No More Paper: Video Resumes A Growing Trend
Adriana Zhang
News Reporter from Humber EtCetera
Employers aren’t just reading resumes anymore, more and more are viewing online resume videos. Entering the words “video resume” in YouTube will generate over 2.5 million hits in 2014 alone.
Nick Belling, a 25-year-old software developer from Illabo, Australia, said he created his video resume and uploaded it on YouTube last year, after months of not hearing back from employers.
In his creative four-minute video, Belling outlines his background as well as his work experience.
“Three days after I made it public, I was contacted out of the blue, by a company who invited me to their office for a chat,” said Belling. “They ultimately extended me a job offer a short time later.” (see video below)
Sean Kogan, managing partner at Recruiting in Motion (RIM), says there are companies that specialize in preparing video resumes. Potential job seekers might pay anywhere from $300 to $1000 for these companies to produce a video resume.
RIM is a recruiting company that said it has taken the recruiting and hiring process to the next level.
Kogan said they’ve introduced the Visual Advantage System where they video job seekers in a one or two minute interview. This video clip, along with the candidate’s resume and profile, are made available to employers for their assessment.
Kogan says the Visual Advantage System is different from a video resume.
“A video resume can be ten to twenty minutes long where the job seeker explains their background on video,” said Kogan, “Our videos are no longer than two minutes and includes four key questions.”
Kogan says candidates love it.
“At first they might feel a little apprehensive about being videoed,” he said, “but they recognize the advantage we’re offering them and they’re happy to be presented as a whole.”
“We charge the same as a traditional recruiting company but provide this extra added service so they love it,” Kogan said, “It saves them time and money.”
In the 2007 Video Resume survey released by career publisher, Vault Inc., 89 per cent of employers revealed they would watch a video resume if it was submitted to them.
The survey consisted of 309 responses from employers in various industries around the United States.
