Reppler — a social media monitoring service and online reputation manager — recently surveyed more than 300 hiring professionals to determine when and how job recruiters are screening job candidates on different social networks.
The study found that more than 90 percent of recruiters and hiring managers screen applicants via social networks, visiting a potential candidate’s profile on a social network as part of the screening process.
And an amazing 69 percent of recruiters have REJECTED a candidate based on content found on his or her social networking profiles.
However, an almost equal proportion of recruiters (68 percent) have HIRED a candidate based on his or her presence on those networks.
These findings are important to Crescent Solutions as we focus on meeting the needs of both employers and candidates.
Reppler includes these data points in an Infographic (click here to review) created in time to plug the latest upgrade of the vendor’s reputation monitoring service, which has expanded to include LinkedIn and Twitter in addition to Facebook profiles.
Reppler evaluates profiles based on the tone and appropriateness of their content, as well as the consistency of their information across social networks.
The new version of Reppler came out just days after Facebook introduced a host of changes, including its new timeline profile.
So what do these results really tell us? From Reppler’s perspective, there are three key takeaways:
- Whether you like it or not, hirers are using social networks to screen job applicants. This means it is important to carefully manage your image on these types of sites.
- Facebook and Twitter are being used a lot to screen job applicants. On Facebook and Twitter, hirers are trying to get a more personal view of a candidate, rather than the resume-like view they will see on LinkedIn.
- Hirers are looking at the social networking profiles of candidates very early in the process. This means that job seekers need to have their online act in order before they begin looking for a job.
The bottom line is that it is important for users, whether they are looking for jobs or building up their professional reputations, to manage their online image across the different social networks they use.
Reppler founder Vlad Gorelik stressed the need for online reputation management in today’s difficult job climate.
“Getting a job in today’s economic climate is difficult, which means that job seekers need to make sure they are doing everything they can to present themselves in the best light possible,” he said. “With hiring managers relying heavily on social networks to screen potential candidates, it is more important than ever for job seekers to maintain a clean and professional online image.”
