Why Twitter is the Thing

Sharks, so much has happened since my vacation in paradise.   I suppose the big news is that I was RIF'd from Yahoo.  Not completely unexpected, given the circumstances.  I have previously written and spoken about my incredible job and experiences at Yahoo.  I am indelibly purple, you better believe it!

But the bigger news is that I have launched a new business.  It should not come as a surprise that the service is Twitter-based.  

I read an article today that strengthened my belief that social networking in general, and Twitter, specifically, will transform recruiting in ways that we have yet to imagine.  A while back, Twitter hired some top search engineers, who have begun to talk about the future of the platform.  Soon, Twitter will begin to index and provide analysis of the links shared on Twitter.  Twitter plans to increase the relevancy of its search results by providing ratings or rankings of content.  Lookout, Google.  Duck for cover, Yahoo.  Twitter is on a rampage!

Don't be a Hater

I hear lots of recruiters speak disparagingly of Twitter.  "It's just a bunch of noise," they say.  And they're right.  For now.  Clever recruiters have already figured out how to Boolean search the Twitterverse.  Some have built strong networks and have begun tweeting their jobs and developing relationships with candidates.  Some enterprising companies have linked Twitter with Facebook and LinkedIn to create a more comprehensive social media strategy.  The truth is that we (in recruiting, especially) have not envisioned how Twitter will change our worlds.  We are too quick to write it off as yet another gimicky trend.

What if?

Play this little game -- if you dare -- to begin to think about your recruiting organization's readiness for change:

• What if consumers stopped buying PCs and relied on their mobile devices for personal computing needs?  How would this impact your recruiting process?
  
• What if Twitter trounced Google and Yahoo and Live and became the biggest, baddest search engine?  How would sourcing change?
  
• What if Twitter became a primary internet portal, rivaling Yahoo, AOL, MSN?
  
• What if every jobseeker (passive or active) had a profile or resume posted online? What would you stop doing?  What practices would become obsolete?
  
• What if Twitter or Facebook began to charge users?  What if users found the services so indispensable, they agreed to pay?
  

Just some food for thought.  A bit self-serving, I admit.  But I urge you, recruiting peeps, to look at these social networking tools through a futuristic lens.  The Twitter of today may become the "Monster" of tomorrow.  

I'm headed to the Kennedy Conference in Las Vegas...if you're there, and you're reading this, let's have a conversation!