Keep your Social Media Profile Clean

Keep your Social Media Profile Clean

What you post on social media could have serious repercussions on your professional life.  It could cost you your current job or job opportunities in the future.

According to a 2018 CareerBuilder survey, 70% of employers use social media to screen candidates during the hiring process, and about 43% of employers use social media to check on current employees.

Managers look at social media accounts for an array of reasons, but many employers want to make sure a candidate will be a good fit with their company. 

Use Social Media to your benefit

Despite what job candidates might think, most employers aren’t scouring the internet looking for reasons not to hire them.  Most employers are looking for reasons to hire someone.

The CareerBuilder study found that 58% of employers conduct social screenings to look for information supporting a candidate’s qualifications for the job, 50% want to ensure the candidate has a professional online persona, and 34% want to see what other people are posting about the candidate.  Just 24% of those surveyed check social media to search for reasons not to hire someone.

Having their social media pages investigated has paid off for many job seekers.  Specifically, 37% of hiring managers said they found information supporting the candidate’s professional qualifications, and 33% were impressed with their professional image.  Additionally, 34% thought a candidate displayed excellent creativity.

What to avoid on Social Media

While they might not be searching for anything negative, more than half of those surveyed (57%) said they have found something during their social screenings that led them to not hire someone.  According to the survey these are the leading types of posts and behaviour that left employers with a bad impression:

Job candidate posted provocative or inappropriate photographs, video or information. 40%

1. Job candidate posted information about them drinking or using drugs. 36%
2. Job candidate had discriminatory comments related to race, gender, religion, etc. 31%
3. Job candidate was linked to criminal behaviour. 30%
4. Job candidate lied about qualifications. 27%
5. Job candidate bad-mouthed their previous company or fellow employee. 25%
6. Job candidate’s screen name was unprofessional. 22%
7. Job candidate shared confidential information from previous employers. 20%
8. Job candidate lied about an absence. 16%
9. Job candidate posted too frequently. 12%

Professionals shouldn’t ease up on ensuring their online presence is a positive once they land a job.  The study found that 48% of employers use social networking sites to research current employees.  Of those, 34% have found content that caused them to discipline or even fire an employee.

The study was based on surveys of more than 1,000 hiring managers and human resource professionals across a variety of industries and company sizes in the private sector.

Source: Saige Driver, 7^th October 2018. 2018 CareerBuilder survey.