Tag Archives: Social Media and HR

Googling yourself won’t cause Blindness

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google yourself“If it can be Googled – it shall be Googled“ 

Last summer I wrote a post titled “Have You Googled Yourself Lately” which sparked a little conversation. It’s a catchy title and a pretty informative read that talks about the importance of your online trail – your brand. How you are perceived in the eyes of folks online. It also gives a few great social listening tools out there to see what folks are finding out about you through what you’ve allowed them to see online.

We joked about this on a recent Twitter Chat and someone stated “I hear that causes blindness.” And we all laughed.

Laughing aside, it’s important to understand that folks are using things like Google Search or other mediums to find out about you and what you’re sharing online. Whether it’s for a potential job to which you’ve applied, perhaps you’ve filed for FMLA and your manager actually wants to see if you’re in Cabo for the week, if you’ve recently applied for a loan and your bank wants to check you, or if you’ve filed an insurance claim for disability and you’re your insurance company wants to make sure you’re not off skiing somewhere – folks are starting to use the internet to look you up.

That being said, it’s important for all of us to see how others are viewing us and make sure that you are being represented properly and protecting yourself and your personal brand.

I’ve heard recently that because of Google’s algorithm, for example, there may be things that others see about you online that even you’re not seeing about yourself. But there are certain things you can do to protect your online personal brand whether you are in job search mode or simply concerned about how folks are judging you, online.

  •  If you have a Google account, you can set up Google Alerts where you can get daily or weekly email notifications when your brand name (or your name, etc) shows up online. This is a great way to see where you’re popping up online and it’s free!
  • Google yourself (or use another search engine) often to see what’s actually getting out there and what others are seeing.
  • You can make your social accounts (Twitter, Instagram, Facebook) private and change your settings – but why not simply behave yourself online. Most folks these days want to see your personality, interests and other things to see your human side. And, Recruiters and Hiring Managers are looking on these very same sites to fill key positions at their companies. See this Infographic about how Recruiters are using Facebook’s new Graph Search.
  • Everything you say online can and may be held against you. Here’s a great Infographic on managing your online reputation and some key things you can do to protect yourself. Take them to heart.
  • There are a few settings within Facebook that will allow you to remain semi-private. Here’s some info on the new privacy changes and what you can do to protect those privacy’s. Don’t fully disclose your birthday, street address and other information that others may potential steal and ruin your online reputation.
  • Don’t allow third party apps (especially within Facebook and Twitter) access to your information. When using these games and third-party apps within these platforms you are allowing them free reign to inside information and this can be damaging.
  • Don’t look at porn. If you simply find that you must do this – use an alter ego (a different name) so that these trails can’t come back to you. I see folks all the time on Facebook looking at naughty things and it’s posting to their Facebook walls. Just don’t do it. Go to the Library or something and use their computers :)
  • Think before you post. Don’t post status updates or pictures when you’re not being responsible or when you’re mad at someone. This is always the best advice to live by. These things can come back to bite you on the butt later on.

In the end, if you’re using social media and being aware of what you’re showing, what your’e posting and not making bad judgement’s then you should have no worries about what’s being found about you.

Go ahead and try it, Google yourself right now (I know you want to) and see what comes up. You may be a little embarrassed but I promise you won’t go blind.

Photo Credit: Sodahead

My take-aways from #ILSHRM12 – It’s a wrap!

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I’ve not been putting this post off because I didn’t get anything out of ILSHRM12, I simply have been exhausted, feeling ill, and trying to gather my thoughts so I make sense.

My social media friends were so gracious to hurry up and share their thoughts on the conference and I truly appreciate all they did to make it such a spectacular event. You can find a conglomeration of those here and here!

I enjoyed hearing Simon T. Bailey for the first time who encouraged us to “Be Brilliant” and of course told us all we “Were Dancers.” I swear I laughed every time he laughed. It was contagious. I always enjoy sitting in on my friends Joe Gerstandt and Jason Lauritsen with their fabuloso TalentAnarchy keynote as they always drive me to tears and regain the passion for what I do. They are experts in that, in fact. Oh, and thanks for your new book “Social Gravity.” I encourage you all to GET IT and read.

It was my first time hearing Cy Wakeman speak and let me tell you, I was impressed. I totally wish I could do a presentation like she pulled off, no notes, no crowded powerpoint presentations – simple and effective. Here’s a little video I took of her keynote discussing Drama -

This year was the first year ILSHRM set up a Social Media Lab for attendees to drop in and learn more about utilizing social media in their everyday work and personal lives. Our friends from Canadian Geoff Webb and Jeff Waldman and crew were so great to come and set up shop. They are the experts over at SocialHR.biz. Check em -

One of the sessions “The Billion Dollar Employee Crisis” by my friend and former business partner, Sue Salach, was great. I’m passionate about this topic of Caregivers in the Workplace, and unfortunately, folks didn’t flock to it. I think it’s something we don’t want to think about, yet it is costing companies billions in lost productivity. She wrote a wrap-up post on the session over on her blog The Working Caregiver. You need to check it.

