It was my honor to have been asked to kick off the event that seemed to host just over 200 people that came to listen, and talk, about social media, mobile marketing, video blogging and of course, Twitter.  My kickoff was light hearted and an effort to ask participants to do more than just sit and listen.  I asked them to get engaged with the experts presenting and to do so without fear.  After all, isn't it about time that we start moving those great event conversations that happen in hallways and restaurants back into the sessions where we're all gathered together?  It's my opinion that some of the participants took that challenge and ran with it while others still weren't sure what they'd gotten themselves into.  

By the end of the day however, everyone was talking about what they'd learned and how impressed they were with the event.

Of course with well known contributors from our industry like Jenny DeVaughn, Michael Long, Geoff Webb, Stephanie Lloyd, Sarah White and a myriad of others along side Craig, Jim and Marianthe - the "disaster risk factor" involved with encouraging participants to be disruptive was minimal.  These people know their stuff and are genuinely excited to share with others that are eager to listen and engage. In fact, in each of the sessions I had the pleasure of witnessing I found that the best content was delivered when the attendees were permitted to politely take the presentation slightly off course.

What may not have been ideal to some when registering was the lack of Internet connection that would be provided on the premise.  Hey, I'll certainly tell you that I was concerned - after all, who goes to a conference and doesn't have Internet access nowadays?  Well - these folks did.  And in several conversations held afterwards at the Monster.com Tweetup, we all seemed to agree that there was a more genuine focus on engaging with each other and discovering more nuggets of wisdom than might have been found if otherwise trying to constantly stream one-liner updates to the Twittersphere or continually check Facebook for updates.  I certainly left this event wondering if "no Internet" might be the new key to a more engaging event of this scale.  

A few other items that get a head nod...  Diversity of both content and delivery styles was noticeable.  There was purposefully a solid mix of content for both corporate recruiting as well as agency recruiting types.  So regardless of your recruiting background or direction there was most certainly something for everyone.  And while initially I was concerned with the raw and almost amateur vibe that the event had (and thankfully maintained throughout the day) it was realized only moments after Jim and Craig took the stage in the morning that it was a purposeful effort to allow everyone to feel comfortable and view the speakers as peers rather than as unapproachable "experts."

My advice?
Don't miss the chance to attend the next TalentNet Live event.  I suspect these guys will only continue to get better as they continue to grow.  If you're not familiar with the TalentNet Live folks, check out their monthly chats via Twitter or just grab any of the speakers linked within this article for their take on the event and the TalentNet Live organization.

Well done, #TNL team.

We're not just looking for people that want to run the insanity that is the Tough Mudder, mind you.  We're looking for people that, regardless of their opinion on the war or the military, are tough enough to support fellow Americans returning home from combat with injuries ranging anywhere from dismemberment to brain trauma.  As a veteran, these soldiers are my brothers and sisters and will always have my unwaivering support.  But you shouldn't think for a moment that you're not connected to them as well.  I'd challenge you to discover that you've no veterans within your circle of family, friends, co-workers or neighbors. 

Are you tough enough to say, "Thank You!" with as little as a $5 donation?
Are you tough enough to say, "Thank You!" with so much as a 're-tweet' or sharing/liking a post?
Are you tough enough to say, "Thank You!" by joining the Social Mudders group on Facebook and helping with training or motivation for the runners or those helping to raise funds?

We formed the Social Mudders team in an effort to show how much money AND awareness we could raise using 'social channels' like Facebook, Twitter, blogs, and LinkedIn.  And while we'd love to have more runners join the roster and take part in the February 5th event, our hope is that you're simply tough enough to help spread the word and get us towards our goal - however you'd like to help.
You pride yourself on how many Twitter followers you have.  You are constantly working to improve the reach of your LinkedIn network.  You are always interested in making new 'friends' on Facebook.  It's time for some of you to use those connections to do more than just discover how many of you have the same musical tastes or which of you is the best Farmville resident. 

