What job seekers post on their social networking profiles can be both a blessing and a curse for their chances of finding employment.
A CareerBuilder.ca survey of more than 500 employers finds 49% of them have researched job candidates on social media, and 12% plan to start.
Of those who have researched candidates on social media, 30% of those who have researched candidates on social media have found content that caused them to not hire the candidate and 27% have found content that made them think twice about hiring the candidate.
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When asked about the content that prompted them to eliminate candidates from consideration, the most common reasons employers gave included:
- job candidate posted information about them drinking or using drugs (35%);
- job candidate posted provocative or inappropriate photographs or information (32%);
- job candidate had poor communications skills (28%);
- job candidate bad-mouthed their previous company or fellow employee (28%);
- job candidate lied about qualifications (25%);
- job candidate had discriminatory comments related to race, gender, religion, etc. (24%);
- job candidate was linked to criminal behaviour (23%);
- job candidate’s screen name was unprofessional (22%);
- job candidate lied about an absence (17%); and
- job candidate posted too frequently (16%).
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On the other hand, 32% of employers who research candidates on social networking sites say they’ve found content that led to them hire a candidate.
Some of the most common reasons employers hired a candidate based on their social networking presence included:
- job candidate was well-rounded (44%);
- job candidate’s background information supported their professional qualifications for the job (43%);
- job candidate was creative (41%);
- other people posted great references (40%);
- job candidate had great communications skills (38%);
- job candidate’s site conveyed a professional image (35%);
- job candidate received awards and accolades (35%);
- got a good feel for the job candidate’s personality, could see a good fit within the company (30%);
- job candidate posted compelling video or other (27%);
- job candidate had a large amount of followers or subscribers (24%);
- job candidate had interacted with my company’s social media accounts (22%);
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Social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter aren’t the only resources employers are using to evaluate candidates’ online presences. Forty-three percent of employers use search engines to research potential job candidates, and 12% plan to start.
“Resumes only tell part of the story, so employers are increasingly relying on social media and Internet search engines to supplement their knowledge of a candidate,” says Mark Bania, managing director of CareerBuilder Canada. “For these reasons, job seekers need to be more aware than ever about what they say—and what’s being said about them—online.”