CareerBuilder and Social Media

Posted by Todd Raphael on June 29, 2009 on ERE Net

'Tis the season -- well, the week, because of the SHRM conference -- for human resources vendors to issue press releases. Peopleclick, for example, is talking about its social media capablities; Personified is too. For Kenexa, it's issuing PRs about interview questions. And Monster's talking up its "customizable talent management suite."

CareerBuilder, meanwhile, is talking about its "Applicant Explorer"
so that recruiters looking through the resume database can get easy
access to information about the candidate on social media sites, blogs,
news sites, and discussion groups.

Explorer isn't all new. CareerBuilder has had it in beta since
February. But its wider use (CareerBuilder has expanded Explorer to
most all of its customers over the last two weeks), in my view,
continues to make me ponder the role of people's personal lives in
hiring decisions. I've talked about these issues with Ryan Estis and Raghav Singh, and later with Angela Guidroz of Sodexo.

With CareerBuilder making more of that information fewer clicks
away, I'm more than ever curious about what role the information that
recruiters and managers find on Facebook and elsewhere will have on
their screening -- even information that's perfectly legal to know and
perfectly legal to use as a factor in a hiring decision. 

There isn't something wrong with Applicant Explorer, or wrong with a
manager or recruiter finding out more information than what's on a
resume about a prospect. On the contrary, it's usually a good thing if
an employer can access speeches, news articles, press releases, and so
on about a candidate.

But many of the posts generated by my Facebook friends offer more
information then I ever wanted to know (like someone I haven't spoken
with in years posting about her reproductive challenges). I wonder if
enough candidates are asking themselves, "do employers need to know all
this?"

3 comments

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   Jim Shaw
  
  1
  point
  
  15 hours ago
  

  No,
  candidates do not realize that prospective employers may be checking
  their social media profiles.  I teach classes on job hunting and one
  topic is reviewing your online profiles from an employer's viewpoint. 
  It's always an "aha" moment when people realize how much of their
  information is available to a prospective employer.

  
  

  Employers don't need to know all of the information that's available but it's a sure thing that many of them are looking.

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  
  
  



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   Teresa Bustamante
  
  1
  point
  
  16 hours ago
  

  No,
  candidates are not thinking about the ramifications of their comments,
  pictures, and postings... yet.  As tenured recruiters and sourcers,
  we've begun asking these questions for a bit now, I truly don't think
  the typical candidate out there is on the same page.   There is no
  precedent nor court findings on the effects of one's 'e-life' but I can
  assure you, there will be....

  
  

  I think as the economy rebounds and people are taken up with other
  concerns, people will begin discussing more and more about what is
  being said about them online.  The fact remains, people are still very
  surprised what I know about them before we even talk live. 

  
  

  Do I need to know all this as an employer, probably not.  However,
  the savvy sourcer/employer is still going to look... and find... a lot.

  
  

  Once again, great topic, Todd. 

  
   
  
  
  
  
  


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   Kathleen Smith
  
  1
  point
  
  23 hours ago
  

  Todd
  - good comments and observations. While we venture into social
  recruiting I think we will run into these challenges and opporunities.
  Recruiters don't all use the same tools the same ways with the same
  results. What we have found is that some recruiters have great results
  with "tool X" while others will pan it. Developing a recruitment
  strategy is individual to the company, industry, job opening and the
  individual. With these new tools, each will have to customized it to
  their individual needs, rather than look at the tools as a silver
  bullet.