GILD INDUSTRY BRIEF: The 9 Things You Must Know About Big Data and Recruiting

GILD INDUSTRY BRIEF: The 9 Things You Must Know About Big Data and Recruiting

2 Introduction Business journals, magazines, and newspapers can t get enough of big data. It s no wonder. Companies across the spectrum are looking for solutions to help them leverage available data in meaningful ways. In fact, 42 percent of companies have already invested in big data or plan to within the next year. RECRUITING TECHNOLOGY COMPANIES ARE BEGINNING TO INTEGRATE BIG DATA INTO THEIR HIRING SOLUTIONS, TOO. YOU PROBABLY HAVE SOME QUESTIONS, SUCH AS: What exactly is big data? How can it help me find the right candidates? Can more information really help me find the right talent? Isn t big data just the newest buzzword? FREE DOWNLOAD In this industry brief, we ll summarize the findings of our whitepaper The Big Data Playbook: The 9 Things You Need to Know to Be Successful. We invite you to download the free whitepaper after you read this brief.

3 1. What is Big Data? 2. How Does Big Data Relate Before we get into the recruiting aspect of big data, we should understand what it is from a broader point of view. to Recruiting? Before we get into the recruiting aspect of big data, we should understand what it is from a broader point of view. WHAT SETS BIG DATA APART FROM JUST SIMPLE DATA ANALYTICS? The three V s: volume, variety, and velocity. To be defined as big data, it must adhere to each of these three criteria: Volume It deals with extremely large data sets, ranging from terabytes to petabytes. This is a staggeringly vast amount of information to process. If it isn t massive, it isn t big data. Variety It includes a mix of data types and can be structured or unstructured. Big data has to consolidate a wide variety of information. Velocity It doesn t just look at a variety or volume of information it also does so very quickly. Big data is used for information that occurs rapidly and needs to be addressed rapidly. ONCE AGAIN, WE NEED TO LOOK AT THE THREE V S OF BIG DATA AS THEY RELATE TO RECRUITING: Volume Applying big data to recruiting for tech positions would involve looking at a candidate s publicly available information online to get a clearer picture of the best candidates for open positions. Variety Looking at a candidate s open-source code and social media channels and combining this information will give you a meaningful, complete look at the candidate. Velocity Quickly switching between a candidate s social stream and work portfolio helps to create a comprehensive picture of the prospect.

4 3. Why Should You Use 4. How Does Big Data Big Data in Recruiting? Find Candidates? Recruiters who just 10 years ago were constantly searching for candidates are now inundated with too many prospects. It s easy to feel crushed by the weight of all this data. Big data recruiting is needed to sort through all this information to help recruiters and hiring managers make more-informed decisions. Few companies even large enterprises can afford the cost of employee turnover and bad cultural fits. Imagine, however, that by using big data in recruiting you could spend the same amount on hiring, but cut down on the rate of bad hires by 50 percent? That alone is reason enough to start investigating using big data in recruiting. Instead of just evaluating the information on a candidate s resume, big data recruiting goes to the Web and brings back a wealth of information on the candidate. USING A DEVELOPER AS AN EXAMPLE, HERE ARE JUST A FEW OF THE THINGS BIG DATA RECRUITING EVALUATES WHEN SEARCHING FOR INFORMATION ON A CANDIDATE: A candidate s social media profiles are analyzed to determine how they demonstrate their expertise on social media channels by sharing advice and interesting industry insights. It can also identify developers passions and interests. It can rapidly parse through thousands of traditional resumes, identify the information that strongly correlates to success, and deliver those candidates who are a match.

5 5. How Does Big Data Bring 6. How Does Big Data Help You More Context to Resumes? Engage with Candidates? By analyzing candidate data and interpreting the information to understand the true skills and interests of an individual, big data recruiting can actually help your organization find the Big data recruiting isn t just a smart tactic for finding excellent candidates before your competitors do; it can also help you engage more personally and more fruitfully with top talent. best hidden talent. It s not that it encourages ignoring the traditional resume, but it can BIG DATA RECRUITING CAN HELP WITH CANDIDATE ENGAGEMENT IN TWO WAYS: help companies look beyond those static words on a page. Big data looks for real-world examples of a candidate s concrete skills, presenting employers with a better view of what a candidate can actually do. 1. 2. It can help you break down barriers and better understand which candidates will be high performers and which candidates just look good on paper. With the proliferation of social media and personal blogs, you can get to know a candidate s personality before the interview. This can allow you to skip right to candidates who are a good fit for your organizational culture. Big data can do the work for recruiters and present a well-rounded picture of a candidate.

6 7. What Industries Should Use 8. Is Big Data Recruiting Big Data Recruiting a Fad or Here to Stay? Big data recruiting can work across a wide spectrum of companies, positions, and industries, but it is especially useful in the technology and startup sectors, which are currently waging an all-out war to find the best talent. It can also help companies look for talent in new online destinations that you may not have known about, helping you undercut your competitors and still end up with superior tech talent. You can win the war for talent by forging your own path. EVEN IF YOU ARE CONVINCED THAT BIG DATA WILL STICK AROUND, YOU MAY THINK ITS IMPACT ON RECRUITING WILL BE MINIMAL. Let s look at a few reasons why big data recruiting isn t going away: The Economy It can help ease the burden of a heavy workload and still allow recruiters to find the best people. Data Proliferation It can analyze dozens of social media channels and present you with a more complete picture of your candidate. The War for Talent It helps smart companies and recruiters get a leg up on the competition when it comes to talent selection. Innovation When an innovative new technology comes along with the potential to deliver ROI to companies, most organizations are going to hold on to it.

7 9. What Is the Future of Big Data Recruiting? Will your company be able to win the war for talent using big data? Will you be able to cut down on hiringprocess inefficiencies and improve your company s bottom line? It all depends on how you deploy it and what goals you set for yourself at the beginning of your hiring process. Success using big data follows if you put in the time and effort necessary to use this new recruiting advancement. With more companies in need of next-gen hiring solutions, the future of its use in recruiting looks bright.

8 Conclusion There s a battle for talent out there, and you can t afford to get left behind. The best and brightest candidates are being scooped up left and right by your competitors. So what s the solution? Throw more time and money into the traditional hiring process, hoping you ll get the results you need? No, the answer is to use the information that s available to you, so you can be smarter in your recruiting efforts. Don t fight with your competitors in the same shallow candidate pool. Expand your definition of who the right candidate is and use big data recruiting to find the talent you need to keep your company growing and innovating. With Gild, you get a recruiting solution that s powered by big data, allowing you to quickly and easily find, evaluate, and engage the right tech talent for your organization. FOR MORE INFORMATION, VISIT US ONLINE AT WWW.GILD.COM.