Archived Practically Speaking
Issue 3
Strategic Internet Recruiting on a Budget
Get the most recruiting bang for your online buck
by Teddy McNaught Esq.
A recent survey of the hiring practices of 49
large companies indicates that over 25 percent satisfied their
hiring needs externally using job boards, such as Monster.com, CareerBuilder.com and Hotjobs.com.
Given the success that large firms are having with online job
postings, small firms may consider advertising online as well. If
you find yourself in need of a new hire at your firm, turn to the
Internet and follow these tips.
The
Pros. One good thing for employers, large and small
alike, is that tremendous redundancy exists between the job
boards. According to Andrea Simard, a professional recruiter
with AccountPros in Boston, as much as 70 percent of job seekers
using CareerBuilder also use Monster.
Therefore, if you choose to pay to advertise on one job board, you
won't be forsaking a majority of the candidates.
Monster
charges $385 to advertise a position on its Web site for 30 days.
CareerBuilder charges $419 for 30 days, and Hotjobs
charges $369 for a 30 day ad or $410 for a sixty day ad.
If you are reluctant to shell out the cost of advertising on one
of the major job sites, consider Craigslist.com for job postings. At only $25 a
month per job posting, Craigslist is, by comparison, a bargain. Plus,
while Craigslist's search functionality may not be as
sophisticated as the major sites, it is not bad. Perhaps most
importantly, Craigslist is very easy to use.
Apart from Craigslist, there are other lesser known
alternatives to the major job sites. For instance, you might try
advertising on JobFox or Talenthook. These smaller
staffing sites tend to be more specialized, according to Simard.
Plus, Lawyers Weekly has its own online classified
section.
The
Cons. Job boards can bring you a huge number of
potential hires. Statistically, however, most candidates will be
unqualified or, in some cases, grossly unqualified. According to
Simard, "only approximately three percent of candidates responding
to a position posted on a job board will be qualified for that
position." While the specialized nature of legal staffing may
increase the number of qualified hits you can expect from your
online ad, hiring managers should still expect to see far more
unqualified candidates than qualified ones.
So, the next time you need to post a position, consider online
recruiting where you'll find opportunities for every firm and every
budget.