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90% of employers using social recruiting in 2012, survey says

HR departments are using social networks for more than just checking up on employees but also for scouting new talent as this practice becomes the norm.
Written by Rachel King, Contributor

Social media recruiting is becoming a standard -- if not essential -- HR practice these days, according to Jobvite.

The recruitment software provider has published a new report that found 92 percent of U.S. companies are using social networks and media to find new talent in 2012 -- a significant increase from 78 percent five years ago.

Not surprisingly, LinkedIn, the leading professional public social network, is the most used channel in this regard with 93 percent of respondents saying they use this medium in particular.

Nevertheless, Facebook and even Twitter with its 140-character updates are catching up. Approximately two-thirds of HR departments are looking at Facebook to find talent while more than half are using Twitter.

Of course, researching on social networking platforms is not being used just to find talent -- but also to scoop out what potential hires might be really like.

Nearly three out of four hiring managers and recruiters check candidates’ social profiles, with nearly 48 percent replying that they always do so -- even if they are not provided. While content of a sexual nature and/or involving illegal drugs was overwhelming frowned upon, surprisingly more HR reps were more upset over grammar or spelling mistakes rather than drinking.

Nevertheless, Jobvite found that social media recruiting has proved to be beneficial for many businesses by opening up the candidate pool by a much wider net.

For example, more than seven out of 10 employers (73 percent) successfully hired a candidate through social media in 2012 -- up from 63 percent in 2011 and 58 percent in 2010. Furthermore, 20 percent of HR reps reported it takes less time to hire using social recruiting.

Although it hasn't quite tipped the scales yet, more than four out of 10 (43 percent) of respondents said that the quality of the candidate pool has also improved thanks to using social recruiting.

For reference, Jobvite researchers polled more than 1,000 human resources and recruitment professionals on their social recruiting activities and intentions during June 2012.

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