Time To Review Your Online Presence

Healthcare IT opportunities are everywhere and demand for your services is as high as ever.  That demand has spurned the interest of applicants with a dizzying array of skill sets, diversity, and they way you are viewed even before speaking to or meeting prospective employers.

Standing out among your peers or those who want to be your peer in the ocean of candidates demands focused attention and well spent time.  I’ve never been an evangelist of the “you are a brand” movement nor do I think you need to create a Second Life with presidential attributes.  However, when it comes to presenting yourself to prospective employers in an increasingly electronic domain, now is the time review how you are represented online and hit the refresh button. Even if you are a “pizza under the door” type, healthcare IT employers want persons working for them that are savvy marketers, can clearly define their value, and represent stability in all aspects of your online persona – often a clear indicator of your actual persona.

Whether you’re not looking, in a passive search mode, or actively pursing a new position or engagement, here are some simple tips to gain professional advantage  in an articulate manner.  Some of the things are elemental and its all common sense, but there a reason for its mention – sort of like a disclaimer at the zoo that says “do not jump this fence, swim across the moat and loiter in the lion sanctuary.”  I always chuckle assuming there was an incident that precipitated the writing of such signs.

1)   Review your email address for any offbeat connotations: cougarlove56@email is not the best way to represent yourself when looking for a revenue management PM role.  Our recruiting team has seen some pretty crazy stuff and there will always be more to come.

2)   Take a look at how you are represented on social sites and consider your privacy settings:  Employers want to know who they are hiring and social sites are great ways to get insight into your personality.  LinkedIn is clearly the market lead in our industry and it provides a great opportunity to present more off resume detail about yourself.  The career highlights should match your resume and the story you tell when interviewing.  Major gaps in either one will raise questions.  Even more thought should be given to sites such as Facebook or if you Tweet. Facebook provides a lot of opportunity to be misunderstood or misrepresented in what you say or photos that are available to all.  At the same time sending out controversial Tweets can reflect poorly as well.  Most of us are not rock stars or NBA players and even they have to pay the price of poor Twitter decisions with seemingly daily mea culpas.

3)   Having a photo of you shotgunning a beer at the ballpark is not the most prudent of images to present to the world of prospective employers.  A quality photo of you in good light with business attire is easy to do and will let others know you value your appearance.  If you’re still searching for that great photo and cannot find it, pay for a professional to take one.  A $150-200 investment will pay dividends.

4)   Review all the sites that you have posted your resume on in the past.  There are some sites you may not even be aware of.  Out of date resumes may preclude you from more opportunities or having them remain on sites for too long will open you up to unwanted solicitations.  At the same time refreshing your resume will often times move it to the top of employer queries.

There are so many things to think about when considering your online persona and the items mentioned above are clearly not revelations, however, I am consistently amazed at what I see from otherwise very professional and talented individuals who have not addressed online basics before presenting themselves to the broad market.  Do not hesitate to review your online presence.

About the author

Carter Groome

Carter Groome is a Founder and the Chief Executive Officer of First Choice Professionals LLC. He brings fourteen years of healthcare information technology management, consulting, and sales leadership experience to the company.

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