Lights, camera- JOB!

The role of a CV in job hunting cannot be emphasised more. One spends hours and sometimes days honing their CV with every detail that would make their candidature stand out. Time was when one sent CVs to recruiters in physical form, but that changed with the advent of e-mails. The cyber universe further changed things with CVs finding way into job portals for recruiters to find you. In the hyper-connected smartphone era, selfie CVs are the new fad for those looking to get noticed amid hordes of job seekers.

From conventional resumes, youngsters are now moving to the selfie resumes making full use of their creativity, by producing a short video about themselves, which is visually appealing. Says Zafar Rais, CEO, MindShift Interactive, a digital media agency: “In the recruitment process, the video selfie allows candidates to introduce themselves on their own terms, bypassing the traditional resume and interview format, showcasing their digitallyforward profile.” The sectors that have benefited immensely from this format of CVs include IT, ITES, hospitality and airlines, where the interactive quotient of the candidates is high.

For 28-year-old Swathi Krishnan, marriage meant a move from Bengaluru to Hyderabad, which also meant the need to look out for a job in the new city. “I used the Happy Minds app to build my video CV where I primarily focused on my education and work experience, which I think are potential reasons for employers to hire me.” Her CV was compelling enough for Penna Cement Industries to hire her right away. “I got selected by the very first company I applied to,” she adds.

Enter the selfie

Selfie CVs are becoming increasingly popular with jobseekers wanting to stand out from the crowd. Rather than replacing traditional paper CVs, videos enhance job applications by providing employers with more insight into what an individual has to offer. Essentially a selfie video resume is a 60-second video footage of candidates talking about their qualifications, accomplishments and experiences, showcasing their communication and presentation skills. This is an efficient and effective way for the recruiter to analyse the jobseeker and it also gives the jobseeker an advantage over the competition.

Happy Minds, a Hyderabad-based manpower resource company, introduced a video CV app in October 2015 which had found several takers. Says Leeladhar Rao, MD & CEO, Happy Minds: “Recruiters can now reduce their hiring time drastically with the help of selfie video resume feature of Happy Minds.” Unlike a traditional CV which outlines your skills, qualifications and experience, a selfie CV enables an employer to get a feel of your personality. “Anything that can help you get noticed is worth trying,” adds Krishnan.

Although selfie CVs are still at a nascent stage, several sectors where a candidate’s personality and communication skills matter are adopting this method of recruitment over sifting through thousands of applications. While selfie resumes may not be relevant across various industries, they sure have a potential towards making a recruiter’s life easier in any industry if modified into asking specific questions to a candidate when sending across their resume, versus a generic resume that is floated across all platforms.

Typically, the actual recruitment process begins at the interview stage with everything else prior to that going into the screening process. Although even the selfie CV is a filter of sorts to screen, it allows recruiters to evaluate the overall personality of the candidate and get a sense on them, without actually meeting them. In case of recruitment sites like Happy Minds and Hiree, the video selfie resume link is generated by the system which is then shared across all their clients for the position applied for.

Impact of CVs

Today, the CV is unlikely to be the first thing a recruiter or employer sees when they are looking for talent. If you are taking job hunting seriously, you need to maximise your visibility on the internet as recruiters are increasingly using a variety of online search methods to source candidates. Says Mumbai based 22-year-old Aastha Mantri: “As I was applying to digital agencies, it seemed natural to apply for a job through the digital medium.” The graduate in mass media and communications feels that the selfie CV complements the traditional resume by allowing her to present her strengths.

“Selfie CVs may not be relevant across various industries. But, it sure has the potential towards making the recruiter’s life easy,” feels Rais. According to him, digital marketing agencies and publishing firms have a lot to gain from selfie CV as these CVs help recruiters cut down on fake profiles. Like other CVs, this one too comes with its share of dos and don’ts (Read: Video CV Checklist) that can help you prepare a CV that is more likely to appeal recruiters and get recognised easily.

Yes, the appeal of a CV on paper is losing favour and if you are not on LinkedIn these days, chances are you are missing on opportunities that you may be unaware of. The digital age has made online CVs, including selfie CVs, a new form of being available to recruiters in a format that they are adopting in their selection process. Here is yet another new chance for you to be in front of people in a position to hire with your visibility being the driver and not just your qualifications. If you believe you have something unique to offer and you can communicate this on film, get a selfie CV made—it may just give you an edge over other applicants.

 Video CV checklist

When making a video CV through an app or otherwise, ensure that it is short and the files are not very heavy for the recruiter to junk it. You also need to keep few other things in mind

• Have a break-free conversation
• Express yourself in a short-period of time
• Present yourself professionally
• Look straight into the camera and do not avoid it
• Be confident at describing yourself
• Shoot in a clean background
• Be appropriately dressed for the recording
• Ensure clear audio recording

In case you are looking for a job where testimonials may help, consider including them by asking people you have worked in the past to speak about your performance and achievements.

olmdesk@outlookindia.com