Social Recruiting – The Place For Finding A Job Is Online

By Mike Dunlop

The world of employment is a world of shifting trends, just like anything else. If you’re on the job hunt nowadays, then you may find that your Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn profile has more of an impact on your success than traditional job boards or employment agencies.  Recruiters are now actively using social media sites to find and screen employees. In effect they’re conducting a pre-interview virtual interview.

Sound confusing? Well that means that it’s time to learn some new rules for the modern world of job hunting. As if finding a job weren’t difficult enough already! The good news is that you can leverage your social media profiles to work in your favour, and if done well you’ll have more job searching power at your fingertips than ever before. Let’s take a look at the current state of play in the social recruiting space to help you get started.

Everything’s Going Social

Years ago, companies frequently used job boards to find new hires.  They would post a new job description on the job board, and then review all the applications that came flooding in.  However, in the last few years, particularly as the economy has worsened, but also as a result of the rise of the ubiquitous Internet, the flood has become a raging torrent.

It’s not unusual for a job opening to receive thousands of applications, which means that as an applicant it’s very easy to get lost amongst the noise. Most hiring managers don’t have the time to sift through every application they receive.

At the same time, social media sites like Facebook are evolving beyond their original design. Where once these sites used to be just tools for finding old classmates and making new friends, now they are used to create professional profiles and cultivate corporate images. This is of course especially prevalent on sites geared toward business networking, like LinkedIn.  In keeping with this trend, companies have begun to find that it is sometimes easier to head-hunt the applicants directly via their social media profiles, rather than open the application flood gates to the general population.

Be Careful What You Post!

It should come as no surprise that in addition to being used to find potential employees, social media sites are now also being used to screen and eliminate job candidates. What this means for you, is that you probably shouldn’t post pictures of wild drunken nights in Cancun, Ibiza, Bali, or any of the incriminating photo hotspots. In fact, from a job seeking perspective, it’s a good idea to not post anything that gives too much detail about your private life.

However, if you must post these sorts of photos, then make sure that your security settings are absolutely water tight, and don’t forget if that friend of a friend is actually your potential new boss!  Take this one step further –remember that the same rules apply once you’ve landed the job. It’s not unusual for people to be fired because of something found on their Facebook or MySpace page.

More Than Just Skills and Experience

When companies look for new hires, they’re not just looking for someone who has the skills to do the job.  They also want a good fit; they’re looking for a team player who shares their company’s values.

Social recruiting helps hiring managers find the people they need, because they can get an overall picture of who you are and not just what you can do.

What This Means For You

If you’re working on finding a job right now, use your social media profiles to help you search.  Contact possible employers and open a dialog.  Upload your resume, references, and portfolio so that recruiters can see it.  Maximize your chances of appearing in search results by having a complete, well developed, and up to date profile.

Make sure your profile shows you at your best – remember that you don’t want anything there that might turn them off.  Expand your network to include people who work at your employer of choice. Join in conversations, develop relationships and cultivate an appealing professional relationship.

Social media sites also allow you to find out more about a company before you apply with them.  Internet-savvy companies are now blogging on their Facebook or LinkedIn pages, which should provide you with some additional insight into the company values and type of day to day work activity.  You may also be able to find some commentary from previous employees or customers about the company on the web.

Has everyone had a positive experience with the company, or is the bulk of commentary exceedingly negative?  All of these sources of information should give you a better idea of what the company’s about, which is vitally important for the health of your career.

In summary, social recruiting has come of age. Companies are now reviewing social media profiles and incorporating them into their decision to hire or not hire, so use yours to your advantage.

Author Information

Mike Dunlop works for HirePulse, the home of premium contractors, consultants and freelancers.

Make LinkedIn Work For You In Less Obvious Ways

When it comes to building business contacts, LinkedIn has Facebook beat hands down. LinkedIn is for connecting with business-minded people who have something of value to share with you while Facebook is your dispenser of all sorts of “tmi” or worthless personal information shared by users.

Okay, I am exaggerating. I have a Facebook fan page for my automotive business (rarely updated, unfortunately) and can see how you might connect with customers with Facebook. But, it is also crowded by people who leave gratuitous pictures of their favorite domestic animal, regurgitate localized weather reports and offer many more distractions than I possibly can count. Facebook is kind of like Twitter, but with more characters allowed!

Now that I’ve given Facebook a sufficient dressing down, please allow me to explain how you can make LinkedIn work for you, but in ways which may not be as obvious to you. Not everyone on LinkedIn is looking for a job and some connections hardly qualify as “networking enhancing.”

Beyond the hype, some of the jewels found in LinkedIn are as follows:

You can put your resume online. I still maintain a hard copy of my resume in .doc and .pdf formats and can send them out as an attachment as needed, which is rare. But, I can also point people to my profile page which is my default online resume. Sure, I could manage it on here or on another site I control, but my LinkedIn profile page looks great and, importantly, is searchable on LinkedIn.

Speaking of personal information, LinkedIn allows you to solicit recommendations from clients who also use LinkedIn, with their recommendations posted right on the site pending your approval. There is no need for you to send “three references” with a hard copy of your resume; your recommendations are listed immediately after your resume and are categorized by the places where you’ve worked or by projects you have completed.

I’ve made good use of LinkedIn Answers a half dozen times as 2010 drew to the close, soliciting responses to questions I asked about all things automotive. Those answers, at least the best ones, were incorporated in articles I wrote for Auto Trends Magazine, my flagship automotive website. I have gained several new connections and have received feedback from some very influential people. In return, I link to personal or business websites or to LinkedIn profiles to show my “thanks” for their participation.

Local Groups — Admittedly, I haven’t taken advantage of the various LinkedIn inspired groups meeting in my area. But, I am glad to know that there are other business professionals who like to connect in person, providing much needed and welcome face-to-face opportunities for people. I follow several local based lists, taking note of meeting at various public venues held throughout the month.

Of course, you can easily encounter people who oversell themselves, lie or consistently leave negative feedback or answer questions without care. That’s common in any social media setting, but in LinkedIn I have found that the spammers and other malcontents usually quickly get bored and move on.

See Also — Getting Linked In For 2010