Janet Labberte on Social Media and Treating Candidates as a Brand

We recently came across an article by Janet Labberte, a Managing Partner at Executive Headlines, that caught our attention. Treating a candidate as a brand offers an entirely new way to think about the people we bring into our business. We wanted to share a snippet of this article with our audience, and hope you find it as informative and interesting as we did!

Treating candidates as brands

"In the age of social media and having a constantly accessible public face, individuals are required to uphold a personal brand. One is no longer assessed solely based on how one appears on paper but reputation, presentation and previous successes play an important role in assessment. Individuals with universal skills will not only have a higher chance of fitting into the organizational culture, but will more likely be able to externally represent the company in a positive way, form strong connections with potential partners and in so doing, help move the company forward. Successful company brands lead to increased profits – the same applies for personal brands. In executive search it is crucial to ensure that the experience of a candidate meets the role requirements, but the task of ensuring an appropriate culture fit is equally important.  As our private lives become increasingly more public, personal brands will continue to grow in importance for executive appointments.

Social media is now a gold-mine for executive hiring (not sourcing)

"Previously, social media was considered risky as it divulged too much or the wrong type of information about a person. Stakeholders and job seekers were discouraged from building an online presence for the fear that damaging information could be leaked to a potential employer. More recently, individuals are constructing detailed, appropriate images of themselves for all to see. As our personal and professional lives merge, it becomes less about secrecy and more about full (appropriate) transparency in a way that can aid job search. LinkedIn, as one’s online CV, does more to create a thorough representation of oneself than a “print” CV ever could, from networks to opinions, referee comments and thought leadership.

"In addition to primary research, social media helps executive search consultants find, analyze and vet candidates before they are even contacted, saving time and financial resources. On this note, it is important to recognize that a lot of potentially successful candidates’ resumes do not accurately represent their skills and knowledge, and we naturally need to look beyond the paper to peer referrals, online papers and presentations and company successes."

‍