search-consult launches its most recent webinar series: Mastering Linkedin for Executive Recruiters. This series of webinars are designed to show you how to really get to grips with this amazing tool including: how to find who you want, how to raise your profile in your market to win more business, determine who you are and should be connected to as well as other factors that should be taken into account when preparing your Linkedin strategy.

This innovative series will take place between March 10th – April 28th, discussing the following topics:

• Creating A Powerful LinkedIn Profile (March 10)
• Building A Network, Using Groups (March 17)
• Searching, Approaching, Researching Clients & Candidates (March 24)
• Recommendations, Running Your Group, Answers, RSS Feeds (March 31)
• Applications (April 21)
• Networking, How To Increase Visibility To Gain More Business (April 28)

Each webinar will focus on a specific topic. You will be able to listen and ask questions. Each webinar will be led by Mark Williams – the UK’s best known independent LinkedIn Trainer who previously worked in recruitment for 19 years as a Consultant, Manager and Managing Director. In 2008 Mark set up ETN Training, a niche training provider operating in the field of social media.

Williams states: “I firmly believe that LinkedIn is one of the most exciting developments there has been in the recruitment industry for many years. It is now firmly established as a ‘must have’ tool for any recruiter, yet so many are still unsure of how to use it effectively. My mission is to educate and inspire recruiters to understand how to network effectively online.”

Jason Starr, Managing Director of Dillistone Systems and search-consult, comments: “We are proud to be launching this webinar series since it will provide executive search consultants with a great opportunity to use Linkedin proactively to increase their profile, networking capabilities, business development and even candidate researching resources.”

Group booking discounts are available. For further information or to book your place, call +44 (0)20 7749 6102, visit www.search-consult.com/events or email events@search-consult.com

~ Career Expert Provides DOs and DON’Ts for Job Seekers on Social Networking in the New Year ~

As social networking grows increasingly pervasive, more employers are utilising these sites to screen potential employees. More than half (53 per cent) of employers reported in a recent CareerBuilder.co.uk survey that they use social networking sites to research job candidates.  Another 12 per cent plan to start using social networking sites for screening. More than 450 employers participated in the survey, which was completed in December 2009.   

Of those who conduct online searches/background checks of job candidates, 43 per cent use search engines, 12 per cent use Facebook and 12 per cent use LinkedIn. Three per cent search blogs, while an additional 4 per cent follow candidates on Twitter.

Why Employers Disregarded Candidates After Screening Online
As job seekers gear up their search for employment in the new year, they are cautioned to be mindful of the information they post online and how they communicate directly with employers. Forty-three per cent of employers reported they have found content on social networking sites that caused them not to hire the candidate.  The top examples cited include: 

  ·         Candidate lied about qualifications – 38 per cent�
  ·         Candidate showed poor communication skills – 31 per cent �
  ·         Candidate made discriminatory comments – 13 per cent �
  ·         Candidate posted content about them drinking or using drugs – 10 per cent �
  ·         Candidate posted provocative or inappropriate photographs or information – 9 per cent �
  ·         Candidate bad-mouthed their previous employer, co-workers or clients – 9 per cent �
  ·         Candidate shared confidential information from previous employer – 8 per cent

Why Employers Hired Candidates After Screening Online
Job seekers are also encouraged to leverage social media in advertising their skills and experience. Half of employers reported they have found content on social networking sites that caused them to hire the candidate.  The top examples include:

  ·         Profile supported candidate’s professional qualifications – 61 per cent
  ·         Candidate showed solid communication skills – 41 per cent�
  ·         Candidate was well-rounded – 37 per cent
  ·         Profile provided a good feel for the candidate’s personality and fit – 28 per cent
  ·         Candidate seemed creative –24 per cent
  ·         Candidate conveyed a professional image – 22 per cent
  ·         Candidate received awards and accolades – 15 per cent �
  ·         Other people posted good references about the candidate – 15 per cent�
 �
“Social networking is a great way to make connections with potential job opportunities in 2010 and promote your personal brand across the Internet,” said Farhan Yasin, president of CareerBuilder EMEA.  “Make sure you are using this resource to your advantage by conveying a professional image and underscoring your qualifications.”

In addition, once job seekers land a position, they need to mindful of their online usage. Forty-eight per cent of employers monitor employees’ use of e-mail and the Internet. Twenty-eight per cent of employers reported that they have fired an employee for information found on his/her social networking profile. The most common reasons for termination were due to negative posts about the company or another employee, because they shared confidential information or because they represented themselves in an unprofessional manner (38 per cent each).