With something like this, where really helping people simply ranges from continually spreading the word to donating a few dollars to taking part in an incredible race.... it isn't about whether or not you have a few dollars to spare... it's about whether or not you're tough enough to join the effort on any level.

So until you do something... anything... I stand by the claim that you just aren't tough enough to be bothered.  Feel free to prove me wrong, wimp.

I say politely because calling someone out on an antiquated or lazy process doesn't have to be like pointing a finger at them and telling them that they're doing something wrong.  I say, "bullshit" because in Texas we don't say, "baloney" - and quite frankly, you're more apt to read an article with the word bullshit in the title.  It's okay... I am too.  So when do we lay down this polite and conservatively obscene call-out that encourages the recipient to get to what matters?  When is it that we ever-so-gently tell a vendor or Recruiter or client or even our leadership that what they're peddling is crap?  Well at the risk of sounding like I don't understand the value of picking my battles, we tell them every single time it matters.  Of course, it's "how" we tell them that keeps anything from becoming a battle at all.

The key to knowing the difference between fear of change and laziness or cultural issues and valid business needs is relevant data.  Valid and relevant data helps us to understand not just what is "wanted" but what is "needed" regardless of the situation or challenge we may be faced with.  It's that search for the data that can often ruffle a few feathers and where care should be taken - especially if we're required to press a bit harder than usual to gain the knowledge we desire.  So here's an example or two that might resonate with more than a few of us...

"We need to recruit from College X because those are the best college hires!" - Vice President of Y (coincidentally a College X Alum)
While we can understand VP of Y's passion for his Alma mater, without proof of this claim or a member of his team willing to say "bullshit," we could be looking at a significant increase in spending on College X campus with a very minimal return.  A simple approach might be to bring back a data sample related to the top college hires brought in over the last year showing your true list of "top schools."  Your judgement call around whether or not to sprinkle in some time on College X is your call - and in all likelihood very dependent on how well you show the ROI around a more strategic and less emotional approach.

"Our number one source of hire is Source 1." - Veteran Recruiter
This is a fantastic thing to know when creating recruitment and recruitment marketing strategies.  Knowing the best source of hire for each type of job or recruiting team is a powerful bit of information to have when making decisions around media buys and budget allocations.  So when a Recruiter or Sourcer makes a claim like this it is important to vet through why Source 1 is their 'numero uno' resource.  Often times many Recruiters are manually tracking sources - and depending on their workloads and volume of candidates this data can get skewed.  Of course there's also the very challenging question we have to ask that Recrruiter, "Is this the number one source of hire for you because it's the best... or because it's the one you use the most?"
With manual tracking or scenarios of "comfortable use," we do our business disservice by not saying "bullshit" and looking for more reliable ways to track hire sources.

"Social Recruiting doesn't work." - Skeptical Recruiter/Sourcer
 We've all met and/or heard of more than a few people that talk about how "Social Recruiting" doesn't work.  What strikes me as funny is that those screaming the loudest typically seem to be seasoned Recruiters that are having trouble adjusting to something that is no more than a change of communication and marketing tools.  Calling "bullshit" to these naysayers is no more difficult than asking them what "Social Recruiting" they tried that returned less than favorable results.  After all, simply throwing up a Facebook fanpage and waiting for job seekers isn't 'Social Recruiting' - Heck, it's barely "social" at all.

When we say "bullshit" in a hunt for valid and relative data it's important that our call-out is relative as well.  There needs to be an objective that is directly related to the business rather than an objective related to proving who is right and who is wrong.  While it's important to our industry that we're on a passionate hunt for information and change, it's just as important that we listen to what's being said and actually partner in a search for what was meant and what is truthful - and learn to cut through/past what is unrelated.  Watching how our teams function and listening closely to requests and understanding objectives are key to learning when it's okay to ask tough questions and demand valid answers.

