Thursday, October 27, 2011

[itroundtable] Digest Number 2604

Messages In This Digest (4 Messages)

Messages

1.

Facebook Profiles are the new Resume, 7 Reasons Why Recruiters Like

Posted by: "Rich Pettus" richpettus@gmail.com   rich.pettus

Wed Oct 26, 2011 5:59 am (PDT)



http://bigthink.com/ideas/40788

Facebook Profiles are the new Resume

Kirsten Winkler on October 23, 2011, 3:16 PM

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- inShare28
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[image: Career]<http://s3.amazonaws.com/bt_assets/system/idea_thumbnails/40788/original/career.jpg?1319397398>

Today, I would like to share some thoughts on social media, particularly
about Facebook with you.

I started using Facebook in late 2007 but did not get much out of it until
earlier this year when I started using it as part of the social media
strategy for my Deutsch Happen project. The reason why I joined Facebook was
purely business driven. I did neither connect with my family nor did I look
for old school friends, and I think that is the main reason why I use it
differently compared to its core users. But looking at the growing
importance of the network, I believe that more and more people will start
using it the way I do. Targeted and very controlled.

It is an open secret that colleges, universities and employers love to scan
the Facebook profiles of applicants. A recent article on Mashable gives seven
reasons why recruiters prefer to connect via
Facebook<http://mashable.com/2011/10/09/recruiters-prefer-facebook/>
and
not LinkedIn. Not surprisingly, from the applicant's perspective it's
exactly the opposite as they prefer to connect via LinkedIn and thus the
dedicated network for business as they want to keep their private life
private which is understandable in my opinion.

BranchOut, an application for Facebook that adds a professional network
structure similar to LinkedIn to the platform just launched
RecruiterConnect<http://techcrunch.com/2011/10/20/branchout-launches-tool-for-recruiters-to-source-job-candidates-on-facebook/>,
a tool to source job candidates on Facebook and build private talent
networks.

The reason for this new move is to be found in the overall strategy of
Facebook and its founder Mark Zuckerberg which essentially centers around
the aim how to get people into sharing everything on the network. And as the
privacy settings are still kind of confusing to many, recruiters have access
to a goldmine of information. It turns them basically into a profiler.

Everybody knows that cover letters have always been polished and focused on
the advantageous aspects of the applicant, and I guess the same is true for
LinkedIn profiles. As this network is focused on professional connections
you won't find all the "interesting" stuff you can see on a Facebook
profile. I won't go into the old debate of sins of one's youth but in times
where companies and institutions get used to the concept of cultural fit
even relatively harmless status updates might have a certain influence on
decisions being made.

Two weeks ago, Leo Laporte and Tom Merritt interviewed Guy Kawasaki, former
Apple evangelist, author and Venture Capitalist, for their show
Triangulation <http://twit.tv/show/triangulation/26> on the TWiT network.
The focus was on Guy's new book "Enchantment" and during the interview they
also talked about Facebook profiles and their importance for college
applications. Guy's advice was pretty straight forward: If you know that
they look at it, use it as a marketing tool. Instead of posting party
pictures, post pictures where you did voluntary work or from your various
activities. Post status updates about what awesome stuff you are doing and
so on.

Getting back to my personal use of Facebook and other networks like Twitter
etc I completely agree. My credo has always been "The Internet only knows
what I want it to know.". That does not mean that what you read or see of me
is another person or played. But when you decide to "live in public" you
need to take care of your private life even more. With the growing
importance of online reputation and influence in the digital age, I believe
this behavior will become a standard in our society. Even today there are
the first startups working on repairing and maintaining your good reputation
online, and I think this is going to be a huge market in a couple of years
when people will want to cover up sins from back in college in order to get
a promotion or better job.