Yasin recommends the following DOs and DON’Ts to keep a positive image online this year:

1)    DO clean up digital dirt BEFORE you begin your job search.  Remove any photos, content and links that can work against you in an employer’s eyes.

2)    DO consider creating your own professional group on sites like Facebook or BrightFuse.com to establish relationships with thought leaders, recruiters and potential referrals.

3)    DO keep gripes offline. Keep the content focused on the positive, whether that relates to professional or personal information. Makes sure to highlight specific accomplishments inside and outside of work.

4)    DON’T forget others can see your friends, so be selective about who you accept as friends.  Monitor comments made by others.  Consider using the “block comments” feature or setting your profile to “private” so only designated friends can view it.

5)    DON’T mention your job search if you’re still employed.

LONDON, UK, (Only Marketing Jobs – http://www.onlymarketingjobs.com), December 2009 – Only Marketing Jobs, the UK digital recruitment advertising platform, has announced that it has hired its first social media manager.

Kammi Hackett has joined the Only Marketing Jobs team to manage and control its increasing activity within the social media channels.

Simon Lewis, editor of the niche-sector job board said, “Only Marketing Jobs remains committed to building tangible relationships with its various communities.  Most marketers are social media savvy so we need to be where they hang out.  Developing our expansive social media engagement ensures our clients receive a fully integrated digital recruitment solution.  Kammi’s holistic approach provides additional dynamism to our team.”

Miss Hackett said of the appointment: “Having met the Only Marketing Jobs team at one of their own social networking events I was impressed by the enthusiasm they showed not only in their own products but the marketing and staffing industries as a whole.  The fact that I was hired via an event is evidence that taking online communities offline works.”

Miss Hackett is responsible for enhancing jobseeker and client communities via LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, Ning and Xing.

About Only Marketing Jobs

Only Marketing Jobs is a premier digital recruitment advertising platform specific to the UK marketing sector.  It combines automated digital processes with offline events and social networking, for integrated jobseeker & client services.

Further details can be obtained by emailing Simon Lewis, Editor, Only Marketing Jobs | simon@onlymarketingjobs.com

It’s no surprise that the way we communicate with people is changing. Some call it the Communication Revolution and it’s characterised largely by the use of Web 2.0 technology and websites such as LinkedIn and Facebook, otherwise known as Social Networking & Media.



With this in mind, Michelle Fischer of Creative Leadership, and Linda Parkinson-Hardman of Grow a Better Business, invite you to contribute to their research into the trends that are taking place within the context of Social Media and Recruitment. by completing the following questionnaire at Survey Monkey before Friday 18th December.

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=9m00FDmhA781rOYugN7hnw_3d_3d

You’ll be asked questions about YOUR business use of Social Media, and particularly when recruiting new staff.

The questionnaire is completely anonymous, although you’ll need to leave your name if you’d like to receive a copy of the White Paper and be eligible to win the thank you prize of a bottle of France’s Finest Champagne. This will be given to a lucky participant chosen at random at the end of the research project. The interim report will be out before Christmas.

If you’ve any questions about any element of this research, please get in touch with Michelle at Creative Leadership on 01202 853647 or Linda Parkinson-Hardman on 01305 755607.

We all know that LinkedIn rules the earth.  Well, it is certainly trying to do so.  Business folk circumvent this networking platform at their peril, for avoidance renders them conspicuous by their absence.

But just like any other product, LinkedIn is only beneficial if you know how to use it.  Virtuous it may be but just how much can it improve your personal development opportunities and, anyway, how do you use it to network?

First, let’s look at what you could do:

Courses of action

Suppose you are a jobseeker looking for marketing jobs.  What would be your usual course of action? 

1. Register your details with a couple of selected recruitment agencies. 
2. Type “marketing jobs” into Google and see what comes up.  You may also wish to determine a specific location. 
3. From this you’ll get a selection of advertised vacancies from job boards and recruitment agencies.  Or aggregators pointing to the same.
4. You may be an executive, in which case you’ll probably grab the Guardian on a Monday or, perhaps, you’ve already subscribed to a trade journal or two.

Whilst on the face of it these proactive job hunting methods are admirable, they are nothing new.  All your competitors are doing this; and right now there are many of those.