It was dusk... and my daughters ran to me asking what the heck was going on outside.  Outside the caboose the field was literally glowing with what had to be thousands upon thousands of fireflies.  You can imagine how excited my girls were when I explained how, when I was a child, I used to catch them in a jar.  You can now guess exactly what came next...  We spent hours catching dozens and dozens of them.

But it was something that my youngest said to me while we were running around the field that really struck me.  Of course, to be perfectly honest with you, I still had a few work related items swimming around in my head - not quite as buried as most people would want them when on vacation with their family... but hey, that's how I'm wired.  She simply said, "Trying to catch these little guys can be hard. If they just knew how nice we were they might just come to us!"

Hmm...  If they just knew how nice we were then they might come to us.
Yeah - it really stuck with me.  Shouldn't this be the goal of any recruitment marketing?  Isn't this really, in a nutshell, what we should all be trying to deliver to job seekers the public?  I know that many Recruiters talk about their employment brand as what attracts the job seekers - but I'd almost argue that people are throwing around "employment brand" as heavily and inappropriately as we're seeing "social recruiting" being volleyed through the industry.  It's a popular word - a buzzword, if you will - that's just making the rounds for most.

Some Recruiters work for companies so large or recognized that they feel like they don't have to bother with an employment brand.  They know that they can post their job to a job board or even just their own ATS and simply wait for the applications to show up.  Recruiters that are at companies with widely recognized brands that take this approach are filling jobs adequately in most cases. (disclaimer: I understand that some Recruiters are forced to take this approach due to requisition loads.)  But are they filling those jobs with "top talent" or adequate candidates?  AKA: The brightest fireflies?

It's smart Recruiters and Recruiting leadership that take a hard look at the story they want to tell to job seekers the public.  Often times the company's reputation and established brand, while good and/or strong, may not tell the complete story that could attract an ideal candidate. 

An example I've used countless times would be the iPhone.  It's a great product and has literally changed how mobile phones are designed today all around the world.  And while you may be a mobile phone enthusiast and want to join the teams at Apple that have designed this outstanding product... you have no idea what it's like to work there from simply knowing Apple does great work. 
The Recruiters at Apple know that it takes more than just an outstanding product to attract top talent - it's evident in their career portal and if you've ever been fortunate enough to have met a member of their staffing & recruiting teams.

The point I began this rant upon was the thought that many Recruiters (or Recruiting leadership) don't seem to take their employment brand seriously.  We can see this by how job descriptions are shared, where we do and don't see their recruitment marketing, and most importantly what we experience when we visit their employment pages and portals as a job seeker.

The next time you hear a Recruiter talk about their employment brand and what they're doing - ask for details.  Find what's working for them - or what they haven't tried.  Or better yet.... find out what they'd love to try but that they can't get their leadership to buy-in on.  The more we talk and collaborate, the more we can share with each other how we're selling our stories upward - and then outward to the job seekers public.

For over 15 years my job has been to find, or help to find, the brightest fireflies in countless fields.  With today's tools and communication platforms we (the recruiting industry) should all be more excited about the sharing and delivery of our messages stories than ever before.  After all - wouldn't it be easier to attract them if they just knew how nice we were?

(This is where we collectively laugh, people.)

If you've been following me on Twitter you know that I launched my first 30 days at PepsiCo with the #Onboarding hashtag.  Dear friend, Jessica Lee, was intrigued enough to write a quick article on FoT that blew through what I was doing and offered up some great feedback.  The truth is, I've seen a few posts and comments around the #Onboarding approach that have sparked some new ideas around how 'new hires' may be able to help push the word out.  After all, I've certainly been sharing what's been going on with me while here.  But in the event you've missed it - here's a quick summary of what my first month has entailed...

My first few days in the Plano, TX office were filled with questions about the facility itself, my workspace, benefit enrollment and when the heck I'd get a chance to check out the frisbee golf course or take advantage of the on-site gym.  It wasn't very long however, until my new laptop arrived - already full of amazing "welcome" messages and meeting invitations from peers, colleauges and leadership.  Amongst those were a few travel requests to head out to various cities to meet other members of my new teams - to include New York City and Minneapolis, most recently.

