One in five employers use social networking sites to find information on potential new hires, says a new survey from CareerBuilder.com. Twenty-two percent of employers screened candidates in 2007, up from just 11% in 2006. An additional nine percent plan to start soon.
Perhaps what's more frightening is that 34% of hiring managers found something in a social networking site that caused them to remove a candidate from consideration.
Top reasons included:
- Information about drinking or using drugs (41%)
- Provocative or inappropriate photographs (40%)
- Lied about qualifications (27%)
- Candidate used discriminatory remarks about race, gender, ect. (22%)
- Candidate's screen name was unprofessional (22%)
- Links to criminal behavior (21%)
However, there may be an upside. One in four, or 24%, of hiring managers found something in a social networking site that supported a potential hire's candidacy.Top factors included:
- Background supports qualifications for job (48%)
- Candidate's site conveyed professional image (36%)
- Candidate had great references posted by others (31%)
- Profile showed creativity (24%)
