How Social Media, Namely LinkedIn & Facebook,

Has Impacted the Hiring Process In Our Society

Lucille Hood
Comm 320 Research
July 4, 2014
Abstract
This study will research and examine the impact that social media sites, namely LinkedIn
and Facebook have had on hiring processes in our society to date. Content analysis will be used
to analyze data obtained from Human Resource professionals and applicants to gain perspective
about current hiring processes from both angles of society. Data obtained from Human Resource
professionals will be analyzed to determine the impact of social media on finding appropriate
candidates to fill specific job positions for companies. The data will include reasoning and
implementation of the usage of LinkedIn and Facebook in regard to the methods used by
employers to find these applicants. Content analysis will also be used to analyze data obtained
from applicants to determine their view of the impact that LinkedIn and Facebook have had on
their job search processes in relation to how modern day hiring practices are performed.
Ultimately this study will examine the advantages and disadvantages of using LinkedIn and
Facebook as a part of modern day hiring processes by both employers and active job seekers.
Introduction
Beginning with the rise of technology in the 1990s, it seems it has been inevitable that
our society would eventually use this advancement to assist with the employee recruitment,
screening, and selection processes. I can remember being in high school in the mid-1990s and
networking meant that you personally knew owners, friends, or anyone affiliated with a
particular place of interest where you would like work. This required submitting a decent
resume, filling out an application with a pen and paper and usually getting the job. This is not
the case in 2014 and this study has been constructed to show how the advancement of technology

How Social Media, Namely LinkedIn & Facebook,

Has Impacted the Hiring Process In Our Society

has been both beneficial and not so beneficial throughout several years of technological growth
in this arena.
The purpose of this study is to research how social networking sites, LinkedIn and
Facebook have had an impact on hiring processes in our society. Has the usage of these two sites
in particular been of benefit or disadvantage in regard to current hiring practices.
First point of interest with this study: In what way has the usage of LinkedIn
and
Facebook become a benefit for businesses and in what way have these tools
become a detriment? Both networking tools are beneficial in as far as the
scope of reach they have with finding appropriate candidates for specific
employment positions. On the same token, this can also be a disadvantage
from the perspective of employers in that the application pool can become
very large and overwhelming if the companies selection and screening
processes are not in proper order.
Second point of interest with this study: How do modern day
applicants view advantages and disadvantages of using LinkedIn and Facebook
in regard to hiring processes? As noted in the literature review, applicants
must be mindful of negative content on their private social networking
profiles. Employers often search for further information on candidates via
usage of Facebook. If there are inappropriate pictures, posts, etc., this could
hinder chances of an applicant finding gainful employment. The same is
relevant toward a professional type of social networking profile on LinkedIn.
Applicants must be mindful to be authentic, accurate, and honest in the
portrayal of who they are on a professional level. Dependent on what a

How Social Media, Namely LinkedIn & Facebook,

Has Impacted the Hiring Process In Our Society

recruiter finds through these sites regarding a potential candidate for an

employment position; the tone will be set for reaching a level of acceptance
(interview, phone call, outreach), or rejection (no call, no consideration for
employment). Overall this study will research how the usage of LinkedIn and
Facebook can be looked at as great tools for finding employment or
damaging tools if they are used incorrectly or improperly in the midst of job
search. The exploration of this study will include gathering data from both
the perspective of Human Resource professionals and the methods that they
use to find appropriate candidates while also gathering data from the
perspective of applicants and the methods they use for finding employment.
Both angles will determine the overall advantages and disadvantages of
using sites such as LinkedIn and Facebook as tools and methods regarding
our societys hiring processes.
Literature Review
In review of 15 sources of literature, there have been consistencies that have been
standard as technology has advanced in regard to hiring processes as well as noted
inconsistencies and changes. The two social network sites most focused on in this study for
research purposes were LinkedIn and Facebook. There are multiple other sites that have been
used and created, however to date these two seem very prevalent to recruiters searching for wellqualified candidates to fill particular skill set positions. These particular sites have also been
relevant for applicants seeking to fill those job positions.
History of Technological Advancement with Job Recruitment
As far back in time as 2000 there has been an emphasis on the fact that job searches are
time-related processes involving different dynamics and information sources over temporal

How Social Media, Namely LinkedIn & Facebook,

Has Impacted the Hiring Process In Our Society

stages (Goodmon, 2014). Applicants have always had to put in time and effort when searching
for employment. In 2002, Feldman and Klaas give a general example on the expansion of
Internet usage in general which shows the scope of reach that networks could have on seeking
potential job candidates. They stated that 90% of the Fortune 500 companies used some on-line
recruiting and over eighteen million people annually were posting their resumes on sites like
Monster.com (Feldman, 2002). Also mentioned was the fact that due to this type of expansion
for candidate pools, HR professionals began looking into using this form of recruitment in
addition to traditional methods of job recruitment.
Moving on into 2003, Chapman and Webster give specific insight into variables that
affect the way Human Resource departments practice personnel screening and selection. Various
stages of recruiting and selection included advertising positions, receiving applications, initial
screening, and final selection (Chapman, 2003). Their examination of the way HR departments
were shifting their recruitment methods supports the theory that technological advancement in
this arena has brought about advantages and disadvantages in regard to finding employment.
Findings in this study reported relevant issues that tie into the fact that technology has been
beneficial in expanding the pool of candidates but it also has been a frustration because many of
the candidates that applied for jobs were not a match for the position that the companies were
trying to fill. This research applies to usage of sites such as LinkedIn and Facebook today as
well. However, LinkedIn is set up to have keyword search engines that can narrow down the
applicant pool to the specifics that are required for a particular position. Facebook is mainly used
from the perspective of an employer seeking to find further information on applicant personality
or character so they can decide better if they want to proceed with recruiting a particular
candidate.

