ResearchGoddess

As I step into my new role with ERE as Editor of The Fordyce Letter and continuing my duties as Editor of The Source Newsletter, I wanted to flesh out a couple of observations I have made in recent months regarding the sourcing world. I have heard several people, including a number of sourcers, express concern for the future of our function. These concerns have ranged from automation to irrelevance due to the vast number of social technologies at our fingertips. While I do agree that our roles are certainly changing, I would like to offer up a couple of predictions I’ve been rolling around in my mind regarding these concerns.

1. Automation tools will become more robust, requiring the employment of MORE skilled individuals to work them. I absolutely disagree with this notion that our (sourcers’) roles will be 100% automatable within the next X months or years. Yes, these tools will help us to consolidate our sourcing efforts into dashboards and one-stop search resources; just take a look at some of the aggregating tools available out there that will search and/or post to multiple sites at once. But in my personal opinion this means our recruitment organizations will need to employ smart individuals even more in order to manage these more complex tools. In a recent conversation I had with an industry colleague, sourcing was compared to the use of a shovel to dig dirt. Whether digging with hands, a shovel, or a bulldozer, there is always a human being involved to operate the tool. Our jobs cannot be fully automated because a good brain and discerning eyes will always be needed for quality assurance.
2. The job of a sourcer will involve more employment branding, market research, and PR within the next 12-24 months. We’ve done it: we asked for more connection through the use of social technologies, and good Lord have we ever gotten what we asked for! As a result of these resources, it is more important than ever for companies and their representatives to present a good image. I have long believed that our jobs involve so much more than just sourcing, and I think organizational leaders are starting to understand this. We as sourcers are often the first exposure a person has to a company. Therefore, it is important that we are brand ambassadors for our employers. We need to do our industry research and know what’s going on in our world in order to present ourselves as well-informed, and we need to know how to give our contacts warm-fuzzies about the companies we represent before we can even think about ‘pitching’ them our opportunities. I truly believe that a sourcer’s job in the coming months will heavily involve image and brand strategy just as much as (if not more than) strict research, sourcing, and outreach. After all, image is everything.

So what can you do to keep yourself relevant to these coming changes? Embrace them – don’t ignore them! Learn and keep up with the latest technologies, search techniques, and related functional skills. Don’t dismiss social technologies just because you don’t understand them – own up to the fact that you don’t ‘get’ it and learn. Put aside your ego and find someone who can teach you how to appropriately employ social tools for recruitment purposes. Offer to beta-test new recruiting tools. Education and continual learning are the keys here – if you are not green and growing, then you are red and rotting.

Please keep an eye on The Source Newsletter for relevant news, knowledge, and industry information. What other predictions would you make for the future of our roles in sourcing?

Tags: ERE, marketing, PR, predictions, recruiting, Research, socialrecruiting, SourceCon

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