Social media has made a strong presence in the job application process, and can be beneficial for both recruiters and job seekers

When most people think about social media and applying for jobs, they think of the numerous warnings from family members, professors, and advisors that employers will look at your Facebook profile. While it is a fact that most companies will screen an applicant's personal profiles, social media has recently become a much larger force in the job application process than just for finding embarrassing pictures or posts. There are numerous positive ways that social media is being used today to recruit employees and help applicants land jobs.

Job boards may be a thing of the past as recruiters are increasingly using social media to find applicants 

Companies are always on the lookout for new employees, and lately social media has been one of the platforms they are using to find them. A study of over 1,000 companies in a variety of industries revealed that an astounding 92% of employers used social media for job recruiting in 2012.

Social media is an attractive recruiting method because it allows companies to both passively and actively recruit possible job candidates.

Companies have turned to sites like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to passively recruit applicants by posting job openings on their pages. This is beneficial for recruiters and job seekers alike. When job seekers start "liking" company pages on social media, it gives the company publicity and possibly attracts more applicants. It is also beneficial to the job seeker because it gives them a means to interact with people in the company by commenting and liking what is posted on the page.

Social media allows applicants to promote themselves before formally submitting a resume or application. One way to do this is by interacting with a company via their Twitter page. These interactions can give an applicant the chance to make their name stand out to the human resources employees managing these accounts, giving that person an edge simply by making the effort to create dialogue online. Online interactions show that the candidate is motivated and displaying interest in the company, which is viewed favorably by recruiters.

Social media also allows employers to actively recruit candidates by messaging them directly through their profiles. Human resources managers have the ability to browse millions of profiles among the different social networking sites. When they find someone who seems qualified for a job they are looking to fill, contacting that person is as easy as sending a message to their inbox on that site.

Social recruiting has proven to be very beneficial for employers thus far. A survey of 1,600 human resources specialists around the country revealed a 49% increase in quality of employees recruited through social media. Additionally, 33% indicated that the hiring process moved faster when employees were recruited through social media.

The graphic above shows the three most popular
social recruiting sites, and what percent of
employers used each one   

LinkedIn is becoming one of the most powerful recruiting tools and applicants should have strong profiles to remain competitive  

LinkedIn is a social networking website for people in professional occupations, often compared to Facebook of the corporate world. Recently, it has taken the job recruiting world by storm - 93% of recruiters use LinkedIn to look for possible job candidates. Among those who used LinkedIn for recruiting purposes, 89% hired someone who was found or introduced through the site.

One of the main benefits of LinkedIn is the amount of possible connections every user has. The average LinkedIn member has 240 contacts, which seems like a fairly reasonable number. However, those 240 contacts generate 35,000 contacts who are one degree away and 3.2 million who are two degrees away. This allows job seekers to network with employers they otherwise never would have been connected to, which significantly increases the possibility of finding a job.

Due to the sheer number of connections on LinkedIn, it also makes it easy for recruiters to quickly find qualified candidates. Adobe Systems preformed a "talent-scouting race" using two pairs of recruiters to find 50 qualified candidates for a technical job. One pair used LinkedIn to find candidates while the other used traditional methods including job boards.

The pair that used LinkedIn were able to find their 50 candidates in a matter of hours while the traditional pair still hadn't discovered enough talent weeks later. This small experiment shows the power that LinkedIn has to find well-rounded and qualified candidates in a short period of time.

As opposed to recruiting through other social networking sites like Facebook or Twitter, LinkedIn is specifically designed for professional use, so it gives employers a better idea about professional skills, experience, tenure, etc.

Since employers look at LinkedIn specifically to find out about an applicant's professional life, it is important to have a complete profile. This mean having recommendations from previous co-workers or employers, and a complete list of skills, accomplishments, education, and work experience.

Kate Juhl, a program director at the University of Maryland Career Center emphasizes the importance of having key words and skills related to an applicant's specific field on their profile. This allows recruiters to search for exactly what they are looking for, giving the applicant a better chance of being discovered.

