If you haven’t, you should.  Doesn’t matter if you are an owner or a producer on a desk, this could be a game changer, and for much more than just LinkedIn messages [...]]]> Did anybody else read this most recently emailed NAPS Legal Update for June?

If you haven’t, you should.  Doesn’t matter if you are an owner or a producer on a desk, this could be a game changer, and for much more than just LinkedIn messages and contacts.

In this email which NAPS Legal Counsel Bob Styles typically sends out on a monthly basis, tucked between two updates that didn’t have much application to my desk/business, was the below two paragraph notice about a yet to be adjudicated case titled “LinkedIn Messages As Evidence in Non-Compete Case“:

Did anyone else just feel the ground shake?

It doesn’t take much of an imagination to wonder about who then “owns” LinkedIn contacts?  And by extension Facebook, Twitter, and for that matter any social network/media contacts that one compiles in pursuit of success as a search/sourcing/recruiting professional while in someone’s employ.

And please don’t misinterpret my intentions for bringing this up.  I do not believe that anyone who signs a non-compete should EVER violate that agreement.  If you leave one employer to work for another employer or to start your own business, do it the right way, take the high road, and honor your non compete.  If you are that good, you don’t need to do anything illegal to get started on your new job or your new business.  EVER.  Period.  There is always enough OTHER business out there for you.

Still, this case will bring up a whole new set of questions our profession, its owners, producers and lawyers will need to address.  Not only can messages on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter now likely be used as evidence that you violated your non-compete, it can’t be long before “ownership” of those contacts comes into question as one leaves a job as a search or sourcing professional to begin a similar one somewhere else or on their own.

That’s why, in my mind, is case could become a game changer for how search professionals will use and manage the online social networks and social media tools that are now considered essential to success as a modern day sourcing and search professional.

What do you think?

I sure hope Mr Styles, Esq, will keep us up to date on how the case is finally adjudicated.

Oh, and for those interested, you can see the full Legal Update at skrentnyspeaks.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/NAPS-June-2010-LEGAL-UPDATE-LinkedIn-As-Evidence.pdf because, as of this writing, NAPS does not yet archive these informative missives.  I hope they will change that someday soon as they update and revise their new web presence.

I would love to read your thoughts on this, you can share them below.

Jeff Skrentny, CERS, had an inauspicious start in the search/recruiting profession as his first placement quit after 93 days.  Then he was sued by his client.  Despite that start, Jeff  has been a thriving executive search entrepreneur for the last 23 years; and has also been a trainer, author and motivator for his profession for the last 15 years, as well as a business consultant and advisor for its producers, managers & owners for the last 10 years; all while still running his search business, Jefferson Group Search, in Chicago.

Simple answer, probably.

More complex answer, it depends.  If your candidates are (IT, Sales & Marketing, PR, HR to name 4 types of candidates who are) then you better be.

Best long term answer, YES!

We will all be on it sooner or later.  So, do you want to start now or later?

Or are you going to ignore [...]]]> Great question!

Simple answer, probably.

More complex answer, it depends.  If your candidates are (IT, Sales & Marketing, PR, HR to name 4 types of candidates who are) then you better be.

Best long term answer, YES!

We will all be on it sooner or later.  So, do you want to start now or later?

Or are you going to ignore this like you did email?  You know who you are, though you won’t admit it now.

.

If only someone would put out a simple, no nonsense guide, to help one decide how to approach/tackle this “Tweeting” stuff.

Done correctly, Twitter takes time, and can take TOO MUCH time very easily.  But yes, it is a communication channel that can no longer really be ignored.  It has become a communication channel where an investment of time and energy probably should be seriously considered.

Folks this isn’t a fad, it is the future.

I just found a great white paper that offers a candid and realistic road map to answer some of these questions (and doubts) from the good folks at Bullhorn.  Think of it as a Twitter for Recruiters Dummies Guide.  It is an exceptionally useful tutorial and guide to figuring Twitter out, with great links if you want to learn more and give it a try.  For you skeptics, they also share three rather compelling reasons why you should seriously consider what Twitter can do for you as a search, staffing or recruiting professional, if you are still unsure.

You can check it out at (you may have to register as a Bullhorn Community Member first), or click on the document below and it will take you to an archived copy of the report.

http://www.bullhorn.com/research/Twitter_for_Recruiters.pdf

Is the ROI really there to make Twitter something every search and recruiting professional should be doing?  I think the best answer to that can be found in a quote from the article itself:

“As one recruiter wrote recently in the Fordyce Report, ‘From a long-term perspective, I can’t think of another single service that can deliver this caliber of value.’“

Jeff Skrentny, CERS, had an inauspicious start in the recruiting profession as his first placement quit after 93 days.  Then he was sued.  Despite that start, Jeff  has been an executive recruiter for 23 years, and has also been a trainer, author and motivator for his profession for the last 15 years, as well as being a business consultant and adviser for its producers, managers & owners for the last 10 years; all while still running a busy IT search business in Chicago at his firm Jefferson Group Search.