As promised…a really great interview…who better than David Manaster, CEO of ERE.net. (www.ere.net)

You might be asking…what is ERE.net…well…they’re a professional affinity community focusing on recruiting and HR news, information — including articles, discussions, blogs, jobs, conferences, research, email publications and much much  more.

I personally find this site to be tremendous [...]]]>

Video Log

As promised…a really great interview…who better than David Manaster, CEO of ERE.net. (www.ere.net)

You might be asking…what is ERE.net…well…they’re a professional affinity community focusing on recruiting and HR news, information — including articles, discussions, blogs, jobs, conferences, research, email publications and much much  more.

I personally find this site to be tremendous for up to the minute Social Recruitment thought leadership.

Thanks David!

I was consulting with a client the other day and she asked me what my thoughts were on building out and promoting “Talent Communities.”  This question made me sincerely pause.  And the first question I asked in reply was…”what’s a Talent Community?’  Clearly I have no problem with seeming slow [...]]]>

Talent Community or Data Base?

I was consulting with a client the other day and she asked me what my thoughts were on building out and promoting “Talent Communities.”  This question made me sincerely pause.  And the first question I asked in reply was…”what’s a Talent Community?’  Clearly I have no problem with seeming slow and dimwitted.  I had no idea what she was referring to.  Was she referring to:

• The company’s Applicant Tracking System (ATS) Database?
• The existing employee population and the strength of their current Employee Referral Program?
• Potential candidate engagement opportunities on Soc Nets like Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, MySpace, Ning, etc.?
• The employee alumnus…those who either retired or moved onto opportunities with other employers?
• The Diverse Employee-and dare I say we’re all diverse?

Turns out the client was referring to “Relationship Marketing Databases.”  She’d had a potential vendor-partner visit with her and explain the value of remaining engaged with those potential candidates, whether they be experienced, college, alumnus…all diverse of course.   The concept was really novel, since the database would be embedded into a Careers Web solution with the goal of collecting email addresses with specified areas of interest.  The potential candidate would be “prompted” to enter their information and become a member of this Talent Community.  With this data captured the appropriate “marketing” communication could be directed to the new member of the Talent Community.

"We'll Take Over The World"

BRAIN SPASM – if I become a member of this community (which is a closed database by the way) how do I actually consider this a community?  How do I interact and build relationships that are genuine and authentic…aren’t I actually just an email address and a name delivered to an automated e-mail distribution tool? This is the thought that has invaded my mind while listening patiently to my client’s enthusiastic narration.

I nodded my head when my client was done and then I stated….Ah…you’re referring to Relationship Marketing (RLM) and the building out of candidate databases, then remaining engaged through targeted communication whether analog (print) or digital means.  Sure I think  RLM is a very important part of your over-all strategy…but I personally would not call it a community.

I began to further uncover the big vision for this clients “Social Web Engagement Strategy” and a multi-faceted approach began to take shape…there was genuine excitement.

And then I shared a few thoughts around the idea that perhaps we could think of the recruitment of candidates as “Employee Tribe Management” as opposed to Employer Brand Management.

Yes…I’d be referring to Seth Godin’s book “Tribes…We Need You To Lead Us.”   Seth’s Blog post January 30, 2008, offers a very profound observation.. about the need for people to connect to a tribe.  Here let Seth explain…it’s much better coming from him.

Tribe management is a whole different way of looking at the world.

It starts with permission, the understanding that the real asset most organizations can build isn’t an amorphous brand but is in fact the privilege of delivering anticipated, personal and relevant messages to people who want to get them.

It adds to that the fact that what people really want is the ability to connect to each other, not to companies. So the permission is used to build a tribe, to build people who want to hear from the company because it helps them connect, it helps them find each other, it gives them a story to tell and something to talk about.

This is the good stuff…and I want more of my HR clients to think outside of the RLM database box.  It’ll be a tough challenge to gain buy-in from corporate compliance around this concept for some…but whether they get it or not it won’t matter.  The Tribes have already spoken.  Look at how many corporate recruitment focused Facebook Fan pages Twitter accounts, (Tweeps)  have cropped up in the last 6 months.  Some of the best examples  are of course Sodexo Careers, Past Present and Future Facebook Fan Page, Discover Careers Facebook Fan Page, @acareerathca HCA Twitter feed, and the list continues to grow.

Now the next challenge encountered is how do we begin to craft an over-all Social Web Engagement Strategy.  I’ve said this many times…first… “LISTEN.”  Before jumping into the social web stream…we’ve got to take a step back evaluate an over-all online presence (audit the noise) and determine if any IRL (In Real Life) reputation fragments have made their way to web conversations.

