Just when I thought there was nothing new under the sun. I just had a conversation with an HR exec for a $1B company. I was asking her opinion of photographs on resumes. Have you ever seen someone with that expression that they just ate a very bad pickle? Turns out, with our economy now facing 10%+ unemployment, people are “desperate” and when it comes to having their photos on a resume – these folks are taking legal action against employers who do not interview them – claiming discrimination based on their photo on the resume!
The backdrop is the EEOC (some call this the EOC), which stands for the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. For this is where the desperate go to file their claims of discrimination – I’m the wrong age, sex, race, color of hair; I have a T-shirt that says Go Mets and the employer is a Yankee’s fan. . . you get the picture.
So – how do we get around this issue – simply stop using photos on resumes? No. The trick is when you have not yet met an employer do not use a photograph to present yourself. Think Joe Friday of Dragnet fame: “Just the facts, mam.” This means social networks as well: nice to show AFTER you have met the employer. You can show up with a resume with a photo on it – but what’s the point?
Does that mean FaceBook and Linkedin? Yup. For now, if you are using those tools to promote yourself BEFORE meeting the employer, don’t have a photo in place. I think Linkedin urls on a resume are a great idea – but if you want to do that, the latest wisdom is hold off on the Linkedin photo.
For networking, a photo on Linkedin, FaceBook or your resume is fine – for promoting yourself to an employer, stick with the old-style of resume: no photo. Do I like this idea? Heck no. I’d rather see who I’m dealing with. But my opinion doesn’t count here; we’re all about “real world” help for you- and this is the latest. Just a short blog today; I have to go to the photographer. I have these two photos I want him to merge into one photo of me. Yes, I know, I look a great deal like Brad Pitt and Tom Cruise. I get that comment all the time; I was just blessed with handsome parents.