It really is who you know...

I love the idea of social networking.  I think social networking - if implemented correctly - can change how companies, attract, retain and engage their employees, as well as their distribution partners and customers. 

No big news there - pundits have been saying the same for a while.  I have blogged on social networks and their impact on companies back in 2006. and included social networking in a white paper written in 2005.

Dow Chemical is now using social networking to bridge the gap between current employment needs and past and current employees.  The article that brought it to my attention is here on Computer World.

From the article...

"This is an acknowledgment that the labor market is tightening," said Kevin Small, leader of Dow's Global Resource Management Center. "We really need to come up with ways of addressing different generations in the workforce. The intent is to increase engagement with the overall Dow family -- current and former employees -- and allow them to stay connected [and] stay current on what Dow is doing in case they choose to return."

I think this is a great way to expand the reach of Dow's recruiting efforts.

One thing I'd include is a program whereby former employees can recommend people outside the network - to "link them in" so to speak and earn rewards for continuing to look for people that they believe work within the culture.  The recommending employee would receive credits/points - like "diggs" and so would the person being recommended.  Other employees could then rank the potentials driving up their "desirability" score.  I'd also close the loop and show scores for employees based on whether their recommendation made the cut - and include multipliers for length of stay for the new employee.

Imagine being able to go to a site and see your score compared to others. 

The bonus in this idea is that those that participate are probably your target audience for ongoing employee engagement ideas since they are proving, through their behavior, they are actively engaged and helping the company. 

A ready-made audience for understanding what you're doing right and what you're doing wrong. 

Win-Win-Win.