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April 21, 2006
Opportunity knocks: Get a (second) life
I've written about a number of opportunities for innovation in the online recruitment space. Here's another one.
The cover story of this week's Business Week tells a fascinating story about a community clearly I haven't paid enough attention to: the online gaming community.
The focus of the article is on massively multiplayer games, and in particular, on a game--or, to be accurate, a gaming community enabled by a game--called Second Life. What's really interesting about Second Life is that it's possible to buy title to real virtual Real Estate in the Second Life space and to transact business there, and many people do.
So, what does that have to do with recruiting? Do you even need to ask? This community, and their avitars, is a key demographic in the talent market. They're there, living their second lives; we're here, chasing them in the one they're trying to escape.
Maybe the most valuable real estate on the web isn't having a top job board. Maybe it's having an avitar recruiter waiting to meet you in their space in your second life.
What would that look like? Imagine I recruit for, say, a leading telecom service provider. Imagine I offer a fun place to work, a great environment, and the coolest, hippest call centers around--and imagine that this isn't hype.
As a recruiter, my biggest challenge is that you just won't believe it. You know--or think you know--that call centers are one small step away from torture chambers--and no matter how many smile-and-dial pictures of happy people I show you, you're going to keep thinking that.
Now, imagine that I bought some virtual Second Life Real Estate, built a virtual call center, and invited you to come play around in it. I probably wouldn't even have to offer you an incentive if I were first to market with the concept, but even if I did, think of it this way: what would be the value to you today if you could allow your candidates to experience your environment without disrupting your operations?
You heard it here, first. See you there soon, I hope.
Posted by davidkippen at April 21, 2006 02:58 AM
Comments
The U.S. Army is already doing this. See http://www.recruiting.com/recruiting/2005/12/thats_recruitai.html .
Posted by: Steven Rothberg at April 22, 2006 06:51 PM
Thanks for the link, Steven. Just goes to show--this is a trend I should be paying better attention to. But there's one important distinction between what the Army's doing and what I'm suggesting: I'm suggesting creating the recruiting environment within an existing game. What I particularly like about the Second Life model is that users--in this case, corporate recruiting functions--can own both the virtual real estate and the intellectual property within it.
Posted by: David Kippen at April 23, 2006 12:45 AM