The Effect and Usefulness of Social Networking in Recruitment Process - Literature review Example

Are social networking sites useful for recruitment? (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn) The Effect and usefulness of social networking in recruitment process: A literature review Name Tutor Course Date Recruitment Lim (2002) argues that recruitment is an important process for organizations that gained momentum at the end of the 1980s and beginning of 1990s. It is a form of business competition that companies engage in as they seek to out edge each other in the current competitive business environment. In the modern era, recruitment has become part of Human Resource Management for organizations since it involves soliciting and contacting potential employees to see whether its appropriate to appoint them (Foot & Hook, 2008). According to Hayes (2013), recruitment is an act that involves finding the right people and is closely related to selection since both processes are aimed at getting employees with the right attitudes and competencies. In order to initiate recruitment process, a job must be advertised so that potential candidates can be attracted to that position (Breaugh & Starke, 2000). There are several recruitment methods that organizations use to choose their employees and they range from local newspaper adverts, billboards, recruitment agencies among others that have existed since time immemorial. The latest form of recruitment is online recruitment that entails the use of social networking sites such as Facebook, twitter and linkedln among other methods (Brown & Vaughan, 2011; Galanaki, 2002; Marler, 2009). Legal issues in recruitment Organizations have considerable freedom in selecting the people they choose based on their preferences, however, legislation tend to play a significant role in overseeing the recruitment process. Among the things that touches on the legality of recruitment process mainly touches on age, sex, race, and disability among others (Fu, 2007). Governments are introducing increased legislation concerning recruitment process mainly to protect the rights of its citizens against exploitation of the business community. Ethical issues in recruitment Houghton and Joinson (2010) argues that ethical issues that surround the recruitment process are important factors that must be considered by any organization, lest they interfere with their integrity. However, in recent times, ethical dimensions of human resource have been downplayed in literature leading to, moving to emphasis on strategic it and best practice. To ensure good ethical standards, the tone set by recruitment team is very important since it represents the attitude of their organization together with its members (Decker, 2006). Social networking sites The growth rate of social networking sites is very high since twitter posted a growth rate exceeding 1300% within very few years of operations (Caers & Castelyns, 2010). Very many people are actively involved in social networking sites since they are expected to host more than 130 million users by the end of 2007. This number is ever on the increase since today, Facebook alone boasts over 200 million members. Schepps and Schepps (2010) also concurs that twitter, LinkedIn and other social networking sites also boast millions of users in their network. Due to this ever increasing numbers of users, the social networking sites have become a good source of marketing companies that have extended to recruitment purposes (Papacharissi, 2009; Parry & Wilson, 2009). Characteristics of social networking sites Social networking sites support a large volume of networks that may be impossible to provide using other platforms in communication (Bulik, 2008). These sites enable strangers to meet online based on interest that usually range from political, economic and social views. Social networking sites usually differ on information and communication tools they offer that range from mobile connectivity, blogging, and photo or video editing. Online recruitment Online recruitment entails the process of sourcing job information online and there is continuous growth in recruiting jobs using this method. The working generation of this new millennium is best connected online and thus, it is essential for organizations to have an effective recruitment strategies that can take advantage of this. There are no philosophical differences between old media and online recruitment and as such, an organization that want to get the best talent form the market should consider a mix of these methods. However, other studies show that online recruitment is able to produce many suitable candidates s traditional methods since recruiters have a large talent pool to choose from (Marler, 2009). Benefits of online recruitment The main aim of recruitment is to obtain the best talent possible at a very cost effective way (Decker, 2006). The use of online recruitment is able to provide this to organizations since social networking sites have millions of best talents around the world. Social networking sites create savings from job awareness, candidate selection and loss of productivity due to less time it takes to complete such a process. Social networking sites provided improved results in the recruitment process from the internet mostly attracts the young, computer literate and educated people who are beneficial to the development