Blog substituting as my résumé? or supplementing it?
Man, oh man, time to eliminate all the childish, snide and random remarks I've ever made on my public blog entries. Pictures too. Gotta fix those grammar errors as well.
While I tend to try and make my blogs as accurate a representation of myself as I can, without cheating my readers with an online persona, the phenomenon that's blurring of the line between personal and work, contributed in parts to blogs used as résumé, is a bit jarring. The part about playing, in the saying: "work hard and play hard" is now becoming a penalty.
The blog I linked to higher in the post was by Adam Darowski. In it he's says how blogs can fill in the blanks where a regular résumé can't. Sure I agree with that. Résumés really don't contain anything substantial, especially for people looking for their first job. I don't even see the reason for a résumé aside for screening purposes. Especially when I hear stories where people getting jobs with fake credentials on their résumés.
However, unless employees volunteers a blog for the employers to see, I really don't think employers should be allowed to use what they find online to penalize someone from getting a job without some kind of explanation.
Tom Kyte from Oracle came to my class a week or so back and commented about how he googles potential hires before interviews to get a better feel of an individual. Maybe its just me, but I find that to be unsettling. Sure if I'm working for a company, I'm representing that company where ever I am. It still doesn't make me feel any better that I'm being searched.
Now I understand where Tom Kyte is coming from. In his position at Oracle, anyone he's hiring is going to be taking on a pretty high ranking position within Oracle. It's understandable that he don't want to find his next head of database management to be dancing on a Las Vegas craps table drunk out of his/her mind on Flickr.com. But how about students like me?
Here's my problem with using blogs as a résumé:
- Will something I wrote 2 years ago be used against me?
- Will employers take into considerations that its written 2 years ago?
- Will employers tell me they searched for me online?
- Will they tell me the reason they won't hire me is due to something I have online? (of course not)
Solution?
In addition to a résumé, employers can ask for a detailed package of past projects, case studies, documented experience and other information they would want from a potential hire. If that's in the form of a blog, awesome. Sure they can still use the résumé as a screening device, but when they're actually hiring someone, ask for the things they're looking for. I'm tire of companies being ambiguous about the kind of people they're trying to hire. For example, I have tons of friends losing job opportunities but not knowing why. Employers should give feedbacks. Its not the potential employees that needs a blog, its the employers. Hiring practices should not be secretive. Here's an example of a recruiting blog.
Seriously, are the money spend by HR in hiring someone really used to its full extent? Searching online to know about someone, imho, is the lazy way out.
On the other hand, I will be submitting my blog as part of my résumé. Why? It IS a great way to share a part of who I am to potential employers . However I'm doing so voluntarily. If a company wants to search me online, I feel I should be asked.
If searching online about potential hires ever become a common practice in HR departments worldwide, I can guarantee that the permission to use those information will become a legal issue.
On other news...
Redskin beats Jets in OT. Thank goodness, I was pretty much crying and cursing during the half. Hope the Patriots vs Colts game will be an epic. =]
Sunday, November 4, 2007
Résu-blog
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11 comments:
In regards to your past coming back to haunt you...
I would say that unless you wanted to be in politics or something similar to that than your future employer would and should be understanding in that things you said a few years ago might not represent you now.
I hate to use him as an example, but Mitt Romney ::shutter:: has taken some heat for in the past for being for abortion and other less than conservative principles. And while I don't like his view changes, he had a good.. excuse I suppose for changing them.
After being accused of "flip flopping" he said that it's not that he flip flops on issues, it's that he's finally realized what his real views on life are.
People usually deserve second chances and I don't think you should have to work for an employer who couldn't appreciate that people change.
Peter I love your blog. And I have to agree with you, it isn't fair at all for an employer to use something you say in a post against you. That should not be a reason to turn you down for a job.
Although is that really how you feel about resumes? If done honestly they are a representation of our professional lives and what we have achieved thus far. That has to count for something.
Thanks for the comment Rachel, I do think resumes are good, but from what I hear, the longer the resume, the easier that resume is going to be tossed out.
Employers don't like long resumes, yet short resumes never have enough meat in them, or have enough to tell the whole story.
It's a quagmire. That's why I question whether or not HR depts really get fully utilize. If they were, there would never be a situation where someone hired would do something completely unexpected from what was portrayed from their interview.
As for blogs, to me, its just a matter of whether or not consents were given or not. I just feel there's an invasion of privacy somewhere in there.
A couple things here.
