So, we have all seen it coming for years and now it is finally here.  The way recruiters have been recruiting candidates is changing once again.   I have been recruiting for 22 years, I have seen many shifts.  Recruiters who adjust to the changes on how to recruit will succeed, and the others will be looking for a new career soon. I remember vividly working at Dell in 20012 and TA Managers were talking about the huge investments they were going to make in LinkedIn Recruiter.  Every company that was serious about their TA strategy was talking about LinkedIn at that time also.  Well, that is about to come to an end.

R.I.P. LinkedIn Recruiter.  You are done.  You are history.  You just got your ass kicked for good.

As Twisted Sister said in the 80’s “Were Not Gonna Take It Anymore”.   Employers are sick of paying the premium cost for something that people can get elsewhere for free.  Is this new news?  Not really, the product is still out there, but my bet is more and more companies will find smarter ways to invest their money in recruiting.  Microsoft is scrambling to make changes to LinkedIn, but it is too little, too late.

There are so many good tools out there that help recruiters find e-mails and phone numbers on LinkedIn profiles.  Great products like Hiretual, Contact Out, Prophet, E-mail Hunter have made using the free version of LinkedIn a heck of a lot more sense.  While LinkedIn was wearing their crown for the “best job board“, the entrepreneurs were hard at work trying to find out workarounds to LinkedIn. They did a damn good job too.

Aside from LinkedIn Recruiter, there are a ton of issues with regular LinkedIn.  Their new UI does suck.  They are really struggling to find their identity.  They are listening to recruiters and hiring managers, but if you took a poll, I would venture to say that they did a pretty poor job listening to what everyone was looking for with the “new” LinkedIn.

So, enough about LinkedIn and LinkedIn Recruiter.  Let’s talk more about what is beyond LinkedIn. 

Think about it for a minute.  If you didn’t have LinkedIn, how would you recruit?

Not an easy question is it?  Would you use Twitter, Facebook or dating websites to find talent?

The truth is there isn’t a one answer.

Let me say this- you are going to have to retrain yourself on how to recruit candidates in 2017.  So you may be able to get a phone number or e-mail from the tools that are available, BUT how are you going to differentiate yourself from every Tom, Dick and Harry trying to recruit the same person?

The Dow is now at 21,000.  An all time high.  Unemployment is low.  Candidates are now not wanting to be found.  They are being hounded by recruiters and now some are deleting their profiles on all social platforms.  They will do so more and more.

Recruiters can no longer hide behind the computer anymore.  They need to learn how to be social beyond social media!  They need to learn how to communicate beyond  e-mail.  Building long term, lasting relationships is what is going to differentiate you from the competition. THESE are the relationships recruiters need to build. People do business with people they know and trust!

So, if you are a recruiter, it is time to go back to the basics.  It works.  It has always worked.

Candidates are getting smarter.  As I preached earlier in this year, candidates will begin to realize that becoming “less social” is a pretty damn good idea.

You are going to have to find the people who aren’t on social media.  You are going to have to find people without a resume.  You are going to have to do something different that others are not doing.  If you don’t do something different, then what is your true value?

Artificial Intelligence is now here.  Candidates can’t differentiate between what is real and what is not real.  Who is a computer and who is not?

What are you doing differently in 2017?  What is your strategy?  I would love to hear it.  It better not be LinkedIn either.  It is not going to work.