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The CV is dead: Long live video?

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3rd May 2017
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Founder of Career Codex Simon Gray looks at the role video is likely to play in the future of the accountancy job market.

I’m no fortune teller, but I’m going to stick my neck out and make a prediction. As you’ll know if you’ve read any of my previous blog posts I keep up to speed with trends in the job market and also the increasing dominance of social media, which continues to shape and influence our lives.

Previously in the recruitment industry finding success in the job market was all about the paper document. Your CV back then was everything, but times are changing and they’re changing fast.

LinkedIn has been the big game changer – real-time content kept up to date by the profile user (or not as the case may be, which sends its own message). This is increasingly the primary tool that professional recruiters and employers are using to make shortlist decisions for interview.

Sure, they’re still likely to ask for the paper document, after all old habits die hard, but even as I left the recruitment industry nearly four years ago it was all about the digital profile.

Social proof is all around us and in a world of distrust will continue to guide our personal and business decisions. We want to know what our friends or contacts have said about a holiday destination we’re thinking of booking, and in the recruitment world people we know (and trust) who have worked with the candidate we’re considering hiring, and what they have to say counts for a lot.

Video trend

This is where we are now, but there’s something else coming down the line, which prompted the title of this month’s blog post. Facebook has had video streaming capability for a while now and has openly stated that it gives preference to live-streamed video content in favour of more traditional text-based posts.

In the business world LinkedIn, which Microsoft now owns, has yet to introduce video streaming functionality, but in my opinion it won’t be too long. You can already upload videos to your profile, but live streaming is where I think we’re headed.

The trend toward video raises an interesting question: when will the recruitment industry catch up? A CV gives no clue as to what someone is like in person. Yes, it communicates skills, experience and evidence of ability, but if this was all that mattered employers would make hiring decisions without ever meeting a candidate in person.

Running my recruitment business I introduced Skype as a tool to interview and now spend a considerable amount of time on GoToMeeting. These tools have been around for a while and allow virtual meetings to take place irrespective of geography; all you need is a laptop and broadband connection.

How long then will it be before there is an expectation that your social media profiles contain video footage of you? Perhaps online applications or an initial approach to a professional recruiter will require you to upload a 30-second video explaining a bit about yourself and why you might be right for a particular position? I suspect it won’t be too long, and as with almost everything early adopters will tend to benefit.

As someone who runs a YouTube channel and regularly goes in front of the camera I’m now extremely comfortable using video as a medium for communication, but it wasn’t always like this. Presenting well on video requires a whole new set of skills that take time and consistent application to develop.

The CV may not be dead just yet, but there is a new player heading into town. In the past we put down the pen to pick up the keyboard, and in the not-too-distant future if my prediction is right we’ll be picking up our smartphones to record video instead.

To summarise, the world around us is changing faster and faster and it can be hard to keep up. While a CV is still important, in my opinion its days are numbered. Now is the time to get prepared and when it comes to finding success in the job market, video could be the next big thing!

 

If you found this article useful you can connect with me on LinkedIn.

To read previous articles in this series, please visit the content series page.  

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By TowerLeasing
04th May 2017 13:16

This is a really interesting piece. I would say however, as with most predications of this nature, it will take longer for the uptake to happen than is expected.

For years people have made similar statements - cold calling is dead, high street banking is dead and so on. None of which is actually the case.

Its more like an evolution than revolution. Clearly you are right that video will play a large role on LinkedIn and by extension the recruitment process but I do believe that we will always want to see the CV and have a face to face interview (which you can not beat for getting the measure of someone).

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