Social networking site Facebook is a "talent goldmine" according to one expert.

Flying in the face of criticism that the site damages candidate opportunities, Chris Russell, founder of Jobsinpods.com, told Online Recruitment magazine that Facebook is the perfect place to court potential job applicants.

Russell said: "It's filled with millions of passive candidates that employers covet."

He suggested that employers should create groups on the website, such as top company Ernst & Young - its Facebook group now has over 12,000 members.

ClickAJob chief executive Yngve Traberg said: "If employees have a passion for engaging with each other, their enthusiasm becomes unstoppable if their employer is involved too.

"In one fairly easy step, recruitment shifts from the chore of filling a new job to engaging in a meaningful and ongoing relationship," he said.

According to Traberg, this feel-good factor is a vital key to future employee relations.

"Thanks to social networking, going to work for an organisation is beginning to be more like entering into a partnership, an invaluable opportunity for long-lasting employee retention."