What do recruiters look for in social media profiles?

Artificial intelligence (AI) to sort through resumes, competency-evaluation tests, zoom calls and so on, are slowly becoming indispensable tools for hiring managers across the board. Even the conventional method to check on the background of a candidate has changed. To get a gist of who they are dealing with, skimming through candidates’ social-media profiles has now become a norm.

“It has become the norm for recruiters to thoroughly examine candidates’ social-media profiles before interviewing them. She believes that an ill-maintained profile, which can also be termed as inactive, would come across as a little weird, and trigger a red flag for the employer.”

Deepti Mehta, assistant vice president-HR, Schneider Electric-Luminous India

“If candidates can Google their dream employers, the employers can research a lot about candidates from their online trail too. Each organisation may have its own way of interpreting candidate profiles,” says Unmesh Rai, head, talent acquisition and OD, Piramal Group.

A peak into the social media profile of a candidate, particularly on the professional site LinkedIn, gives the recruiters an insight into what they should expect from a candidate.

“We use a lot of different platforms. We first check the LinkedIn profiles, then different job portals. Facebook and Instagram profiles of the candidates are also checked now,” says Deepti Mehta, assistant vice president-HR, Schneider Electric-Luminous India.

“An inactive social-media presence may certainly be a derailer as recruiters flip over to the next candidate offering them that extra vibe,”

Unmesh Rai, head, talent acquisition and OD, Piramal Group

Mehta further explains that social media essentially has eased the process of screening candidates for a particular profile. Just a glance at their professional history is enough to assess whether the applicant can be a fit for the job at hand.

Sharing an interesting instance, Mehta says, “While looking to hire a talent manager, I went through the applicants’ LinkedIn profiles, to check whether they have relevant experience, or have interacted with posts related to the job. I was able to screen the applicants and close the position within just two days, through LinkedIn itself.”

Mehta admits that it has become the norm for recruiters to thoroughly examine candidates’ social-media profiles before interviewing them. She believes that an ill-maintained profile, which can also be termed as inactive, would come across as a little weird, and trigger a red flag for the employer.

Rai shares the same concerns. “An inactive social-media presence may certainly be a derailer as recruiters flip over to the next candidate offering them that extra vibe,” he says.

“Facebook is checked for various cultural reasons. Companies generally scope for political leanings, objectionable comments or content.”

Manish Mazumdar, consulting partner, Effilor

The professional social media space, LinkedIn, is the go-to for employers while examining a candidate. However, they usually don’t restrict themselves to the LinkedIn profile of the candidate, but also check out their Facebook and Instagram profiles, especially if they are younger.

“Facebook is checked for various cultural reasons. Companies generally scope for political leanings, objectionable comments or content,” reveals Manish Mazumdar, consulting partner, Effilor. Mazumdar feels recruiters can better gauge candidates and their interest in the particular field in which they seek employment through their social-media activity.

People’s activity online is indicative of their interest levels and knowledge of a particular field. Hence, for people with less experience, a social-media account with regular updates is essential to share their level of expertise in a particular domain.

“A CV can only tell one so much. The kind of entities people follow and the posts they interact with, are indicative of their interest level in a particular field. By looking at a person’s activity via their social- media profile, I can get an idea of who that person actually is, which will not be revealed in the CV,” points out Mazumdar.

It is essential to maintain a regularly-updated LinkedIn profile to enhance one’s chance of recruitment, because recruiters will definitely scope one out online. It is also necessary to steer clear of making any controversial remarks on one’s other social-media profiles to avoid making a bad impression on a potential recruiter.