Now, there are of course a couple of consequences tied to this. First of
all, this kind of behavior is not in the interest of Facebook as a big part
of its business relies on its users that these share everything with
everyone in an ideal scenario. If people decide to use the network
strategical and as a resume builder, a revenue model based on social games,
advertising and shopping won't work anymore. Instead of Farmville or other
games people might choose applications like
Acceptly<http://www.edukwest.com/edukwest-77-with-matt-munson-of-acceptly/>
, Inigral<http://www.kirstenwinkler.com/kwestions-for-michael-staton-of-inigral-on-the-bill-and-melinda-gates-foundation-investment/>
or Hoot.Me<http://www.edukwest.com/edukwest-69-with-michael-koetting-of-hoot-me/>
to
show their seriousness.

Secondly, there is a need to be yourself on the Internet. People want to
share things with like-minded people, especially when they cannot do it in a
work environment where they need to think about what is appropriate and what
not. Hence the need for closed, save and anonymous places on the Internet is
only going to get bigger. Examples are networks like Path<http://www.path.com/>
or Anybeat <http://anybeat.com/> and there is of course Second Life which
already seems to experience a second
spring<http://www.edukwest.com/second-spring-for-second-life-daily-signups-grow-60/>
.

Lastly, there is also the possibility for a social network that targets
students who want to build their resume online, so basically a Facebook that
goes all the way back to its roots on the Harvard Campus.

Tags: acceptly <http://bigthink.com/blogs/disrupt-education/tags/30958>,
anybeat <http://bigthink.com/blogs/disrupt-education/tags/30959>, college
application <http://bigthink.com/blogs/disrupt-education/tags/30955>, facebook
profile <http://bigthink.com/blogs/disrupt-education/tags/30953>,
hoot.me<http://bigthink.com/blogs/disrupt-education/tags/30306>
, inigral <http://bigthink.com/blogs/disrupt-education/tags/25207>, online
influence <http://bigthink.com/blogs/disrupt-education/tags/30957>,online
reputation <http://bigthink.com/blogs/disrupt-education/tags/30956>,
path<http://bigthink.com/blogs/disrupt-education/tags/11508>
, recruiting <http://bigthink.com/blogs/disrupt-education/tags/30954>, second
life <http://bigthink.com/blogs/disrupt-education/tags/7852>

http://mashable.com/2011/10/09/recruiters-prefer-facebook/

7 Reasons Why Recruiters Like Facebook More Than
LinkedIn<http://mashable.com/2011/10/09/recruiters-prefer-facebook/>
[image: Erica Swallow] <http://mashable.com/author/erica-swallow/>October
09, 2011 by Erica Swallow
<http://mashable.com/author/erica-swallow/>109<http://mashable.com/2011/10/09/recruiters-prefer-facebook/#comments>
inShare2,248
Share on Tumblr<http://www.tumblr.com/share/link?url=http%3A%2F%2Fmashable.com%2F2011%2F10%2F09%2Frecruiters-prefer-facebook%2F&name=7+Reasons+Why+Recruiters+Like+Facebook+More+Than+LinkedIn&description=%3Cimg+src%3D%22http%3A%2F%2F7.mshcdn.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2011%2F09%2F125%2Cfacebook-notifications-360.jpg%22+alt%3D%227+Reasons+Why+Recruiters+Like+Facebook+More+Than+LinkedIn%22+width%3D%22125%22+%2F%3E%3Cbr+%2F%3EDespite+the+challenges+social+media+presents+for+human+resources+professionals%2C+it+plays+a+growing+role+in+talent+recruitment.+The+big+question%2C+though%2C+is+where+to+find+talent.%0D%0A%0D%0AWhile+employers+continue+to+use+professional+networking+site+LinkedIn+for+recruiting%2C+especially+when+hand-picking+f...>
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Despite the challenges<http://mashable.com/2011/03/23/digital-hr-challenges/>
social
media presents for human resources professionals, it plays a growing
role<http://mashable.com/2010/11/08/human-resources-social-media/> in
talent recruitment. The big question, though, is where to find talent.

While employers continue to use professional networking
siteLinkedIn<http://mashable.com/follow/topics/linkedin> for
recruiting, especially when hand-picking for executive positions, they
prefer interacting with students and graduates via
Facebook<http://mashable.com/category/facebook> rather
than LinkedIn <http://mashable.com/follow/topics/linkedin>, according to a
study by online recruiting research lab
Potentialpark<http://www.potentialpark.com/>
.

