Didn’t Get That New Job? You Need a Better Facebook Score

[The Straight Story]

What if your Klout score — that controversial measure of your “influence” on social networks — determined whether you got a job? What if hiring managers combed through online data metrics trying to determine your work ethic? What if you needed a certain score on the job market equivalent of your SATs to even be considered for a new position?

Reppify — a startup based in San Francisco — provides an online dashboard for recruiters and HR departments that seeks to make this a reality. The company pulls data not only from LinkedIn’s business-centric social network, but also from Facebook, Twitter, and even GitHub profiles, building what it calls a “job fit score.” A hiring manager might need a new Java developer, and Reppify will look across a candidate’s resume and connections to build scores for “reputation,” “influence,” “footprint,” and “overall candidacy” — all based on parameters set by the hiring manager himself.

The Reppify dashboard

Hiring managers may appreciate the service. But for job seekers, it could be a disturbing thought — not only because they’re being judged by a web application, but because the service is pooling information about them from so many different sources. In a conversation with Wired, Reppify CEO Chirag Nangia downplayed the importance of the metrics, saying he sees this data as only “part of the hiring process.” And he pointed out that Reppify only shares private information about you with its clients if you give Reppify permission. But the app toes the line of what federal regulations allow.

Even if you haven’t signed up with Reppify, the company will grab the email address and employment history you’ve provided to a potential employer and match it with public data pulled from the web. This includes data that turns up after a Google search, as well as anything it can glean from a social network without a “friend-level” connection to you. Using this data, the Reppify engine will then generate initial scores that rate your value.

http://www.wired.com/wiredenterprise/2011/11/reppify-identified-facebook-linkedin/

[snooper2]

1. Only somebody with the intelligence lower than a moth

would put any weight on this information when looking to hire somebody...

[Lance_Boyle]

9. We are talking about HR drones here.

Let's not be offensive to moths.

[Enrique]

2. this is a company that deserves to fail

along with its concept. imho.

[gkhouston]

3. Sounds like they're measuring how much time you sink into social networking.

Do you really want to give preference to a candidate who lives on Facebook 24/7?

[Duer 157099]

4. Could turn out to go the other way

HR manager avoids people who have too much online activity?

[proud2BlibKansan]

6. No worse than watching TV 24/7

I guess that's next on the resume - your viewing schedule.

[gkhouston]

11. If they can find a way to track that easily, I wouldn't be at all surprised. n/t

[Odin2005]

5. The New Corporate Police State.

[firehorse]

7. eat your soma and comply

[Jkid]

8. Another reason why the job market is a farce

Bullshit like this.

[Initech]

10. This is a bad idea. Very very bad.

It's just as bad as companies who use your credit score to hire. You shouldn't judge potential employees based on a number. It could end badly.