How to be a careerist on Social Media: Yes career on social media, we are not kidding, dear senior manager, read on…
You’ve set your mind on getting that director position in New York and you are confident that all your efforts will pay off: you have optimized your CV and customized your Cover Letter, you’ve got spotless references and your knowledge on the company’s background couldn’t get any deeper.
Do you really think you covered it all? Think again! Your online and especially social media behavior is checked by two-thirds of the headhunters. Whether your name brings up many or no results via search engines makes a big difference.
Online Invisibility: Can a headhunter find you online?
The executive recruiter doesn’t find you online… So what? Well, he might think ‘We’re in the Web 2.0 era and this person seems to ignore it. Is this person up-to-date with current trends? Is he/she as communicative as his/her CV states? Is he/she part of a well-established business network?’
Before the headhunter can answer to these questions, he finds the online profile of another candidate, is satisfied with the information displayed and decides to shortlist this person, as he’s got a clearer idea on who’s going to show up for the interview.
Of course, things don’t have to turn out this way, but why take the chance?
VISIBLE is good. TOO VISIBLE is not (see: What sharing personas do people have!)
The headhunter may read your latest tweet, check your CV against your LinkedIn profile or flip through your recent Facebook pictures. This shouldn’t sound worrying unless you’re tweeting gossip about your last employer, your LinkedIn data goes no further than high school or the published photos are those of last Saturday’s drunken party.
If you are going to share: be intelligent & valuable. Be someone who is sharing to bring value to others, to grow and nourish relationships. This value-driven visibility enables you to get traction from Headhunters and recruiters alike- in a positive way!
Control your Social Media Profiles
Avoid embarrassing online exposure by taking control of your social media profiles. Clean them up and maintain them by being careful with the posted content, aligning online information on your professional life with the CV data and adjusting your privacy settings.
The benefits of a spotless online presence are multiple:
- Getting ahead: You don’t lose ground in front of candidates who have already groomed their social media accounts.
- Emphasized interests: You can reveal to the recruiter how keen you are on topics relevant to business life.
- Business connections: You can prove you are well-anchored in a relevant business network.
- Proven reliability: You can assure the headhunter that you’re a responsible, reliable type of person.
Don’t stand aside! Use all tools that are at your disposal if you want to make a convincing online statement about yourself as a professional. To help you turn the Social Media effect in your favor!
The underlying question is: if an executive recruiter ‘Googled’ your name, what would he find? Be a careerist on social media: see the difference it creates!
