BHUJBALVIEW

Social Media penetration has reached to the extent that, recruitment without scanning the social media presence of prospective employees, is incomplete.

This thought holds the most potency for the age group of 15 to 25, as research has proved that it is this age group that is most active on social networking sites (in developing countries). A persons interests can be guaged from the communities he/she has joined, comfort of using social media can be understood from the number of social networking sites he has joined & their activity on those networks and if the job requires a person to be tech savvy or an inclination towards any stream (retail/FMCG/auto/electronics/etc), even that can found out very easily.

In the US, a recent study by a New Jersey-based search engine and social media marketing consultancy and services firm Jump Start Media revealed that increasingly, hiring managers are turning to - and even depending on - social media sites for identifying and researching job candidates for meeting their hiring needs.

After some extensive polling - that included 100 hiring managers at small, mid-sized and large companies -- on how social media is being used in the hiring process, Jump Start found that a good number of the hiring managers have started checking social media sites to research candidates before making a job offer. While LinkedIn-the only professional social networking sites to research the credentials of job candidates, was the favorite for three quarters of those polled, a good 48% turned to Facebook and 26% to Twitter.

In the words of Rosina Racioppi, President of Women Unlimited, an organization that trains and grooms women to pursue a professional career, "It allows you to see the professional beyond their resume."