BC Education and Career Fairs

Recruiting efforts for HMCS DISCOVERY’s 2012/2013 recruiting season began on December 5th and 6th at the BC Education and Career Fairs hosted in Abbotsford and Vancouver . These two fairs are among the largest fairs I attend each year, but over the years I have seen a dramatic shift. This year I noted the majority of exhibitors were universities, colleges and trade schools looking for potential students, rather than organizations looking for potential employees.

Is this a sign of the times? Don’t get me wrong, as the only organization attending that was actually hiring, I had little competition, and saw a number of interested prospects, but I can’t help wondering if the lack of recruiting by other organizations is a sign that the economy is far from recovering. Even more likely, is that the job market is such that employers no longer need to go to applicants; rather applicants will seek out employers.

The internet has made it much simpler, and cheaper, for organizations to post their job openings and share information with potential recruits, even the Canadian Forces is increasingly offering greater online support for prospective recruits. Anyone interest in applying can find the answers to all their questions on Forces.ca, but I don’t think it can match the importance of an in person interaction. Joining the military is a big commitment, and it can be difficult to proceed with an application without talking to someone, such as a recruiter with firsthand knowledge, about their experiences. I believe this is why the Canadian Forces still focuses its recruiting initiatives on interpersonal interaction, and though it may seem that the Canadian Forces is lagging behind others in adopting an online recruiting it could be a mistake to shift recruiting from the more traditional in person recruiting. I guess only time will tell.