When you are in the midst of a job search, posting your resume on sites such a Monster and CareerBuilder seems almost like a no-brainer. The more exposure you have, the better…..right? How will recruiters and hiring managers find you if you don’t post your resume all over the web? Although it may seem counterintuitive, there are some pretty conclusive reasons why you may want to rethink this.
The most obvious reason why you shouldn’t post your resume online would be because you are currently employed. If you are conducting a secret job search, and put your resume online, your intentions are not so secret anymore. Most companies have access to Monster and CareerBuilder, and your name on a resume will be plain to see. This could cause issues for you come the next round of layoffs. After all, you’re planning to leave anyway, right?
Another reason (and you may have experienced this before) is that you don’t want to put yourself in “claim of rights” war with recruiters. What happens is that when a company decides to hire for a position, they will contact a few recruiting agencies to assist them in the search for the right candidate. They usually will also post ads on the major sites to try to find the right candidates themselves. Suddenly you have 5 agencies contacting the exact same candidate resumes as found on Monster or CareerBuilder (or both), and it becomes a race against time to be the first to make contact with candidates, and thus secure “rights” over them. It becomes further complicated if you as a candidate apply for the job directly with the company. Now your resume is in the company’s database as having applied directly, and 5 recruiters are staking claims on you to present to the company for an interview. If you are the ideal candidate, this can destroy your chances entirely. How do 6 parties decide who gets credit for the candidate? It’s almost impossible to do. Believe it or not, and I have seen this happen many times, because a fair conclusion cannot be determined, the candidate is dropped altogether. Unbelievable I know, but that is the nature of the business.
So how do you avoid situations like this? Become a passive candidate. Don’t post your resume online at all!
As recruiters, we like passive candidates. You’re much more attractive. Think of it as the guy who no matter how hard he tries just can’t get a girlfriend. He does anything and everything to get a girlfriend, but it just isn’t working. Now you can probably imagine this guy from people you have known or observed in real life. He’s that guy who oversteps his bounds, is too aggressive, and overly obsessed with this pursuit. Rather than attracting women, he’s actually repelling them. There is an air of being desperate that follows him, and women aren’t finding that too attractive. As long as he continues down this road, the girlfriend will never happen.
Now assume this same guy realizes what he’s been doing wrong, and starts making steps to change those things. Eventually he gets that girlfriend. Now, instead of women being repelled, they are attracted to him. If you have seen this happen before, they literally start coming out of the woodwork. Why? Because he suddenly became more attractive by virtue of having a girlfriend and thus something they want to be but can’t have. This same reasoning holds true when searching for job candidates. Who wants the job seeker who has posted his resume all over the internet where anyone can find him? There is a school of thought among some hiring managers and recruiters that only desperate and unqualified job seekers post on sites like Monster or CareerBuilder. We want the gems. We want to find the people who have jobs and are tremendous assets to their companies. If you are good at what you do, why would you have to post your resume? The recruiters and hiring managers will be attracted to you.
If you aren’t visible on Monster or CareerBuilder, then how do they find you? I can’t stress this site enough, but the answer is LinkedIn. Passive candidates on LinkedIn who are currently employed but aren’t adverse to listening to other offers are the most attractive candidates out there. These are the gems that not everyone can find. This is why it is so important to complete your LinkedIn profile and build your network (refer to my earlier blog post on LinkedIn). More hiring managers and recruiters are using LinkedIn now than other sites, so make sure you are present there so you can be found.
Think about some of these reasons before posting your resume everywhere. It may just save you from losing opportunities you otherwise would have secured.
posting a job at right place is always as important as the making the resume so make sure you choose the best place which suits your skill and talent well.
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