Savvy job seekers know LinkedIn is currently the go-to platform for professional networking and job search outreach. Now they may have another social media tool to help them shine online: Facebook.
Recently, Facebook has been testing a feature that allows users to upload their resume and build a professional-looking page that highlights their experience and work history.
It appears that this would provide recruiters a closed look at potential talent, with a page focused on their professional self rather than the personal profile that we’re all used to seeing on Facebook.
This could be a really good thing for all parties. For job seekers, this allows them yet another way to build their personal brand and online footprint. Plus, it appears to separate prospective employers from your personal page, meaning that they would be kept away from your personal photos, status updates, and those sometimes less-than-savory posts from your friends — all those things you’d likely rather a future employer not see anyway.
For recruiters and HR folks, this has the potential to open up even more accessibility to talent. Facebook has more than 2 billion monthly active users while LinkedIn has just over 100 million. Considering that today’s job market often falls in favor of the job seeker, this could be a really good way to expand recruiting efforts, especially for those tough-to-fill jobs.
One thing to keep in mind for job seekers is if a recruiter sees your work history and wants to dig deeper, there’s nothing stopping them from exploring your personal Facebook page if you keep your profile public. But in all honesty, that could be happening anyway, as many hiring managers do some type of internet digging to discover more about talent before putting an offer on the table.
To be clear, this feature isn’t available to everyone. It’s only in the testing phase and very well could be on the horizon for the first quarter of 2018. Right now based on internet chatter, Facebook appears to be testing the feature on a small number of users before deciding to roll the program out to broader audiences. (They have done this in the past as a sort of soft launch.)
We will have to stay tuned about what’s next and will certainly keep you in the loop. However, based on what we currently see, Facebook continues to evolve, and its next step just might be in the direction of the job seeker. That means Facebook might not only be a great way to share updates from your amazing vacation and cute pictures of your niece, but also an effective way to land your dream job.
