I recently listened to an ERE social media presentation which was presented by Penelope Trunk. I thought the vast majority of the presentation was excellent, with great insight and interesting thoughts on social media as a whole.
I always try to leave a presentation with one or two items that stand out and leave me with something to build off of. In this case, I walked away with two topics on which I did not agree with Penelope’s feedback. Now I hope to provide you with my thoughts on the issues.
Okay, I will admit up front that the statement I provide from Penelope isn’t a direct quote, but more of a summary of her thoughts into a shortened statement (hey, I’m not a reporter so I am taking a small blogging liberty here).
Penelope: Resume’s are outdated.
Keith: Not really. Why? Well, LinkedIn is a working resume that millions of people update on a regular basis, both with their main work as well as any side projects. This is a complete repository of people’s professional careers and is often without the “resume” details under each position. Also, people choose to put a resume on their web sites, blogs, or even have a traditional MS Word copy of a resume. Imagine that! No, resumes are not outdated, but they are evolving.
Resumes will always be needed, the question is how they will evolve in presentation.
Penelope: Recruiters should not have to post a job.
Keith: Most of you have heard the statistic that 80% of job openings are not posted. Penelope said her company has hired 15 people over the past year without posting an opening, hiring completely through their network. Great statistic which absolutely puts an emphasis on networking, but not everyone is always thinking about their network to recommend for a position. But what about companies with 1,000 or 10,000 or 20,000+ employees? Job posting or advertising will always be needed in some capacity but, much like resumes, this practice is evolving. Jobs are advertised, just not always on a job board. They might be on someone’s Twitter stream, Facebook wall, LinkedIn status update or even on a blog.
Job postings will always be in existence, but getting into the interview process before a requirement is posted is the ideal goal.
Social networking is all about evolution. The evolution of business, networking and connecting in too many ways to mention here. What is great about this is that everyone uses social networking in a way that positively works for them. If it isn’t working how a person wants it to, well, they won’t use it anymore. Pretty simple.
What does this mean for you? All recruiters work differently and job seekers should continue to use every avenue available to them when seeking a job. Yes, some avenues are better than others but keep the net out to network and respond!
Image from EvolveFish
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Keith McIlvaine manages the recruiting social media strategy for a Fortune 500 company and is an avid networker. He is a corporate recruiter, social media advisor, coach, speaker, blogger and an all around fanatic. Connect with Keith on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook or on his blog at the HR farmer. (The statements posted on this site are mine alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of my employer)
