Video Resume

GoPatsNH

So we're hiring salespeople and, instead of a paper resume and cover letter, i get a DVD...so I pop it in and this guy is giving his pitch for why he should be hired on video! so i googled this and found that video resumes are becoming more popular but still...what do you all think? gimmick or future trend?

regdunlop

it's probably a growing trend, but i am very wary of it. one danger is making decisions on who to interview based on looks or the production value of the video resume. i wonder how employers who accept or even encourage video resumes are making sure they are recruiting from a diverse pool of candidates.

HR36

It could also create problems of discrimination. Just like we would not require a photo to be submitted with an application, we probably should not see or consider an applicant's race, color or ethnicity,when making an employment decision (i.e., deciding which applicants to call for an interview). While this may be a future trend, HR people will have to learn how to avoid claims of discrimination that may come from this new form of application/resume. 

fisHRman

Hey, would an audio tape from a potential salesperson create the same issues with regard to discrimination?

blakefan

It might, for instance, if the person has an accent. It's usually apparent if the applicant is male or female from a resume, so the audio doesn't present a different problem there.

babaHR

There is a good article on video resumes on the Baltimore Sun website

http://www.baltimoresun.com/business/bal-bz.videoresume03jun03,1,3013762.story?ctrack=1&cset=true

IrisD

Was reading the June 4 National Law Journal (page 6) this weekend and it had an article on video resumes titled "Employers Told to Stay Away from Video Resumes."

 The article said that employment lawyers are advising clients not to accept them--or even review them--or they can be open to various discrimination suits. "If  a video resume comes across your computer, hit the delete button" is the first line in the article.

Besides the obvious reasons, the article said EEOC is concerned about video resumes because they may exclude applicants who are not tech-savvy or lower-income and minority applicants without access to broadband equipped computers or video cameras.