This is Part One of a two-part article featuring TalentRooster, a video resume service. Part One focuses on David DeCapua, the founder of TalentRooster, and the benefits of using his video resume service. Part Two, which will be published on Tuesday, will focus on David’s response to the naysayers.
Are video resumes replacing the traditional paper format and becoming a new standard for presenting candidates?
David DeCapua, founder of TalentRooster, a website that helps you create video resumes, thinks so.
“The reality is simply this: Today why would I bring you in the front door of my business if I know nothing about you? If I can see and hear why I should meet you first, it would just save me time,” DeCapua told Staffing Talk, explaining that many companies are looking for time-saving measures to recruit candidates.
Some of the best candidates in the market today are savvy, creative, and desire to work for companies who can embrace technology and be just as creative as the candidates themselves, he added.
“More and more companies are competing for the best talent out there, and if you don’t demonstrate to savvy candidates you can embrace technology, they don’t want to interview with you.”
Those with video resumes stand out because it’s different, fun, and only one click away in an email sent to the head of a department.
DeCapua, who also is a recruiter, says he has a number of corporate clients who require a video profile. Typically they ask three specific questions related to the job and invite just a few of the candidates in for an interview after viewing their videos.
Equally important, DeCapua argues, is that the best candidates don’t want to end up in a Word document no one will see. “What if you’re trying to work at Google? What if you took the time to answer questions Google would want to hear? You’re specifically appealing to that company.”
Although video resumes have been around since the 1980s, they never really caught on, possibly because no one felt the need to turn in a bulky VHS tape to a recruiter who had never seen one before. Yet with the ease in which video can be embedded onto a social networking site, or even a traditional online resume with a link, candidates and recruiters are embracing video technology more and more.
“If you’re a candidate and create a profile, it’s not just a video resume – that’s a horrible thing you find on YouTube,” adds DeCapua. “This is about taking the time to create a digital video profile which is a replacement for your existing resume. You can enable your strengths, and it gives you the opportunity to show them who you are. It says you took the opportunity to show initiative.”
Although DeCapua admits the trend is slow to take off in Columbus, Ohio, where he’s located, cities along the coasts are increasingly using the technology, and it’s just a matter of time before everyone else catches on.
Jason Goldberg, CEO of Jobster, told Time Magazine, “I can see a day when video as part of the resume is the norm.”
Meador Staffing of Houston, Texas, embraced the technology recently, and announced Wednesday that they are expanding it to five other branches.
“We quickly realized that our business model was going to have to change if we wanted to remain relevant in our market – we needed something new to show our clients that Meador is committed to being the market leader,” Morgan Meador, the company’s director of communications, told PR News.
“Within the next three years, paper resumes will not be around anymore,” DeCapua believes.
But what if the person sitting behind the camera is just dull?
“If a person is plain dull – guess what – they’d be dull during an interview too,” DeCapua said. “I just can’t help them then. However, with a video you get to re-record until you’re the absolute best.”
“I’ve been in the recruiting and search business for 15 years, and in doing so I just noticed that more and more job seekers are becoming more savvy,” he continued. “They want to get noticed, and they realize it takes something unique.”
Yet critics of video resumes argue it causes discrimination.
“Before I spent a nickel in developing this technology, I checked with the (Equal Employment Opportunity Commission),” DeCapua replied when asked about whether he was enabling discrimination.
“I have a letter from them, and they made it very clear. It’s not illegal to know the race, gender, or ethnicity of a candidate.”
To view an example of a completed profile, click here. There are live profiles you can view also. View Phillip’s profile. View Ursulline’s profile.
To learn more, visit www.talentrooster.com.
Come back tomorrow for Part Two: David Takes On The Naysayers!
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
Video is nice, but so are other forms of communication. Why limit to video? When we want to review a candidate, extemporaneous writing (answers to questions) can be much more important than video.
Like or Dislike:
1 
0
Fully agree with your comment. TalentRooster technology enables candidates to submit written responses in addition to video. Our corporate clients create questions specific to their need and candidates respond in a video and written. Remember – with our technology, you can re-record it until it’s perfect – unlike your live interview.
Like or Dislike:
0 
0