"The focus of recruitment websites recently has been on new concepts such as SNS and Weibo, and this year can be said to be the most active year for the online recruitment sector," said Wang Liang, CEO of 36 Talent. 36 Talent, a website established in 2002 that has always adhered to the path of细分 industry recruitment, has also made significant moves recently, including the acquisition of the fourth-ranked 528 Recruitment Network domestically, and the substantial purchase of the domain name 36.cn related to the company's numbers. The company's brand name has also changed from the original Job36 industry recruitment to 36 Talent. "Now when the industry mentions online recruitment, it is no longer just about money-burning advertising battles. The influx of new technologies and concepts is a positive promotion for the industry," said Wang Liang. "What are the actions of 36 Talent?" Wang Liang said, "While maintaining industry recruitment, we have also been continuously exploring, such as launching industry Weibo."
Confrontation between the emerging and the traditional
Since the emergence of new concepts like SNS recruitment and micro-recruitment, recruitment websites have formed two camps: emerging forces and traditional powers. One is represented by professional recruitment websites such as 51job, Zhaopin, 36 Talent, and China Talent Hotline, while the other is represented by new forms of network recruitment like Dajie.com and Bober.
According to the latest report released by iResearch Consulting, the revenue scale of China's online recruitment market in Q3 2011 is expected to reach 590 million yuan, an increase of 32.7% year-on-year and 10.0% quarter-on-quarter, showing faster growth compared to previous periods. Notably, Bober received over 100 million yuan RMB investment from Baidu again, and Dajie.com announced obtaining millions of US dollars in financing, which made the traditional recruitment website camp uneasy.
It is understood that most job search and recruitment websites, including 51job and Zhaopin, have already started to shift their focus to the SNS job market, making competition in the online recruitment industry increasingly fierce. Traditional recruitment websites have established a first-mover advantage in more than 10 years of development, with industry recognition and professionalism acknowledged by corporate employers, but they also suffer from inefficiencies and lack of communication. Meanwhile, new recruitment formats are still in the concept cultivation phase, and if they want to gain employer recognition, they must show outstanding performance in practical recruitment.
When tradition faces challenges from the emerging, who will win? Wang Liang stated that in the next year, new models of online recruitment will face market tests in aspects such as user usage habits, the number of recruitment positions, and results.
He provided the following reasons: Firstly, competition in the recruitment industry has shifted from "recruitment quantity to recruitment quality." Providing comprehensive recruitment solutions gives traditional recruitment websites an early advantage. Secondly, from the business operation level, after experiencing crazy advertising price wars, Wang Liang believes that traditional recruitment websites have returned to rational basic services, and the introduction of new models must rely on large-scale market promotion. To grow larger, recruitment websites need money. Lastly, the authenticity of recruitment information is particularly important. Unverified social job postings carry certain risks. From this perspective, social recruitment websites must address the issue of information authenticity.
Professional supremacy or Social supremacy?
Wang Liang has been emphasizing the professionalism of recruitment websites. Different from other internet domains, recruitment websites must solve real recruitment problems. The细分 industry recruitment model advocated by 36 Talent also demonstrates its advantages in this area.
Under the umbrella of 36 Talent, there are 25细分 industry talent websites. Each industry talent website provides deep and targeted services based on the characteristics of the industry, with high matching and strong professionalism. Not only recent graduates, but also experienced professionals can efficiently find jobs through industry talent websites.
Regarding the emerging social recruitment, 36 Talent does not reject the social concept. Wang Liang said: "Social networking and Weibo can serve as job-hunting tools for recruitment services."
From this perspective, social recruitment and traditional recruitment are not mutually exclusive. Whether professional supremacy or social supremacy prevails will ultimately be determined by the market.