In case you haven’t read Dr. John Sullivan’s recent article entitled, “The end of sourcing is near…the remaining recruiting challenge is selling“, I highly recommend that you do so.

While I agree with some of the points that Dr. Sullivan raises, I disagree with others as I believe he has an oversimplified view of sourcing.

I argue that some basic and common sourcing functions and tactics will be coming to an end soon, and in fact, they have already ended in companies that are on the leading edge of sourcing.

However, as with many corporate functions, there will never be an end to sourcing itself – there will only be an evolution.

What follows is my sourcing manifesto.

Read further to explore:

• Why sourcing exists in the first place
• The underlying flaws of the “everyone is easy to find” argument
• The limits of matching technology
• Why big data requires people to make sense of it
• My definition of sourcing
• Strategic vs. tactical sourcing
• The true value of sourcing
• What can (and should!) be automated in sourcing
• Sourcing 1.0 vs. 2.0

You should be advised that this is a lengthy article – if you’re looking for a quick read, you won’t find it here. Continue reading →