Video Resumes: Advantages and Disadvantages
November 15, 2007Allen Ulbricht is looking for a position as a product manager. Greg Honor is an experienced project manager. They both have some amazing accomplishments and might be a great addition to your workplace. I don’t know any of these people personally. I found them on YouTube.
Job seekers are turning to MySpace, YouTube, MetaCafe, personal blogs, and other new web technologies to impress potential employers. On the surface, it seems like a great idea. You can bring your resume to life by making a two-minute video of yourself detailing your skills and why an employer should hire you. However, is the effort of recording yourself, editing the video, and uploading to YouTube worth it?
The Disadvantages
I’ll list the disadvantages first so I can end this article on a positive note!
I was speaking with a recruiter who says that she does not view video resumes because of potential legal ramification. Consider this scenario:
An employer is interested in a candidate and visits the candidate’s MySpace page. The employer views the person’s video resume and reads the site’s content. On paper, the candidate was excellent, however, on video, the candidate’s “communication skills” seem sub-par. So, the employer decides not to pursue the candidate. The issue is that the candidate is in a protected monitory class as defined by Equal Employment Opportunity laws.
This is new and uncharted territory. Many recruiters are opting not to view these videos simply to avoid legal issues.
In addition to the legal ramifications, there are other drawbacks. First, not everyone is an effective communicator on camera. Your verbal and written communication skills may be excellent, but on video, you may seem flat and uninteresting. Kennedy was better on camera than Nixon. Reagan was better than Carter. Clinton was better than Bush. Communicating on camera is a unique skill-set that takes practice and experience to develop.
Second, unlike a traditional paper resume where there are standards to ensure resume effectiveness, no such standards exist in regards to video resumes. For instance, common practice dictates that a traditional resume should include an objective, educational history, work history, skills, and references. What should a video resume include? Third, according to a Dice.com article, busy hiring managers spend an average of 10 seconds reviewing each applicant’s paper resume. Are they going to invest 60-90 seconds to watch a video resume? Finally, even with today’s hardware and software, it takes time, effort, and creativity to produce a video resume.
Advantages
I hope I didn’t scare you away from video resumes just yet because there are many advantages. A video resume gives you the opportunity to highlight one or more parts of your resume in greater detail. You can pick a specific project and give a narrative as to why you were successful in its completion. You can verbally explain how you saved your previous employer $300,000 as noted on your resume.
A video resume also demonstrates your creativity and ability to learn and adopt new technologies. It also shows that you are hungry for an exciting and challenging position. Everyone has a resume and a cover letter. By producing a video, you are demonstrating your drive and ambition. Successful people aren’t successful because they do things everyone does. Successful individuals are creative and position themselves as unique.
You want to make a great impression. You want to stand out from the other applicants. The jury is still out as to the effectiveness of video resumes. However, if you want to produce a video resume, my next post will give you some tips on creating a one (or many) that will work for you.
Wishing you much success,
Ron Desi
Director
The UB/Towson MBA
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Career Development | Tagged: resume, success, video resume, youtube resume | 
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