With just two weeks under my belt I was already neck deep in conversations around the creation and deployment of a new employment brand, some aggressive digitial marketing opportunities and helping to tackle a few challenges that some of our recruiting teams had been experiencing.  At the end of my second week I felt comfortable pushing and receiving new ideas and strategies to members of recruiting, technology and marketing teams not just because everyone was so gracious in welcoming me - but rather because the teams were incredibly collaborative.  While the lines of accountability were clear - there were (are) transparent lines of ownership in the sense of "This is mine" vs. "This is ours."

My third week I found myself in New York at the Purchase headquarters for something called Ring of Honor.  In summary, this event recognized the amazing performance in front line sales at PepsiCo.  It kicked off with Indra Nooyi (PepsiCo CEO) standing at the end of a "red carpet" reception (to include marching band and cheerleaders!) to shake the hands of over 225 winners and their family members that came from over 45 different countries to be recognized and thanked for their dedication and performance.  Indra's excitement to meet each of these employees was visible - and her genuine interest in them both at the reception and throughout their activities resonated the same authenticity that comes across in her frequent internal letters and communications.

Over the last three years I've been a strategic thought leader within the staffing organization at AT&T - pushing the envelope (and leadership's patience a bit, I'm sure) around digital marketing and social recruiting.  I've been lucky enough to have been able to partner with some pretty smart HR, Recruiter and Marketing types at AT&T and together we reduced traditional marketing spend and increased the return on investment (time & money) with eye-popping speed and almost scary results.  We broke ground in our industry on projects such as Facebook candidate sourcing, Twitter recruitment, Social recruiting presence, Mobile Recruiting and of course, the first employer driven iPhone application - just to name a few.

But it's time I moved on.

I'm one of the biggest fans of "change" that I've ever met.  And yes, I even fancy calling myself a "Change Agent."  So when an opportunity came along recently to join the PepsiCo team and help create and lead a new employment brand and strategy effort - I suddenly had cause to take a step back and evaluate what was being put on the table.

I've had the pleasure of both meeting and working with various members of the PepsiCo Recruiting and Staffing teams over the last few years.  I was honored to have been asked a second time to present to the Frito Lay Recruiting team just recently on the topic of monitoring your brand via social media and engaging candidates.  And to be incredibly honest - I was floored not just by how sharp the group was (no-brainer there, right?) but also by their hunger to ensure they were sourcing and engaging candidates on terms that were beneficial to both their hiring clients needs and the job seekers expectations.  They were smart in their questions about seeking out best practices and fearless in hoping to utilize the latest channels and tools available.

In summary: They "get it."

I'll miss my peers at AT&T when on June 1st I open a new chapter in my professional life.  With so many things still in production and slated for release over the next year or so (that will simply be awesome!) it wasn't a quick and easy decision to separate from my professional family of 10 years.  I'd also be crazy not to encourage everyone to keep an eye on the efforts of the AT&T Talent Attraction team over the next year - they're a bright team and have some fun things planned.

The next two weeks will be bitter sweet - and while I'm sad to leave my friends and family at AT&T, I'm amped to be moving forward with this 'refreshing' change and my own professional evolution.

Recently HRExaminer released a listing of who they felt were the Top 25 Online Influencers in Talent Management.  And while I was intrigued that I'd made this list, I think I was more impressed with my friends and peers that I'd been grouped with.  You can check out the article on HRExaminer's website and cruise through the full listing at your leisure - I'll certainly spare you the "re-blogging" that would be a typical copy and paste.  What I won't spare you however, are some quick mentions of the people on the list that I've known and met over the years that are incredibly deserving of notice.

So here are just a few...

