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GOOGLING EXECUTIVES
Why You May Need an Online Portfolio
I was recently asked to help a former employer conduct a search for a new Chief
Operating Officer. I retained a leading search firm and within two weeks
they sent bios for two highly qualified candidates. Each had impeccable credentials
but both were rejected by the CEO: ³No good,² he wrote in an
email, ³ I want to see more resumes.² When I called to
ask why he didnıt want to meet the candidates, his reply surprised
me. He explained that he had ³googled² them both and was unimpressed.
The first candidate, who claimed to have pioneered a new technology, was
nowhere to be found on the Web. ³If he had done something,² Greg
said dismissively, ³he would have left footprints.² The other
gentleman had left footprints, but unfortunately not the right kind. His
strongly-worded message about a controversial political issue offended Greg
personally and the candidate was out.
And thatıs when I realized how dramatically recruitment had changed.
These two gentlemen had built extremely successful careers. Each resume was
filled with stories of increased revenues, business transformations, cost reductions
and improved profits and yet both had been undone by a simple Google search.
How can executives take their brand online?
- First and foremost, be careful about what you say online. Before you
post a comment, essay or opinion on a web site, imagine a potential employer.
If
you wouldnıt want that person reading the message, donıt hit ısend.ı On
other hand, writing business-related articles and posting to serious forums
regarding business issues is an excellent way to build a positive online
presence.
- Second: If you have a personal website, make sure it is not indexed in
the search engines. You can do this by placing a simple piece of HTML code
on each
page. Recently Sarah, a senior IT executive who was seeking Fortune 500 consulting
assignments, came to me with a resume which included a URL. When I checked
her site, I found a collection of poetry and biblical quotations along with
some photographs of her wedding anniversary. After only a five minute conversation,
Sarah understood why she had to remove the URL from her resume and business
cards and yet this had not occurred to her previously. Another recent client a
young software developer had created a site to host samples of his
code. His home page began with the sentence ³Hey there! Just ignore the
typos I plan to fix them when I move this site to a new server.² Not
surprisingly, people had been ignoring more than the typos!
- Third: You must establish your own web presence and take control of your
personal brand before someone else does. The Internet is the perfect medium
for demonstrating your value. The interactive nature of the Web allows you
to provide a more complete profile than is possible on a resume. An effective
web portfolio might incorporate management insights, Q&A sessions, work
samples, testimonials, photographs, personal information and anything else
that enhances your brand. Even video or audio clips may be appropriate although
this depends entirely on your ability to present well and speak fluently.
- Fourth: Unless you are a web developer, hire a professional to create your
website. Itıs becoming easier and easier to create websites using programs
such as Front Page or Dreamweaver but an unprofessional portfolio will
do more harm than good. If you donıt know how to program your site to
work with all operating systems and Internet browsers, it may not work in some
instances; if you donıt optimize your images, they may open too slowly
on someone elseıs system, and if you are not a trained designer, the
chances are that our site wonıt look the way you want it to. As Tom Peters
once wrote: ³when you're promoting brand You, everything you do -- and
everything you choose not to do -- communicates the value and character of
the brand.² For this reason, it is essential that web portfolios be
professionally developed.
The Internet will increasingly be used as a means to research candidates prior
to interviews or before a job offer is made. Recruiters and executives increasingly
use Internet search engines for candidate research and web-savvy Gen-Xers are
now moving into positions of corporate power.
This is why I urge all executives and those striving to reach executive positions
to update their job search startegies and career marketing materials to include
an online presence.
Louise Fletcher is President and Co-Founder of Blue Sky Resumes, which provides
job search assistance, resume writing services and online portfolios. To find out whether your resume is working for you, contact a Blue Sky resume writer today.
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