Social media can play integral role in hiring process

As social media continues to gain popularity, more employers are using the networking sites to conduct background screenings on potential hires. Researching someone's online identity can shed light onto how they will behave as a professional, and can help weed out candidates that are seen as unacceptable. In a recent interview with the Daily Sundial, Max Drucker, CEO of a background screening company, said that 80 percent of companies used search engines to find out information on applicants. Some people are careful to make sure that they only include certain information when communicating on social networking sites. "I choose not to curse or air private business online because that is not the place to do it," Savanna Chute, a college student, told the news outlet. "I have family and former students on my Facebook, so they act as personal censors." Many companies have passed on candidates based on social media background screenings. Personnel Today reports that as many as 70 recruiters in the United States have dismissed candidates based on something discovered on a social media site.