Reevaluating Social Networking Sites for Job Hunting May 2015, Working Paper
Julian Jensen Master’s Student, Communication Management -
[email protected] University of Southern California, Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism
K EYWOR DS
ABSTRACT
Online Social networks Job hunting Career Facebook LinkedIn Recruiters
Current job hunting has changed significantly after the growth of professional social networking sites like LinkedIn and Facebook. Job hunting is now a multidimensional task that requires an understanding of the different channels available and the specific strategies to use. I posit that SNSs, predominantly LinkedIn, help create professional relationships, but they are not the only channels that provide significant opportunities for job seekers. Secondly, if SNSs are used, they are only effective when connections are utilized, especially for recent graduates who are entering the job marketplace without large professional networks.
2. Application LinkedIn & The Value of SNSs Launched in California in 2003, LinkedIn has over 347 million members and continues to grow each quarter (2015). It bills itself as the world’s largest professional network and is widely regarded as the standard for creating professional relationships regardless of job experience or social capital (Peterson & Dover 2014;
Figure 1 - Examples of Mulitdiemsnional Job Tactics Online
Offline
Formal
Examples:
Informal
1. Introduction Social networking sites (SNSs) have had a monumental impact on the way we communicate and create professional relationships with one another. They also help us shape our identities by presenting or promoting ourselves online, which makes them very powerful tools (Djick 2013). Regarding job hunting, SNSs, especially LinkedIn and Facebook, allow us to build relationships that have the potential to assist in job hunting (Peterson & Dover 2014; Sigfusson & Chetty 2013). Studies have shown there is a strong interest to create these online professional networks because of an emotional feeling of optimism for future job opportunities when using SNSs (Peterson & Dover 2014; Peluchette & Karl 2009). However, this optimism does not directly translate to actual job opportunities, and there are other channels active job seekers can use in job hunting. These include online job boards, formal applications to job openings, offline networking, internships, career counselors, and personal contacts (Sampere 2015; Nikolaou 2014; Obukhova & Lan 2013). When pooled together, professional SNSs and these other channels have created a new type of contemporaneous job hunting that is both formal (directly applying to jobs) and informal (using social networks), while occurring on and offline. I define this as Multidimensional Job Hunting, because job seekers are applying their efforts across these various dimensions (see Figure 1). I posit that SNSs, predominantly LinkedIn, help create professional relationships, but they are not the only channels that provide significant opportunities for job seekers. Secondly, if SNSs are used, they are only effective when connections are utilized, especially for recent graduates who are entering the job marketplace without large professional networks. In my investigation, there was very little research that examined the value of SNSs (and other social media) that provide opportunities for job seekers, even with such predominate use and membership size. Further research should examine all of these job hunting channels to identify their value in relation to one another. Many authors acknowledged this issue in their articles, citing a need for more academic studies as SNSs continue to make significant impacts on our professional lives (Dijck 2013; Zide, Elman, & Shahani-Denning 2014; Obukhova & lan 2013).