Our awesome State Conference Director John Jorgensen, was so great to allow me to interview him for a few moments at the conference -

And finally, our friends at Dovetail Software sponsored the after hours Tweet up where I caught this great footage of a few HR pros getting down. I love this video :)

If you’d like to see more videos pre and post conference, hang out a little on my Youtube Channel. There’s lots more on this years fabulous conference.

That’s a wrap, folks!

Special Props:

Special thanks to Charlie Judy (@HRFishbowl) our host and emcee for the conference, our sponsors BC/BS of Illinois, Dovetail Software and cfactorWorks – who sponsored our mobile app. Also, a personal thank you to Carolyn Walsh, who was so great in helping me get that mobile app together. Thank you all.

Share the love – New HR Blogger – HR Roots

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I always love helping other fellow bloggers and especially those within the HR sphere.

I recently connected with a fairly new HR blogger on Twitter and found out she is actually part of our Illinois SHRM and fellow Midwesterner. I’m referring to Nicole Och (of HR Roots) and I’m looking forward to meeting up with her at ILSHRM12 in a couple of weeks.

I love that Nicole writes about social business and how to incorporate from a newly Human Resource point of view, and she really gives great advice on getting started in social media and how to connect to others online. In fact, her Twitter Bio reads:

HR Professional with a passion for the use of Social Media in Business. It’s not a fad, it’s a way of life! 

And her tagline on HR Roots says “Cultivating and Nourishing the Garden of HR” - and she truly does. She gets social and is not only writing great content but engaging with her connections. That’s what I love about her. She gets what it’s like to be a social newbie and she targets her message to those are just getting started. So many of us have forgotten those folks and I give her kudos for keeping it simple and for having a passion to help those who are experiencing the same things we’ve all experienced in our social media beginnings.

Make sure to connect with Nicole and show her some love online and off. Have her guest post for you and make sure you get a chance to meet her IRL at the upcoming ILSHRM12 conference. In fact, make a point to do so. Oh, and she’s always welcome to guest post here at the Cafe.

About Nicole:

Nicole Ochenduski, PHR, is a Human Resources Professional, Speaker, and Trainer with a passion for the use of social media in the workplace.  The sole purpose of this blog is to help folks make intentional connections both online and IRL (in real life!).  Everyone was a newbie at one time in our lives, now it’s time to pay it forward!

You can connect with her on:
LinkedIn : www.LinkedIn.com/in/nicoleoch
Twitter: www.twitter.com/nicoleoch

A deeper look into #SHRM12′s “The Hive” #WatchThis

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And here’s a great interview with SHRM’s own Social Media Guy discussing how the HIVE came into play.

Special Thanks

Thanks to SHRM and DICE for creating such an amazing space for social learning right on site of their 2012 conference.

#FollowFriday – @ManageBetterNow – Inspiring and Leading us all to becoming better Managers

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Top of the Friday mornin’ to you guys! Where did this week go?

Today’s special #Follow Friday post highly recommends following @ManageBetterNow on Twitter and following over at the blog MangeBetterNow.com. Whether you are a manager, HR practitioner, Recruiter, Employee or Sanitation Engineer (Aka – Garbage Man), you can gain great insights into everyday work/life and business issues from their 20+ years of leadership and management experience.

They have only been on the Twitter for a little over six months and I’ve encouraged them to continue at it, because I’m a Twitterholic myself. I’m totally sold on it; how you can extend your reach, get your message out there and form great relationships.

About

Their goal at Manage Better Now is to change the world by making everyone a better manager (even if you are the manager of one) and say in their own words “We are all managers.  At the very least we manage ourselves.  We also manage the relationships and interactions that we have with other people every day.  Our goal is to make the content shared simple and easy to implement so that you can start to Manage Better Now.”

The idea that each one of us has the capacity to be a great manger, though we may not have been born with that gift, is what drives them while understanding that management skills are something that have to be cultivated.

Though their name does not appear anywhere on the website and preferring to remain anonymous for the time being, he does have a high profile job in a large corporation and pulls from those experiences and shares on the blog. I have gotten so much out of connecting and following him, and reading his posts.

I will say, he has a Master’s Degree in Business Administration, an undergraduate degree in Political Science as well as an Officer in the Army. He has held management positions in public corporations, privately held companies, and non-profits and has provided training to hundreds of managers on topics such as time management, team building and skills for new managers. He has studied the art of management for over twenty years, for goodness sake.

Make the Connection, and have a super weekend! Oh, and thanks for stopping by the Cafe.