For the study, Potentialpark surveyed more than 30,000 students and
graduates worldwide and analyzed the online career presence of more than 500
companies in the U.S., Europe and Asia. Since the data has not yet been
published online, *Mashable* spoke with Potentialpark about its findings.

Within the European survey respondents, 48% said they prefer to connect with
recruiters via LinkedIn, while only 25% said they prefer connecting via
Facebook. When asked to explain their reservations about Facebook, the
majority of respondents said Facebook is "not the right place" to interact
with employers or that they are "uncomfortable sharing private information."

These findings aren't shocking, as privacy seems to be a common theme when
it comes to employment and Facebook. But these reservations aren't keeping
employers from getting active on Facebook. Potentialpark found that more
than one-third of the top 100 employers in Europe have a Facebook Page for
recruitment purposes, many of them with more than 1,000 fans.

So, why are employers so interested in connecting with recruits on the
world's largest social network if candidates seem creeped out by Facebooking
with recruiters?

Potentialpark interviewed HR professionals about their motivation to be
active on Facebook and found that they had multiple reasons for involvement.
Here's an overview of reasons why recruiters cited a preference for Facebook
when dealing with young talent:

- 1. *It's more engaging*. With Facebook, employers can follow a "let
them come to us" strategy by setting up a business page for recruitment and
career purposes. Recruiters noted that the interesting content on pages
leads to comments, discussions and more personal interactions. With
LinkedIn, the communication is very much one-way in the recruiting world, as
employers proactively search for candidates and message them.
- 2. *Facebook is where the action is*. Recruiters perceive that few
students and recent graduates actively update their LinkedIn profiles,
whereas they are quite active on Facebook. Therefore, it just makes sense to
connect with them where they already hang out online.
- 3. *It's free*. Employers like that Facebook enables them to upload
advanced recruitment content, such as testimonials, videos, pictures or a
job search — and it's all free of charge. This broad range of tools enables
a company to showcase itself as an attractive employer.
- 4. *It's a bigger network*. Facebook offers a larger audience, with
more than 800 million active users worldwide, compared with LinkedIn's user
base of around 120 million members.
- 5. *It's more open*. Facebook is free for all members and requires no
premium accounts to use certain features. As a result, it's a more open
network than LinkedIn.
- 6. *The Like button*. When it comes to career website integration,
Facebook takes the cake — Facebook feeds and the Like button are easier to
integrate.
- 7. *It's better for branding*. Recruiters report they tend toward
LinkedIn and other business networks for networking, screening and
recruiting. However, when it comes to employer branding activities and
talent communication — especially with students, graduates and early career
professionals — many prefer Facebook.

Having an active presence on Facebook is certainly a great start for
employers looking to attract and communicate with young talent.

Do you think Facebook trumps LinkedIn when it comes to interacting with
employers? Tell us in the comments below.
2.

Openings at the Medicines Company, Parsippany, NJ

Posted by: "Joseph" joesonline@yahoo.com   joesonline

Wed Oct 26, 2011 3:10 pm (PDT)



Three positions available:

Senior Systems Engineer - Parsippany, NJ

Director, Outcomes Research Statistician - Parsippany

Direct Market Access - Parsippany

View openings at the company website

http://www.themedicinescompany.com/careers/

3a.

Openings at Selective Insurance - Branchville, NJ

Posted by: "Joseph" joesonline@yahoo.com   joesonline

Wed Oct 26, 2011 3:15 pm (PDT)




Openings at Selective Insurance, Branchville, NJ

Extensive list - wide variety of positions

apply via website: www.selective.com

3b.

Openings at Selective Insurance - Branchville, NJ

Posted by: "Joseph" joesonline@yahoo.com   joesonline

Wed Oct 26, 2011 3:15 pm (PDT)




Openings at Selective Insurance, Branchville, NJ

Extensive list - wide variety of positions

apply via website: www.selective.com

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