When we think of the charactistics that make up a good "Web 2.0" organisation - openness, collaboration, sharing ideas, giving away non-core IP, there are two types that do not exactly spring to mind - estate agents and recruitment agencies.  However, I've been keeping an eye on an experiment by IdealPeople who have launched a blog about their experiences in the recruitment industry.

Some of it is what you may expect from a recruitment agency, showcase CVs, tips on how to write a CV etc. etc. but they are also starting to do what we call "Closing the gap" between the Managing Director and his customers.  There are some articles on their you really wouldn't expect a recruitment company to publish, such as how to prevent your staff being headhunted and a fascinating piece where they quote some highly unflattering feedback about them from a potential recruit and explain how the circumstances came about.

I'm so intrigued I'm going to see them on Wednesday (not for a job!!) so will report back then.  Meanwhile, anyone know of anyone doing something similar with Estate Agents?

Comments

There are currently 8 comments about this blog.

caspar craven, 9 months ago

Mike - that is fascinating; do you see a culture developing for recruiters exploring Facebook and Linked In for not just the PR negatives but also for the positives like this? Are you aware of recruitment companies aggresively using social networks for recruiting and researching? What is good practice for recruitment on the web?

Mike Anderson, 9 months ago

Interestingly, talking with a very senior client recently he mentioned that what he looked for when hiring senior managers was not just their own CV but the strength of the people that they would be able to bring with them if they were hired. Puts a whole new light on the value of a network....

Jon Mell, 10 months ago

Sorry - was on holiday last week. Yep, met up with them, was a very interesting conversation. They are owned and run by a young guy who definitely "get's it" in terms of a) the need to be different and b) how difficult that is in an industry such as recruitment. It certainly didn't feel that the blog was a 'front' and that behind the scenes they were just another recruitment company. They need to look at their analytics and how they take advantage of the information that can give them, and we hope to stay in touch and see how they go!

Andrea Dean, 10 months ago

So - what happened? Did you meet up with them?

Chris Anderton, 10 months ago

I've been hounded by a few recruiters looking to pimp their wares in my direction - when you look at the CVs they clearly have no clue what they're dealing with. Like DC says, my bad experience doesn't mean all are the same - but it doesn't help!

Damien Tanner, 10 months ago

Very interesting. The other day I was contacted by a recruiter running his own shop. The brief conversation I had with him changed a lot of perceptions I had about the industry (based on previous interactions with others). But it's like any industry, there are some very helpful people wedged between the clueless (in the web2 industry at least) agencies.

Edward Charvet, 10 months ago

Great stuff - makes me laugh considering the experience I have had with recruiters who have been "asking for references on people on the QT"....

Will Critchlow, 10 months ago

Nice blog. I like their tone - and the response to comments that I've seen. When you see them, tell 'em to stick it on their own domain name (http://www.idealpeople.net/blog or similar) to get a bit more search engine benefit (once they've determined that the experiment is good for their brand...

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