5 Things I Hate About Linked In

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A few weeks back when I wrote the post “What NOT to post on your Linked In profile” I mentioned that I would be coming up with this post on a few things I hate about Linked In. I guess HATE would be too strong a word.

Just like any other SM site, Linked In has its crazies. These are a few of my pet peeves:

1. Generic Linked In Invitations – I get we’re all busy and are spending bookoodles of time online but taking five minutes to write an “I’d like to connect with you because….” invite just sets you apart and doesn’t take much effort. I wrote about it HERE. Tell me if you’re coming over from Twitter, or you met me at so-and-so’s networking luncheon. It just helps.

2. “Please Recommend Me and I’ll Recommend You” – We have all gotten these and I tell you, I just don’t dig it! I don’t mind if I actually KNOW you and have engaged with you, but more importantly have we worked together in any capacity? How do I know that you have integrity and a great work ethic? More about that HERE.

3. You’re So Pretty, Would You Buy My SkinCare Line? – First of all, thank you for the compliment. Secondly, no. Don’t use your connection with me to try and SELL me something. I know you are there, if I need it I know where to find you. (Isn’t this how it works?) Let’s don’t abuse our relationships. Let’s instead, help each other.

4. Stop Posting Your Website and Blog Links in my group! – I have to have a little leeway on this because when I was first starting out on the SM Highway, I was doing just this. The more I understood strategy (and felt like a loser – always promoting myself) the more I developed a strategy of engagement and relationship marketing. If you’re doing this, do yourself a favor and go read Kyle Lacy and Erik Decker‘s book “Branding Yourself.“

5. Linking Your Tweets – I know, a lot of folks do this and it can help drive traffic, yes. I agree. But it can also become very annoying to those with whom you are connected. Why? Cause we’re constantly seeing your tweets, not only on Twitter, but on Facebook and now on Linked In. (Maybe this is a personal pet peeve, who knows) And some of the biggest folks in SM and Branding do this, not just us little guys.

All in all, if you’re online anywhere, you’re going to have to learn to just put up with some nonsense. It’s.A.Fact. And Linked In is no different than any other Social Media platform. Groups can be a wonderful tool to engage, share your expertise and so forth. I’ve connected with some fabulous folks on Linked In. And then some, not so great.

Everyone has their opinion of this or that, and these are just mine. Please understand, I think Linked In is a great resource, especially for business relationships and meeting those you’d never have a chance to meet. We’re all evolving, hopefully. And these are a few things we learn along the way.

Heck, Linked In was a valuable tool when I was trying to deal with my Bank. I couldn’t get past the gate-keeper to the Vice-President with my issue, and I went straight to Linked In, sent a request to him and connected, grabbed his email address and shot a two-page letter to him. I received a reply with a resolution within 48 hours.

Photo Credit: HelenArmstrong

One of the worse jobs ever!

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Almost once a week, while driving into my small suburb of Chicago, I drive past these characters. You know the ones in the Statue of Liberty costume at the corner of traffic lights. They’re always waving, dancing or trying to get your attention in some form. Yeah, they’re annoying and I never drive by them without thinking to myself, “Gee, that has to be the WORST JOB EVER!”

And it never fails - even in this crappy Midwestern weather, be it blizzard conditions, these folks are still out there – to make the almighty dollar! Surely they don’t accept this job because they want to. Because they’re actually enrolled in some kind of drama classes and they think this is going to further their career.

While I was back in Alabama for the month of January I was having a little coffee one morning with mom and she was filling me in on all that was going on with my siblings, nephews and nieces, she proceeded to tell me that one of my niece’s, who works a full-time job at a local hospital while caring for a three-year-old is looking into and has even applied for one of those “dancing statue of liberty people” (as my mom called it) as a second job.

My first response was, “Why does she need a second job? Isn’t her husband working?” To which she replied no, that he is having a tough time trying to find work.

Wait one minute! I know you guys are thinking the same thing I am …… “Well, shouldn’t he be applying to be dance-master el statue of libertere?”……. And mom just shrugged her shoulders.

Now as I hear it from inside sources, this job currently pays $10.00 an hour (and that’s in Alabama earnings). I’m sure with the cost of living difference here in Illinois that rate of pay is somewhat higher (probably $2 – $3.0o). And I suppose one could see this as “earning an honest living.” Did you know that is more than someone with a degree in accounting is making in that same geographical location?

Heck, who knows if I’m not forced out there soon (but I’ll choose Florida and the beaches to dance on).

Let’s face it –  Things are tough, unemployment is still at an all-time-high and people do what needs to be done. That’s admirable. They are doing whatever it takes to pay the mortgage, make the car payment, or put food on the table. We gotta give ‘em love for that!

Just don’t make me look them in the eye when I’m stopped at the light. Awkward!

Photo Credit: Newsminer