To find jobs, that is. Their destinations vary, and that’s the point—they are going to destinations, plural. Just as agile companies diversify business to perform optimally under all market conditions, and sage investors diversify their portfolios’ holdings to maximize returns, job hunters diversify their approach to getting employed, reaching out in many directions to find the best possible job. Sourcing Today's Candidate: What's Working to Attract Top Talent (www.kennedyinfo.com/recruiting/sourcing), a newly published, joint research report from Monster.com, BNA, Inc., and Kennedy Information, Inc. sheds light on the particulars.

According to the research, some of the most popular directions take candidates to destinations recruiters also frequent, with nearly 70% of candidates going straight to the recruiter’s domain, her office—as walk-ins. In addition, as many as 80% go to job boards, where they are apt to view job descriptions from recruiters, and still more, 84%, go to the newspaper classifieds.

Of course, most job seekers go to more than one place (and use more than one tool) to find jobs. Yes, they diversify their search strategies, and, when candidates go in diverse directions, some of these directions cause them to sidestep recruiters. Most job hunters (85% of them) go to family and friends, and 75% go to past managers and colleagues. Except by chance, these destinations are hardly the province of recruiters. Another 62% of job hunters go to professional associations, 45% go to blogs, and 39% visit Internet message boards and online chat rooms.

The takeaway for recruiters who want to improve their game is clear. Diversify the outreach strategy. Employ old and new outreach tactics alike to source quality candidates who might otherwise go unnoticed. You must adapt without forsaking old channels for new ones. Recruiters must focus resources on Web 2.0 tools such as blogs and chat rooms, but those who focus on these new channels at the expense of traditional ones will miss the throngs of candidates whose searches still rely on brick-and-mortar networks.