Facebook, Twitter, Google and even Talent Communities; it's all about the data!

Thing is, we probably all know this yet, when we talk talent communities of any kind we get all hot under the collar about the conversations, engagement, employer brand blah blah blah. But, we do actually need all these conversations to take place, photos to be uploaded, friends to be found because every action, every conversation, every like - counts. It counts for advertisers which is where Facebook make (some of) their money. But there will be a bigger picture as to how Facebook monetise all of this information; but that's nothing new. For talent communities we need to be thinking much further ahead about the real goal.

Ultimately, the utopia of recruitment is access to the best people exactly when you want them, exactly when they want to be found. Not just skills though, we need to mix in attitude, desire, interest and timing. This is ultimately where the data from external sites such as Twitter and Facebook, added to your own community data really start to add up.

Hogwash maybe but let's see. Like Facebook and Google and Twitter; it's about the data. The things they offer are purely there to get you to do stuff which they save into big data banks of information and monetise.

Don't get me wrong though. The whole point about making the recruitment process more engaging and conversational is of value to both parties but this ultimately to get the best match for job seeker and employer. Of course it is important that unsuccessful job seekers are treated well and they leave with a positive brand experience. If you are a retailer for example, chances are the job seeker is also a customer so they should be treated accordingly. But the same applies to any employer; treat job seekers like customers because one day you never quite know where they will be. Also, there is a good chance these days that they will share their experience with the friends.... you get the point.

But to me it is the rich data that can be collected and used to make the recruitment more amazon like than it is today. G4S are already on that journey offering up jobs that match based on various activities the job seeker has taken. I'm sure there is a lot more besides but we are all just starting that journey. G4S stepped up to the plate, so who's going to join them? More leaders required to start to transform the face of recruitment and make it what we dream of.

So, I am a talent community fan. It's they way that recruitment, marketing, sales, customer support is heading and it's going at 100mph. OK the term may not be one that everyone likes but the concept of better communication, choice of communication and style of communication should not be lost on any of us. Unless of course you live in a cave ;-)

Comments

[Dean]

As one of the guys who designed and developed the TribePad platform that G4S use - I would have to agree ;-)

The Web affords us a great place to really "understand" user activity. We know where they came from, what browser / device they are using, what time of day and day of the week they log on and where from. We know their career history, their education, the search terms they use to look for suitable jobs.

We also know their levels of engagement, within Tribepad and 3rd party sites such as their twitter streams, facebook & linkedin profiles. We also know social they are with the size and shape of their social circle, the level of the work history (blue collar, white collar and executive for example) as well as their aspirations.

We know if they attended a top 250 university but more importantly whether the degree they did was better or worse than a comparable degree at another institution.

We know if they worked at a gloabl 500 business and at what level and renumeration and can see if their career is on an upward or downward path.

We also know that a one size fits all approach to matching is folly. For example, operational / blue collar jobseekers have different needs from executive level job seekers not withstanding the geo-location demands placed on operational people and therefore the algorithms for matching need to reflect not only the taxonomies on a per client basis but also take into account the level of role being sought.

Data is a key enabler for TribePad. It enables us to provide Insight reporting at both a job level (x% of people can to this job from Google, y% also viewed this job etc..) as well as a job seeker (we hired this guy from a google search for HR Managers, this guys reviewed 3 other roles before applying for this one and getting an interview, this guy is based in the UK but looking at roles in the USA so therefore looking to move ) level.

The larger the data set the more complex the problem domain but the greater the levels of detail in reporting. Throw in real-time analysis as opposed to daily reporting and your problem domain grows exponentially. Then being able to digest that data into meaningful informaation that the business can act upon compounds it yet again ;-)

Moreover, if your not working in the realms of social, mobile, local or real-time your already behind the times and your likely to continue to fall behind.

In Summary, Data is key but information that the recruiter / business can act upon is everything!

Dean

[Peter Gold]

Dean

Agree re final comment. Step 1 - get the data. (check) Step 2 - make it useful. (working on it)

The more data you have the more value you can give; or so say Foursquare et al!

Peter