Kris Dunn has been someone I've enjoyed reading for ages.  Whether his stuff has popped up in my reader courtesy of FistfulOfTalent or HRCapitalist, his colorful commentary and signature Ari Gold avatar never fails to deliver.  One of his recent posts that comes to mind was the sharing of 10 Bitchin' Facts about Jack Welch.  And while sharing this legendary (yeah, I said it) form of management in 10 "Chuck Norris" style points for consideration weren't earth shaking, they were fun to read - and right on target to Kris' style.  So whether I'm getting sports driven analogies or down-to-earth management style ramblings from him, Dunn's a staple in my personal blogosphere of influence.

HRBartender, also known as Sharlyn Lauby, is another favorite of mine.  Even after creaming me in a week long round of Scrabble (I'm still not sure we ever officially finished the game, to be honest - but I certainly admit defeat) I still watch for her stuff in both our HR circles as well as through various channels of interest to the inner Geek in me.  Hey, any HR pro that continually gets published and "delivers" on one of my favorite sites like Mashable, is someone you can bet I'm reading AND listening to. Note: Not bucking for a Scrabble rematch.

Another I'd encourage you to check out is Michael Specht.  Michael authors a technology blog from his home in Australia.  It centers on HR and Recruiting but digs a bit into how new technology and tools impact what we do in our industry.  He wrote an interesting article last month around competency maps and peer validation - something that sparked quite a bit of debate with some friends of mine and that helped push me to write the Chicken Pluckin' Experts post recently.  What might also be worth checking out is the video arm of what Michael does - found at Inspecht.tv.

Last but not least...  I can't go through mentioning some of my favorites without mentioning Jessica Lee.  She's one of the most transparent and engaging people on the circuit and in our channel of business.  Also a FistfulOfTalent author, you can find her making a difference on Twitter with personal observations or via her official job promotions for APCO Worldwide.  I'm really looking forward to hearing how her next speaking engagement for ERE goes - her topic is mobile recruitment and I'm suspect she's some great perspective and data to share.  (told ya' she was savvy!)

So while the list of Top 25 Influencers contains others people that are certainly worth checking out (I know I added a few to my Twitterfeed) I would have felt I missed an opportunity to voice who I have had the pleasure of interacting directly with - both in person and online.  Take a few moments and give the list a quick look - there are definately at least 24 people on there I'd agree are worth reviewing and engaging.

EAVB_QKEFMXKRNP

They've got credibility because they have a podium, website or blog.  You may even find this expert Chicken Plucker booked to speak on a webinar or at a conference near you and if they speak with enough authority or show you enough fancy charts you might never ask them how many chickens they have themselves plucked.  You might even fail to realize that this expert Chicken Plucker has not only spent their professional career simply watching and critiquing the works of others, but that they've neither plucked a chicken nor even seen a live one.

This is where we all should say, "What the cluck?!"

The eagerness to be branded by peers as an expert can be a bit of a dirty game for some.  It becomes even worse when we find self-proclaimed gurus or experts hocking their wares, services, or doing simple reputation management from the shoulders of others.  So, I present to you a new way to look at the people that "do" versus the people that "talk" about what is done.

So while I understand the value of knowing who is (and is not) an expert, I'd like to see us begin to focus more on who is an Enthusiast versus a Practitioner.  I'd like to see more of us ask those that claim they can fix recruiting issues with Mobile Recruiting solutions, just how many mobile recruiting strategies they've implemented - and to talk specifics about their findings.  I'd enjoy seeing people more comfortable in speaking candidly and directly with speakers and bloggers to gain clarity around theory versus practice - with speakers and bloggers becoming much more transparent around what their direct experience is versus statistics they've read or presentations they've 'adjusted.'

I challenge every employer or recruiter that attends a session or conference to ask for specifics and sources and time lines if the "expert guru" does not provide them.  I challenge every blogger or presenter to be as transparent as possible when talking about their experience level and sources.  I challenge all of us to honestly identify ourselves as Enthusiast or Practitioner - every single time.

