E-Recruiting: Evolution of the Corporate Web Site Michelle Martinez

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Ask Miki Carroll about hiring activity at Rockville, Md.-based Human Genome Sciences, and she can quickly roll out some impressive figures. As strategic staffing manager for the biotech giant, Carroll is a measurement fanatic who uses the corporate Web site, coupled with a robust applicant tracking system, to track and retain information that some companies might not imagine. For example, the job offer acceptance to decline rate is 90 percent; the candidate interview to hire ratio is 2.5 to 1; and the hiring cycle for all position openings is less than 60 days.

Her strategic use of the Internet for recruiting is a great case study in driving candidates to the corporate Web site, and then gathering solid information about them once they arrive. Instead of viewing the Internet as just a sourcing tool, Carroll and her colleagues use the Internet in a much more sophisticated way, allowing the corporate Web site to become a major communication vehicle with candidates.

"Though the majority of candidates do come through our website, we channel the others that don't go there," Carroll explains. "Our print advertisements, recruitment brochures and other communication materials, direct prospective candidates to our Web site. When we go to a job fair, for example, we follow up the next day with candidates by inviting them to apply online."

Relationships with outside staffing agencies are also managed online. "A staffing agency portal came with our applicant tracking system," Carroll says, "so we post requisitions right to the site. Our preferred providers have access to the site, so it gives us the ability to easily ask them for help. Because of this online tool, we can easily see the status of requisitions we've posted. And because the portal can be accessed company-wide, hiring managers can review the information as well."

Another e-recruiting advantage, says Carroll: "We can fine-tune our workflow and have great accessibility to the candidate flow. It's a centralized way to exchange information in a very organized fashion. We are able to look at a lot more data in a concise amount of time."

Carroll, as well as other forward-thinking practitioners, are using the Internet and their employment Web site in a different ways than they did even three years ago. "Those that revisited the employment Web site wanted to find better ways to manage and sort the candidates that were already coming in," says Dave Lefkow, an interactive solutions consultant with TMP Worldwide in Seattle, Wash. Profiling and prescreening candidates is where these employers are currently focusing efforts, he says.

In fact, use of online prescreening by the Fortune 500 grew 228 percent in the last two years, according to the report, Trends in Fortune 500 Careers Web Site Recruiting by iLogos Research. This two-year study found the strongest growth in best practices was integrating the careers website front-end, with a back-end recruitment management system. "The use of a job agent tool for candidate relationship management also more than doubled, with 120 percent growth," says Yves Lermusiaux, president and founder of iLogos, an Internet recruiting intelligence consultancy.

Mike Haddock, vice president of account services for Alexus, a Gaithersburg, Md.-based talent management system provider, says that lately his clients' needs revolve around "better screening and assessment capabilities. A year and a half ago, the issue would have been 'get me more data.' Now needs are more centered around 'help me sift through what I have.'"

When individuals apply for a job at Human Genome Sciences, part of the online application procedure is prescreening questions that help the recruiters and hiring managers determine early in the process, individuals who may and may not be qualified.

"We communicate with candidates at different levels," says Carroll. "Initially, we e-mail candidates to thank them, tell them we received their resume, and we will evaluate it. Then, we respond through the evaluation process whether the candidate is suitable for the position. If they are not, we let them know they are no longer a candidate, but explain that we will keep their information on file for future openings. Then we go to another level in which our hiring managers formulate questions related to the position that candidates receive electronically.

"What's really amazing is the fact that all candidates respond to the questions and we receive their answers within 24 hours," she says. "People who know 'their stuff' love to share this kind of information, which helps us better determine their qualifications and fit with the organization. They (candidates) truly love to talk about their industry and some of that passion comes through in their answers. We present this additional screening data to the hiring manager with the candidate's resume."

An important point Carroll makes is that "nothing replaces one-to-one communication with the candidate. We have a process that helps us select the right candidates to talk to."

By using the online screening and communication, the quality of candidates going through the more advanced interview process is greater. "We used to have to contact 50 candidates by phone. With the tools we now have in place, we can narrow down, and place calls to 10 candidates."

Portal Improvements and Success Tips

According to Gerry Crispin, recruiting futurist and co-author of CareerXroads, "Companies have gotten confused of late with mixing the measurement of the Internet as a 'source' of hire with its growing importance as the 'means' of connecting the critical elements of the hiring process."

Thinking in terms of connectivity and functionality is the more sophisticated-and much more powerful-way to use the Internet as a recruiting resource. Some other factors to think about to make e-recruiting more successful are:

Review the entire corporate Web site. Look at the organization's entire Web site through the eyes of your most desirable recruits. Does the site look and feel like a first-rate site? Do you find things on the site that conflict with messages you try to send out through the recruiting process? Don't underestimate the impact other sections of the site that can undermine the best recruiting methods, Crispin says.

Don't make applying too labor intensive. "I've audited more than a couple of companies with eight-page online applications supported by little in the way of content to convince candidates to go through the process," says Lefkow. "In leaner times, candidates will grudgingly fill out these longer applications while in search of employment and be willing to jump through hoops you put in front of them. When things pick up, though, the patience with these features declines as the number of other available opportunities increase."

Give candidates detailed job information. One of the best ways to develop good relations with candidates is to provide them with thorough information about the job and the company, says Jim Hay, a Chicago-based job Web site consultant. "The more information companies provide, the less work they have to do, and the more likely they'll find a candidate who fits the position. You should outline requirements, give salary ranges, and write job descriptions that are more comprehensive than ads or internal postings. The most important thing to consider when you're designing a career section is to think of the person you are trying to attract as your customer."

Embrace the power of e-mail. "Personal e-mail to candidates is powerful," notes Kevin Wheeler, president and founder of Global Learning Resources. "It flatters the candidate. It makes her feel good to be acknowledged and asked questions. The candidate's response can also make you feel better about your decision whether or not to recommend her to a hiring manager.

"If you develop some standard questions—even a template—you can quickly e-mail many candidates with one mouse click," he says. "This is far faster and efficient than the traditional telephone call, which often catches the candidate off guard and unprepared."

Consider native language search. Instead of keyword searches, more online recruiting systems are moving to native language search capability because it is less likely to screen out qualified candidates and users don't have to maintain a dictionary of key words that go out of date, explains Alexus' Haddock.

Review niche sites. "As the tools to distribute jobs to various niche sites advances, the number of professional associations that participate in the hiring process will increase exponentially," Crispin says. "The time is fast approaching when corporate strategies will easily identify and incorporate the use of association sites. The American Society of Association Executives has created a not-so-obvious line to a 'Gateway of Associations'."

Michelle Martinez is a writer and editor specializing in recruiting, career development, human resources, and workplace management issues.