How to Stand Out to Our Hiring Manager

Social networking is part of many people’s lives, but it’s become even more important for companies as a tool to find the right candidates for the job.

“Social media is extremely important,” Nicole O’Brien, CITY’s Human Resources Manager said. “I mean, we couldn’t possibly do what we do without it. 90% of our hires come from a social media contact of some kind.”

Nicole has been with CITY since 2016 but looks back at a long career in managing human resource departments. She remembers hiring most of her past candidates through newspaper ads and word of mouth. While those options are still available to companies, others like CITY, have chosen to rely on platforms like Facebook or LinkedIn to do the job.

“Our old methods were just less effective and a lot more labor-intensive,” Nicole said. “Social Media is accessible to almost anyone. If you want to be online, you can get online. It’s less time intensive for someone seeking a job and it’s a way to anonymously look for jobs.”

Nicole enjoys working with different social media tools because of the versatility it brings to her department. She can easily post 20 jobs on one job site, screen and filter applications that come in and also make sure they are filtered by different factors such as region or salary. With accessibility, however, also come challenges. The amount of applications Nicole screens has drastically increased since social media became an important tool for job seekers.

“It can be a little daunting sometimes on some positions that tend to solicit a lot more applicants,” Nicole said. “Especially those that are in bigger Metro areas, we get a lot of applicants that you have to screen through to find those that have the qualities we like to see at CITY.”

A recent study showed 73% of millennials (18-34 age group) used social media to find their last position. For Nicole, job seekers shouldn’t abandon their classic job searching skills, even though they are using social media to find the job. It’s still important to have an updated resume and making sure it is proofread correctly.

“Especially online, make sure your resume is visually appealing,” Nicole said. “It doesn’t have to be a creative resume, very fancy or colorful, but it needs to be organized. I want to be able to read it at a glance. You can do a lot of creative things with your resume and get it in people’s hands a lot more easily.”

Nicole also points out another important reminder for applicants on social media. Because of the accessibility and vast database of jobs, according to Nicole, many job seekers use a one size fits all application for all jobs they apply for. While it makes things easier for the candidate, it’s always a good idea to look at specific job requirements and adjust applications accordingly.

“There are some that will apply for every single job we have posted,” Nicole said. “That’s really hard as a hiring manager. You are much better off picking one job and focusing on one application. It’s important that you show me you put your best foot forward and you have done your research. It helps you stand out.”

Nicole says CITY receives 90% of our hires from online job sites that forward resumes to her department. CITY’s applicant tracking system links with roughly 60 different job boards that can filter the applications based on different factors. Facebook, LinkedIn and ZipRecruiter remain the largest players in the online job market for CITY.

If you are interested in learning more about working at CITY or see our open positions,

Nicole encourages job seekers to use our company website https://www.citycleanandsimple.com/

Positions posted there are always up to date and it gives you a chance to learn more about CITY.