Corporations are committed to social networking; this much we know. But how far is social media reaching into the enterprise? Are companies leveraging social connections to source new talent?  And if they are, have they seen their efforts pay off?

To answer these burning questions, SelectMinds commissioned a survey to get a glimpse into how US companies are utilizing social media and how they are being rewarded for doing so. The survey asked 216 executives at US firms with 3,000 or more employees to share the details of their corporate social media initiatives.

Here’s what we found:

• Recruiting Rules the Social Roost: 72% of respondents reported that their companies were using social media for recruitment/talent acquisition, followed by branding-engagement & awareness (69%), recruitment branding (68%) marketing (63%), corporate communications/PR (57%) and communications with customers (52%).  65% of HR execs maintain LinkedIn company pages and 63% have a dedicated Facebook page for careers.

• Corporate Social Networks Gain Momentum: 63% of respondents reported their companies are using corporate social networks for current employees, 40% have developed them exclusively for recruiting and 33% have created alumni networks. 69% of organizations plan to increase their social media budgets and 85% say they are seeking actively or planning to invest in social media technology.

• Measuring the Effectiveness of Social Media: 60% of respondents said corporate social media programs are most effective when used for communications, followed by brand awareness (57%), increasing the effectiveness of marketing (55%), brand monitoring (52%) and positive press (50%).  Among the most common metrics for evaluating the success of social media programs, 66% count hires from social networks, 65% count website visitors and 63% count Facebook fans.  Measurement remains a challenge: just 5% of respondents said they were “very confident” that they are accurately measuring the ROI of their social media activities.

These results seem to imply a clear mandate: social media is seen as the next great frontier in the recruiting industry. But where will this knowledge take us? Will companies that haven’t made strides start getting in the game? Can this information further push companies that have already crafted a social recruiting strategy forward to new heights? And how will job seekers adjust their social profiles to best connect with their ideal employer? As we move forward, we plan to explore these new wrinkles and get to the heart of what makes the most efficient and precise social recruiting strategy.

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