How Social Media, Namely LinkedIn & Facebook,

Has Impacted the Hiring Process In Our Society

In 2004, companies began entertaining the method of using third-party recruiting

agencies. Companies were focused on finding candidates that would contribute to the bottom
line and there was little room for mistakes (Volpe, 2014). Company websites became
increasingly popular for obtaining a pool of candidates and recruitment costs were of important
consideration. Appropriate talent was imperative for organizations at this time in history and
third-party recruiting methods were extremely helpful for companies that needed a confidential
search to fill a position, a specialized skill was needed for a position, or the company needed a
top performer (Volpe, 2014). This information in relation to LinkedIn supports the fact that this
type of site can be used for specificity in finding an appropriate candidate for a certain company
position. Facebook can also be used specifically from the perspective an applicant wanting to
gain insight into a company and the positions it has to offer.
From 2010 through present age, literature shows studies that support the need for sites
such as LinkedIn and Facebook in regard to recruiting processes. In 2010, LinkedIn was reported
to have 75 million users and Facebook boasted 500 million users (Hunt, 2010)! Companies
began noticing the advantages and disadvantages of implementing the usage of these sites for
recruiting purposes (Hunt, 2010). Because of access to further information regarding candidates
was available, research suggested that recruiters could use these sites to find similar information
that was previously provided on resumes (Bohnert, 2010).
One year later, research shows that though sites similar to Facebook could provide
additional information on candidates, it could also damage their opportunities for finding gainful
employment. For example, a college student applying for a summer job as a camp counselor has
excellent references, a great interview, and appears to be a well-suited candidate. It is then
discovered through a profile picture on her MySpace page that she has been involved in binge
drinking (Davison, 2011). This example is extremely relevant to the way that Facebook is used

How Social Media, Namely LinkedIn & Facebook,

Has Impacted the Hiring Process In Our Society

today. Employers often search a candidates profile page to determine whether their personality
and character will be a viable fit for the position they are seeking to fill.
More recently in 2013, LinkedIn and Facebook were included in the fact that social
networking sites were being used as common practice to gather information about potential
applicants (Roulin, 2013). Employers had even gone so far as to ask applicants to provide full
access to their profiles (Roulin, 2013)! Because there was such access to information for both
employers and applicants to research what they were seeking, recruiting became an industry of
its own. The usage of these sites was also a cost effective way to recruit new talent for
companies and sourcing individuals to recruit candidates was becoming the normal method for
finding new talent for employers (Sinha, 2013). Applicants also recognized benefits in finding
jobs through recruitment agencies that became the middle man for companies needing to find
appropriate top talent.
As great as this all seemed, drawbacks were also becoming increasingly visible to
applicants using Facebook and also to employers using LinkedIn. The Labor Law Journal study
stated that 91 percent of employers used social media to screen applicants. And out of that
number, 69 percent rejected applicants because of what they saw on a persons social media
account (Delaney, 2013). Employers could see drawbacks as well, in regard to incomplete
resumes being posted on LinkedIn among other things (Parez, 2013).
Throughout each review of literature this seemed to be a consistency in line with the fact that job
candidates need to keep current, updated and positive professional content on profiles always and
even more so when in the midst of an active job search.
Time and Effort for Usage
Having an online presence is no longer optional when it comes to searching for
employment. In particular with LinkedIn, if one does not have at minimum a basic profile, then it

How Social Media, Namely LinkedIn & Facebook,

Has Impacted the Hiring Process In Our Society

could signal a lack of knowledge, professional development, and credibility (Brand, 2013). In
2010, this article stated that LinkedIn was the best site to be used for job search and career
management, 89% of hiring professionals used this site to obtain employees. At the time,
Facebook usage for employee recruitment was only at 26%. A four-part strategy was suggested
to begin a profile on either social network of your choice, however the authors preferred
LinkedIn. Number one: A candidate should be consistent, dedicated, and pick a goal of posting a
link to an article once a day, week, or month. Keeping the page current would be beneficial to
those searching for specific skill sets. Number two: Deciding how much time you had to devote
to your profile and if you had more than one, you could split your time accordingly. You could
do an hour a day, a week, or a month. Number three: Complete what you started and set the tone
for a positive image. Be authentic! Post an honest image of yourself and dont post anything too
personal or inappropriate online. Number Four: Use keywords relevant and current to your
present society and strategically place those words in your profile so that when searched you
could be easily found.
Facebook usage has become more important in relevance to current day job searches as
well. Goodmon and authors support the fact that it is important for applicants to be mindful of
the content they place on their personal profile account pages. More and more employers are
using this site to evaluate employee characteristics that might influence job performance
(Goodmon, 2014). An applicant could be a perfect fit and yet an employer seeking further
information about them on Facebook could dredge up a 10-year-old picture of that person at a
party that would cause potential for judgment of the applicants character (Goodmon, 2014). The
employer would not necessarily notice the date of the picture and thus this event would be
damaging to the applicants chances of getting interviewed or hired.

