The Role, Advantages and Limitations of Social Networks in Healthcare Recruiting

By Ken Levinson, CJ Ventures Inc.

“Social networks should be seen as a longer-term, slow burner approach”
-Ken Levinson

Professional/social networking sites are exploding. Almost everyone has heard of Facebook, LinkedIn, MySpace and Twitter. These types of sites can be fantastic for helping connect with friends, classmates, neighbors, and acquaintances, including people from your past with whom you have completely lost touch. These sites are also invaluable in assisting job seekers and employers to find each other.

I grew up in Cherry Hill, NJ, but moved to Florida, and had lost touch with virtually everyone I used to know. After joining Facebook, I started looking up a few people from my past, and requested to become their friend. Once they accepted, and we caught up, I found other people I knew that they were friends with. Before long, I had recaptured my entire youth, reconnecting with many people that I would have never found otherwise. I’ve also met many wonderful new people both personally and professionally through Facebook. Because of my network, if I ever looked for a job, I’d have lots of friends and professional contacts to help me, either directly or through contacts to who they could introduce me. Now imagine all the health care people your employees know and how they could network to spread the word about good jobs at your facility.

Our company owns Absolutely Health Care, the largest niche job board on the internet for health care and medical jobs. It is a traditional job board: everything is transactional. Companies can post jobs and look for résumés. Job seekers can post résumés and look for jobs. There is no relationship building going on.

Professional\social networking sites are the opposite. They are about long term relationship building and networking. That’s why almost two years ago we started Medical Mingle, a professional social network for people interested in, working in, servicing or studying to enter the health care and medical field.
 
Julian Stopps, of Broadcasting Online Recruitment News Limited, made the following comment at JobBoarders.com, which I consider right on target: “Online social networks are certainly one tool in the recruitment toolbox, but I just can't see them replacing job boards completely, as they are very different offerings.”

Job boards are used primarily as a tool for sourcing active job seekers. Social networks are more suited to subtle employment branding and advertising to passive candidates. The strength of a social network, from an advertising perspective, is to prime passive and inactive candidates with knowledge about your employment brand. Then, when they switch to being active candidates, your service is the first one they consider. Therefore, social networks should be seen as a longer-term, slow burner approach. Job boards are a ‘we have an unforeseen requirement for five people now’ approach.

We started Medical Mingle to complement the Absolutely Health Care job board. Health care professionals used to come to Absolutely Health Care only when they were looking for a job. Now, through links to Medical Mingle, health care professionals also come to Absolutely Health Care to make professional contacts and friends, find professional resources, blog, participate in forums, post and view pictures, post and view videos, receive recognition and win prizes. It gives health care professionals many reasons to hang around Absolutely Health Care, even when they are not looking for a job.

On the flip side, if someone hangs around Medical Mingle directly, when a member becomes a job seeker, they can browse jobs and/or post their resume on Absolutely Health Care, right from the Medical Mingle site. They can also network with other Medical Mingle members.

Professional/Social Networking sites, combined with on-line job boards, are the perfect recruiting complement for both job seekers and employers.

Ken Levinson is the President of Absolutely Health Care, which includes Absolutely Health Care, Medical Mingle, Nurse Options USA, Med Options USA, and Rehab Options USA. Since 1978, Levinson has worked in the recruitment field, and since 1996, has provided unique and cost effective recruitment solutions to the health care field.