This might sound strange to some, but we are beginning our budget process for 2019. In order to have an effective and accurate look at 2019, we need to start thinking about how and where we will spend in the year ahead. I have a great interest in hearing what recruitment conferences exist and what some opinions are of the events you have attended in past years.
To start, I assume that different conferences are geared to different segments of the global recruitment business. Conferences are targeted to HR and talent management professionals, staffing companies, recruitment agencies, talent sourcers and even independent recruiters. A good article published in 2017 by Recruitics was titled “50 Recruitment Conferences to Consider for 2018.” You can access that article here: 50 Conferences by Recruitics.
Researching the specifics of each conference can be a full-time job. There are some well-known events that have been in existence for years.
SHRM Annual Conference and Exposition
One such conference is the SHRM Annual Conference and Exposition, which has a strong focus on HR practices and a huge exposition of vendors with software and services galore. This draws those from the corporate recruiting and HR professional ranks.
ERE Recruiting Conferences
ERE is a sponsor of many wonderful events. The ERE Recruiting Conference is typically in San Diego each Spring. It has a focus on in-house professionals with a mix of independents. Top speakers and brands are well represented and the focus is strategies and commonly encountered industry issues. In addition, ERE hosts multiple ERE SourceCon events that have a primary focus on the sourcing of candidates portion of recruitment. While mostly in-house recruiters populate this event, there is a contingent of independents as part of the mix.
SIA Executive Forum
This is focus on staffing leaders and engages attendees in benchmarking and recruiting best practice focused activities. A great organization for any owner if the long-term interest is to grow a business and not just run a desk.
Association Events
ASA Staffing World (American Staffing Association) and NAPS Annual Conference (National Association of Personnel Services) both have great events. ASA has more of a staffing focus, and the NAPS event is heavy on recruitment training as well as credentialing for independent recruiters.
Global Recruitment Conferences
ERE has a European SourceCon annually and there are more events globally than we have time to cover. Many of the larger events are UK-based. A partner organization of NPAworldwide based in the UK called TEAM (The Employment Agents Movement), hosts an annual conference for their members outside of London. The training and exposure to ideas for the independent recruiter are of outstanding value, and delivered quite cost effectively. There is The Global Recruiters Summit in the UK and in Singapore. In Australia, the RCSA (an association) puts on an annual conference of considerable size and scope. While having a focus on in-house recruitment, there is a strong independent recruiter presence also.
Specialty Conferences
So many exist. These might focus on healthcare recruitment, legal practices, temporary placements, interim placement, technology tools and services, social media practices or one of a dozen other niche specialties or expertise areas.
I would like to hear from readers about the ones you attend, the focus and the value for the time invested. Keep your comments brief but please try to be helpful to those considering options. Keep the selling to a minimum and give us the facts!