Some applicants may find it tempting to "inflate" their qualifications in order to impress recruiters. However, job seekers need to realize while many things on the internet tend to be over-exaggerated, LinkedIn is not the place to do so. A study done by two Cornell professors concluded that resume sharing sites like LinkedIn actually foster greater honesty for important claims like experience and responsibility. While having an impressive profile is certainly important, applicants should never resort to lying about their qualifications.

Success of social media sites in recruiting is sparking the creation of new apps and startup companies 

With the success of social media in the recruiting process, it is no surprise that new social media apps and companies are being created to try to make a presence in a growing field.

A startup company called Entelo uses proprietary algorithms to search Twitter, Google+, and other sites to find candidates for specific positions and predict who might accept offers. Something that might indicate that a person is looking for a job would be if a Twitter user changed their location on their profile, indicating they moved and may be searching for a new job.

While Entelo only launched in October of 2012, they are already attracting big-name clients such as ESPN, Facebook, Groupon, Yelp, and more.

Traditional job boards like Monster and CareerBuilder are starting to feel the effects of the rising presence of social media in recruiting - in the first nine months of 2012 Monster alone saw a decrease in revenue of 10%. As a result, job boards like these are starting to introduce social media components.

Monster launched a Facebook app called BeKnown, which helps job seekers find jobs through Facebook connections. They can also invite colleagues to connect professionally and earn endorsements. CareerBuilder created an app called Work@, which uses Facebook referrals to allow workers to share open positions within their company to family and friends.

The creation of new apps and startup give recruiters even more opportunities to find potential employees, and give job seekers the resources to learn about job openings and make connections.

Applicants still need to be aware of how social media can be harmful in job search 

While social media has many positive benefits for recruiting applicants and helping them get jobs, prospective employees need to realize that their personal social media use can come back to bite them if they are not smart about what they post.

Human resources professionals often use social media sites like Facebook and Twitter to screen applicants and get a better feel for what they are like as a person and how they would fit in the company. Some companies even go as far as looking at applicant's personal blogs and accounts on sites like Instagram, Pinterest, and YouTube.

The graphic above shows common postings found on
applicant's social media profiles, and how recruiters react

The statistic that should worry job applicants most is that 69% of employers have rejected an applicant because of something they saw on a social networking site.  Some of the top offenses were for illegal drug references, posts of a sexual nature, mentions of alcohol consumption, as well as bad spelling and grammar. Respectively, these were viewed negatively by 83%, 71%, 47%, and 61% of job recruiters. Ms. Juhl discusses these negative social media posts, but also about how some of the things applicants post on their profiles are viewed favorably by recruiters, and can actually improve their chances of landing a job.

Contrary to popular belief, it is not a good idea for applicants to delete their Facebook or Twitter accounts while on the job search. Many employers feel that applicants without social media profiles are trying to hide something, and they can't get a feel for them as a person. 

Edward Lavino is the Director of Admissions for part-time MBA programs at the Robert H. Smith School of Business and also teaches a class called "Career Search Strategies in Business" that focuses on helping students develop job search skills.

Mr. Lavino says that one thing applicants may not realize about their Facebook profiles is that although they may have their settings on "Private", that doesn't stop them from appearing in tagged photos that their friends have uploaded on their profiles. This allows employers to see this potentially harmful photos upon a simple photo search of the applicant.

Although it is likely that employers will search applicant's profiles for alcohol and drug references, research shows that such postings are not necessarily cause to disregard an applicant. A study conducted by the department of psychology at North Carolina State University showed that there is no significant correlation between the responsibility and conscientiousness of an applicant and their tendency to post about drug or alcohol use on social media.

In fact, applicants who posted about drugs and alcohol were often more extroverted, which is a characteristic viewed favorably by most employers. Extroversion is a trait that is necessary for positions in many fields such as sales and marketing, so employers could be rejecting applicants that could potentially benefit their company simply on the basis of pictures on social media.

In recent years social media has become involved in many aspects of everyday life where it was never used before; the job market is no exception. Social media has exploded into the job application process, providing new resources for finding jobs, making connections, and searching for new employees. If job seekers can learn to keep their social networking profiles appropriate for future employers, there are many positives to be gained from using social media in process of finding a job as well as for recruiters looking for new employees.

