tweets (potentially with a little editing for “actually, in the light of day…” type political reasons) onto this here blog for all those who attended and wondered what the coverage was like, or equally those who didn’t attend and actually found something better to do with your time than tune in to someone finding his Twitt feet and almost certainly thinking he’s getting funnier and funnier as the night progresses.

It’s all likely to either go horribly wrong or be plain dull – I’ll of course strive for some middle ground – but whether it’s car crash or paint drying you can decide and we’ll then see about trying it at future events.

Oh – and if you’re at the event – then you’ll have to excuse me if I seem to be rude and have my nose in my phone. It’s all in the name of an industry first don’t ya know!

:-D

Using Twitter to cover a major industry event? What say you?

We’ve had this idea and wanted to run it past our readers to find out if there was any appetite for us to trial something using Twitter (if you’ve no idea what’s this is about then read this blog entry).

As many of you I’m sure are aware, June 19th is the night when many within the Recruitment Industry don their black ties (read black or frilly shirt if you’re a ‘creative’ - a kind of uniform that confirms to the industry stereotype without being a conforming uniform(?!)) and slide / squeeze* into that little black dress / some impractical but conversation inducing party frock* (* - delete as applicable). Yes - it’s time for the CIPD Recruitment Marketing Awards.

I’ve recently been reading some of the blogs published on the Guardian’s Blog Forum Organ Grinder, and I’m intrigued by the ones that live blog during TV shows (only the juicy ones that most polarise people and generate debate of course - The Apprentice, Britain’s Got Talent etc). Now personally I try and separate my TV switch off time from my web time (which I understand makes me sooo GenX), but I still have found it interesting (on occasion) to read retrospectively what someone else has thought and picked whilst I was watching a programme.

So it got me thinking - and I know live blogging occurs for many digital related conferences, so I'm not daft enough to think this is a world first, but still quite new to our industry, and I think it could be a first in the UK. As the date of the awards nears, and as I’m no longer a full time employee of an agency, I face the very real prospect of not making it to the ball at all this year :( although I of course have learnt over the years that pride is for lonely stay at homes and so, as so often before, on awards night I have a tux standing by incase some desperate media fairy god mother has some ingrate client/agency contact pull out at the last minute and are just glad to fill the seat). So I thought there are of course plenty of people who don’t get the opportunity to go (or are perhaps too busy this year, or turn ill a few days before, or simply can’t get into that dress and can’t face the stress of having to hunt down another at this late stage) as I’m sure there are as many more who really can’t be arsed to go to all that trouble / schlep down to London, but at the same time they may like to be in just some little way a part of proceedings and get to hear first who’s won what (and whether the compere was so constrained as to be “not as good as they usually are on Have I Got News For You” and whether a cheesy DJ won over live music for the after dinner entertainment).

By the time I had this thought it was far too late to get anything in the way of “official sanctioning” by the Awards Committee, so there’s still the distinct possibility that it may be a no go-er even if there is any interest (would make fun reading though - having someone twittering from the toilet in fear of being forcibly ejected by the security).

So what do you think? I’m not a Twitterer as of yet, but I’d definitely sign up if there’s enough people interested and we can get someone on the inside of the event. Then for all those who aren’t Twits (but also as a just incase - because I’m led to believe Twitter is somewhat a victim of its own success and has a tendency to fall over quite a bit at the moment), we’d post the evenings commentary the next day on this ‘ere blog.

So what say you?

And if you’re one of those people who likes to read this blog but can think of nothing worse than leaving a comment (don’t worry - you’re not alone - about 90% of web users do the same so they say) - then email me at Alex@3DMarComms.com and I’ll compile any thoughts / comments / feedback before we decided whether it’s worth a go.

Go on - let us know what you think. Could be fun. Could be dull as you know what too - but I'd argue that you never know ‘til you try something :-)

Is there such a thing as too much streamed video?

You Tube would tend to indicate probably not - but if there is a saturation point for blog posted videos then I reckon we'll be reaching it pretty soon ;-)

Anyway - saw this from e3unlimited (they're presenting at an event I'm also speaking at at the end of the month - Exploding current myths in Graduate Recruitment) - and whilst it's largely taken inspiration and some content from the "shift happens" video (which it credits), it's still a nice execution of mind blowing stats.

enjoy...