As those of us in the Executive Search and Staffing fields have seen, the Internet has become a major industry force. The technology has provided exponential expansion to available information. Candidates and researchers now have instantaneous access to vast amounts of information about companies, organizations and even individuals. The ability to contact potential employers and key people in those organizations seems without limit in speed and access.

On line recruiting services have become almost too numerous to name. They appear to provide candidates with instant reach to hundreds if not thousands of potential employers and recruiters. It would seem that all candidates need do is to list their resume with one or more job search Internet sites and wait for things to happen. However, time has shown that the process is still not quite that simple. The dilemma lies in the fact that there are some drawbacks to an on line job search.

First, the volume of traffic through on line job search sites has also grown exponentially. Recruiters and search firms that subscribe to the receiving end of those sites, now receive thousands of resumes per week. Even small and medium size firms, where much of the hiring is being done these days, get inundated with more resumes than they can possibly screen. In fact screening has become even more of an "elimination" process than "inclusion" process. Recruiters in all fields have fewer positions to fill and a much larger number of on line resumes to see.

Second, the hiring process is still a "face to face" experience. There is no avoiding the process of meeting and interviewing. Except with very rare occasion, employers are hiring people who will have to come to their place of business and interact. The process of getting hired still requires the face-to-face interview. Many candidates seem to believe that posting a resume is all that is required. There is the thought, or possibly hope, that simply posting a resume on some invisible job site will lead to immediate offers.

The dilemma lies first in the fact that, although the Internet is an incredible boom to the job search process, it is not an end in itself. Candidates can become complacent, naive and even lazy about the results they will get by simply posting a resume. Jobs do not simply flow from the Internet. Job search is a pro-active process.
The second dilemma is that candidates can ignore or even abandon the traditionally successful methods of job search. Networking, job postings, search firms and researching companies and industries for possible opportunities are all tried and true activities that should be actively pursued during a job search.

Posting a resume on the Internet is a new and valuable PART of the job search process and it should be used as such. Believing that a simple posting will lead to success is part of the wish for instant gratification we seem to look for in many of our activities. The fact of the matter is that, finding a new career opportunity is some of the hardest work anyone ever does. It is a multifaceted process and requires a full time focus if not a full time effort. Search firms, newspaper ads and, yes, the Internet, all combined still account for less than 35% of all the jobs filled.

The successful job search is multi-fated and the time investment is still best placed in networking and company opportunity research. The Internet will no doubt continue to grow in importance. For the present, however, it is important for candidates not to rely solely on that vehicle and to be careful not to become lazy about exploring every opportunity to reach potential employers.

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