Why Your Social Media Profile Impacts Your Pharmacy/Healthcare Career
Before you make your next post on social media, think twice about what you’re sharing with the world. What you post on any social media platform could have negative repercussions on your professional image. It could seriously tarnish your image at your current job or even prevent you from gaining other job opportunities in the future. If it is accessible, recruiters and headhunters will look at your online footprint and take that into account as they make decisions about you.
Your Profiles Are Not Exclusive to You
Even though we tend to view our social media accounts as being private and personal, people on the outside may have a different perspective. When you view someone else’s profile, you can get a pretty good glimpse into what they are like as a person. You will see where they live and what they spend their free time doing. If, for example, you have photos that show you drinking alcohol and partying, recruiters or employers might assume that you will drink alcohol while you are working and be unreliable. This might seem like an exaggeration, but you need to remember that one’s public image is very fragile. Photos and other content on your social media channels provide your personal details to the world.
Using Social Media to Fill in the Blanks on Your Resume
As a matter of fact, those personal details are precisely why recruiters are tapping into applicants’ social media accounts. As unusual as it might sound, surveying your social media profiles can help recruiters get a better idea of who a candidate is outside of their resume. The bottom line is that a resume can tell recruiters about a candidate’s professional qualifications, but social media profiles help determine if their personality is in alignment with the employer’s workplace culture.
We Look at Social Media, Too
At the end of the day, a recruiter’s job is to match the perfect candidate with the perfect job. At RPI Consulting Group Inc, we also look at the social media profiles of our candidates. Though we respect your privacy, we also want to continue our strong, trusting relationships with clients. If we present a candidate who has an unprofessional image on social media, this reflects poorly on us as a company, as well as yourself.
Using Social Media for Good
Social media doesn’t have to be seen in an entirely negative light, however. Like any tool, it can be used to your advantage. As a pharmacy or healthcare professional, you can also use social media to create a positive impression with employers about who you are as a candidate. You should never breach patient confidentiality in your use of social media, but perhaps you can make a post about attending a professional development conference? Maybe you can talk about how much you enjoy your career? You have control over the professional image you project to recruiters and employers. If you want to succeed in your pharmacy career, consider how recruiters like us will view your social media presence!