of a company. Recruitment that uses social networking sites is highly promoted by the human resources team based on the belief that it can generate up to 30% of HR time for strategic issues (Foot & Hook, 2008). Since social networking sites apply the use of the internet, its possible to reach millions of people drawn from diverse cultures and institutions that are beneficial to organizations. Business oriented social networking sites offers a good source of information to passive job seekers who are equally important to recruiters. Human resources professionals always reiterate that passive job seekers represent an untapped pool of potential candidates who usually offers stable employees to organizations (Breaugh & Starke, 2000). Demerits of social networking sites as a recruitment tool One of the shortcomings of the social networking sites is that limits applicant audience since the internet is not always the first choice (Paparachissi, 2009). In some instances, there is an overload in application since the numbers of users are many thus attracting a large pool of applicants. Since not everyone uses the internet, the potential applicant with very good qualifications and lack membership in the social networking sites are likely to be locked out. Hayes (2013) also argues that the process of online recruitment sometimes becomes impersonal and impacts the cultural fit dimension of recruitment. In some instances, this type of recruitment can turn off people when technical errors occur. Recruitment on social networking sites The reach of social networking sites is getting huge everyday and due to this, it offers companies with the capability to raise their profiles, communicate directly with their clients, create a natural web link back to their stage and engage in free marketing that is beneficial for their business. Most business executives have realized that there is value in using social networking sites as a source of information that they need from their potential employees in their company (Bulik, 2008). Business orient social networking sites also provide instant credibility to a professional profile, with referrals and recommendations of their potential employee, thus aiding recruiters make tangible decisions. Recruitment on social networking sites are not very complicated since it capitalizes on the availability of the internet and ease of entry that eliminate intermediaries (Brown & Vaughn, 2011). Companies that wish to enjoy the use of social networking sites must be ready to have a greater investment of their time, understanding, commitment, and authenticity for them to build meaningful relationships and communities. The power of social networking sites is also viewed on their ability to attract passive job seekers (Houghton & Joinson, 2010). Social networking sites offer a rich source of information to individuals that are currently employed hence not seeking a career change and these are the most preferred persons by the HR professionals. It also enables the HR professionals to follow up the candidate through looking at his friends, pictures, videos, and messages ensure that that have the right person for the job (Juusola, 2010). Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn These are some of the most popular social networking sites that has witnessed a considerable amount of recruitment from various organizations. There are several employers’ who are currently using Facebook for the purposes of recruitment by using the features provided in the online virtual networking platform. Facebook is a social networking site where users can join networks organized by school, workplace, community or region and interact accordingly as they share information and experiences (Decker, 2006). Facebook offers all kinds of services to its members, even though, the basic features are provided by the host organization since it host over 30, 000 applications. Several companies put set up their Facebook page on their social networking site to enable them to market their company and share any information that is related to their goods and services. Through their Facebook account, a company is able to post important information regarding the recruitment process, qualification and particular dates for interviews to potential job seekers. The employers provide a link on the company Facebook page, which navigates to the official career page of the companies and provides the candidates with the details on the company and the recruitment details. Twitter is a social networking site that stands above the rest due to its easiness since it does not give any advanced sharing tolls to its users. The tweets appear in the profile page of the users and these features are utilized by the companies in the area of recruitment. Notifications of the recruitment process and job related vacancies can easily be published by a company on their twitter page. It also provides a platform whereby the company can easily respond to queries of potential job seekers through a smooth flow of tweeted information (Marler, 2009). The job seekers who are not interested in the job notifications would pass on the message in the form of tweets to their acquaintances those who may develop interest in such positions. LinkedIn is a fast growing social networking site whereby a new member is received almost every second. This is a purely business related social networking tool