Social networking profiles more accurate than resumes?
July 20, 2009 by Sam NarisiPosted in: In this week's e-newsletter - Tech
In the debate about whether to search for candidates online before they’re hired, here’s another reason hiring managers may consider doing so:
Candidates are often more honest in their LinkedIn profiles than in the resumes they send employers.
At least that’s what LinkedIn founder Reid Hoffman said at the Social Recruiting Summit held recently at Google’s headquarters in Mountain View, CA.
His reasoning: Resumes are read only by a few people in a company, who know nothing about the candidate. On the other hand, candidates might have hundreds of LinkedIn connections, and in theory, know or have worked with all of them.
Reid’s point: It’s pretty hard to lie publicly in front of current or former colleagues.
Of course, LinkedIn profiles aren’t really replacements for resumes — most users don’t put the same detail into a profile, and there aren’t many versions tailored to different types of positions.
But some experts recommend finding a candidate’s profile to quickly make sure it matches the info the candidate sent to you.
July 21st, 2009 at 12:34 pm
Unless you run into what I recently did….
I recently connected with a former co-worker on Facebook. She was by no means a stellar employee when we were coworkers (15 years ago) and she always had drama in her life (to the point where we were all beginning to wonder what was truth and what was a figment of her imagination). Her Facebook profile indicates that she is now a LAWYER. She even names the law firm in which she claims to be a PARTNER! It didn’t take much checking to find out it’s all a fabrication. I can’t help but wonder if the named law firm is aware……
July 22nd, 2009 at 9:46 am
Couple of questions for those of you familiar with social networking recruitment. What are the benefits of hosting a facebook page for recruiting purposes? Can I do this without having to “friend” all kinds of people? What else can be done through this medium?
July 28th, 2009 at 1:11 pm
I cannot believe that a social networking site like Facebook or Myspace can be considered before making a hiring decision…too much personal information.
LinkedIn should be ok but the truly social ones should be off-limits