Having an online presence has become more important than ever in a person’s job search and overall career management. According to the CareerBuilder annual social media recruitment survey performed by Harris Poll: “Avoiding a professional online presence may be hurting your chances of finding a new job. More than one third of employers (35 percent) say they are less likely to interview job candidates if they are unable to find information about that person online.” [1]
From the screening of employees to digging up digital dirt recruiters, hiring managers, and Human Resources professionals regularly troll the Internet for information about a potential candidate. Not only do companies want to see a social media presence, but review it, looking at your posts, friends (and their posts), appropriateness of pictures shared, and overall professionalism and qualifications for the position in question. The CareerBuilder survey article also mentioned the following: “35 percent of employers who screen via social networks have requested to ‘be a friend’ or follow candidates that have private accounts. Of that group, 80 percent say they’ve been granted permission… and 48 percent of hiring managers who screen candidates via social networks said they’ve found information that caused them not to hire a candidate.” [2] This is yet another reason to have your social media both up to date and appropriate for all to read or view.
Additionally the article cited that up to 15% of candidates screen hiring managers and 38% seek to connect with them via social media. This survey utilized a large sampling group, encompassing over 2,100 hiring managers and HR employees, and more than 3,100 full time employees, all from a wide range of industries. So, remember my frequent plea to clients, seminar/workshop participants – and YOU – just because you have an opinion doesn’t mean you need to share it online! Be professional in all of your online interactions and spend time showing why you are the most capable candidate, whether you are currently seeking a job, or not.
Source: PR Newswire, CareerBuilder and CBS Market Watch Copyright (C) 2015 PR Newswire. All rights reserved
Karen Silins is a multi-certified resume writer, career, business and personal branding coach working with individuals and small businesses. After graduating with degrees in education and vocal performance, she made her own career transition into the Human Resources realm. Karen left Human Resources to become an entrepreneur and help jobseekers and fellow entrepreneurs achieve their goals. She keeps her pulse on the resume writing, coaching, HR, small business and marketing industries by working daily with individual clients on resume development and career coaching, consulting for small businesses in business plan development, marketing, hiring and overall HR processes, and providing 50-70+ seminars and workshops annually to a variety of organizations in the greater Kansas City area. She can be reached via her website at www.careerandresume.com.