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Facebook is Big Business for Those Looking for Jobs, Clients
by
findingDulcinea Staff
Once primarily a social arena for college students, Facebook is now widely used as a job-hunting and marketing tool.
30-Second Summary
Once primarily used to find pictures of long-lost friends from elementary school, Facebook now serves as a way to establish professional connections and search for employment. The faltering economy has caused enterprising people of all ages to turn to Facebook as a way to spread information. Christine Pon Chin, a real estate buyer, said that Facebook helped her find “additional buyers and sellers for the future.”
Only two years ago, students were concerned that potential employers would judge them based on their Facebook pages, a practice they felt would be “unethical.”
Those who still use the social networking site for personal, not professional reasons, worry about protocol when they are “friended” by their bosses.
Only two years ago, students were concerned that potential employers would judge them based on their Facebook pages, a practice they felt would be “unethical.”
Those who still use the social networking site for personal, not professional reasons, worry about protocol when they are “friended” by their bosses.
Headline Links: “Looking for Work on Facebook”
When she relocated, Sonia Meertins used Facebook to launch her job search, saying, “Every resource that’s available, you try to use it.” With nearly 15 percent of Americans fearing layoffs, members of the workforce are willing to use any method possible to secure employment. Job-hunting sites like Careerbuilder.com have actually created specific Facebook applications. Companies also use Facebook as a marketing tool or to engage with clients.
Source: The New York Times (free registration may be required)
Background Links: The Evolution of Facebook
More casual uses of Facebook could be potentially damaging to the future professional success of recent college graduates. In a 2006 study, 40 percent of employers said they would take into account a candidate’s Facebook profile during the hiring process. In some cases, companies have rescinded job offers after viewing a candidate’s profile. Students found the practice “unethical” and Conor Geary, then a sophomore at Sienna College, started a Facebook group called, “Dear Employer: I’m an Upstanding Individual Despite My Facebook Pictures.” Chris Wiley, one of the study’s authors said, “Facebook is just a small part of the bigger issue of privacy and the Internet.”
Source: US News and World Report
“Tech gossip” blog ValleyWag posted Ryan Kuder’s minute-by-minute Twitter account of the hours leading up to his layoff from Yahoo. According to The New York Times, the posts, plus founding a Facebook group called, “I worked at Yahoo! Until Yesterday,” inspired calls from a Microsoft recruiter and helped Kuder find a partner for a new Internet company.
Source: Valley Wag
Related Topics: Facebook at the Office
The Boston Globe reports that Facebook’s “fastest-growing segment is people age 25 and older, and more than half of its total users are outside college.” Employees are now placed in the awkward position of deciding whether or not to accept their boss’s friend requests on the social networking site. Employees tend to feel that their privacy will be invaded, but Paul F. Levy, president and chief executive officer of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, explained, “It's fun, a nice way to communicate with a group of people who might not otherwise interact with me.”
Source: The Boston Globe (free registration may be required)
A recent poll conducted in Australia indicated that many workers would not accept a job if they couldn’t use social networking sites at the office. In addition, research indicates that people using Facebook and other social-networking tools at their place of business do so mainly in a professional, not a personal, context.
Source: findingDulcinea
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