There is a growing emphasis on word of mouth recruiting

One out of five Czech people in the labor force has changed jobs in the last twelve months, says a recent survey conducted by Factum Invenio for LMC, a leading Central and Eastern European e-recruitment operator. The two polls used were: an internet, and a general public poll. The results showed, internet users have a much higher frequency of changing jobs than the general population: 22 % of the polled internet users have changed jobs, compared to only 14 % of the general public poll.

Twice as many internet users - 42 % - are planning to change jobs within a year. ìBetween planning and doing there is always a gap, but I think these intentions also have a lot to do with the large amount of vacancies presently available on the internet,î Lucie äareöov from LMC commented about the results. In the general public, we observed only 9 % have such plans.

People were also asked how they found their current job. Recommendations from friends and acquaintances were mentioned as the most important factor by both groups. About 22 % of all respondents found their job with the help of a friend. The internet group relies even more on friends' recommendations ñ 35 % found their job by following their friend's advice.

Referrals and recommendations has been a growing trend, with a 4% increase over the last 2 years, and a 10 % increase over the last ten years. Petr ärmek who is responsible for products of HR Marketing at LMC thinks that this is due to companies focusing on less conventional recruitment activities in response to the strong demand for employees on the job markets. ìIt was not such a long time ago when companies first started using employee referrals as a recruitment method on a larger scale,î says Petr ärmek. Firms now offer their employees compensation for good referrals, which can be 1000 EUR or more.

When asked what they used as their main source of information about job opportunities, the internet poll discovered: the internet (80%), followed by the daily press and word of mouth. The general public poll found: daily press (25%), the internet (18%) and word of mouth (22%).