Recruitment and Social Media - Special Academic Support

Do you need this or any other assignment done for you from scratch?

We assure you a quality paper that is 100% free from plagiarism and AI.

You can choose either format of your choice ( Apa, Mla, Havard, Chicago, or any other)

NB: We do not resell your papers. Upon ordering, we do an original paper exclusively for you.

NB: All your data is kept safe from the public.

Use of social media tools for recruitment by employers

One of the most important activities that help organizations in creating a great workforce is the recruitment process. Employers in the contemporary world use various tools and strategies when recruiting individuals for their workforce (Broughton et al. 2013). One such strategy that is commonly used by employers is social media. Over the last couple of years, social media sites have grown exponentially due to the high number of people with access to the internet and digital devices. Employers use social media for recruitment due to various reasons. First, social media allows employers to get unprecedented access to a large number of people who are looking for jobs (Kate 2009). The online community has grown a lot over the last decade, thus making it easier for employers to recruit employees through social media. Also, social networking sites allow employers to interact directly with potential candidates without creating the need for one-on-one interaction (Allen 2007). In addition, this is an effective strategy to hire young people as they prefer doing most of their transactions online. Second, employers use social media in recruiting because it doubles up as a marketing strategy (Broughton et al. 2013). According to the subjective factor theory of recruitment, employers who create recruitment profiles on various social networking sites have an added advantage because people who visit their profile looking for jobs tend to learn a few things about their products and services. The use of social media helps an organization to expand its market presence and strengthen the brand because more people will be in touch with their activities (Kate 2009).

The third reason as to why employers choose to recruit using social media is the speed and efficiency associated with communication on social networking sites (Madia 2011). Communication on social networking sites is instant and open, a factor that can help an employer to recruit a highly qualified individual within a short period of interaction. Communication on social media is also an effective strategy that employers can use to find candidates of striking appropriateness and pertinence by simply going through the profiles of individuals that show their interest in a particular job (Madia 2011). Research has established that the ability of employers to get additional information about potential candidates contributes to the efficiency of the recruitment process. The information provided in an individuals profile on social media can be used to determine their personality. Research has established that social media is a very resourceful strategy that employers can use to hire highly qualified personnel as long as they use it appropriately (Broughton et al. 2013). Some of the unique strategies and tools used by employers to recruit employees using social media include podcasting, blogging, text messaging, Facebook posts, and viral marketing (Allen 2007).

Employers use social media for recruitment in two major ways. First, they can publicize vacancies through their social media profiles (Madia 2011). This strategy involves an employer creating profiles in various social networking sites where people create profiles to attract potential employers. Second, they can use social media to acquire background information about a potential candidate (Madia 2011). This ideally used by many employers across the world, it still plays a crucial role in various stages of the recruitment process. Some employers use social media to shortlist candidates that will attend an interview, while others use the tool to determine the candidate to hire (Segal 2014). Research has established that extra information such as ones age, religious beliefs, political views, hobbies, sexuality, cultural beliefs, and photos shared on social networking sites can be used by employers to assess the personality of a potential candidate (Broughton et al. 2013). According to the subjective factor theory of recruitment, this plays a crucial role in identifying digital natives and immigrants because social media is also an important element of most contemporary workplace (Allen 2007).

Some of the common social media tools used by employers in recruitment are social networking sites such as Facebook, MySpace, LinkedIn, and Twitter, as well as blogs (Segal 2014). These tools are common among employers because they have a large number of users and also are easy to use. One of the most important things that employers ought to consider when using social media is the need to create profiles with a professional outlook (Bulik 2008). This helps potential employees to identify with the employer and take their job postings with the required seriousness. The use of social media as a recruitment strategy is widely used in various parts of the world (Bulik 2008). For example, several recruitment agencies in the Middle East hire employees on behalf of their clients through social media. A good example is Carter Murray, an employment agency that recruits individuals for marketing and sales jobs for clients across the Middle East. Another example is Robert Walters, a recruitment agency that is also involved in researching various elements that influence human resource management in the region.

