I spent my afternoon yesterday teaching my boss about the finer points of Twitter, or The Twitter. As you might expect from an HR Professional, her goal with Twitter and any other social media technology is better recruiting.
I got her set with a professional account, showed her how to use TweetDeck and taught her about hashtags, RT’s and @ replies. After doing so I asked “Those are the basics, what else do you want to know?” Her response was “How do I find people I want to hire?”
I almost fell out of my chair.
That is a huge question and there are so many answers I could give her. From my perspective, if you are going to use Twitter or any other means of social media for recruiting, you need to know how job seekers are using these tools. Meet them in the middle.
The most important thing I told her was “It’s a community”. In order to receive help, make connections and utilize the network, you have to interact with the community. If you expect to get messages about job posting RT’d or have people send candidates your way, you must do the same.
Basically don’t be needy and greedy; no one likes those people.
Yesterday’s class was, as I told my boss, just the tip of the iceberg on using social media. Next week we’re going to review her usage of Twitter and start looking at LinkedIn searches. I wonder if I could talk Kris Dunn into taking his Social Media Presentation on the road.
If you’d like to follow her and help me with my quest to justify my usage of Twitter at work show her the ropes of recruiting via social media, you can find her on Twitter @RTHanneken or leave a comment below if you have advice I can pass on.
{ 1 trackback }
{ 12 comments… read them below or add one }
Great post April! What A great girl, teaching your boss alll about Twitter.
@Shennee Thanks! That’s me, the good little employee
Very cool that you have a boss willing to learn more and to seek out those in the organization with the expertise. As you suggest, those seeking quick wins or immediate impact in social media are likely to be disappointed. But for many people and organizations that will invest time, energy, and resources certainly there is enormous potential.
@Steve The HR team at my company is wonderful, I couldnt ask for a better set of coworkers. Part of my teaching with my boss is that it takes time and effort with social media. The good news is, from the research I’ve done, none of our competitors have a presence online. While we dont cater to a customer base, it would be great for current employees and potential clients.
Great post! I did a similar presentation to job seekers and said something similar – don’t be a one-way. Don’t take without giving.
Also, if you find a stream that you really like and are in a hurry, add it to your RSS feeds. That hat way it comes right to you, you can skim it quickly and don’t have to cull through your entire stream.
@Deirdre – How people manage to do this one way is beyond me. I wouldnt get anything out of social media; half the fun is the conversations with wonderful people that you wouldnt normally have the chance to meet.
Very cool post! I get the “do that stuff and make us look good but we don’t need to know how it works that’s why you’re here”. Then I catch them looking at the Fan Page on Facebook… LOL
@Karla – Thanks! I’m interested in setting a fan page if I can get the rest of management on board, I might pick your brain about that if you dont mind.
Congratulations to your boss and you for being able to get together and learn from each other. That, more than anything else, is the secret to great employee relations (sorry, my ER background’s showing!).
I’ll make sure to follow @RTHanneken and add her to the SHRM Connect ‘HR Twitter List’ as well.
Great post April!
@Victorio – I have the greatest HR management group. They’re always interested in whats next in HR and any time I want to work on something all I have to do is speak up. Thanks for adding her!
Thanks again for the lesson. This stuff is addictive! I am looking forward to learning more about the social media world. You are an awesome tweetcher.
R
@RTHanneken – Hey! Thanks for stopping by! I’m enjoying the lesson and yes, its very addictive. The best cure for the addiction is more social media, just make it a habit