Sure, it looks like it’s becoming easier for organizations to directly recruit the right talent for even the most demanding job requirements. A first glance it’s a bit like being kid in a candy store. For an in-house recruiter – the world at your feet, the opportunity to make contact with anyone you want – WOW. But, is the glass half full or is it half empty. The reality is the challenges are huge – it’s a bit like scaling Mt. Everest alone but no-one is talking about it…

The advent of the internet – throwing the doors open in the information age, has created harder and harder challenges for in-house recruiters than ever before. Finding that top talent that they seek especially in high demand and very specialized areas is like finding a needle is a haystack. Hundreds of internet based job sites offer job seekers easy alternatives to showcase what they do. Business networking sites like LinkedIn and Plaxo are hot networking venues to get known if looking for a new job. And, companies spend big bucks on their career portals where they market themselves on their corporate websites to job seekers.

In-house recruiters are savvy professionals, much more adept than ever at meeting the needs of their internal clients. But just how to tackle what exists out there efficiently is a voluminous task. Quantity definitely does NOT equate to quality. Today’s technologies have opened up a new world of possibilities for anyone whose role it is to source out talent. It’s definitely a recruitment revolution. While on the one hand these are highly exciting times, on the other hand it’s enough to make anyone put their head in their hands and just sigh. And the recruiting options keep growing and growing and growing.

So here’s a stark reminder for all of us as we run around like kids in that candy store. Some of the old rules still apply but with some revisions.

The 80:20 Rule continues to hold its firm grip!!! 80% of challenging or complicated searches still get filled through networking and through good old fashioned direct recruiting. Generalist recruiters no longer make the cut. They just don’t have the depth. Specialty recruiters are the here and now. Experts in their field, knowledge based, highly networked and well respected in a narrow vertical, makes them an ideal value partners to organizations who want to know exactly where the talent is and stay on the leading edge of recruitment hiring trends. Recruitment Specialists are simply really worth their weigh in gold. Really smart organizations continue to include expert specialty recruiters as part of their hiring initiatives.