Simone Baird

3.  What does Recruitment 2.0 mean to you? 

• Recruitment 2.0 means an exciting time for change! Given that technology is moving at such a fast pace, we are continuously researching and implementing new options for our clients. It gives us a chance to look at new avenues, plan "out of the box strategies" and to be honest, get away with things we wouldn't have 2 years ago. I am fascinated with the opportunities that have opened up with social media and personally I am an addicted twitterer, facebook and linkedin member and belong to many industry specific networking sites such as TribeHQ to name one. 
• I feel that once NZ as a whole embraces the new forms of media we will see a major change in how branding is communicated and some new approaches to attracting talent. Due to systems such as Snaphire, the technology available will influence the way we hire in the future. We are already seeing this with our many clients who have talent pool technology having a dedicated Sourcing Consultant who searches their database initially instead of starting from scratch with each new role.
• My only concern with the new technology available is a) that clients will not use it to its full potential - after all, it is a form of communication so needs to be 2-way, b) that they will use it as an opportunity to shout their name from the rooftops but are unable to walk the talk and c) in regards to Career websites that they are not creating sites that are engaging, informative and targeted at the appropriate generation.
  
  

4. Is there still a place for newspaper advertising? (considering things are going more and more online) 

• I believe that there is still advantages to advertising in print but just as any media, it has to be targeted and thought through. 
• With the current 1000 redundancies per week, we are seeing a larger amount than normal of baby boomers and Gen X looking for roles. As a generalisation, many baby boomers specifically have little to no experience with "surfing the net" and feel more comfortable with the traditional picking up of the paper for the jobs section. My mother for example would never think to look online for job opportunities, I don't think she even knows that you can! Newspapers also give the employers the chance to talk to passive candidates and in a more creative way. Again, this is not going to suit every role however there will be those that that still fit into this mould.
• My other comment regarding newspapers is that they need to get their head out of the sand about their potential demise. We have seen this happen in the US especially and now with the newspapers that still exist in the US, there's a strong likelihood that they are on the market and for a very low price. If newspapers are going to continue here then they need to start looking at their offer and how they can partner with their advertisers to ensure that their needs are being accommodated. 
• Having come from 10 years working for newspapers I completely understand that realistically without the advertisers, there is no publication so lets take care of them.
  
     So don't be afraid to try new things, make sure you partner with someone who wants to be part of your success and feel free to follow me on twitter - for random and sometimes informative outbursts from an ad agency.