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Social media can have both positive and negative affects on the job application process for potential employees

I. Describe how social media can help applicants get a job 

a. More and more employers are using social media to help recruit potential employees (note: this is different    than when  employers use social media to screen potential employees who have already applied - this is seeking out people they want to apply)

b. Explain what LinkedIn is and how it is influencing how recruiters find potential employees

i. 93% of recruiters are using LinkedIn, 89% of recruiters have hired through LinkedIn

c. Recruiters are also using Facebook (66%) and Twitter (54%) to find potential employees

i. Not just looking for talent through their own profiles, but also using Facebook to create and promote

 company pages, post job entries on Twitter accounts

*Insert image about use of social media in job recruiting*

II. Prevalence of falsified information on sites like LinkedIn

a. Although it seems counterintuitive, resume sharing sites like LinkedIn foster greater honesty for most    important claims to employers (ex: experience, responsibility) 

i. Public availability of information influences decisions 

ii. However, still adapted lies based on if they could be verified online or not

III. Recruiters also use social media to screen job applicants, which could potentially have a very negative effect for prospective employees

a. Discuss why employers use social media to screen applicants 

b. Discuss percentage of employers who use social media to screen applications

c. Discuss which types of social media were used to screen

d. Discuss when in the application process it was used

e. Discuss why candidates were accepted/rejected based on social media

i. More detail about what were turn-offs for recruiters when they saw it on social media

*Insert answer to interview question #2*

*Insert image about social media pitfalls in application*

IV. Conclusion

a. There are both pros and cons of using social media in the  hunt for a job

i. However, when used appropriately, social media can be beneficial for potential employees

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The combination of utilitarianism and social justice makes consequence ethics the most appealing ethical system

All four major systems of ethical reasoning – character ethics, duty ethics, consequence ethics, and relationship ethics – have both positive and negative aspects. However, if I were to pick one ethical system for the media, my vote would go to consequence ethics, which includes utilitarianism and social justice. The basic premise of consequence ethics is that “our actions matter and must be taken into account as we make ethical decisions”.

Utilitarianism aims to do the greatest good for the greatest number of people

The basic theory of this ethical system is that the right action is the one that does the most good for the most possible people. While the theory tries to benefit the greatest number of people possible, this naturally means that there will be a smaller group of people who

In the photo above is John Stuart Mill, an
influential contributor on utilitarianism 

suffer at the expense of the greater good. An example that the book uses to illustrate this is scientific research. Researchers are willing to harm or kill a small number of animals in order to find a cure for a disease like cancer. In the end, finding a cure for something as important as cancer is much more beneficial for the population than the lives of the animals who were tested on. For many people, the fact that there will always be a group that is disadvantaged by the greater good is a problem with utilitarianism. People think that we can never be completely sure about the consequences of our actions. It is extremely difficult to apply value to something like time or a life. However, I believe that this aspect of consequence is beneficial to the media and is part of the reason why I picked the consequence ethical system. The book discusses the relation of utilitarianism to media. An example of this is how the media may report a government wrongdoing, which will benefit the Americans in general because we will be more informed about what is going on in our government. However, it may result in somebody in the government losing their job or going to jail. I believe this theory is important because it attempts to do the greatest good for the largest amount of people possible. While it is true that it will harm others along the way, that number is not as significant as the amount of people it is benefitting. There will always be somebody who isn’t happy, so making an ethical decision by helping the largest amount of people makes sense.

Social marketing is a part of utilitarianism that attempts to change behavior

This is an example of one of the ads that was
part of the CDC anti-smoking campaign

Social marketing is a part of utilitarianism that uses advertising and marketing techniques for social causes that attempt to do the greatest good for the greatest number of people by changing their behaviors. This is especially related to the media as they are the ones who would be creating campaigns and conveying the message to people to change their behavior. I think this is very favorable because it has the ability to help millions of people with little to no negative impact on others. Safe sex campaigns will hopefully educated people about preventing STDs and unplanned pregnancies, so there are clear benefits. However, unlike other examples of utilitarianism, there are virtually no consequences that can harm someone. An example to support consequence ethics is the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) anti-smoking campaign, which is an illustration of social marketing. The campaign showed real people talking about their personal health consequences as a result of smoking. These consequences ranged from throat cancer to strokes and heart attacks. After the campaign ran ads for 12 weeks in the spring of 2012, a study was conducted. The results showed that these ads helped persuade more than 10,000 Americans to quit smoking. This shows how social marketing is an extremely useful tool that conveys the consequences of a negative action like smoking in order to help the greater good. 

