The importance of reputation in recruitment – A guide from Yoono

Claire Beaumont
www.igniyte.co.uk

A candidate’s reputation is becoming an increasingly important factor in decisions about hiring.

Whilst application forms, CVs, and interviews will always be a priority for recruitment, employers
are now starting to factor in online reputation and whether that candidate would be a good cultural
fit for their workplace. Risk is an element of business and not something that companies can ever
get rid of. But a reputation check from Yoono can help understand the risk of any new hire.

Employers know the importance of their brand cannot be overlooked when it comes to an effective
recruitment strategy. But what about the reputation of candidates applying for roles? In a recent
LinkedIn poll, 71% of people said that they believed that a candidate’s online reputation was
important, but 40% said they don’t always make the checks that were needed.

Why businesses need to check candidates' online reputation

Candidate reputation is becoming more important and a report will give recruitment managers a
more holistic view of a candidate and takes a look at more information than is on a normal CV.
Seventy per cent of employers use the information from social media networks to research
candidates.

Companies are increasingly more vulnerable to reputational risks from the people that they employ
and Know Your Customer (or KYC) checks are just one way of mitigating that risk. It gives a
company peace of mind, as more than half of employers have found content on social media that
caused them not to hire a candidate.

Candidates and jobseekers can make dubious choices when it comes to their own social media and
online presence. From posting party photos to using controversial language, or even engaging in
questionable behaviour – it can seem harmless at the time but it can be used by recruiters to make a
decision about the suitability for a role. What a person does, or says online can impact their online
reputation and harm their prospects when it comes to the time for job-hunting. Businesses of all
sizes can and do check online reputations.

So why do businesses or HR departments undertake checks on future employees?

1. To check their suitability to fit into the workplace culture. Recruiters are looking for
everything from sexist or racist behaviour, to whether they think candidates would fit with
the company values and be a good cultural fit in the organisation.
2. Social media presence. Does a candidate have a professional-looking LinkedIn profile? Do
they use words of concern or are members of groups that do not reflect a good online
reputation?
3. Get a good understanding of the candidate. Although this links with the above points, an
online reputation can be more important than just a CV. CVs or application forms generally
only share information that presents them in a good light, but a thorough reputation check
will ensure a fully rounded view of the applicant.

Making these checks manually can be time-consuming as they can involve looking at a candidate’s
presence on Google (and other search engines) as well as social networks, including LinkedIn,
Facebook, Twitter, and other platforms. But as well as being time-consuming, workplaces must
factor in bias (whether unconscious or not) which is why the newest reputation checker from Yoono
is here to help. It saves time and effort but can help find articles and associations with groups or
websites of concern.