If I'm looking into a bunch of candidates and I have this invaluable source of information just a Google search away, how can I not utilize it? The truth is, if a blog is out there, an employer is going to look at it (if the employer really cares about bringing in the best, that is).
Maybe you shouldn't think so much of a blog as hurting your chances of being hired and more of enhancing the chances. Personally, in my role, I know we're all human. It's going to take something really dumb for me to use it against someone. I mostly just want to hear about work, but I also do like to get a sense for what makes a candidate tick. That's why on my own blog I'll throw tidbits about my kiddos or the Red Sox (Go Sox!).
Also, you should think of your blog as your personal sales pitch on your own terms. You can have a lot of different material in a blog, but you can also help employers out by setting up a "best of" or "read first" list. I'd look right for this list so I can see what the candidate views as their top content. I'd probably poke around a bit more, but starting from that list would be very helpful.
As far as an employer telling you that they searched for you... they're searching for you.
And for them to tell you if something on your blog caused you not to get the job... that's a good question. If there was anything I was hesitant about, there probably wouldn't be a call. I haven't really seen anything questionable in a candidate's blog before, so I'm not sure. Something to think about though if it comes up...
It's the way things work. Period. We spend hours revising our resume, cutting it down to a page because employers, won't read beyond the first page. We practice 30 second elevator speeches because elevator technology allows you to get from the 7th floor to the ground floor in 30 seconds...and well you only have roughly 30 seconds to make a first impression. Likewise, we dress up in our finest because image has everything to do with first impressions. Its the way the world works. Its how you get employers hooked. And then thats where I think submitting writing samples, projects, and blogs come in.
Likewise, we have to be aware of our online persona. I think you just have to assume that if an employer has access to information about you - they'll use it. I agree with Sarah though, if you feel that an employer may turn you down due to something you've said in the past, then maybe that isn't the employer for you. We are college students, our views and opinions are bound to change. We make mistakes. And I think employers do recognize that for the most part.
@peter: Not sure it can be an invasion of privacy if you're reading public information. If you used a service like Vox where you choose who you share it with... and the employer somehow contacted a friend to get access... now THAT is an invasion of privacy. Anything that comes up with a simple Google search can't be seen as an invasion of privacy, imo.
@colleen: I also agree that if a place has a problem with you holding a beer in a photo on Facebook, don't even bother working there anyway. Heck, my boss has photos of herself holding beers with her sister at Fenway on her Facebook page. What's the issue there?
Yeah, if a company is going to hold simple stuff on your blog against you, they'll probably have a conniption the first time you arrive five minutes late because your tire blew. Look elsewhere.
hey Adam thanks for coming back and elaborating, I know most blogs are public domain once its online and legally, sure anyone can google someone else without telling the person they're looking up. I just feel its an ethical issue whether or not an employer should disclose that they used the web to search about you. They don't need to necessarily ask for consent, but they can at least tell people that its part of their hiring process.
From an employee point of view I feel that it would make the company more transparent, which imo i think is good.
It's not like I disapprove of the practice, if I'm an employer, I would use the net as a supplement to the hiring process too. I would the potential hire a heads up though.
I wrote in a similar fashion on my own post. I feel that blogs are a good supplement to a resume, while understanding certain restrictions (such as look at what I wrote 2 days ago vs. two years ago). I feel that if employers (not looking for a professional blogger) just look at our blogs, our true qualifications are lost. Blogs, add to our usually non-stimulating resumes, but should not replace them.
Gosh, I feel like I'm just regurgitating something you already know.
Before reading anyone else's comments, my thoughts to you were, yes your blog is public and we've rehashed that argument way too many times in class and out of class....BUT I just wanted to say that it's unfortunate when something as simple as you making it clear you like the Redskins over the Jets gets in the mind of an employer/co-worker. Some people, actually a lot, take sports extremely personally and whether your preferences were discovered on this page or over happy hour, it's still something in that man or woman's mind and somewhere inside they may hold anger towards you. Crap like that happens all the time and there are plenty of people who can't separate it from the real reasons they're interacting with you (at work).
hahahahahaha, if i had to pledge my allegiance to the Jets to get a job, I rather....well I just rather not =]
Unless of course Bill Gates or Steve Job decide to hire me as their personal secretary, hell even Mark Zuckerberg, oh and Larry Page and Sergey Brin. Otherwise no way =P.
The Ravens got crushed, I cried and then committed seppuku.
/stupid McNair
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