Social Recruiting on the Rise

August 9, 2011 – Jobvite, a recruiting platform for the social web, has announced the findings of its annual Social Recruiting Survey and introduced the Jobvite Index which tracks actual social recruiting results. This new data reveals that social recruiting continues rapid growth among U.S. companies with 89 percent planning to recruit through social media this year, up from 83 percent in 2010. Most (64 percent) have expanded their social recruiting programs to two or more networks. As competition for skilled labor grows, social recruiting tops respondents' lists two years running as the most popular area to increase investment. Fifty-five percent of respondents will increase their budgets for social recruiting and 30 percent for referrals, while only 16 percent will spend more on job boards. The Jobvite survey, conducted in June, polled more than 800 U.S.-based human resources and recruitment professionals on their social recruiting activities and intentions. Social Media and Referrals Top All Other Categories for Increased Investment The fourth annual survey once again shows growth in social recruiting. Almost 2/3 of employers have now made successful hires through social networks, and a majority of companies plan to invest more in social recruiting in the coming year. “The data shows that recruiting departments, like marketing departments, are reaching and engaging their targets in multiple social networks,” said Dan Finnigan, president and CEO of Jobvite. “The fastest moving companies increasingly use the richness of profiles in LinkedIn, the power of online connections in Facebook, and the instant reach of Twitter to develop valuable talent pools and make new hires.” The survey also found that while almost all surveyed companies (87 percent) use LinkedIn for social recruiting (up from 78 percent last year), most target talent on at least two networks. More than half (55 percent) use Facebook and 47 percent use Twitter.