Social justice plays off of utilitarianism beliefs

In the theory of social justice, philosophers believe that the greatest good that was discussed in utilitarianism is what brings “the most fairness for everyone”. Like in utilitarianism, the main problem with this is defining what exactly is fair. In order to follow this theory, a person essentially needs to take a step back and view the situation they are in from the other person’s perspective. In an example related to media, an advertising executive may be running an ad that is offensive to another ethnic group. If this executive took social justice into consideration, they would put themselves in the shoes of that ethnic group and realize that their ad is offensive, and make the necessary changes to ensure it is fair for everyone. This can be applied to many other media situations, like a journalist changing their story after thinking about how they would feel if it was written about them. I think social justice helps illustrate why the consequence ethical system is the most important because it shows how we can make the media the most fair.

While all ethical systems have their respective plusses and minuses, I feel that by bringing the fairest treatment for the greatest number of people to the media, the combination of utilitarianism and social justice makes the consequence system the most attractive. 

New Kevo lock by Kwikset combines Bluetooth technology and mobile app to allow one-touch entry

Last month’s Custom Electronic Design and Installation Association (CEDIA) trade show in Denver introduced hundreds of future technologies in many different categories. One of these technologies was Kwikset’s Kevo Bluetooth lock. 

Kwikset is a manufacturer of locks and locksets that we see on our doors on a daily basis. However, their new Kevo lock has a feature that is not included in most locks we are used to seeing. The main and most technologically advanced feature of the Kevo lock is that you can open it with the touch of a finger.

The touch pad on the Kevo lock lights up when it has been unlocked
Source: http://www.kwikset.com/Kevo/default.aspx?utm_source=buffer&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=Buffer&utm_content=buffer72eaa#.UlimSrR8zzI

The Kevo lock works by turning your smartphone into an electronic key (eKey). The user downloads the Kevo mobile app once and after that it simply runs in the background, allowing the user to essentially forget about it. This means the user never has to actually open the app in order to unlock the door, they just need to have their phone.  The combination of the app and Bluetooth allow the deadbolt to recognize and respond to just the touch of a finger.  

Aside from the obvious convenience of being able to open a lock by just touching it, the Kevo lock has other features that have consumers excited. Using the Kevo app, you can send an eKey to anyone that has a Kevo-compatible smartphone. This means that other family members or even someone visiting for the day can use the Kevo system to unlock the door. You can easily set time restrictions on the eKey so that it will only allow that person entrance for a certain amount of time. This is helpful when sending an eKey to a guest who you don’t want to have permanent access to your home. The Kevo lock also comes with a “fob”, which is a Bluetooth enabled device that provides non-smartphone users with the same one touch convenience. The fob comes pre-enrolled with the lock, so there is not additional setup required. It is about the same size as a key, and simply just needs to be on the user in order to open the lock. The only features that non-smartphone users would be missing is access to the Kevo app, which is what allows you to send an eKey, view lock activity, and manage other features of the lock.

The Kevo lock has many security measures in place to ensure that it is just as safe as a regular lock that requires a key. For example, it can detect if the authorized phone or fob is inside or outside of the house. This means that even if the user’s phone is inside the house, an unauthorized user outside wouldn’t be able to gain entrance into the house. The lock also has SmartKey technology, which is “tested to the most stringent lock picking, bumping and physical security standards”.

The fob allows non-smartphone users to have access to the Kevo lock too
Source: http://www.kwikset.com/Kevo/default.aspx?utm_source=buffer&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=Buffer&utm_content=buffer72eaa#.UlimSrR8zzI

Kevo is compatible with smartphone that support Bluetooth Smart Ready/Bluetooth 4.0 hardware and have an available mobile app. However, the app is only currently available for the iPhone 4s, 5, 5C, and 5S. It retails for $219 and is available for pre-order on amazon.com, build.com, newegg.com, and at Home Depot. 

