Networking has always been important during a job search, and when clients ask me what I recommend, I've always suggested that networking should be the activity that they devote the most time to.
But, for months now, I've been telling my clients that networking is becoming more and more crucial, and that to get hired fast, they MUST make networking their #1 priority. Just through simple observation of what has been working for my clients and what has not been working, I've clearly identified a real shift in hiring trends. In this current job search climate, I've explained, companies are seeking to reduce costs associated with hiring through third parties, and make necessary hires through referral sources instead.
Recently Gary Crispin and Mark Mehler of CareerXRoads published their Annual Sources of Hire Study, and their findings confirm the trends I have been observing.
Here are just a few of those relevant findings, summarized directly from their report:
-- Referrals (employee, alumni, vendor, etc.) make up 27.3% of all external hires and is
arguably the number one external source.
-- Hires attributed to Job Boards (not including the company site) represent 12.3% of
external hires. We believe this SOH has indeed peaked and predict it will diminish in
the future.
-- The most visible trend in 2008 is the pressure to reduce hires (and associated costs)
attributed to third-party recruiters, newspapers and traditional job boards. A steady
growth of sourcing tactics especially social networks and search engine marketing is
also evident.
-- Company employees remain the most likely source for filling open positions. Of the
309,600 positions that were filled and could be identified as either Internal or External
fills, nearly four out of every ten positions (38.8%) were filled as a result of internal
mobility.
There is much more detail and interesting observations in the study. It is definitely worth the read if you are looking for a job now or expect to be in the near future.
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