cyberpop!

A new study by Wakefield Research (infographic below) shows that although almost 9 out of 10 job searchers think privacy is important when searching for a job, but three-quarters of us think that in the age of social media, there is no longer any such thing as a private job search.

Quite an amazing disparity when you think about it. That enormous gap between our preferences (privacy please) and perceptions (everything is public) when it comes to seeking employment, indicates a widespread cultural need for a secure search solution.

And yet, instead of increased confidentiality we see the exact opposite trend, as job searches get more public. Consider the amazing recent popularity of Facebook job apps like BranchOut and BeKnown. The success of these new services might indicate that more of us are comfortable with social career development. It’s just as likely however, that we think we’ve no choice. In line with the survey findings, the BeKnowers and Branchouters are jumping on a trend widely perceived as inevitable: the job market is thoroughly social. Employers are screening candidates online, evaluating applicants according to their social media footprint.

And companies continue with this surveillance and social listening after they make a hire. A case in point: just this month the story of an HR professional who got fired for posting his resume on LinkedIn was carried across mainstream media — another sign of massive interest in this trend of socializing all-things human resources. In that case, the employee was not actively job searching (he claims, though he did check the box indicating an interest in “career opportunities”) but the company objected to the disclosure of what they felt was private information on his profile. This case points to the everyday social media monitoring and management that companies are engaged in, including active investigation of staff social profiles to enforce compliance with corporate social media policy.