Social Media apps by Jason Howie / CC BY 4.0

Despite the fact that online social media engagement is ubiquitous across large segments of the population, for many attorneys, the use of social media as a networking and visibility tool remains something of a mystery. Understanding the value of social media – and developing an attractive online presence – can give any attorney a leg up on the competition. If effectively leveraged, an advanced social media presence can give you a platform to communicate your expertise, network with likeminded professionals, and express your ideal self to potential employers.

Unfortunately, not all professionals are able to effectively leverage their online presence. In fact, if incorrectly handled, an attorney’s social media profiles and various other online engagements may lead to negative assessments of “hireability” and cultural “fit”.

To better maximize the value of your online presence while minimizing the risks involved, consider implementing the following tips.

Tip #1: Conduct an initial assessment of your digital footprint.
In the state of California, employers are generally prohibited from requiring applicants to provide access to their personal social media accounts, unless it is relevant for an investigation of employee misconduct. Still, despite prohibitions on requiring access, many employers will conduct an assessment of an applicant’s digital footprint. Before you begin your job search, it is therefore crucial that you take the time to search for yourself online and see what is linked to your identity.

There may be social media posts, articles, blogs, and other personal content floating around in the digital ether that could hurt your professional image. If the problematic content is located on personal accounts, remove or limit public access to said accounts. If the content is hosted on a third-party account or website, take steps to contact the owner and request removal.

Tip #2: Properly curate your social media content.
If you are an active social media user and would prefer to use your various social media profiles – such as LinkedIn – for professional networking purposes, then hiding content or removing public access to your social media profiles may not be ideal.

You want eyes on your digital footprints. You want to be noticed.

Instead, consider carefully curating the content you post on your active social media profiles. Until you have completed your job search, avoid posting politically or socially controversial content that may turn away potential employers. Posting personal content that may be considered outrageous or scandalous should also be avoided.

Tip #3: Take the time to develop your online profiles.
Your social media profiles that you allow employers to access (by enabling public access, or by including potential employers in your network) should be properly maintained and developed.

For a professional networking platform like LinkedIn, make sure to build out your profile to the extent possible. A skeleton-profile can leave a negative impression on potential employers – they may interpret your bare digital footprint as an indication of laziness, or they may assume that you are simply not a technologically savvy candidate.

Always keep your profiles up-to-date with your latest employment information. Internal statistics at LinkedIn reveal that users with up-to-date profiles are 18 times more likely to be discovered in searches conducted by other users on the platform. On LinkedIn, it is important that you set a profile picture. If possible, use a more formal photo (or have a headshot photo taken at a professional studio). Statistics show that a professional photo makes you 14 times more likely to be discovered on the platform.

Finally, update your profile with your relevant skills and – if the platform supports endorsement functionality, such as LinkedIn – request endorsements and testimonials to further enhance the legitimacy of your profile.

Tip #4: Network with likeminded professionals.
Using social media to connect with attorneys in your industry and practice areas can be an effective long-term strategy for furthering your career. Join groups of professionals on Facebook, LinkedIn, and other social media platforms, and contribute to discussions. By actively engaging with a community of professionals in your area of practice, you increase the possibility of interfacing with people who are positioned to help you move your career forward.

Tip #5: Keep all communications professional in tone.
Standards for professional communication via social media platforms are admittedly inconsistent. Many attorneys have become accustomed to using emoticons and shorthand language in their online communications. Excessively casual language, poor grammar, and inconsistent punctuation can reflect poorly on your candidacy, however. Though some employers may be accepting of casual communication, it is good practice to write in a professional manner when communicating with potential employers and other attorneys, even when doing so through the medium of a social network. Eloquence never goes out of style.

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If you are in search of exciting new legal job opportunities, speak with a legal recruiter at Garb Jaffe & Associates. We have extensive experience placing attorneys with law firms and corporations located across California, and will advise throughout the process to ensure that you secure an ideal placement.

Call us today at (310) 207-0727 for a free consultation.

The post Preparing for Your Job Search – Tips for Handling Your Online Presence appeared first on Garb Jaffe.

Member Spotlight: Eve Jaffe (Owner, Garb Jaffe & Associates Legal Placement, LLC)
Interviewer/Writer: Dan Binstock (Garrison & Sisson, Washington, DC)

Eve Jaffe, a newly appointed member of the NALSC Board of Directors, is the owner of Garb Jaffe & Associates Legal Placement, LLC, based in Los Angeles, California.  As you will read below, Eve’s professional and personal paths have led her on various journeys until she found her true professional calling with legal recruiting.  Like many legal recruiters, Eve began her career as an attorney, started a family, and then switched gears to still work within the legal field but on the recruiting side.