Job board websites Applying via a company website
Meeting with recruiters Career counselor
Emailing recruiters
Internships
Social Networking Sites (SNSs)
Informal interviews
Communicating with personal contacts online
Meeting personal contacts offline
Zide, Elman, & Shahani-Denning 2014; et. al.). Facebook is another SNS that provides professional networking opportunities, however it focuses on interpersonal, rather than professional, relationships. Using SNSs to network with other professionals is one of the most widely-used job search methods, which highlights their their significance within Multidimensional Job Hunting (Stopfer & Gosling 2013). SNSs are informal mediums where users create a public identity for themselves in order to attract the interest of others, connect with friends & acquaintances, and publish self-curated content (Guillory & Hancock 2012; Jenkins, Ford, & Green 2013). While Facebook focuses on self-presentation, LinkedIn caters for professional self-promotion—asking users to publish information to highlight professional traits, experience, and skills (Dijck 2013). The majority of recruiters also use LinkedIn and Facebook as an informal recruiting tool to research potential candidates, increasing the importance of correctly maintaining a profile page and visiting these sites often (Zide, Elman, & Shahani-Denning 2014). LinkedIn has not replaced the traditional resumé yet, because most users are still reluctant to complete their profiles, forcing recruiters to look at resumés in addition to their SNS research (et. al.). However, people do lie about some portions of the information they publish on their profiles in order to make a positive impression on others. In one study, over 90% of participants lied at least once on their resumé, but LinkedIn profiles were
1
Bridging Structural Holes Using Social Influencers
generally more honest about past work experience (Guillory & Hancock 2012). In addition, diversity appears to be skewed on LinkedIn, with one study finding that most users were middle-aged men with higher income, working at larger companies (Dijck 2013). While the site offers the potential to develop a large online network, most users have less than 500 connections and incomplete profile pages (Zide, Elman, & Shahani-Denning 2014), but LinkedIn is free to use, making it an advantageous tool when job hunting. Other Channels For Job Seekers While LinkedIn makes it easy to create a professional network, there are other influential and important tools within Multidimensional Job Hunting. Additional online sites like job boards are still powerful tools that are part of current job hunting. One study showed that between 2005 and 2008, unemployed job seekers who looked for work online were employed 25% faster than those who did not use online tools (Kuhn & Mansour 2013). The study also showed that job seekers use the internet in a variety of ways, not just accessing one type of website. Most job seekers still use job boards more than SNSs, because they are more established, implicit in their offerings, and continue to be effective (Nikolaou 2013). This contrasts LinkedIn, which is better at allowing recruiters to find ‘passive’ candidates that are not actively looking for jobs, but continue to update their profiles (et. al.). The combination of using job boards and SNSs for active and passive candidates is expected to grow, exemplified by Glassdoor, which combines job boards with professional networking and company reviews. Even though the internet makes it easy to apply to jobs, offline tactics are another effective way to recieve job offers by making real-world connections (Nishi 2013; Obukhova & Lan 2013). Professionals are known to respond to informational interviews if a job seeker does not mention a job (Nishi 2013). Recommendation letters also help by speaking to one’s success, professionalism, and personality by providing a deeper understanding of skills and personality (Stites 2013). While SNSs provide access to networking, one columnist for Harvard Business Review explained that neither Facebook nor LinkedIn are doing a good job at letting users know about ‘hidden’ job opportunities that recruiters reserve for candidates that are personally recommended to them (Sampere 2015). Using other channels like job boards, offline networking, or recommendation letters are additional channels job seekers can use, and can be equally or even more influential than SNSs, as explained by some authors. Utilizing Connections & Recent Graduates Based on the theory of social capital (Burt 2004), creating a network of professional connections to may give job seekers more advantages based on the number of connections that could turn into job opportunities. But utilizing those connections—and not simply acquiring them—is paramount to activating the potential benefits of a professional social network. This is even more important for recent graduates who do not have large professional network, yet are looking for jobs openings soon after graduating (Obukhova & Lan 2013). Creating a large network of weak ties can be good when starting an online professional network, and interestingly, the majority of ties created on LinkedIn are weak (Sigfusson & Chetty 2013). But the process of weak-tie networking can be time consuming and involves contacting strangers who may not bring the expected returns of job opportunities one might expect. One study found that very few professional relationships on SNSs are created by being introduced through a third party, but those that were, often valued them more and they usually resulted in business transactions (et. al.). The study labeled these third parties ‘gobetweeners’ and placed a significant importance on them because they were rare, yet their social capital was highly influential. Social capital and weak ties can help, but job seekers must examine the relationships they have, see if their network is valuable, and what may need to change. Large professional networks on SNSs are valuable when specific connections
