Successful job search requires effective use of social media and interpersonal skills

This week a few staff members at Agile attended WIT’s monthly forum: “OMG, Can U Succeed with a Social Network Vocabularly? The Impact of Social Media on our Interpersonal Skills.” The panel of experts – Moira Vetter, co-founder of Modo Modo Agency; Jessica Rodbell, Head of Industry at Google; Diana Keough, CEO, Co-founder and Editor-in-Chief of ShareWIK Media Group; and Elizabeth Mashakas, Director of Recruiting at Orbital Sciences Corporation -- provided timely and insightful dialogue about the increasing use of social media within the corporate world and its effect on interpersonal skills in the workplace.

Social media has permeated corporate America, and it’s not going away that’s for sure. That’s both good news and bad news for IT job seekers and companies looking for top talent. It’s good news because the power of social media lies in its ability to connect many people who share something in common. Social media also provides access to personal information that wasn’t so readily (or publicly) available in the past. For example, social media now gives technical recruiters access to an ocean of new candidates professional and personal information. This data enables recruiters to qualify people -- and this is where the fine line between good and bad can be drawn – and in many cases, make assumptions about those people (which can be used to further the qualification or disqualification process of potential candidates).

But the overwhelming concern about social media communicated by the speakers at WIT’s forum, is its propensity to diminish interpersonal skills. Social media has a way of enabling people to hide from human interaction. As social media becomes more pervasive in the workplace, people are depending less on their personal skills to communicate and interact with others. Although social media is connecting more and more people, this connection can be (sadly) impersonal. And it’s the personal connection that is key to both finding a job and succeeding in business. Sorry folks, social media may help in the job search, but it will NOT get you the job.

It was either a fluke or somewhat of a coincidence that the same day of the forum, we happened upon an article on CNNMoney.com titled “How to find a job in 2011.” The gist of the feature is that social media is important in the job search, but face-to-face connections and interactions are required to further a job seeker’s chance of getting hired. Author and career coach, Ford Myers, states “Social media tools should be used to make real connections, not just virtual ones. Tons of people use social media all day long and they are communicating with tons of people but they’re not connecting with anybody. Build the relationship from there so it becomes a real world relationship.”

So how do you build relationships and strengthen your interpersonal skills? It’s not as difficult as you may think – it’s even, dare we say, quite human! Below are 10 tips for good interpersonal skills. Use them along with social media during your job search (and beyond), and success shouldn’t be too far behind.

Listen first. Communication is a two-way process. Getting your message across depends on understanding the other person.
Be interested in the people you are communicating with. Remember, people are more attracted to those who are interested in them, and will pay more attention to what they are saying.
Pay close attention to your body language. This and the tone of your voice have a lot to do with how people feel about you. Think before you speak!
Smile and use eye contact. It’s the most positive signal you can give another human being.
Ask questions. It’s a great way to show people that you are really interested in them.
Communicate clearly. Pay close attention to both what you say and how you say it. A clear and effective comminicator avoids misunderstands with coworkers, colleagues and associates.
Use humor to make other’s laugh. Use your sense of humor as an effective tool to lower barriers and gain people’s affection.
Be empathetic. Put yourself in someone else’s shoes and understand how they feel. Try to view situations and responses from another person’s perspective.
Practice is everything. Just as with all other things, mastering your interpersonal skills takes time and practice. Try out effective techniques and role play with close friends and family.
Learn from your interactions. If you had a really good conversation with someone, try and think why it went well and remember the key points for future interactions. If it didn’t go well – learn from it and move on.

In order for your IT job search to be successful, you must have an effective social media strategy. If you haven’t done so already, or believe your social media strategy could use some help, we suggest you start here. Along with social media, you should have a customized resume that will “wow” the recruiter and hiring manager. This is when your interpersonal skills will be tested. You can get an interview with the right social media strategy and resume, but if your interpersonal skills are lacking during the hiring process, you may have a hard time getting an actual job offer.

Comment by Bert Shimabukuro on May 20, 2011 at 10:59am: Jon, you are right Social Media AND interpersonal skills being key to landing a job. I had a CIO tell me that many IT people when into IT because they werenot good and interacting with people, but in order to be successful in the workplace, they needed to effectively interact with people. There are a number of times where I have selected the less technically qualified candidate because of concerns over interpersonal skills.

Comment by Jon Prete on May 20, 2011 at 1:42pm: And what we're seeing now Bert is that IT professionals HAVE to communicate to stakeholders across the organization about how IT will drive/deliver value to the business. If people don't have the interpersonal skills to be effective communicators and leaders, their careers will likely go nowhere fast.