I am an Enthusiast about nearly EVERYTHING in the Recruiting industry.  I've worked very hard and made countless personal sacrifices to be fortunate enough to be a Practitioner of some of the items I'm most passionate about.  An example...
I had an amazing conversation at the last ERE conference around on-boarding practices - the HR Generalist and I spoke for over an hour on the topic.  I find this phase of the employment process incredibly important and the discussions growing around its need to be very interesting.  I'll tell you every single time that I think it's a vital piece of the puzzle related to employee retention issues - and just as quickly I'll tell you that I've no practical experience in rolling out anything related - on any level. Ever.

There is no shame in being excited about the changes in our industry.  There is no shame in not having had the opportunity to actually create and implement a strategy around X or Y.  There is no shame in trying to monetize what we've seen in regards to trends in our line of business.  There is absolutely no shame in being an Enthusiast - it's sometimes the enthusiast that sees what the practitioner does not!

Know an expert?  Attending the session of a self proclaimed Rockstar?  Why not get some clarity around whether or not they've actually practiced what they're preaching so that you have all of the data you really need?  Isn't that why you seek out industry experts - to help you make informed decisions that will ultimately increase your return on investment, better your brand or reduce your cycle and fill times?  
Hey, what's the harm in asking a pointed and direct question?  As a blogger and speaker myself, I appreciate the inquiries - they help validate the work and spark thought in participants.

Think about it...
And if you spot that Chicken Plucker of mine that's a bit less than honest about their working knowledge and experience, you can tell them that I said they could go pluck themselves.

It's no secret that I'm pretty vocal in regards to my feelings of how LinkedIn can be best used by both the job seeker AND recruiters.  It's not a mystery to anyone that knows me that I draw a distinct line between an Open Networker and an Open List Builder.  And while the majority of my articles are typically geared at helping recruiters with strategy or sharing my own rabid insights related to our industry, I thought I'd take a second to share with job seekers what works for RecruiterGuy if you're looking to engage...  And what will likely work for any recruiter out there.

So job seekers... Pay attention.  (and Recruiters, chime in!)

Just for the sake of sharing, a few of the most memorable items were a salutation of "Dear Respected Madam", being told that the speech I gave was terrific at a conference I'd never attended, multiple requests to clean up resumes as "quick favors" from people I've never heard of and various versions of the ever-constant, "Please look at my resume do you have any jobs?"

If there is one thing that gets under my skin within our industry, it's a lazy job seeker that complains or discounts Recruiters as people.  Please understand that I'll go the distance in helping job seekers to find a match for their skills - if they're honestly trying.  If they've taken the time to construct a full sentence when sending me a solicitation... If they've taken a look at what's posted on the job boards or the career portal of my employer...  Honestly - I've been known to make more than a few calls and help with resumes or applications whenever possible.  After all, the primary reason I got into Recruiting was the people.  I enjoy helping people to engage with others and make, what ultimately boils down to, positive and impactful life changing decisions.  (did that sound too "Tony Robbins"?)

But if a job seeker cannot be bothered to type anything into a LinkedIn message outside of "Looking for a job with your company what do you have?" (an actual quote from a mid-level manager!) then I'll break my own 100% response rule and simply Archive the message.
To keep things in perspective I'd say that only 20% of the messages I get in LinkedIn are bad networking and communication Kung-Fu with the rest being a mix of questions around Mobile or Social Recruiting, technologies in our industry, legitimate networking requests, follow-ups and all around generally impressive job seekers.

So while it's easy (and sometimes more fun) to just complain about the less than ideal messages from job seekers, it may not be the most helpful to those that just don't know where to begin.  Which is why it's great that on occasion I get a message from someone that really makes an effort to communicate properly - whether I've any jobs that are a match for their skills or not.  Check out the following - quite possibly one of the best cold solicitations I've received via LinkedIn in quite a while.  Immediately upon reading the below message I took a look at his profile and began some dialogue around both his job search and how I was impressed with his approach.

