Social media is an important recruiting and hiring tool, according to a new survey from The Harris Poll commissioned by Express Employment Professionals. Seven in 10 (70%) companies use social media to research potential job candidates, though only 17% research every candidate this way.
41% of hiring managers believe social media is one of the best places to source candidates. Express office manager Elizabeth Mobley said, “We have the most luck with sourcing more advanced candidates on social media such as administrative roles and skilled trades positions.”
Social media is also helpful for building relationships. Nancy Reed, an Express franchise owner in Texas, said, “Communicating with candidates via social media is more personal, and the relationship is stronger from the beginning instead of responding to an online job board.”
For their part, job seekers worry about social media’s impacts on their chances of employment. Two-thirds (66%) feel that a candidate’s social media profiles shouldn’t influence this decision. But hiring managers disagree — almost the same percentage (60%) say employers should screen all applicants’ social media profiles. Overall, half (51%) of hiring managers say they haven’t found content that has caused them to not hire a candidate, but presumably that means the other half has.
