Your Next Life — The Challenges of Managing Digital Dirt
Jun 16 2008
As if you don’t have enough to do between networking, résumé development, interview preparation, due diligence on your target companies, and the daily requirements of your current job, now you also must take time to research and monitor what the internet says about you as part of an effective job search process.
An increasing number of companies are conducting an Internet search for background information as part of the vetting process for prospective employees. Based on research by Execunet, a leading job search and recruiting network, and Joyce Gioia-Herman, a strategic business futurist, first impressions are being formed long before the interview process begins. In fact, 83 percent of recruiters recently polled are using online information to augment résumés, and 43 percent have eliminated candidates based on digital dirt discovered during online candidate vetting.
The first step in online reputation management is checking the major search engines – Google, Yahoo, and MSN, as well as Wikipedia — for your name by using a keyword search of your given name and nicknames. Google even has a special alert feature that allows a user to monitor keywords and sends a daily e-mail summarizing the search results. This feature can be accessed from the Google home page by clicking on “more” at the top of the page, then selecting “even more,” and then “Alerts.” From there you can type in your name or nickname and the frequency at which you would like updates sent. Microsoft offers a similar feature —Windows Live Alerts — at www.alerts.live.com.
Beyond a keyword search of your name, you also should be cautious when posting information on blogs, social networking sites, and online forums. According to the Execunet study, anything connected to your name online can be viewed as a reflection of your character and integrity.
Finally, recognize that online biographical information, including résumé postings, can be used as a pretext for identity theft. Job seekers have received e-mails and phone calls requesting personal information from people claiming to be recruiters or representatives of companies conducting pre-employment background checks or seeking to establish a direct-deposit account as part of the pre-employment screening process. In no case will a job candidate be asked to provide confidential personal information to the human resources department of a company before the interview process has been initiated and preliminary salary details have been discussed.
About the author: Jim Carman is a graduate of the MIT Sloan School of Management and a retired Navy Captain. He writes and lectures on career transition topics.
