I was part of a webinar panel this morning hosted by the Social Media Academy (www.socialmedia_academy.com) called the Career & Knowledge Series. Although it is perhaps a bit self serving to say so (since I’m on faculty there), it was a great webinar with solid information/tips/expert advice on how to approach careers and HR within the 21st century social media environment. (And hey, I was only a minor speaker this morning!)
A couple of key points:
- No one cares about your Resume and CV anymore. This is a bit of a shocking statement, but think about it: your resume is a static version of what you’ve done. Why would an HR recruiter or manager care about that when they can just go to the web and see actively who you are and what you’re doing? Yes, your experience still matters, but instead of generalizing and putting it on a piece of paper, create a social profile so that HR people can find YOU! (One guest speaker Phil Rosenberg, quoted the HR stat that 80% of jobs are NOT advertised–so you need to be out there on the social web so the people with the jobs can come your way.)
- A social media presence can help you get the job. With a social media presence, you can tell people who you are and what your expertise is via blogging, dialoguing with others, creating slide presentations and sharing them, tweeting about you, your interests and being a resource for others, etc. All of these tools help you build and reinforce your online identity. Now, someone who has one of those unadvertised jobs (or hoepfully many someone’s) are going to be falling over themselves to get to you because they feel they know you and you are a great fit for their company and their job opening.
- You avoid social media at your own (job/career) peril. Face it, with the cultural shift in work that is taking place and the generational shift that is bringing new technology, new values and new ideas into the workplace with the new generation of workers–you will quickly become irrelevant to HR people who are seeking workers from the social web. Social media is a social reality for young people. Even some of them don’t like it , but they know that just like we don’t always enjoy “working for the man”, it is what it is. And since they are the up and coming workforce, their reality becomes our cultural and business reality as well – so social reality is THE reality. A few notes on the changing work culture that we have seen at play in our lives: only 35% of workers actually work in an office or a cubicle anymore; people are working from home, on the road, etc…we have outsourcing, homeshoring, freelancing and every permutation in between, we use technology (email) and can’t imagine life without it. These are real changes, people. Adapt and adopt, don’t abdicate!
- How you build your presence is important. A few tips include:
- Get on linked in and don’t just post a resume, join groups of people in your area of expertise, whether that’s basketweaving or IT. Start talking about what you know–and yes, people care!
- Be yourself! If you fake it, people will find out and call you on it–or not. Either way, it can kill your credibility. Be truthful about your experiences, your expertise, your values, etc.
- Join Twitter and follow people in your area. There’s a lot of junk in the world, so keep the junk out of your twitter life by following people relevant to you, people who can be a resource for you, people who can expand your network and your scope of the world. Then, be a resource for them, too. Send them good stuff, tweet about important things happening. Retweet important stuff. If you need some help setting up on twitter, visit my Twitter Primer (http://is.gd/n6uO).
- Use the same photo wherever you are – but please, not too stuffy! We know you clean up well, but just a photo of you, not your suit and tie, okay? Having the same photo everywhere helps consistency–like having a personal brand of sorts.
- Create a slide show about yourself or some of the work you’ve done and share it with the world so they can see it. Point to this when people (aka recruiters) want to know more about you.
Okay, so these are just a few of the things discussed. If you want to find out more, check out the following resources:
http://www.socialmedia-academy.com/html/us-knowledgeseries_career_0828.cfm
http://www.recareered.blogspot.com (great for people changing careers)
http://www.linkedin.com (it’s okay – just update your profile now and join some relevant groups!)
http://www.twitter.com (it isn’t a fad. if you want the job, just do it…)
http://www.slideshare.com (check it out. you know you want to.)
Bottom Line: a social presence is the New Resume. IF YOU WANT THE JOB, BUILD ONE!
Adrienne,
Thanks for summing up the content of the webinar. (I followed your “Open Blog” post within the Social Media Academy site.) I am now following you on Twitter as well. I appreciate all the Social Media information you, Axel, and others are making available. At some point I would like to be able to find a way to invest in the SOMA Leadership Class — but until then, these bursts of valuable information will have to do.
Thanks again and kindest regards,
Trent Sherrell
Great post. I would argue that there is still a place for resumes but truly the social media resume is taking hold. There are still a lot of companies and recruiters out there who don’t use social media to find talent but that trend is changing.
Hi John,
Yes, the resume as we know it will be around for awhile, as social media is still in its infancy. I would agree that not all recruiters or HR managers are using social media, although a recent survey by careerbuilder (2300 HR managers responded) showed that 45% of HR managers are using social profiles in decision making. This is quite a big deal, since even a year ago, this number was about 20%. Change can be difficult, but I would argue that adopting social media now and building a strong social profile will only help your career in the long run.
Adrienne
Nice post. I have just gone through the exercise of making sure that I have a consistent message and picture across all my social media sites. As you set these sites up over time, it is easy to have your story morph and introduce a new picture on one site but not on others. I think that it pays to do a quarterly “check up” of all of your social site and make sure you are consistent about what you say about yourself. I have also started using a site called XeeSM to list all of my social sites (and my website/blog, email, phone number). It helps you present all of your sites in one place. I’m at http://www.XeeSM.com/CatherineSherwood. The service is free to use.
Hey Catherine,
Thanks. I use xeesm, too – and think this is a great tool for recruiters and HR managers in that it would allow them to ask all candidates to enter their social media profile links into one place for review. A social profile adds dimension to the traditional resume and sends a strong message of confidence to any employer. http://www.xeesm.com
Adrienne
Adrianne… this concept of no one [should] care about your resume has been around for a while now. I’m continuously surprised at how many [most in my experience] ignore this concept.
It would be nice to find research and places where those that have been hired without a resume our highlighted. That is, hired mostly because of their web presence, social networks, work they have published online etc.)
The resume thing from start to finish is such a drain on everyone… from job seekers to those looking to help fill positions to those wanting a position filled.
Tom,
thanks for the comment-I agree! The CONCEPT has been around, but even people desperate for a job are reticent to give up the ol’ resume. Part of that, and I’m guessing small statistical numbers showing people hired off of social presence alone, is due to HR depts being run by old school thinkers that are used to collecting resumes for open positions. Let’s face it, collecting resumes is easy–it doesn’t require much work on the part of HR managers and they have something to show for it when their managers come checking (…”see how many people want this job and how hard I’ve been working to find candidates?”). As I talk about in my social media and HR lecture, paper resumes are a passive process, whereas culling the social web for appropriate candidates even if they have no idea who you or your company are, is a very active process. IMO, HR is going to need to step it up a notch as these young kids start flooding the workforce–that is, if they want the best candidates and want to stay competitive. The kids all get it…
This post is not new, but felt it bore retweeting given the number of people struggling with the action oriented part of joining the social web.