Risks and opportunities that employers associate with using social media for recruitment

One of the essential elements that define the success of recruitment through social media is the ability of both the employer and potential employees to balance the risks associated with the process. Employers that use social media to recruit individuals into their workforce associate the practice with some risks and opportunities (Bulik 2008). One of the main sources of risks associated with this recruitment strategy is a lack of effective policies in an organization. It is important for organizations intending to use social media as a recruitment strategy to develop policies to guide their hiring managers on the best practices (Allen 2007). The subjective factor theory of recruitment argues that poor training of hiring managers with various social media tools can lead an organization into hiring incompetent and vague individuals. Some people create profiles on social networking sites using false information that can easily misguide hiring managers with little knowledge about the issue. The second risk associated with using social media for recruitment is the possibility of losing out on the most qualified and competent individuals (Broughton et al. 2013). Human resource management experts argue that the cream among potential candidates often chooses to look for employment using the traditional means such as printing and posting their credentials, as they feel employers will take them more seriously (Kate 2009). Also, most employers seeking to recruit such an individual might fail to get them through social media due to the inability to verify certain information. Employers also face the risk of violating the privacy of potential candidates. Research has established that some candidates sue their potential employers when they fail to secure a job by arguing that their privacy on social media was violated (Kate 2009).

Using social media for recruitment is also risky due to issues relating to discrimination of candidates. Human resource management experts argue that it is not possible to have every candidate for a specific job vacancy to be using social media (Andrews 2012). Some people choose not to use social media for various reasons. This can affect their chances of getting employed if an employer chooses to use social media profiles of the candidates to decide the one to be hired. This can be disadvantageous to the employer because the chances of missing out on the most qualified candidates can be very high. Using social media as a recruitment strategy can also create a number of opportunities for the employer (Andrews 2012). Some of the notable opportunities that employers can exploit from this strategy include increased marketing, building the brand, better online presence, better communication with external stakeholders, and reducing the cost of recruiting employees. Research has established that most employers opt to use social media as their preferred tool for recruitment because it requires less input of financial resources and human labor, thus cutting down on the cost of operation (Broughton et al. 2013). In addition, it helps an organization to develop realistic goals from the comments, responses, and recommendations made by various online users.

Major conclusions from this study

This study draws a number of conclusions about advising various stakeholders involved in the recruitment process. They can use various strategies to maximize on the potential opportunities and minimize the effects of associated risks. First, employees and potential employers need to avoid sharing passwords to social media profiles (Andrews 2012). This qualifies as a violation of the privacy policy, as the only information that should be used is the one availed for viewing by the public. Second, line managers in an organization should not be allowed to participate in the recruitment using social media as they may not have full comprehension of the important things to consider. This should be the sole responsibility of human resource managers (Narvey 2009). The subjective factor theory of recruitment argues that it is also important for organizational leaders to understand that using social media as a recruitment strategy can influence a number of positive changes as long as it is used effectively. Third, potential employees should ensure that the information provided in their social media profiles is consistent with the one they provide in case they are asked to send a resume or attend an interview (Kate 2009). One of the biggest undoing by most potential employees recruited though social media is inconsistency in their information, as some create profiles to create an impression. In addition, potential employees need to filter their social media comments, as most employers use them to assess their character and determine whether they qualify for a certain position or not. Human resource management experts argue that employee representative bodies have a huge role to play about the use of social media as a successful recruitment strategy (Kate 2009). Their main role is to groom and train their clients on the best ways if creating a positive impression through their social media profiles. Social media is a new shift in the market that can improve the efficiency of the recruitment process (Narvey 2009).

References

Allen, D 2007, Web-based recruitment: effects of information, organizational brand, and attitudes towards a web site on applicant attraction, Journal of Applied Psychology, vol. 92, no. 6, pp. 1696- 1708.

Andrews, C 2012, Social media recruitment, Applied Clinical Trials, vol. 21, no. 11, pp. 32-42.

Broughton, A, Foley, B, Ledermaier, S & Cox, A 2013, The use of social media in the recruitment process, Acas, vol.3, no. 13, pp. 1-81.

Bulik, B 2008, Finally find out who LinkedIn users are, Advertising Age, vol.79, no. 42, pp. 12-19.

Kate, S 2009, Recruitment and social media: building an effective online presence.

Madia, S 2011, Best practices for using social media as a recruitment strategy, Strategic HR Review, vol. 10, no. 6, pp. 19-24.

Narvey, J 2009, Lets get social, BC Business, vol. 37, no. 5, pp. 35-37.

Segal, J 2014, Social media use in hiring: assessing the risks, Society for Human Resource Management, vol.59, no. 9, pp. 1-20.

Click Here To Order Now!