Samara Parker


June 19
Jobcast Careers
Mobility is very important. Which is why I do yoga, even though I think it's kind of boring. I would much rather play a rousing game of one-on-one basketball with my husband (even though he thoroughly trounces me every single game — I blame the height difference). Take care of your mobility or you'll miss out on all kinds of fun! Such as: dancing like a crazy person, scaling the shelves at your local grocery store to reach your favorite chocolate bar, or taking advantage of killer recruiting opportunities. If your social media strategy isn't mobile-compatible, you're missing out on candidates. It's as simple as that. We know that more and more candidates are using their phones and tablets to look for job opportunities. Accor…Read More
June 17
Hero why-your-social-recruiting-must-go-mobile
We’ve been talking a lot about staying relevant on the blog lately.Because, when it comes to social recruiting, staying up to date on all the latest trends in media and technology is crucial to being successful.Right now nothing is more relevant than mobile.Last year alone saw the use of mobile increase by 103%. More than 2 out of 3 Facebook users log on via mobile, and even more importantly, about 1 in 6 users use Facebook from mobile exclusively.And not only are people using mobile more often, they are using it specifically to hunt for work. According to a recent article on Mashable, 77% of  job seekers surveyed were using mobile for this purpose. This is not only because of the increased use of smart phones and tab…Read More
June 12
jobcast blog linklove interview
Yesterday, Facebook webcast its first shareholder meeting live.This meant that anyone with access to the internet could sit in and observe. Pretty crazy, especially when you think back to 10 years ago, when it was barely possible to stream low-res cartoons.For today’s Link Love, in honor of our ability to watch Facebook do business in action, we thought we’d highlight some cool Facebook news from around the web.This article goes into some detail about the recent Facebook shareholder meeting. It shows their current stock performance and explains Zuckerberg’s strategy (which basically boils down to : THINK LONG TERM.)Something that should make stockholders happy is Facebook’s increased focus on improving ser…Read More
June 10
Hero facebook-recruiting-best-practices-in-practice
What better way to learn than by studying other successful people?I've learned everything I know by imitating comic book characters and Jamie Oliver. Hence my fantastic salad making abilities and wicked crime fighting skills.When it comes to learning new tricks, examples go a long, long way.We're always paying attention to companies who are super at social recruiting because it's the best way to take your Facebook recruiting practices to the next level.Unlike cooking and rescuing redheaded reporters from danger, Facebook recruiting is still relatively new. But luckily there are still lots of innovative early adopters to learn from.We put together some examples of specific best practices employed by family-run business G…Read More
June 5
Hero keep-your-social-recruiting-on-trend-with-these-links
If you want to be popular you need to stay on trend. Personally I find this very difficult to do. I do not enjoy fashion magazines or shopping. I am also quite short, so I often end up in the children's section of clothing stores. And trust me, nothing says "this chick is not hip" like a pair of velcro sneakers with Dora the Explorer emblazoned on the side. Not only am I not a particularly stylish dresser, but my taste in general is "pretty lame" (according to my hipster friends at least). I still get really excited by board games, and haven't updated my gym playlist in years. Why would I? What could be better than Will Smith's Getting Jiggy With It for getting your pump on?! Thankfully, when it comes to social media, I actually enjoy t…Read More
June 3
Hero how-to-keep-your-social-recruiting-relevant
I don't know about you, but I still get squeamish every time I see someone in their early twenties sporting a neck tattoo. Don't even get me started about face tattoos. This isn't because I don't like body art. I've been sporting some (IMHO) pretty lovely tattoos on my right arm for the last 8 years. I think tattoos are gorgeous... well, maybe not all tattoos, but I certainly enjoy the art-form in general. The thing is: my tattoos are easily covered. I think that my grandparents aren't even aware of their existence (thankfully they do not own a computer, so my secret is safe!) A face tattoo is not. And I am simply not hip enough to accept that having a giant ice-cream cone tattooed on your cheek isn't going to get in the way of the …Read More
May 29
Jobcast Careers
Measure twice post once. Except that you actually have to post more than once in order to effectively grow your employer brand... At least, that's what most of the Infographics floating around on Pinterest say. Moving on, and far away from that terrible analogy, today's Link Love is all about metrics. Every employer (and their cat) knows that metrics are super important when it comes to recruiting. Mostly thanks to Monday's article explaining the importance of metrics for Facebook recruiting. You're welcome. That article also gave some pretty solid advice about what metrics employers need to track, and how to best make use of the collected data. Double you're welcome. But, and I do not say this lightly, there are oth…Read More
May 25
Hero facebook-insights-how-metrics-can-lead-to-better-recruiting-employer-branding-and-napping
No metric exists that can be applied directly to happiness. Don't even try! Unless your happiness is causatively related to your success at Facebook recruiting. That's just basic science. Recruiting is tough, anything that makes it simpler is bound to make you happier. Not just because it means finding more and better candidates, but also because when your recruiting is more efficient, it frees up time for you to focus on other things. Such as employer branding, achieving inbox zero, and napping. So, if you want to spend more time catching up on beauty sleep, I highly recommend you make metrics your best friend.Metrics are important when it comes to recruiting strategy, because without detailed insights about how pre…Read More
May 22
Jobcast Careers
Good advice is great. It informs, motivates, and generally helps us do things better. Monday's blog explored advice from the most fundamental source imaginable... Parents! Typically advice from parents is about hygiene, savings, and not riding motorcycles. You know — annoying advice! My parents are no exception, hence my sad lack of motorcycle skills. But they have both been working in HR for over 30 years, so they know a thing or two about recruiting. Which means they are an awesome, but unconventional, source of wisdom when it comes to all things HR. This almost makes up for the motorcycle. Almost! Todays links are all about advice and lessons from places we wouldn't usually think to look. Like surfers. Yu…Read More
May 20
Hero writing-effective-job-posts-advice-from-my-favorite-hr-experts
This past week, I found myself smack-dab in the middle of the most intense HR/social recruiting conference in the history of the world.I’m calling it Parental HR SmackDown 2013 (#psmack2013)Yup, my parents flew all the way out to Holland, stayed with us in our tiny loft apartment, and (very kindly) answered all of my questions about recruiting. They also ate a lot of cheese, walked the canals, and enjoyed Belgian beers... but back to the recruiting.Why would I choose to devote any of this precious family-time to talking shop? Well, you can only say so much about canals and cheese before you need to shake things up. And, even more importantly, my parents have over 60 years of HR experience combined. They are ce…Read More