Social Networking for Referrals

The New York Times recently ran an article regarding an upswing in the trend of hiring from internal referrals. “Some, like Ernst & Young, the accounting firm, have set ambitious internal goals to increase the proportion of hirings that come from internal referrals. As a result, employee recommendations now account for 45 percent of nonentry-level placements at the firm, up from 28 percent in 2010,” states Nelson Schwartz. Source  Firms that focus on the extended networks of their workforce can hone in on a pool of candidates similar to proven employees.  Employees know the culture of the organization and can instinctively reach out to peers, former coworkers and former classmates who would be a good fit.  Referrals hired into a firm also will possess an established contact/mentor that can help them quickly acclimate to the new workplace, a coworker who will encourage the new hire’s development, be a best friend at work, and care about them as a person.  All of these pros lead to a more fully engaged worker and improve retention.

Facebook recently announced a new tool, Graph Search, to allow users to filter connections through, “four main areas: people, photos, places, and interests.”  Source   Talent acquisition professionals could, in theory, utilize this innovation to source with pinpoint accuracy candidates from a specific geographic area, hometown, school, employer, and tenure.   HR leadership has a significant task to stay organized and efficient with new advances in social media tools and the increasing variety of social networks to track as the talent landscape continues to grow organically. 

Join HCI this February 26 for the webcast, Building Talent Communities Through Social Media: It’s Who You Know, as thought leader and CEO of DCR Workforce, Ammu Warrier, debates the value of a firm’s social brand and effective ways to reach internal networks.