Lessons Learned at GSC SHRM: Part II

About the Session

At the recent Garden State Council SHRM conference, David Spector, head of Mobile for TMP Worldwide, led a session titled “Trending Now – Mobile Recruitment & Why You Can’t Ignore It.” The discussion focused on the importance of mobile-optimized career sites to attract and engage top talent in a smartphone-driven landscape.

Key Insights

• Smartphone penetration has risen by 11% over the past year, with the fastest adoption rate among people over 50.
• Over 25% of the population uses smartphones as their primary means of accessing the internet, making mobile recruitment essential to avoid missing potential talent.

Designing Mobile Career Sites

• Deliver content conveniently, avoiding heavy graphics, videos, or animations that hinder usability.
• Optimize for smartphone gestures like swiping and zooming instead of traditional clicking and scrolling.
• Avoid native apps in favor of platform-agnostic sites accessible on all mobile devices.
• Use Responsive Web Design to ensure an optimal viewing experience across devices, automatically adapting content (e.g., removing unsupported elements like Flash).

Mobile Recruitment Tips

• Streamline application processes by focusing on the most relevant questions to simplify candidate submissions.
• Mobile-optimized sites rank higher in Google search results when users search on mobile devices.
• Use QR codes in print, billboards, or other locations to provide a fast entry point for candidates.
• Leverage gamification to engage candidates—encourage sharing scores via social media to expand reach.

Conclusion

With mobile devices becoming the primary tool for job searches, organizations must adopt mobile-first recruitment strategies to reach candidates who rely on smartphones for internet access. Acting on this shift ensures broader talent engagement and a competitive edge in recruitment.