How Social Media, Namely LinkedIn & Facebook,

Has Impacted the Hiring Process In Our Society

In light of this review, the following qualitative sub-questions are posed to further the
research of this study:

What do applicants view as beneficial in regard to using Social

Networking for job search purposes?

Do applicants struggle with the way technology is advancing in this

form in order to be able to obtain employment with a company?

What recommended strategies might a Human Resources / Hiring

Manager suggest to keep a balance between professional / personal
networking issues when searching for employment?
In light of this review the following quantitative sub-questions are posed to further the

research of this study:

In regard to business hiring and recruitment of candidates, is the new

way of social networking preferential to the ways this was done in the
past via social meeting, resumes, phone conversation, etc.?

Has Social Networking helped to increase the scope of businesss

reaching and connecting to a more valuable pool of candidates, or, has
it been inconvenient and caused a loss in reaching valuable candidates
who do not use these tools?

What sort of discrimination or bias might interfere with recruitment

standards because of the use or misuse of these Social Networking
tools?

Hypotheses:
H1
Social Networking sites such as LinkedIn and Facebook are beneficial or
detrimental to the hiring process in our society.
H2
LinkedIn and Facebook are great tools for middle-aged individuals who have
been displaced or suffered job loss after working years for one company. (I
want to further my research on this point.)

Methodology:

How Social Media, Namely LinkedIn & Facebook,

Has Impacted the Hiring Process In Our Society

Qualitative
The sample to be used will be a pool of Human Resource professionals
and active job seeking applicants selected at random. Participants will be
interviewed either individually or by focus group attendance. A questionnaire
will be used for interview purpose to keep focus on the subject. The contentanalysis method will be used to analyze and evaluate the data obtained from
interviews and focus groups. Data will be categorized according to topic and
relevance to the subject of this study. The analysis will be used to research
and explore the subject of hiring process in todays society. Questions will be
asked to determine how societys hiring practices have been impacted by the
use of social media / social network sites, namely LinkedIn and Facebook.
The perspective from Human Resource professionals will display how modern
day methods are being used and how those methods affect how applicants
are recruited, screened, and ultimately selected for a company position.
Human Resource professionals will also be asked to give suggestions to
applicants in regard to their methods of job search and which methods would
be more beneficial to obtaining employment. Applicants will be asked
questions in regard to their view of job search methods and how they relate
to the modern day way that Human Resource departments are recruiting for
company positions. The data gathered will either support or reject the
hypotheses stated in the literature review.
Quantitative

How Social Media, Namely LinkedIn & Facebook,

Has Impacted the Hiring Process In Our Society

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The sample to be used will be a pool of Human Resource professionals

and active job seeking applicants selected at random to complete paper
questionnaires with a list of questions to determine percentages of how they
view different aspects of this study. The deconstruction method will be used
to calculate and analyze the data gathered. A series of 10 questions on a
questionnaire will be distributed to the sample of population chosen. The
questions on the questionnaire will be applicable to the perspective of either
Human Resource professionals seeking to fill employment vacancies or to the
perspective of the applicants seeking to find employment. Once data has
been collected, each question will be calculated to determine the percentage
of individuals in agreement with that particular piece of data. The data will
be categorized in order to rank the percentages according to each individual
question. Calculations will help to explain and specify the relevance of the
questions to this study. The findings from this data will either support or
reject the hypotheses of this study.

References
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Evaluation of Job Candiates. Cyberpsychology, Behavior & Social
Networking. , 13(3), 341-347.
Brand, P. &. (2013). Using Linkedin and Twitter for Job Search and Career
Management. Career Planning & Adult Development Journal , 29(3), 3344.

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Has Impacted the Hiring Process In Our Society

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Chapman, D. S. (2003). The Use of Technologies in the Recruiting, Screening,

and Selection Processes For Job Candidates. Internal Journal Of
Selection and Assessment. , 11(2-3), 113-120.
Davison, H. M. (2011). Friend or Foe? The Promise and Pitfalls of Using Social
Networking Sites for HR Decisions. Journal Of Business & Psychology ,
26(10), 153-159.
Delaney, J. (2013). Empolyer Use of Facebook and Online Social Networks to
Discriminate Against Applicants for Employment and Employees: An
Analysis Balancing the Risks of Having A Facebook Account and the
Need for Protective Legislation. Labor Law Journal , 64(2), 91-92.
Feldman, D. C. (2002). Internet Job Hunting: A Field Study of Applicant
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Has Impacted the Hiring Process In Our Society
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