An only child, Eve was four years old when her parents divorced.  She was raised mostly by her mother, and they moved around…a lot.  She attended eleven different schools in only nine years.  (If you know Eve, one of the things that immediately stands out is her natural ability to connect with people in a warm and genuine manner; perhaps all of the moving around during her younger years enabled her to develop an unusual proficiency in developing relationships with people.)  Eve and her mother ended up settling in the San Francisco Bay Area where she went to both high school and college.

When it came time to selecting a major for college, Eve, reflecting on how she often functioned as a de facto therapist to both of her parents growing up, believed she had a calling to pursue a major in Psychology.  But she soon found that in Psychology, “there are no ‘right’ answers to questions since everyone has different theories for human behavior and none of them are any more ‘right’ than others.”  Eve then turned to law because she thought that law, at least, was a concrete body of knowledge.  She worked full-time to put herself through college and did the same for law school.  Her hard work and dedication paid off when she was accepted to the University of Southern California Law School with a full scholarship.  Three years later, however, Eve had to amend her initial thoughts on law vs. psychology: “Law didn’t offer much more certainty than psychology but at least the pay was good.”  Definitely agreed.

Eve very much enjoyed being a lawyer.  She started her legal career as a corporate bankruptcy lawyer with a boutique firm (that was later acquired by Kirkland & Ellis) and enjoyed the practice.  So why didn’t she continue?  Because she ran into a dilemma many working mothers face: continuing to work long hours or stay home with their children.  “After having two kids, it became challenging to sustain the long hours without feeling like I was being a bad mother,” Eve confided, so she made the decision to stay home full-time with her girls for three years before feeling ready to go back to work.  It was during this time that Eve discovered legal recruiting.

Eve wanted her next career move to reflect her desire for blending life balance with engaging work.  She’d always loved recruiting, from serving on her firm’s recruiting committee to helping with their summer program and interviewing law students on campus.  As she was thinking about exploring positions as a recruiting manager in a law firm, in a twist of fate Eve bumped into a friend who was the managing partner of a national firm who convinced her to consider legal recruiting.  In the end she gave it a shot.

Not coincidentally, the partner’s wife, Sheila Garb, was the owner of a legal recruiting company.  Eve joined the company and, when Sheila retired six month later, Eve took over as owner and President.  Today, 13 years later, Garb Jaffe & Associates handles placements all throughout California, working with all of the major firms.  Of interest, however, is the fact that they have developed a unique niche of working with smaller firms that typically do not work with recruiters.  Her company also handles in-house placements.

Legal recruiting has turned out to be a perfect mix of her background in psychology and law.  Eve has continued to work with lawyers, but she also finds that “recruiting is a bit like being a psychologist for people’s work lives rather than personal lives.”  No day looks the same and recruiting is never boring.

What is most challenging to Eve about being a recruiter?  Circumstances that are out of the recruiter’s control, such as other recruiters submitting candidates’ resumes without authorization, interfering with exclusives, or even claiming false entitlement to a fee.  And to protect herself from the disappointment that sometimes happens in recruiting, Eve has learned not to “count her chickens before they hatch”, and even after they do, “not until they show up for work on the first day.”  After thirteen years of recruiting, she tries her best to remain as objective as possible but her innately empathic nature is always at play.  “It’s tough because part of what makes us good recruiters is that we care about our candidates and our clients.  When you care about people it is hard to insulate yourself from disappointments.”

Outside of recruiting, Eve enjoys being active: hiking, going to the beach, and traveling.  But she also enjoys the smaller things in life, such as eating, laughing, spending time with friends, and being with her family especially now that her daughters, Rachel and Erica, are 21 and 18 respectively.  Eve sums up her vitality of life with her reflection that she’s been married to her husband, Glenn, for 26 years: “I still can’t believe I am actually old enough to have done anything for 26 years.”

Try to see what you have in common with Eve with these random facts:

• Favorite music: Pink, Matchbox Twenty/Rob Thomas, Green Day, AC/DC, R.E.M., Queen, Simon & Garfunkel
• Favorite TV shows: Homeland, Breaking Bad, Game of Thrones, Transparent, Downton Abbey, House of Cards
• Favorite “old school” TV shows: Ally McBeal, LA Law, Seinfeld, The Brady Bunch
• Advice to her younger self (if she could do things over again): Be more tech and social networking savvy.
• Most influential book this year: Lean In by Sheryl Sandberg, which she says is a must read for every working woman.  She recently bought a recent-graduates edition for her daughter, who graduated from University of Michigan earlier this year.

The post NALSC Profile of Our President, Eve Jaffe appeared first on Garb Jaffe.