As 1000heads’ HR manager you’d think Social Media Week has the potential to pass me by.  Not so; yesterday I was invited to take part in a panel discussion, entitled ‘Mind the Gap: Avoiding a Social Media Skills Crisis’.

Crisis might seem like a dramatic word, but it’s true that many brands, organisations and agencies continue to struggle to recruit the right people to support their social media efforts.  Yet I don’t believe a lack of social media skills is the problem; actually it’s almost the opposite.

Take graduates as a perfect example.  For what is essentially a new and ever-evolving industry, graduates offer a virtually endless source of ‘social media savvy’ people.  Students, perhaps more so than any other demographic, understand how to use Facebook, Twitter, and any number of social platforms and presences.  They’re young, keen, and with social media experience built in, what’s not to like?

But it’s here where we begin to run into a few problems.

• Having a passion for social media (something I read on a lot of CVs) is almost always inaccurate.  People have a passion for their passions, and they may well use social media to converse and share in those passions, but they are very rarely passionate about a social media tool itself.
• Using social media to manage a busy social life and interact with a multitude of friends and acquaintances is very different from using social media to listen, monitor, gather insights, activate campaigns, and do all the other things that will ultimately be required in the workplace.
• Understanding social media doesn’t mean a person has social skills, understands workplace etiquette, or even knows how to deal with all of the diverse audiences working life brings to the door.  Much of this comes with time, practise and experience, but too often the ambiguity of the word social can confuse our expectations of what it means to be social.

The crisis comes when employers misinterpret using social media for understanding its place in a business context. The reality is, we can teach someone to effectively use Twitter as part of a client campaign far more easily than we can train someone on how to problem solve, communicate with clients or juggle multiple tasks.  So when a graduate knocks on our door, what skills should we be looking for?

For us, social media are just one piece of the Word of Mouth puzzle; and every other piece is just as important to up skill for.

As part of our graduate recruitment drive, this year 1000heads will be launching a summer school aimed at students who are about to graduate or who are still studying.  While we’re obviously on the lookout for new team members, it’s also designed to give those attending a first hand experience of life in an agency.  For us there’s no better way for all involved to understand the skills we think are truly important.

Watch this space for more details.

And any students looking for some immediate inspiration should check out the free Nokia’s Social Innovation Lab that takes place at Social Media Week on Wednesday 15^th.  The session presents four ‘Young Social Innovators’; each telling the story of how social has helped them bring their business idea to life.

Tags: graduates, recruitment, smw, social media, social media recruitment, social media week, students