2
are used in valuable ways, and this may be tough when an individual’s network only has weak ties. In one research study of graduate students, having higher social capital wasn’t indicative of better job search outcomes, but the act of using that capital did improve job outcomes (Obukhova & Lan 2013). The research highlighted four areas that graduate students looked for jobs: personal contacts, university intermediaries, internships, and formal job applications. It found that using personal contacts had a higher job acceptance rate by candidates, even if they also had job offers using the other three channels (et. al.). Students directly benefited the most when they utilized the contacts and relationships they had. For example, having a few strong ties with influential ‘gobetweeners’ could be more influential for the job seeker, rather than only having a larger social network of weak ties. 3. Conclusion SNSs play a significant role and will undoubtably continue to—if not increase—their value within a variety of channels open to job seekers. In this paper I posited that SNSs, predominantly LinkedIn, help create professional relationships, but there are also other channels that play an influential role. Secondly, if SNSs are used, they are most effective when connections are utilized, especially for graduates. I found research that supports my theory, indicating that SNSs play an interesting and varied role in the current Multidimensional form of job hunting that requires job seekers to use various channels on and offline, while taking formal or informal approaches. Today, job seekers have to understand the interconnectedness of these dimensions and which ones will be most effective for them. References
Burt, R. S. (2004). Structural holes and good ideas1. American Journal of Sociology, 110(2), 349-399. Dijck, J. V. (2013). ‘You have one identity’: Performing the self on Facebook and LinkedIn. Media, Culture & Society, 35(2), 199-215. doi:10.1177/0163443712468605 Guillory, J., & Hancock, J. T. (2012). The Effect of Linkedin on Deception in Resumes. Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking. doi:10.1089/cyber.2011.0389 Jenkins, H., Ford, S., & Green, J. (2013). Spreadable media: Creating value and meaning in a networked culture. Kuhn, P., & Mansour, H. (2013). Is Internet Job Search Still Ineffective? The Economic Journal. doi:10.1111/ecoj.12119 LinkedIn Corporation. (2015). About Us | LinkedIn Newsroom. Retrieved from https://press. linkedin.com/about-linkedin Nikolaou, I. (2014). Social networking web sites in job search and employee recruitment. International Journal of Selection and Assessment, 22(2), 179-189. doi:10.1111/ijsa.12067 Nishi, D. (2013, April 15). Personal Journal: Networking Offline Helps To Land Jobs. Wall Street Journal, p. 27. Retrieved from http://libproxy.usc.edu/login?url=http://search.proquest.com.libproxy.usc.edu/docview/1326662378?accountid=14749 Obukhova, E., & Lan, G. (2013). Do Job Seekers Benefit from Contacts? A Direct Test with Contemporaneous Searches. Management Science, 59(10), 2204-2216. doi:10.1287/ mnsc.1120.1701 Peluchette, J., & Karl, K. (2009). Examining Students’ Intended Image on Facebook: “What Were They Thinking?!”. Journal of Education for Business, 85(1), 30-37. doi:10.1080/08832320903217606 Peterson, R. M., & Dover, H. F. (2014). Building student networks with LinkedIn: The potential for connections, internships, and jobs. Marketing Education Review, 24(1), 15-20. doi:10.2753/MER1052-8008240102 Sampere, J. P. (2015, January 13). Why social networks still haven’t cracked the job search puzzle. Harvard Business Review. Retrieved from https://hbr.org/2015/01/why-social-networks-still-havent-cracked-the-job-search-puzzle Scott, B. (2014). Graduate attributes and talent perceptions: Reflections on the first year of graduate employment. International Journal of Employment Studies, 22(1), 39-59. Sigfusson, T., & Chetty, S. (2013). Building international entrepreneurial virtual networks in cyberspace. Journal of World Business, 48(2), 260-270. doi:10.1016/j.jwb.2012.07.011 Stites, D. (2013, July 01). References can be just as important as the resume. Lansing State Journal, p. 6. Retrieved from http://libproxy.usc.edu/login?url=http://search.proquest.com. libproxy.usc.edu/docview/1372729072?accountid=14749 Stopfer, J. M., & Gosling, S. D. (2013). Online social networks in the work context. In The Psychology of Digital Media at Work. (pp. 39-59). Taylor and Francis. 10.4324/9780203074145 Zide, J., Elman, B., & Shahani-Denning, C. (2014). LinkedIn and recruitment: How profiles differ across occupations. Employee Relations, 36(5), 583-604. doi:10.1108/ER-07-20130086
