Recruiters don't care about social media

Hiring managers don't really care about your Facebook profile, but you should keep it in check just in case. Photo / 123rf

Hiring managers don't care about your Facebook or Twitter profile and don't factor it in to the recruitment process, research from recruitment firm Robert Half has found.

The survey asked 100 New Zealand human resources (HR) managers what they saw as the most important factors affecting hiring decisions. The results point in a conservative direction, with resumes and interview performance taking the top priority.

For management-level jobs, CVs were seen as the most important factor with almost half (45 per cent) of respondents saying its was the biggest influence on a hiring decision. Job interview performance came in second at 38 per cent.

CVs were also the top factor for staff-level positions, although at a slightly lower 38 per cent. Job interview performance also came in lower at 30 per cent.

Candidate testing (psychometric tests, etc) only factored in at 9 per cent for management-level positions, although it jumped to 19 per cent for staff-level positions.

Social media profiles came in at 0 per cent importance for both management and staff level positions.

"While social media have secured a fixed place in the recruitment world, the research confirms that the traditional elements in the hiring process, being the CV and the job interview, are still considered to be the most important elements," said Robert Half general manager Megan Alexander.

"For jobseekers to succeed, they need to have a stellar CV, and excel during their interviews," she said.

While social media profiles were seen as unimportant, Alexander warned that people should still keep their profiles in check.

"Hiring managers do generally check LinkedIn, Facebook, or even Twitter profiles before extending an offer. Kiwi jobseekers should therefore polish their online profiles before commencing their job search," she said.