Your JobBlog = Getting a Job = Leaving Your Mark! Part 1 by Kay

This is part 1 of 3 on what you know know about writing and having a job-related blog or website.

Getting Started

Employees have been fired when their employer views their blog posts as sharing confidential information, making inappropriate comments about the company, or both. Posting company news, pictures, and even making positive comments about a company have cost bloggers their jobs.  When considering writing a blog, before writing anything about your company, you should ask your employer “what are the rules of engagement?”  There may be no written guidelines, but at least you brought it their attention. And just to be safe, be sure to ask in writing so you can have it if any concerns come up.

Job Search Blogging
What about job seekers? Can having a blog, a personal web site, or an account on a social networking site impact your job search, for better or for worse? It could. One blogger posted recently that she lies in interviews and that she copies other resumes to match the opportunity.  This kind of behavior wouldn’t thrill a prospective employer if they knew about it.  Another job seeker’s blog mentions that he loves to party all night, drinks A LOT on a regular basis, and steals on occasion.  Again, not a profile that would thrill most employers.  We all talk about how social networking is subjective and that we as recruiters shouldn’t pass judgment on social sites.  However, I think it is something that we are doing more since social networking became a hot topic.  If I was a candidate looking for my next job, I would think twice on how I behave on my social networks, and still have fun.

Look next week for thoughts on privacy issues.