Originally posted on the SmashFly Intern Blog

“During the next 12 months, 39 percent of companies will add staff, compared to 25 percent that will downsize” and “companies will view human capital primarily as an asset rather than a cost”. I reading that in an article written on Talent Management called, Beg, Borrow or Steal, by Mick Collins, Bill Gilmyers and Duncan Scott that cited a January 2010 PricewaterhouseCoopers survey of 1,198 CEOs. What does this mean for recruiters whose specific task is to find top-talent for their companies? There are two keys from a recruitment marketing perspective to attracting top-talent to your firm rather than losing them to another company.

1. Candidate engagement: If you want to attract quality candidates to your company you have to make it a desirable place to work. Just posting a generic ad on a job board isn’t going to work any more. You have to develop new ways to engage candidates and present your company as a fun place to work. Producing web commercials and other video content will attract candidates to your company even if the video isn’t about marketing a specific position but offers a unique perspective on the company or gives it personality. I included examples in a previous blog post.
2. Recruitment Metrics: You have to meet talent on the internet, at websites they visit to look for jobs. Real-time recruitment metrics provides recruiters with data to make informed decisions based on the search habits of top-candidates. Meeting candidates at places they go to is much more efficient and cost effective than posting everywhere and hoping that you’ll find the right candidate. Furthermore, decisions based on real-time data are more informed and effective than basing decisions on the previous week, month or quarter.