SourceCon 2010: It’s Not About the Bike
I’m spending this week in beautiful San Diego attending SourceCon and ERE Expo. The weather is lovely and I’m reconnecting with old friends and making some new ones.
Yesterday wrapped up the first part of the trip, being SourceCon. If you’re not familiar with this conference, it’s about providing education and information in the area of candidate sourcing. And while I’m not a sourcer per se, I learned some new tips and tricks about internet search and social media that I can’t wait to take back to the office.
The there were three real takeaways for me about the relationship between people and technology. Yes, sourcers use a lot of technology-based tools. It was amazing. But my learnings apply to anyone, not just sourcers:
Technology is a tool. Shally Steckerl, from Arbita Consulting and Education Services, said it during his opening remarks. Technology helps us do our jobs fast and better. But they are just tools. And we, as individuals, aren’t the tools. The tools need us to make them work – and work properly.
Technology should be personalized. Eric Jaquith mentioned that the technology tools he uses are perfect for him. They might not be for everyone. It’s about what works for him and makes him productive. Shouldn’t that be what technology looks like in our companies? Each person should have the tools that make them the most productive.
I love the part of Eric’s session where he talked about tricking out his PC for his maximum productivity. I wonder if companies will ever get to the point where they stop giving everyone the same old set of programs and let their employees run wild.
Technology is not a substitute for talking. Lastly, I had the pleasure of hearing Terri Coligan and Gail Houston from Intuit talk about the development and implementation of Intuit’s social media recruiting strategy. Again, while they talked about tools, they also discussed the importance of connecting and engaging on a real level with people.
The day reminded me of the title of Lance Armstrong’s biography, “It’s Not about the Bike.” You can have the greatest tools in the world and it doesn’t guarantee you success. It’s understanding the tools and using the tools effectively that brings success.
And it’s not a replacement for a good old-school conversation.
This is one training consultant that had a great time at SourceCon. Cheers!
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