Social media recruitment : communication characteristics and sought gratifications

This study examines how social media pages can be used to influence potential applicants' attraction. Based on the uses and gratifications theory, this study examines whether organizations can manipulate the communication characteristics informativeness and social presence on their social media page to positively affect organizational attractiveness. Moreover, we examine whether job applicants' sought gratifications on social media influence these effects. A 2 x 2 between-subjects experimental design is used. The findings show that organizations can manipulate informativeness and social presence on their social media. The effect of manipulated informativeness on organizational attractiveness depends on the level of manipulated social presence. When social presence was high, informativeness positively affected organizational attractiveness. This positive effect was found regardless of participants' sought utilitarian gratification. Social presence had no significant main effect on organizational attractiveness. There was some evidence that the effect of social presence differed for different levels of social gratification

Getting bang for your buck : the specificity of compensation and benefits information in job advertisements

Even though some organizations are trying to attract high-level applicants through offering superior compensation and benefits, reward statements in job advertisements are sometimes rather general and vague. On the basis of person-environment fit theories, we examine whether providing more specific information on attractive reward packages in job advertisements leads to higher perceived person-reward fit and subsequent job pursuit intentions. Furthermore, based on signaling theory, we propose that person-reward fit allows job seekers to make inferences about broader person-organization fit. Applying an online experimental design among 283 experienced potential applicants, we find that more specific compensation and benefits information results in higher job pursuit intentions and that this relationship is fully mediated by person-reward fit perceptions. In turn, the effect of person-reward fit is partially mediated by perceptions of person-organization fit, indicating that people might use reward information as signals for other organizational attributes in early stages of recruitment

The dark side of employee referral bonus programs : potential applicants’ awareness of a referral bonus and perceptions of organizational attractiveness

The purpose of this study is to examine the effects of potential applicants’ awareness of employees being rewarded for referrals on organizational attractiveness, based on credibility theory and the multiple inference model. In a first study (N=450), final-year students were less attracted to the organization when they knew employee referrals were rewarded, which was partially explained by lower credibility perceptions. Moreover, varying the specific characteristics of the referral bonus program (i.e., timing, size, type, recipient) did not improve potential applicants’ perceptions of credibility and attractiveness. A second study (N=127) replicated the negative effect of referral bonuses on organizational attractiveness and found that it could be explained by both potential applicants’ inferences about the referrer’s other-oriented motive and lower referrer credibility. Whether employees explicitly stated their referral reason was bonus-driven or not did not affect these results

Attracting applicants through the organization’s social media page : signaling employer brand personality

The purpose of this study is to examine how potential applicants’ exposure to an organization’s social media page relates to their subsequent organizational attractiveness perceptions and word-of-mouth intentions. Based on signaling theory and the theory of symbolic attraction, we propose that potential applicants rely on perceived communication characteristics of the social media page (social presence and informativeness) as signals of the organization’s employer brand personality (warmth and competence), which in turn relate to organizational attractiveness and word-of-mouth. Data were gathered in a simulated job search process in which final-year students looked for an actual job posting and later visited an actual organization’s social media page. In line with our hypotheses, results show that the perceived social presence of a social media page was indirectly positively related to attractiveness and word-of-mouth through its positive association with perceived organizational warmth. Perceived informativeness was indirectly positively related to these outcomes through its positive association with perceived organizational competence. In addition, we found that social presence was also directly positively related to organizational attractiveness. These findings suggest that organizations can use social media pages to manage key recruitment outcomes by signaling their employer brand personality

Searching hard versus searching smart : the role of search process quality in an internship context

Based on a self-regulatory approach, we propose that students searching for an internship following a high-quality process will show greater search success. In a sample of 191 Belgian final year students looking for an internship, the quality of students’ search process was positively related to both self-reported and objective search outcomes, beyond the mere intensity of their search. Specifically, reflection related positively to students’ satisfaction and perceived fit with their internship as well as to organizations’ assessment of students’ internship performance. Planning related positively to the speed of finding an internship. Furthermore, the four search process quality dimensions explained incremental variance in these outcomes beyond a unidimensional measure of metacognitive activities, supporting the added value of our multidimensional approach

Word of mouth as a recruitment source: an integrative model

Despite the social realities of job seeking, few studies have addressed how and why employment information received by other people affects organizational attraction. This chapter first discusses the characteristics of word-of-mouth as a recruitment source and then provides a systematic review of its determinants and outcomes studied in previous research. An integrative model of word-of-mouth is developed that synthesizes prior research findings and highlights key directions for future research. This model proposes that characteristics of the recipient (e.g., personality), source (e.g., expertise), and organization (e.g., employer brand) can determine the use of word-of-mouth as a recruitment source as well as moderate its effects. The model further suggests that word-of-mouth affects both individual job search outcomes and organizational pre-hire and post-hire recruitment outcomes. The accessibility-diagnosticity model and the source credibility framework are discussed as theoretical perspectives explaining these effects. Finally, several strategies are discussed that organizations can implement for managing word-of-mouth

Recruiting nurses through social media : effects on employer brand and attractiveness

Aim: To investigate whether and how nurses' exposure to a hospital's profile on social media affects their perceptions of the hospital's brand and attractiveness as an employer. Background: Since in many places across the globe hospitals are struggling with nursing shortages, competition is rising to be perceived as an attractive employer by this target group. Organizations are increasingly using social media for recruitment, however, little is known about its effects on potential applicants' perceptions of the organization as an employer. We thus examine whether these effects occur and rely on the media richness theory to explain the mechanisms at play. Design: A between-subjects experimental design was applied. Three conditions were used: a control group, one condition that required visiting the Facebook page of a hospital and one condition that required visiting the LinkedIn page. Method: The focal organization was an existing Belgian hospital which had a LinkedIn and a Facebook page. An online questionnaire was sent to nursing students and employed nurses over 5 months in 2015-2016. Results: Nurses' exposure to the hospital's Facebook or LinkedIn page had a significant positive effect on a majority of the employer brand dimensions, both instrumental and symbolic. In addition, nurses who visited the Facebook page felt more attracted to working at the hospital. Most of these effects were mediated by social presence. Conclusion: Nurses' perceptions of employers can be positively influenced by seeing a hospital's social media page. Hospitals can thus employ social media to improve their employer brand image and attractiveness