BloggingStocks

Job hunting in a social media world: 95% LinkedIn, 59% Facebook

Tom Johansmeyer — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 15:40:00 EST

Filed under: Internet, Employees, Media World, Technology

An unemployment rate of 10.2% means that serious jobseekers are using every tool they can find. So, it's not at all shocking that social networking tools top the list, with LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter leading the charge. Openings are being tweeted, hints of a new position are being monitored and hot candidates are being hit up directly, even if they aren't saying they're on the prowl for a new gig. Social media is a tool to use in a job hunt but not necessarily the only one, according to Challenger, Gray & Christmas. Instead, it makes sense to balance a search with many tools.

John Challenger, CEO, says, "The job search has changed radically over the last two decades with the advent of electronic mail, the internet, social networking, smart phones, etc. However, it is important to remember that all of these technologies simply enhance the job search; they will never replace the face-to-face connections that are critical to a successful search." But, he continues that "we feel that these new networking tools are essential and now advise all of the job seekers going through our program to open LinkedIn accounts and to consider other services such as Facebook and Twitter.

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Job hunting in a social media world: 95% LinkedIn, 59% Facebook originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 17 Nov 2009 15:40:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The biggest mistakes made by new graduates

Beth Gaston Moon — Wed, 16 May 2007 15:15:00 EST

Filed under: Magazines, Employees

Oh, the places you'll go! (Oh, the things you'll screw up!) Dr. Seuss probably didn't have the second credo in mind when he penned his popular (and final) book nearly 20 years ago. But today's college graduates, young and eager and with the whole world in front of them, are prone to some big mistakes.

Fortune reports that as Baby Boomers retire, more jobs are becoming available to America's youth, making it a great time to have a fresh college diploma. According to a new survey from CareerBuilder.com, 79% of 2,500 companies surveyed expect to hire new graduates this year, up from 70% in 2006. Starting pay is also on the rise, which should help with those building student loans. But easily preventable mistakes can prevent a new graduate from earning the job of his or her dreams.

The article seeks advice from Anna Ivey, a consultant who formerly served as dean of admissions for the University of Chicago law school. She says the five common mistakes perpetrated by Generation Y job-seekers are:

1. Allowing parents to dominate the job search. A new graduate should be independent, reflecting maturity and professionalism.

2. Posting racy photos or inappropriate language on MySpace, a blog, or any other publicly accessible web site.

3. Failure to network. Every new grad has a fairly wide network, when he or she considers friends, family, family friends, friends' parents, etc.

4. Poor manners. Those employers who grant a job interview or provide help with an employment search appreciate a thank-you note; they rarely get them from new graduates.

5. Sub-par voice mail greetings. Be professional and not too casual.

Beth Gaston Moon is an analyst at Schaeffer's Investment Research.

The biggest mistakes made by new graduates originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 16 May 2007 15:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jobs from blogging: Far more companies are hiring than you'd think

Sarah Gilbert — Tue, 10 Apr 2007 19:15:00 EST

Filed under: Newspapers, Employees, Personal Finance

Are recruiters using Technorati or other blog search tools to find talent? So says the Wall Street Journal in today's paper, pointing out how blogging used to be a screening tool (maybe you shouldn't have gone on that rant about your ex-girlfriend...) but has become, for many more mature members of the job pool, a gold mine. That "about me" page does have some use after all, and many blogs I've visited have a standard resume format where the ironic sideways self-portrait, list of favorite songs and stats on children and puppies usually go.

Who would hire from a blog, and what kind of people, exactly, might they hire? The WSJ uses Ryan Loken, a recruiter at Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. (NYSE: WMT), as an example; he says he's hired about 125 people because of their blogs, but doesn't say in which departments.

You might expect graphic designers and web developers to be frequently hired because of their blogs and fun little "side" projects -- and they are, it's true, but don't decide to stick to anonymity on your blog just because you're not in a high-tech field. I'm in (variously) product development, parenting and financial writing, and photography, and all my interests have inspired the occasional recruiter contact to my personal blog address (but, for the record, I'm sticking with this job!). The companies they represented were ones you'd never think of: packaged goods, wireless phones, organic farms. I've found great candidates for contract writing positions in everything from scrapbooking to cooking to living a simpler life through the blogosphere, and that's just the tip of the iceberg.

Blogging is an invaluable way to showcase one's expertise in any area, from keeping chickens to CSS design to technical stock analysis, and it's becoming, more and more, the leading way to see and be seen. Networking clubs and who-you-know? Passé. It's about how well you SEO. And I could write a whole separate post on that...

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Jobs from blogging: Far more companies are hiring than you'd think originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 10 Apr 2007 19:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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