Companies and recruiters across the country have been urged to turn to the social media in their quest to employ workers that will fit their needs.
Recruitment experts said this at a session on ‘Social media: Transforming the recruitment landscape,’ which was organised in Lagos by ReQit Limited and LinkedIn.
The Chief Executive Officer, ReQit Limited, Mr. Ken Okolo, explained that the aim of the session was to create awareness of talent solution among recruiters and companies in the country.
He said, “Today’s session is to help recruiters realise that the recruitment landscape is changing. The traditional way of sourcing for talent is not yielding the desired results and it is time to try new channels, particularly social media.
“So, this session is just providing the background and the framework of just how recruiters can do that, particularly using LinkedIn’s range of talent solutions.”
In using social media for recruitment, Okolo stressed that there were many tools companies should consider.
He said, “A big tool has to be your employment brand. How do people perceive you as an employer? Do they think you have a strong employment brand? Do they know what your employment value proposition is?
“Can I say, for instance, that if I work for XYZ company, I will be able to have a good work-life balance and my retirement package is certain? These are things that attract people, but how do I know it? It is only when the company promotes itself as an employer.”
The Enterprise Account Executive, LinkedIn, EMEA, Suzanne McGettigan, said not only could the platform help companies recruit needed members of staff at a more affordable rate, it could also help them to promote their companies and drive traffic to their websites.
McGettigan, who observed that many people update their LinkedIn profile more regularly than they do their resume, said companies could save cost and time by adopting the LinkedIn Corporate Recruiter.
This, she explained, was because using the site, companies, especially those without human resource facilities, could target candidates with relevant jobs automatically.
To do this, however, she said the companies had to be on LinkedIn.
On the reaction of Nigerian companies to the social media as a recruitment platform, Okolo said, “A few have made the adjustment. Quite naturally with change, there is always resistance; so, quite a few other companies have said, ‘Do we really need this now?’
“That is a typical challenge, and really, that is why today’s event was held to let recruiters know that LinkedIn can be a critical part of their recruitment tools.”
He expressed optimism that over time, more recruiters would come to rely on the social media.
“I think that from the responses today, you can tell that a number of recruiters found it quite insightful; a number of them have said to me already that ‘we need to talk.’ So, I think that events like this will drive awareness,” he said.