Link to original article

Generation Facebook Companies need to harness online tools to successfully recruit

Tod Maffin is teaching top executives how to recruit the Facebook generation.

As employers scramble to understand what makes the tech generation tick, Maffin walks companies through the new world of young talent: Where to find them, how to attract them and how to keep them engaged.

"The 18 to 32 year-old generation is different," he said during an interview from Vancouver. "Their whole raison d'etre is revolutionary."

The B.C.-based tech whiz will touch down in Fredericton this May to offer insight as a panelist at the New Brunswick Securities Commission's annual Fullsail Summit. He will explain to delegates how to use online technologies to advance business goals, save cash and tap into the next cohort of talent.

"The Facebook generation wants to change the world," he said. "They want to make sure the company they work for is committed to the environment or involved in the community."

Some companies have environmental policies and follow sustainable practices in the office, like recycling or trying to use less energy, while others make donations or volunteer within the community. These companies tend to appeal more to the Facebook generation, Maffin said.

"There is a real sense of advocacy among these youth and companies have just been extraordinarily lousy at articulating these values to them."

Many organizations stumble through a minefield of mistakes when trying to groom their future leadership and recruit the best and brightest from the new talent pool, he said.

"If companies are relying on placing stale ads in papers and using old-school recruiting techniques, there's a nasty shock in store for them," he said.

Maffin's foray into the world of technology and business took off in the 1990s during the heady days of the dot-com boom. In 1999 he launched MindfulEye.com, an artificial intelligence firm that went public in 18 months.

"I was a young executive sitting on shares worth a little under $10 million in my company," he said. "I learned quickly how to run a business and recruit the people I needed."

Maffin now spends most of his time as a national technology broadcaster for the CBC and giving media-savvy presentations to business leaders around the world.

To be successful at recruiting, Maffin said companies need to exploit the networking forces of social media websites such as Facebook, MySpace and YouTube.

These tools are used not only as a way to tap into a younger generation and find new recruits but as a way to encourage discussion and debate as well as company brand recognition.

Some organizations have launched Facebook groups while others broadcast messages about the company to potential employees on YouTube.

"It's not that hard a sell to get companies interested in harnessing these online tools," he said. "It's just fear of the unknown that stops them."

"I'm a nuts and bolts person," he added. "I don't want to turn these people into computer nerds or experts. People are smart and they get (why the technology is important for recruiting) right away."

However it's not just about using online social media tools, Maffin said, but using them effectively.

"A lot of companies have somebody in the organization that starts an account with the intention of poking around and seeing what there is to do," he said.

But Maffin warns of disastrous effects if companies jump head first into social media networking without a basic understanding of how it works.

Candy-maker Mars Inc. recently turned Skittles.com into a Twitter search results page. Instead of the regular website, Skittles.com became a live feed of any comments made about Skittles on Twitter.

Twitter is a microblogging platform that allows users to create individual profiles and post status updates - called Tweets - which can be viewed by anyone who follows that user.

"I think the idea was to say 'Hey look at us, we're into social marketing so we're cool,'" Maffin said.

"It's a pretty bold move but as a strategy it was just terrible because less than 20 per cent of the feeds were positive. So they pulled it off right away. But I would venture to say that sales did go up, so it was still effective."