Reputation is all: Could the internet kill your job application?

You surely can’t have missed the story of teacher Carly McKinney. In short, Carly, a Colorado high school teacher was suspended pending an investigation after she tweeted provocative pictures of herself, tweets about her recreational drug taking and feelings towards one of her students, who she described as “jailbait”. Strangely, Carly hadn’t broken any laws… her pictures didn't contain any obvious nudity, her tweets relating to marijuana use are also legal as she lives in the state of Colorado. So, the only damage done was to her online reputation.

So why have we all heard about her online posts and why is her career at stake? The simple fact is she chose to openly reveal herself over the internet and by so doing created a particular online reputation – a reputation that the Colorado board of education just didn’t like. As I said earlier, what Carly did is legal, but Carly chose to publish her actions and is still blissfully unaware of why there is such a fuss.

Hand on heart, I know the vast majority of candidates I meet at Aaron Wallis aren't sharing intimate photos or information about themselves on the internet. However, the truth is each one of us has an online reputation to consider.  These days, everything we do, everything we say and the photos we are in are easily found on the internet – posted by us or posted by others. So remember, when you are considering a career move, it’s very likely that potential employers are googling you.

Managing your online reputation when looking for a new role is crucial.  Have you taken time to assess what your online reputation is like? Is everything written about you true? Do all your images show you in the right light? Give it some thought… others are. 

Stefan is a specialist sales recruiter focusing on the security and fire industries at Aaron Wallis. Having held senior sales and marketing roles with leading companies in the security industry, Stefan works with a wide variety of companies to recruit sales professionals across all levels and disciplines.

More About Stefan Kobewka: http://www.aaronwallis.co.uk/stefan-kobewka-aaron-wallis.aspx

Discover More About Stefan’s Career on LinkedIn: uk.linkedin.com/pub/stefan-kobewka/36/79a/401

Email: stefan.kobewka@aaronwallis.co.uk

www.aaronwallis.co.uk

Top 10 Biggest CV Mistakes

It's very easy to make mistakes on your CV and extremely difficult to repair the damage after an employer has already seen it. It is imperative that you prevent these mistakes whether you are writing your first CV or revising it for a new job search. The 10 biggest CV mistakes and how to avoid them are as follows:

1.     Do Not Head Your CV ‘Curriculum Vitae’.

It should be quite obvious what your CV is without giving it a title; if it’s not then I would suggest that you have a problem. Start with your full name, address, telephone number(s) and email address. Very often your CV will get printed off and stapled together, so don’t put your contact details at the bottom of the last page. The fact that the page looks like a CV will do the rest.

2.     Making Your CV Too Long or Too Short

There are no real rules regarding CV length, however that doesn’t mean you should start sending out 5 page CV’s. In general you should limit yourself to a maximum of two or three pages depending on experience. At the same time don’t cut the meat out of your CV by sticking to one page.

3.     Punctuation and Spelling Mistakes

Your CV needs to be grammatically perfect. If it isn’t, employers and recruiters will read between the lines and draw unfavourable conclusions about you, like “This person clearly doesn’t care” or “This person can’t spell”.

4.     Job History That Doesn’t Match The Job Your Applying For

All employers want to see a CV specifically for them; they expect you to clearly show how and why you fit the position in a specific organisation. Your key achievements should match many of the job requirements in the position you’re applying for.

5.     Highlighting Tasks Instead of Achievements

It is very easy to note tasks after tasks you completed whilst in a job but what employers are really looking for is your achievements, they want to see achievement after achievement, make your achievements stand out first and then put in the tasks you also completed.

6.     Poor Layout

If you’re CV has a poor layout it could be put straight in the bin. Some CV’s are scanned in less than 3 seconds, so it needs to be pleasing to the eye and easy to read. Don’t cram in too much information in a small font, your font should be no smaller than 10 but also make sure it isn’t too spaced out. Finally make sure your most recent job is first and the job before that second and so on.

7.     An Outdated CV Will Make You Look Obsolete

Your CV should be updated for every position you apply for. Be sure to update your skills and work history; make sure your skills set is current and tailor your CV to the job you’re applying for.

8.     Some Things Are Best Left Off Your CV

Don’t list your hobbies, no one cares what your hobbies are, your CV is not your Facebook profile. Don’t put anything on your CV that’s irrelevant to your job. If it’s not relevant then it’s a waste of space and a waste of time.

9.     Don’t Write Your CV In The First Or Third Person

It’s fine to write in first person in your opening statement, but the rest of your resume should be in bullet points. Never write in the third person as everyone knows you’re the one writing the CV.

10.  Professional Email Account

Don’t include email addresses or websites that have the potential to reveal controversial or inappropriate personal information, Make a new one. It takes minutes and it’s free.

 

Written by Liam Oakes

Liam is the Candidate Manager at Aaron Wallis and has been with the company for 2 years after having a career with the RAF; Liam has helped hundreds of Sales Professionals secure a new Sales role and ensures that Aaron Wallis runs smoothly.

Liam.oakes@aaronwallis.co.uk

www.aaronwallis.co.uk

Twitter - https://twitter.com/aaronwallisliam

Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/AaronWallisSR

LinkedIn - http://www.linkedin.com/pub/liam-oakes/4b/536/403

 

How to Conduct a Brilliant Interview in 60 Minutes or Less

There’s a formula for conducting a great interviews and it’s called planning!  Here’s a quick video which explains how you can make a great impression yet still be able to conduct first interviews in less than an hour

• 15 Minutes: Small talk and ‘chemistry’, Set the agenda, The company, role and opportunity (see How Not to Lose the Best Candidates)
• 30 minutes: Competency Interview
• 5 Minutes: Q&A
• 5 Minutes: Where we go from here. Close.
• 5 Minutes: Notes and prepare for the next candidate

I personally sit facing a clock to make sure that I keep on track.  However, I do know of interviewers that have a desk clock in the middle of an interview desk and another, the SD of a major courier firm, who sets an alarm for 45 minutes and then on the beep states there’s ten minutes remaining!