This recession
has battered everyone, recruiters, job candidates and employers alike; but the
smart players in the industry are still looking to the future even while they
fight to survive. And part of
being prepared to dominate in the future of recruiting is understanding the trends
and changes that could be coming down the pipeline. Below are a few changes
that the recruiting industry may experience in the not too distant future:
1.
The
demand for personalization. Currently,
the way recruiters interact with job candidates is pretty standardized. But as social media becomes more
integrated into our work lives, the demand for personalization will rise. Job candidates will begin to expect
communication from recruiters that is specifically tailored to their unique
skills and experience. And this process will probably be automated where a
database “talks” to a job candidate’s virtual resume matching jobs to their
specific skills and experience without the candidate doing anything to “search”
for those jobs.
2.
The
need for targeting and developing internal talent. Some of the greatest companies such as IBM and Proctor &
Gamble became great because they had the ability and desire to identify and
develop talent from inside their company.
In the future, more recruiters may be asked to use their skills to
recruit internally first before looking for talent outside of a company. Once
again, this may be aided by the use of virtual resumes and databases or search
engines which help to identify qualified internal talent.
3.
The
need for sales and marketing skills.
Recruiters will be called upon more to use their sales skills to attract
top talent. Good help is still
hard to find, even in a recession.
That’s why the ability to sell a job candidate on the value of a
particular company over others will be a very valuable skill in the future of
recruiting.