Your internet CV

Your internet CV is the most important CV you never knew you had. Here’s how to manage it.

Thabo applied for his ideal job. He submitted a perfectly crafted CV. He even wore his best suit to the interview. And he secretly believed the job was in the bag.
But unbeknown to him, his prospective employers decided to review a CV he didn’t even know he had – his internet CV. And because he didn’t know about it, he was powerless in making it work in his favour. In the end he didn’t get the job and he had no idea what went wrong.
Don’t let this happen to you.
The Internet CV is a powerful online résumé created from your presence in the digital world. It communicates your personal brand, an important concept in the highly connected world of business.
Commonly referred to as a Google CV, an individual’s internet presence has become a major player in the work environment, with potential and even current employers checking Facebook and Twitter profiles and mentions on search engine results pages to make more informed decisions.
This means everything recorded about you in the digital public domain can potentially influence your current and future employment.
According to the UK’s www.telegraph.co.uk, more than four in 10 employers rejected CVs of potential hires after looking at their Facebook pages.

What does this mean for you?
You need to actively manage your online personal brand and take ownership of what is publically available about you.
However, this should not be viewed in a negative light, but rather as an opportunity to create an engaging professional online presence.

How can you do this?
• Google yourself and see what results turn up.
• Search other social media sites on which you have a presence. How would a current employer view the results?
• Decide what you want to achieve and portray in the online world. Make sure the content you share reflects this.
• Review your privacy settings on your social media platforms and make sure they don’t share information that you wouldn’t want out there.
• Stay abreast of changes to privacy settings. Facebook has been slammed over changing these settings and putting the onus on users to protect their information.
• Look at the content you share in your social media spaces. Do you have potentially precarious contacts and acquaintances? If you don’t trust that people will respect your privacy, be sure to use discretion when sharing information or reconsider your connections.

Ultimately, know your rights, manage your online personal brand and make sure it reflects a professional and clear view of you. Like it or not, the internet means sharing – with your friends, your colleagues and also your employers. Embrace this and ensure that what you share is purposeful and well considered.

Keryn Brews is a research writer for Quirk Education. Interested in learning about digital marketing? Sign up for one of Quirk Education’s online courses starting soon. Visit: www.quirk.biz/courses/home or tel: 021 462 7353.