By T.J. Ripley
When you're looking for candidates you want to get as much information about
the industry they work in as you can. That way you can better understand
your candidates, the needs of the market and the terminology unique to that
world. You've probably found some sites that help, but finding ones that are
truly useful is often a laborious project.
What you need is a directory that lists high-quality industry Web sites and
reviews the value of each of them. That's exactly what the Dow Jones
Business Directory does.
Within its Industry listing page, there are over 50 different industry
categories, including accounting, banking, computer hardware, marketing,
pharmaceuticals, retailing and telecommunications.
Each industry category, in turn, contains a wealth of listings organized
into various subcategories. Among the subcategories are companies,
associations & institutions, reference & news sites, mailing lists, related
government sites and trade groups. Each entry within one of the
subcategories takes you to a review of that particular site. The review
ranks the site, lists any costs associated with using the site, notes the
key reasons to use the site and describes how best to use it. Naturally, the
review also links you directly to the site.
Though the value of the sites might not be immediately apparent, they all
offer excellent ways to gather information that can help you find
candidates.
The lists of companies in the industry can provide you with a look at the
competition, their job postings and source company names to look for on
resumes. Associations and institutions are great places to look for member
lists and conferences. Reference and news sites are valuable for staying
abreast of industry happenings and keeping tabs on industry movers and
shakers. You can use mailing lists to monitor discussions about the industry
by those in the know. Trade group-run Web sites provide news and information
to help you gather keywords and links to user groups and other communities.
Even government sites are a valuable way to find keywords, such as the names
of standards and regulations, which your candidates are likely to include on
resumes or discuss in newsgroups.
As an aggregator of Web sites, the Dow Jones Business Directory is a good
way to find valuable industry resources... and figure out how best to use
them.
-- T.J. Ripley is a journalist and Web explorer who contributes to AIRS
research and writing.
About AIRS
AIRS teaches recruiters and high-growth companies to find passive candidates
hidden inside directories, databases, archives and the public Web servers of
over 400,000 companies and organizations on the Net. For more information
about our cutting edge training seminars, publications, or web applications
please call 1-800-466-4010 or check out our web site at
http://www.airsdirectory.com.
