So a few weeks ago we had a discussion in class about our online profiles and online interaction's impact on our lives everyday. We discussed how we don't talk face-to-face as much, and how even then our interaction can be altered because we are all so accustomed and comfortable living our lives via web.
In class I mentioned that our online profiles do play an active role in our lives and that the way that we communicate with one another has drastically changed over the years.
What I really meant was - yeah, we may act differently toward each other because we spend more time with the online version of our friends in most cases than we do with our actual friends, but more importantly, your online profile carries more weight in the sense of what matters the most than YOU DO.
Okay, so what are the key things that educators/administers/parents/mentors drain into our heads from day one? WATCH WHAT YOU PUT ONLINE. Phil Gomez, a social media guru came and spoke to my Media Law and Ethics class a few weeks ago. Gomez said that 85% of employers Google their potential employers before even seeing them for an interview. He also said that 7% of workers believe that employers actually do that. This means that our future jobs are potentially in the hands of our Facebook and Twitter profiles. What you put online matters. It can get you a job, even easier, it could lose you one.
So in the grand scheme of things, your online profile holds more weight in the "real world" than you do. A superb interview and a knock-out cover letter and resume can only get you so far, but depending on your online profile, neither will be even considered.
Hi Andrea, Thanks for your great post on our online profiles. The statistics you reported are scary, especially if only 7% of all people are aware that their online profiles are being monitored by potential employers. You're right--it's not who you are, but who you appear to be, that matters. dw
ReplyDeleteThis is so true and unfortunately, as you mentioned, very few people think of the consequences Facebook pictures could have on future jobs or even internships. No matter how 'private' the website claims to be, an online profile is as public as a person streaking down South University in the heavily busy hour of early noon.
ReplyDeleteThis is a really interesting post and something I think we are all starting to get lectures on. My question is what is going to happen in the future with this online profile for jobs? If everyone realizes they need to make their online profile private, will this issue become smaller? Or will this issue start to become bigger and bigger? Will the social media companies (facebook, twitter) try to stop this searching by companies? Eventually will there be a bad picture of everyone online for companies to find and they will just have to ignore it?
ReplyDeleteI also think this is a hard issue for people hiring- if an applicant does have an amazing interview, application and resume, what is the deal breaker of online material found? If they are deciding between that applicant, and an applicant whose qualifications are just ok and does not have a good interview or application, but they can find nothing online about them. Well what if that person just put their profile on private but has equally bad material? This could go on forever!
My main thought is where is that line crossed based on online material? And how will this change in the future?