Social Media In The Hiring Process: Part One

Why Are Employers Using This Method?

The philosophy goes that, while you try to present yourself in a positive light during job interviews, your social media content can provide employers with an idea of who you really are outside of the workplace.

In this 3-part blog series, you will come to understand why and how employers are using social media in the hiring process. Additionally, we will give you some crucial pointers that will help you improve your social media presence in order to highlight your best attributes and create the best impression possible to employers when they look you up on social media.

Why Social Media?

Statistics from our good friends at CareerBuilder show that 60% of employers use social media to research candidates, a huge number compared to a significantly lower 11% in 2006. The question is, what has changed in the past 10 years that has caused there to be such a distinctive increase?

It is estimated that 2.307 billion people are active social media users in the year of 2016 and it is predicted that by 2019 2.72 billion people will be active social media users. That is about a third of the global population. It is therefore more than likely that potential candidates have somewhat of an online presence. Recruiters can research these candidates via social media platforms, based on friends they may have in common, where they previously worked, and what they post about. All this information is at the tip of their fingers; recruiting has been made easy!

Senior writer Sarah K. White of CIO.com, stated in her featured article that recruiters checking social media of potential candidates, “not only allows recruits to get to know other employees better as well as the company, but for the employer to get to know the recruit as well.”

It not only allows recruits to get to know other employees better as well as the company, but for the employer to get to know the recruit as well.

Delving into the realms of social media gives the recruiter the opportunity to get to know the candidate better, without even having a phone conversation or meeting them in person. This saves time, energy, and resources. Furthermore, it gives the recruiter a head start on their quest to narrow down which candidates will best suit their company. What are the candidate’s fields of interest? What do they do in their spare time? Do they like to party, or do they prefer hiking and the outdoors? Do they drink a lot? How is their grammar in their posts? Does the content they post reflect the values of the company? Do they provide information that supports the qualifications of the job? These questions can at least start to be answered by taking a sneak peek into their social media profiles.

Mark Swartz ciaimed in this Monster article that, “if the applicant claims to be a subject matter expert, a quick Google search will reveal if they have actually been contributing useful info to blogs, websites, Twitter, LinkedIn Answers or Quora.com.”

If the applicant claims to be a subject matter expert, a quick Google search will reveal if they have actually been contributing useful info to blogs, websites, Twitter, LinkedIn Answers or Quora.com.

How Far Will Employers Go?

Now that it has been established that employers feel the need to check social media profiles, the question is, how far would they go in order to get to know you on these platforms?

According to CareerBuilder, 36% of employers of employers have requested to be a friend or follow candidates who have private profiles. 49% of hiring managers who screen candidates via social networks said they’ve found information that caused them not to hire a candidate. Employers are definitely out on the prowl to sniff out any suspicious activity. Although it is not all negative, 60% are “looking for information that supports their qualifications for the job,” according to CareerBuilder’s survey. The candidate will either be praised by their social media activity and taken to the next stage in the hiring process, or the unfortunate vice versa.

In today’s competitive job market, recruiters would like to weed out the best workers for their companies. One of the fastest and most efficient ways to find relevant talent has become via social media platforms.

Stay tuned for Part 2 of this blog series - What Are Employers Searching For In Your Social Media?

At Rep’nUp, we aim to educate on the importance of a positive social media reputation, whilst giving our users the tools to create a professional online presence. Follow us now and ❤ if you gained knowledge from this blog.