This is my guest post which featured on Bill Boorman’s blog. Thanks Bill for featuring it :)

My Facebook newsfeed is chock full of broadcasts. Employers are relaying to me, using a variety of formats and broadcasters, their news, EVPs, benefits, company and employee insights, and all manner of information and updates. They want me to engage with their brand and love it when I, and a very small selection of their other subscribers, ask questions, like, and comment on their posts.

But at a deeper level, do any of these employers get me, understand me, really step into the minds and emotional drivers of their jobseeker community? Who is the hero here - the employer or the jobseeker?

The social gaming industry gets it, they create heroes (superheroes), winners, investors, and addicts everyday. It’s all about the player and their experience - everything is centered around the player. Players describe their quests and overall experiences as fun, challenging, engaging, and addictive. It’s psychology at its very best. 

What would happen if employers embrace the hero? If we shifted our mindset from broadcasting, responding and transacting, then would we find unrealized potential and buy-in from our community? How would we communicate differently? Could we turn our community into a movement and create crazed fans who are knocking down the door to work with you, rather than your competitor. In fact, how can we be truly “social” without embracing and understanding the hero? Maybe it’s time to re-imagine recruitment as we know it. 

On a final note, are your employees heroes or bored-senseless subscribers?