used for communicating in the professional sphere by individuals and organizations (Caers & Castelyns, 2010). The users maintain a list of contacts in their LinkedIn profiles, which are known as connections. These connections provide a wider reach to the users in setting up contacts with the various professionals and the business entities and in getting important updates on the kind of job they aspire to have. The users of LinkedIn are able to obtain useful information on the various employment opportunities, business events due to the free flow of information among professionals. Human resource professionals are very efficient in using this social networking site as they are able to spend less effort in terms of time and money to search the required talent for the organization. Features of LinkedIn enable the employers to search for the right talent and the candidates also get the information on the employer that allows them to choose the right workplace. Social network age distribution Diagram of age distribution across social network sites (Source: Pingdom) More than one quarter of social networking site users are between the ages of 35 to 44 years old. At the same time, the older generation who are aged 65 and above rarely use the social networking sites since they are represented by a mere 3% of the total users. From the figure above it is also evident that most people who use social networking sites are between the ages of 25 to 54 years old. It is also true that this age group is mainly represented by those who have completed their education and are either working or seeking jobs. People who are above 65 years old are not common in social networking sites and most of them have either retired or are in their last stages of their careers, hence does not need recruitment services. Diagram of age distribution according to social network sites (Source: Pingdom) According to age distribution per site, it is evident that Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn command a good number of users mainly in the 35 to 44 year bracket. It is evident that 61% of all Facebook users above 35 years of age. From the above tables, it is true that most users of social networking sites comprise the working class and thus, recruitment targeted at online networking sites is likely to beneficial for the company. References Breaugh, J. & Starke, M. 2000. Research on Employee Recruitment: So Many Studies, So Many Remaining Questions, Journal of Management (JofM), 26(3), 405 – 434. Brown, V. R., & Vaughn, E. D. 2011. The writing on the (Facebook) wall: The use of social networking sites in hiring decisions. Journal of Business and Psychology, 26 (2), 219-225. Bulik, B. 2008. Finally, find out who LinkedIn users are. Advertising Age, 79 (42), 12. Caers, R. and Castelyns, V. 2010. “LinkedIn and Facebook in Belgium: The Influences and Biases of Social Network Sites in Recruitment and Selection Procedures”, Social Science Computer Review, Sage Publications. Decker, J. 2006. “Online Self Reported Information: Facebook a Hiring Tool for Businesses.” MS thesis, Iowa State University. Foot, M.; Hook, C. 2008. Introducing Human Resource Management, 5th ed. Edinburg: Pearson Education Limited Fu, F., L. 2007. Empirical analysis of online social networks in the age of the Web 2.0, Physica A, Vol. 378, No. 2/3, pp. 678-85. Galanaki, E. 2002. The decision to recruit online: a descriptive study, Career Development International, Vol. 7 No. 4, pp. 243-51. Houghton, D. J., & Joinson, A. N. 2010. Privacy, social network sites, and social relations. Journal of Technology in Human Services, 28 (1-2), 74-94. Hayes, P. 2013. The benefits and challenges of leveraging social media recruitment practices. Germany: GRIN Verlag. Juusola, T. 2010. Recruitment & Social Networking. The Future for International Recruitment Agency A, Thesis in International Business, Degree Programme in International Business, Lahti University of Applied Sciences Lim, V. K. G. 2002. The IT way of loafing on the job: Cyberloafing, neutralizing and organizational justice. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 23(5), 675-694. Marler, J., H. 2009. Making human resources, strategic by going to the Net: reality or myth?, The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 20: 3, 515 — 527. Papacharissi, Z. 2009. The virtual geographies of social networks: A comparative analysis of Facebook, LinkedIn and ASmallWorld, New Media & Society, 11, 199-220. Parry, E.; Wilson, H. 2009. Factors influencing the adoption of online recruitment, Personnel Review, Vol. 38, No. 6, pp. 655-673. Pingdom. 2014. Study: Ages of social network users. Available at: http://royal.pingdom.com/2010/02/16/study-ages-of-social-network-users Schepp, B.; Schepp, D. 2010. How To Find A Job on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, MySpace and Other Social Networks, NewYork: The McGraw-Hill Companies. Appendix The following are the most important references for this topic Schepp, B.; Schepp, D. 2010. How To Find A Job on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, MySpace and Other Social Networks, U.S.A.: The McGraw-Hill Companies. Hayes, P. 2013. The benefits and challenges of leveraging social media recruitment practices. Germany: GRIN Verlag. Galanaki, E. 2002. The decision to recruit online: a descriptive study, Career Development International, Vol. 7 No. 4, pp. 243-51. Read More