Once auditing the noise is complete…we can really build out robust, interesting, engaging villages, or colonies for tribe members to congregate.

I caution my clients and perhaps those who stumble upon my musings – don’t be seduced by those who offer “turn-key” Employee Tribe Management solutions.  The social web is NOT a turn-key experience.  Real people…real candidates want an authentic vision into your organization…to get to know more than just your location, last years 10K, the cool video testimonials.  The potential members of your tribe want a chance to visit your talent tribe community…walk around, ask what’s the weather like over there from people who live with that weather.

I know the thought of this is really frightening from a compliance perspective…and HR is definitely kin to corporate legal.  But no matter what…these tribes will be established whether you like it, support it, endorse it or ignore it.

I’d been catching up on my reading and stumbled across Chris Saad’s Blog Paying Attention, posted August 26, 2008 entitled: “Revolution of Me: Chapter 2: Business 2.0 – Continued.” His post really inspired me from an Employer/Employee relationship perspective.

I came away thinking about the choices we make to either exist as an [...]]]>

I’d been catching up on my reading and stumbled across Chris Saad’s Blog Paying Attention, posted August 26, 2008 entitled: “Revolution of Me: Chapter 2: Business 2.0 – Continued.” His post really inspired me from an Employer/Employee relationship perspective.

I came away thinking about the choices we make to either exist as an “employee” of a corporation or to LIVE as Entrepreneurial Partner in an organization.

Choosing to live as an Entrepreneurial Partner is not an easy one.  Not everyone has the stamina and the drive to withstand the challenges that come with it.  You will find that the “employees” resent you and will (even when they won’t always openly admit it) seek to sabotage your efforts.  And it’s at this moment that you’re saying to yourself…”uh-oh she’s slipping on the slope of conspiracy paranoia.”

Uh…don’t worry, I’m not…I’ve just had legitimate experiences, whereby colleagues have openly admitted hidden agendas.  One, has actually stated recently, “you win”, when I didn’t know we were competing for first place.

And honestly the “winning” piece intrigues me.  I’ve never looked at working or work from the “winner” takes it all perspective.  I just LOVE the challenge.  This challenge has often been in identifying where the obstacles lie and how to achieve any given goal “in spite of perceived obstacles.” Usually I find the real obstacles are old thinking and behaviors.

And then Chris Saad, made a rather profound observation that really connected some dots for me, he said:

Are Your Little Piggies Walking Away with The Bank?

“The key, in fact, is to stop considering staff as ‘Human Resources’. They are no longer commodities. The corporation needs to redefine its role from one of an all encompassing entity to a loose affiliation of individual partners who are focused on common goal.

Corporations need to start considering staff as partners and service providers. Staff must provide quality services to the corporation, and the corporation must have clear, reciprocal value propositions for its partners.

Or partners will move on… or worse.”

The declaration of the corporate machine stamping out employees as “commodities” like pork bellies or “coffee” to be traded on an open market…WOW…that’s it!  This speaks to the lack of cooperation and what’s most important collaboration.  When we’re all just a number seeking to “eek” out an existence, we begin to snarl and claw our way just to survive.

Even when the organization I’m affiliated with insists on commoditizing me…I refuse it.  I choose to see myself as more than just a consumable, I see myself as an entrepreneur building my own business within a business.  And this may have a lot to do with the fact that I’ve built my own successful business in the past.  But, I can’t and won’t take the “employee” approach.

Now, I can hear the question you’re asking…”if everyone takes an entrepreneurial approach, and builds “their own” business won’t you have chaos…an everyone out for themselves environment.  I say NO.  Absolutely not!  If each employee becomes a “partner” understanding that as Chris Saad pointed out…their contribution is actually a service provided…not a job…then a very productive and industrious environment is created.  We will naturally see each other as internal clients or customers as opposed to internal competition fighting over the last scrap from the day’s kill.

I believe the “worst” part that Chris was referring to…is that “partners” WILL” move on.  And then all an organization is really left with are the employees.  I actually experienced that first hand, when IBM offered its first round of “packaged retirements” in the late 80s early 90s.  I witnessed the best of the best leave to start their own business while I was a contractor at their Boca Raton, FL Campus.

Partners bring tremendous energy and thought leadership.  They inspire others to change and think differently about the contributions made each day.  I recognize that not everyone is going to have the stamina and vision to live as an Entrepreneurial Partner.  But that is exactly what makes us special…not everyone can do it.  Dare I say, this is really what a leader is, and the employees need leaders who are partners.  Partners who inspire contribution, collaboration and then reward that behavior accordingly.

Bravo Chris…thank you for inspiring me to share!