I'd never met Lon before this message.  So what made this better than the seeker that simply asks if I have jobs or says that he wants me in his network since I'm a "person he trusts?"  Lon was straight forward while being informative.  He's looking for work - and in his message he shares where he feels his strengths are as well as the type of work he's looking for with my employer.  And whether or not Mr. Bason sent 100 other RecruiterGuy types the same message with their names and companies swapped out - I frankly don't care.

The message from Lon is conversational - I feel like it isn't far off from something he'd say to me if we were meeting at a hiring event or even a coffee shop.

Lon was prepared - and confident - and courteous.  Nothing different than Recruiters everywhere would expect/hope from him if meeting in person.

So here's your take away, job seekers - and it's painfully simple...  If you're engaging a Recruiter or manager about employment, try and remember that it's a person on the other end of the email.  Remind yourself that just because your message is being delivered in writing doesn't mean that it's your brightest move to use the same tone or shorthand that you'd use when messaging a friend or college buddy.  Step up your game and spend a whopping 5 minutes to craft a message that is similar to what you'd say in person to the Recruiter.  

Don't think it's worth your time?  Know that like countless others over the years, Lon will continue to get my attention and will hear from me if I happen upon a job I think he might be interested in - even if the employer isn't my own.  Now THAT'S effectively networking for a job, if you ask me!

There were lots of great questions as well as some terrific feedback from both the impressive panel of local recruitment leaders as well as the engaged audience.  But what I noticed - and have seen consistently in recent months - is that Recruiters are moving from the "why" phase and into the "how" phase of social recruiting - and I advised them to "Hit the brakes!"
Doesn't sound like something I'd say?  Well here's some clarity...

My topic was around using social media to monitor your brand and touched on some tools that could be used.  But the message I was hoping to deliver was a bit deeper than just the tagline.  The idea was to make this conversation relative to the recruiters.  The idea was to talk through why creating a plan and being able to measure what we're doing within the social channels is more important than just going rogue and jumping in.

Think of it this way...  Even if you decide to "just do it" and prove to your reluctant leadership or team that social recruiting is something you should be engaged in - if you can't show proof of results or even simply some sort of progress then your time and energy could be perceived as theory or guesswork.  I can already count more than a handful of conversations with Recruiters this year that know they received applications and hires from social recruiting effort - but couldn't qualify it. 

There's certainly no value in being perceived as the Recruiter that just plays on Twitter or Facebook all day - especially by your peers and leadership.

Another advantage of ensuring that we take steps to measure our engagements is being able to tell what isn't working.  As one of the loudest proponents of social recruiting I know - I'll be the first to tell you that if you've identified that your target isn't on Twitter, then Twitter isn't where you should be spending any significant time or money.  Maybe your ideal target sits on a niche network that isn't MySpace or Facebook or even thrives in a forum based community...  These are the things you need to look at when building a strategy - especially when working with limited resources.

In addition to talking about why it was important to set goals and do homework when/while building a social recruiting strategy, I took a second to share a little about where I think social recruiting is taking us.  I relayed my thoughts around how the days of expensive and sometimes slow/reactive 'talent pipelines' are numbered and will pale in comparison to 'talent networks' that will likely provide on-demand talent.  Perhaps I dropped my new favorite idea around "talent tagging" in the future and how it ties to collaborative job searches.

The reason I mention this particular slide (and use it as the article graphic) is that I have covered this idea in my last two presentations - and both were received infinately better than they were a year ago when I would bring it up.  I'm taking this as a sign that the general recruiting audience is more ready than they've ever been to not only start engaging with social recruiting tools but to conceptualize how these could ultimately change the face of recruiting as they know it.

Mucho thanks to the fantastic panel that consisted of friends and colleagues, Craig Fisher of A-List Solutions, Dennis Smith of St. Jude Medical, Marianthe Verver of NeoSpire Inc., and Mariannella Fuentes of Gaylord Entertainment.  Joel Cheezman and Brett Farmiloe of Jobing.com did a great job opening the event and talking about how to socialize talent strategies along with Kristi Thomas and the local Jobing team all coming together to make the event a success.

#rsdfw