The video above demonstrates how the Kevo lock works 

We are not physically addicted to media, but dependent on it because of how prevalent it has become in our lives

As discussed in the article, I think we are dependent on digital media, but not addicted. According to Medical News Today, addiction has a psychological/physical component where the person is unable to control the aspects of the addiction without help due to mental or physical conditions. As discussed in the Diamondback article, we are dependent on information. We have become so used to constantly being updated on news, text messages, and emails that it becomes second nature to check digital media frequently. However, I don't think this is an addiction because for the average person, there is no psychological or physical component where we can't go without media unless we get help. Like Andrew who didn't miss his phone while he was in Mexico, most people can go without media while they are actually doing something entertaining. It becomes something that we constantly check when we are bored and there is nothing else to do. 

I definitely will admit to using digital media very frequently. I always have my phone on me and check it frequently throughout the day. I bring my laptop to classes that allow it, and would be lying if I said that I didn't use it for purposes other than just taking notes during class. I definitely will stop to check social media, shop online, etc depending on what class I am in, what material we are going over, and the pace of the class. While digital media can be highly distracting, I don't think there should be rules at home or school governing technology. We are all responsible adults who can make decisions regarding our digital media usage. If we decide to use technology in class to browse the internet instead of take notes, that is our own fault.  

I think being able to use laptops and smartphones is helpful in class. For me personally, I can't handwrite notes fast enough to keep up with how quickly professors go through their power points. Being able to type my lecture notes allows me to take notes while still being able to pay attention to what is being discussed, as opposed to being focused on copying everything down. However, they are also incredibly distracting at the same time. It is very easy to switch from taking notes one second to checking Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, etc the next second. This not only distracts the student doing those things, but also the students around them as they see them looking at different things on their device. 

http://www.diamondbackonline.com/news/campus/article_0527403c-20e8-11e3-862d-0019bb30f31a.html
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/info/addiction/

Interactive mediums like video games could have greater affect on users than passive mediums such as television

            It is undoubtedly clear that the media has a profound effect on many aspects of today’s society. When we see something on television or in movies, we are likely to replicate it in our own lives. The same can be applied to video games, but to an even higher degree since it is an interactive form of media, as opposed to television, which is passive.  I believe that a highly interactive medium like video games has the potential to have a greater affect on media users than a more passive medium like television.

            There is no question that television has a significant affect on its viewers. This can be proven through research, such as the Bobo Doll studies, which were preformed in the 1950s. These experiments showed that children who watched violent television shows where the aggressor was rewarded were more likely to become violent (such as punching the Bobo Doll) and aggressive than children who watched television where the violent person was punished. Video games have also shown a similar affect on their users. According to a New York Times article, a study was conducted at Iowa State University where undergraduates played Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance then were told to give hot sauce to a fellow student who did not like spicy foods. Compared to students who played a nonviolent video game, the Mortal Kombat students were more aggressive and gave out more hot sauce.

            While it is clear that television and video games both have an affect on their users, I believe that video games are more influential. I think this comes down to the fact that television is a passive medium while video games are highly interactive. When you are watching a violent television show, you are simply watching actors engage in violence. However, when you are playing violent video games, you are the one doing the shooting and killing. According to an article from PBS, “Video games could be expected to have a larger effect than media violence. The player is participating. They’re being reinforced.” The reinforcement discussed in the PBS article comes from being rewarded after completing a violent task, which usually involves shooting or killing many people. While there isn’t enough conclusive evidence to prove that video games have a larger affect than television, I believe they do simply because of the fact that video games are interactive and allow the user to have the experience of shooting, killing, and acting violent. However, neither television nor video games can be held fully responsible for any resulting violence. Parents can be held equally accountable, as there are ratings on TV shows and video games based on age, as well as many viable alternatives to violent shows and games. 

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/next/body/what-science-knows-about-video-games-and-violence/

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/12/science/studying-the-effects-of-playing-violent-video-games.html?_r=0