CAREERS MEDIA: Online recruiters poised to overtake traditional head-hunters, says IDC survey

<p>Traditional recruiting agencies face the challenge of moving to </p><p>"Internet speed" to keep up with online competitors if they are to </p><p>survive, according to a report by the IDC. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The Internet has significantly changed the Australian recruitment </p><p>landscape and has quickly become an invaluable channel for employers and </p><p>job seekers, the report said. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>It estimated that spending on online recruitment advertising in </p><p>Australia last year totalled Adollars 14.7 million. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>That figure is expected to grow to Adollars 329.3 million in 2004. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The figure included not only spending on Internet job listings, but also </p><p>on banner, button and other types of ads such as corporate profiles and </p><p>microsites that are purchased by recruiters to attract attention to </p><p>their recruiting campaigns. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>IDC Australia's senior analyst Internet and ecommerce Lisa Shishido said </p><p>to survive and thrive, traditional recruiting agencies would have to </p><p>adopt technology that could make their business more efficient and be </p><p>more "proactive about communicating their value proposition to </p><p>clients". </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"The days of agencies that are simply resume-shufflers who view </p><p>candidates as walking invoices are over," she said. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"The opportunity lies in harnessing the power of Internet technology to </p><p>make business more efficient. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"The Internet's impact on the Australian recruitment market to date has </p><p>been mainly on the initial stages on the recruiting process - posting </p><p>vacancies and identifying and accessing candidates. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"However, a handful of Web-based end-to-end solutions that attempt to </p><p>manage the entire process have recently emerged." </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>He added there was tremendous opportunity in offering business services </p><p>related to online recruiting, and vendors that can offer a winning </p><p>combination of content, tools and services to employers and job seekers </p><p>would prevail. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"For example, the large number of employment sites currently competing </p><p>for a limited pool of advertising dollars means that most are finding it </p><p>a challenge to make profits as they face the pressing question of when </p><p>and how they will reach profitability," Ms Shishido said. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"However, the opportunity lies in beating or outlasting competitors to </p><p>become one of a small handful of sites that will eventually dominate the </p><p>market, reaching critical mass in users and advertisers and branching </p><p>out to create other revenue streams." </p><p><BR><BR> </p>