So here’s what you can do with LinkedIn:

Before you start, make sure your public profile is complete and up-to-date.  And this includes your photo.  There is little point engaging in the social media space and hiding under the sofa.  Show people who you actually are, not what you want them to believe.  Where’s the transparency in that?

Next there are your recommendations.  Who can endorse you?  Of course, these need to be business references, not something your ‘professional friend’ cobbled together.  Ideally you’ll have a collection of suppliers, clients, peers and managers. 

Are you a blogger?  Do you have your own blog page?  If so, set it to RSS into your LinkedIn profile – provided, of course, it complements (rather than contradicts) the image you’re trying to portray.

What we’re trying to get at here is that your profile is your sales platform.  You have no idea who views your page each day and if you get it wrong you could be missing out on some great opportunities.  Because unlike the four channels mentioned above networking is a two-way process.  You need to visible to people looking to find you as much as you need to be proactively punting yourself.  By getting it right, you really can maximise your exposure on LinkedIn. 

Once ‘social you’ has been established you can confidently commence your networking, which means putting yourself in front of as many relevant people as possible.  And if you are jobseeker you’ll be tracking down premier recruiters and, of course, direct employers.

Join a LinkedIn Group

One of the most constructive ways to network via LinkedIn (and any other digital space for that matter) is to join relevant groups.  This is where your peers, recruiters and potential employers hang out.  There are 1000’s of groups on LinkedIn so choosing the right ones can be a bit trial and error.  If you are a marketer, for example, you would join a marketing group.  Common sense.  Many groups are densely populated by friends across the pond, and whilst the US tends the lead the way technologically, they don’t half mind nattering about themselves.

Contribute to the Group

Once you’re in the groups, take part.  Social media encourages an altruistic culture so you should be giving more than you receive.  Start discussion and join in others, offering advice and passing on your knowledge.  People soon realise who the good guys are and you will be surprised who starts connecting with you.  If you have an interesting news piece, share it.  Benevolence this may be, but this is part of the networking.  Play the game right and you will be rewarded by the bucket-load. 

LinkedIn offers you the chance to send messages directly to the people with whom you wish to engage.  You already share common ground so with some clever content you can easily break the ice.  You can request people to join your network and they will oblige if they see some relevance.  By offering the opportunity to connect with your contacts you will initiate a two-way beneficiary.  Again, it’s about being authentic and transparent. 

LinkedIn search functions

There are various search functions you can implement to find the people you want.  The same process will help you uncover companies in your [skills] area that would be worth researching.  Before/after you apply for a job (via LinkedIn or not) why not seek some advice from people who are either working there now or who have in the past.  This will help you prepare your application and, where necessary, tailor your cover letter.  It will also provide useful knowledge at interview stage.

Make an impact

Don’t forget that the fundamental rule of networking is impact; leaving your contact wanting more.  You need to be as proactive as you are reactive; ensuring your online presentation is as good as it is during the offline meetings LinkedIn will undoubtedly afford you.

For more information about using LinkedIn view this LinkedIn user guide.

Simon Lewis | Only Marketing Jobs

SupplyChainOnline.co.uk, the leading UK job site for the procurement and supply chain sector, has taken advantage of the current trend in social networking sites to drive additional traffic to client branded adverts.

All client branded adverts now appear across a network of procurement and supply chain job groups on popular professional networking site www.linkedin.com, and are uploaded in real time to Supply Chain Online’s fast growing Twitter page http://twitter.com/SupplyChnOnline, as well as Twitter’s own job search engine www.twitterjobsearch.com.

Richard Marshall, Supply Chain Online’s managing director, says: “This is a really exciting development which will help ensure we gain maximum coverage for our clients’ adverts.

“Of course, this is in conjunction with the portfolio of traffic-driving tools already available on Supply Chain Online, such as job posting, client branding and HTML email marketing.”

Now in its third year, Supply Chain Online has continually developed to provide agencies with the latest candidate acquisition opportunities, ensuring a fast and relevant response to their clients’ supply chain and procurement requirements. Incorporating popular professional and social networking sites into their armoury adds another important level of response from both active and passive candidates who may not be using traditional job hunting methods.

To find out more about SupplyChainOnline contact Richard Marshall on 0207 288 6565 or email richard.marshall@supplychainonline.co.uk. 

www.supplychainonline.co.uk