Arguably recruitment has always relied on, among other things, being both 'social' and having the ability to network to find the best talent. So it's hardly a surprise that recruiters have embraced social networking sites and added them to their armory of ways to reach out to potential candidates and employers. If you register on one of the better known of the social networking sites, you automatically post a profile of yourself online and visitors, or people who 'connect' with you, can get a general picture of the kind of person you are from that information. In fact it's come to light recently that recruitment professionals may even research online profiles within these social networks to further vet their preferred candidates' suitability for a role. I, personally, believe that you can tell more about a candidate's suitability from their demeanour and experience offline anyway, but having said that, social networks do provide a clear route to a vast pool of talent.
More than that, because the internet is a truly global medium it is now easier than ever to see the world as a global work force and we have had applicants responding to our Twitter posts from the US and other international markets. It's a sign of the times that people are willing to apply for jobs in the UK and to move away from their own countries for the right package - relocating for the right job is just not the daunting prospect it once was and there's definitely an understanding out there that you have to move to where the work is. So while we as recruiters need to respect the privacy of these social network profiles, we would also be doing our profession an injustice if we didn't tap into the potential benefits they can offer.
