A survey of 208 employers by recruitment firm Harvey Nash and the Department for Work and Pensions finds social networks are becoming an increasingly mainstream tool for recruitment.
Half of those surveyed claimed candidates would increase their chances of being hired if they invested time in "developing a strong online brand"
Unfortunately this message is not getting through to young people, with separate research finding only one in ten 18-24 year olds making use of social networking sites for the purpose of finding job leads or making useful career contacts.
One HR manager, Matthew Garrett says: "social network sites like LinkedIn and Facebook have become absolutely critical in finding new hires. Not only do they give us access to people who we might not find elsewhere, but they are also an excellent way to understand more about the candidate beyond just their CV. Certainly for figleaves.com, job seekers who have a strong online presence do stand out from the crowd, and we would encourage more people to invest in their online 'brand'.
18-24's are also bearing the brunt of unemployment in the current downturn. It is vital that career advisers working with teenagers and young adults fully appreciate the changing practice in recruitment sector, and advise candidates on how to develop a public online presence, designed to complement the formal CV, resume or job application. So many employers now check candidates details on the web that we must assume every employer will be making such checks.
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