Thanks to Dr. John Sullivan for sharing the 13 Trends In Corporate Recruiting for 2009 which inspires me to write about the latest trends in recruitment which small and medium size companies can easily adopt and can reduce their cost several folds. Major recruitment trends that are in voyage are as follows.

1- Poaching/Raiding

Buying talent” (rather than developing it) is the latest mantra being followed by the organisations today. Poaching means employing a competent and experienced person already working with another reputed company in the same or different industry; the organisation might be a competitor in the industry. A company can attract talent from another firm by offering attractive pay packages and other terms and conditions, better than the current employer of the candidate. But it is seen as an unethical practice and not openly talked about. Indian software and the retail sector are the sectors facing the most severe brunt of poaching today. It has become a challenge for human resource managers to face and tackle poaching, as it weakens the competitive strength of the firm.

2-E-Recruitment 

Many big organizations use Internet as a source of recruitment. E- recruitment is the use of technology to assist the recruitment process. They advertise job vacancies through worldwide web. The job seekers send their applications or curriculum vitae i.e. CV through e mail using the Internet. Alternatively job seekers place their CV’s in worldwide web, which can be drawn by prospective employees depending upon their requirements. Advantages of recruitment are Low cost, No intermediaries, Reduction in time for recruitment
Recruitment of right type of people and Efficiency of recruitment process.

3-Headhunting

Recruiters rely on Headhunting through which they can target even passive candidates and try convincing them. This is usually done for senior levels as they prefer to be invisible in job boards but looking for a suitable opportunities.

4-Employee branding

Organizations are focusing on their employee branding to create more visibility in the market and to attract key talent. This includes publicity through media, internet, arranging various events and actively taking social responsibilities.

5-Referral programs

Practicing Employee referrals is always a win-win situation. Firstly, it gives the employee to suggest right talent in the form for friends. Secondly, This reduces the cost to the company as they avoid external vendors and give more importance to the internal references from the employees. Such employees are rewarded financially and that helps in retaining the existing talent and at the same time bringing the best fit with minimum cost. Also companies are showing interest in bring back the ex-employees.

6-Employee blogs for recruiting

It is easy to find a person with right skills as there is enough talent in the market. But choosing the best fit is a challenge as there is high competition. Along with the skills, person needs to be smart, should have good ownership skills and should stand out in the crowd. Such people are enthusiastic and participate in most of the activities online and offline. Companies look for their such visibility apart from the regular activities. Such identity through blogs or online visibility will definitely attracts the hiring manager.

7-Mobile-phone recruiting

It’s another latest trend which helps to reach the crowd quickly. There are lots of new features available for mobile communication such as text messaging, video message etc.

8-Social Gathering

Participation in different external conferences and competitions to identify the similar talent available in the market. Sharing the business cards for future references.

Although using social networks as a recruiting source has been a well-discussed concept for a while, few firms have found productive ways to truly leverage social media sites. However, as new approaches are developed that more accurately align with the paradigm of social media audiences, recruiting on social networks will become more mainstream. Focus areas include encouraging your employees to be more visible online and using networks to identify innovators. Key networking sites include Facebook (global), MySpace (global), Friendster (global), LinkedIn (global), Twitter (U.S.), Multiply (Asia), Mixi (Japan), Cyworld (Korea), and Xiaonei (China). Firms to watch: E&Y, Zappos, CIA, Yum Brands, Google, and Facebook.

While it may be hard for some to fathom, 1:1 and 1:many video has become a very popular communication medium, surpassing all other forms of Internet traffic. Second only to employee referrals, the most impactful tool for effectively demonstrating the excitement and passion at a firm is online video. If a picture is worth a thousand words, then moving pictures demonstrating what it’s like to work at your firm would have to be “priceless.” Focus areas include posting on video-sharing sites such as YouTube (global), Youku.com (China), and sharing employee-generated “unscripted” videos on your corporate site. Firms to watch: Deloitte, Microsoft, and Google.

As mobile phones with amazing features spread throughout the population, recruiting managers are beginning to realize that they can be a powerful recruiting media. Key focus areas include text messaging, mobile video, and mobile-accessible corporate careers sites. Firms to watch: Google and nearly any firm in Asia!
Revitalizing corporate jobs page. Recruiting managers are beginning to understand that pitifully dull and dated websites drive away innovators. Focus areas include providing personalized information to the visitor, Flash video integration, blogs, podcasts, and virtual Q&As. Firms to watch: Microsoft, Google, and Deloitte.
Using a CRM model for hiring. I’ve been touting the values of the CRM (customer relationship management) model for years. More firms are beginning to understand the value of improving the experience at each “touch point” with the candidate. Key focus areas include relationship recruiting, automated applicant profiling, automated event calendaring, and robust lifecycle metrics. Firms to watch: U.S. Army, GlaxoSmithKline, and E&Y.

14-Hiring innovators

Rapid product copying and the high visibility of innovative firms like Apple and Google are forcing recruiting managers to modify recruiting processes in order to successfully recruit innovators and game changers. Key focus areas include relationship recruiting, pre-need hiring, and tolerant/inclusive screening and interviewing processes. Firms to watch: IBM and Google.

15-Recruiting globally

Recruiting managers are beginning to learn how to differentiate multi-national recruiting from true global recruiting. Key focus areas include global sourcing, globalized websites, and globalized employer referral programs. Firms to watch: Infosys and IBM.