When you hire an employee, you follow the typical recruiting steps; post the job, review incoming resumes, phone screen, interview candidates, conduct background and drug screening, check references, and verify education and credentials.
Candidates are vetting of the employers as well. Now, with social media the investigation has taken on a whole new arm with the many sites available to review employers. One of the popular sites is Glassdoor.com. Former and current employees can review a company on Glassdoor. Individuals can write the pros and cons of working with the company and provide advice to senior management. In addition, individuals can rate the company on the following:
- Culture & Values
- Compensation & Benefits
- Senior Leadership
- Work/Life Balance
- Career Opportunities
The site also provides an average of employees' reviews by gauging their satisfaction level with the company:
- Very Satisfied
- Satisfied
- Neutral - OK
- Dissatisfied
- Very Dissatisfied
In addition, employees can list their salary for their current position and jobseekers can rate their interview experience with the company as:
They can also provide interview details, interview questions, and negotiation details.
Increasingly, potential candidates are reading these reviews before deciding to accept an interview or a job offer. Top-quality and passive candidates (the ones recruiters normally pursue) are more apt to read a company's online reviews before making a decision. They are usually already in a job and take appropriate care to screen potential employers.
So, how do you make sure your best image is being reviewed?
Since employers have no control over the comments their employees leave on these sites (and most of them are anonymous) how can employers manage their online image? You can take the following steps to monitor and maintain your reputation:
- Develop a plan to manage your online image.
- Search your company's name often. If your company operates in multiple countries, search those domains as well.
- Note the sites that list negative information. If the information provided is incorrect, contact the site owner immediately to have it expunged or counter the comment.
- Take discussions offline, if you can - don't hash things out via the public comments box; ask the disgruntled employee or customer to message you privately.
- Leave a thank you for positive comments, if you can.
- Hire a Social Media Specialist or Public Relations Personnel to develop a social media strategy and to write professional articles and press releases about the company and the positive accomplishments.
- Use social tracking tools to automatically gather and report your business appearance on social media sites. Among the sites that can assist you with managing your online reputation are reputation (Reputation.com) and social media (socialmention.com).
- Frequently search for new sites (they pop up daily) that can help you control your online image.
Finally, it's important to know what is being said about your business in the media world. Your business is being socially investigated by potential employees, existing and potential customers, vendors, contractors, potential buyers, and more. Conducting business and treating employees in a fair and ethical manner will prevent or reduce negative online reviews. Online image management can be time consuming, but with the right plan and appropriate use of resources, it can be done successfully. 