Think you’re ahead of the recruitment-and-retention curve? Before you answer, you’d better read this article from The (Baltimore) Sun.

The article examines the cutting-edge ways in which some companies are recruiting and training their Generation-Y staffers, “the biggest generation since the baby boomers and the fastest-growing segment of the work force,” author Barbara Rose claims. Consider:

• Cold Stone Creamery has developed a video game that trains new employees.
• Nike is trying to figure out how to put sales training onto mobile devices.
• Other companies are experimenting with video blogs, or “vlogs,” as training tools.

And CPAs aren’t exempt. “Global accounting firm Ernst & Young, which expects to hire 3,300 college graduates this year, gave a group of San Francisco interns video cameras and encouraged them to ‘vlog’ about their experience,” writes Rose.

Speaking of E&Y, word is the firm is using Facebook, the popular social networking site, to recruit new CPAs. That’s a fantastic idea, considering the huge number of college students who have Facebook accounts. Barry Rice, emeritus accounting professor and director of instructional services at Loyola College, says more than 90 percent of Loyola undergrads are on Facebook.

Will these new recruiting tools pay off or fizzle out? How are you recruiting the next generation of CPAs?