Name one digital platform you expect all your key hires to have a presence on and explain why.
The following answers are provided by members of Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC), an invite-only organization comprised of the world’s most promising young entrepreneurs. In partnership with Citi, YEC recently launched StartupCollective, a free virtual mentorship program that helps millions of entrepreneurs start and grow businesses.
1. Depends on the Business
“I would never expect all hires at all companies to be on one platform. Today’s digital presence is about deep dives. Instead, I want my team to be involved in platforms unique to our industry, our clients, our areas of speciality and their specific career interests. It shows much more astuteness and experience when they can talk about how they engage online related to the job.”
Susan LaMotte, Exaqueo
2. LinkedIn
“Technology plays a crucial role in screening candidates, and social media can be a good source of information. In this case, LinkedIn offers a vast amount of information about studies, work experience and interests, but make sure it’s up to date. You never know who could be looking.”
Alfredo Atanacio, Uassist.ME
3. Twitter
“While I do not expect our team members to be the most active users, they at least need to have an established presence on Twitter because that is where some of our most engaged customer conversations happen. With a proper Twitter profile, our team can chime in on relevant threads to share input and turn passive followers into passionate evangelists.”
Firas Kittaneh, Amerisleep
4. Google Plus
“While Google+ is not one of the most prominent platforms for B2B networking, Google is still king in search. I would expect key hires to have a Google+ account to share our company links and other relevant content as it is beneficial for search engine optimization as well as establishing thought leadership.”
Doreen Bloch, Poshly Inc.
5. Skype
“Not only are messaging and Skype-to-Skype calls free, it’s the most comprehensive communication platform. You can send screenshots, images, share files, share screens (handy with techs) plus have group chats, video and conference calls. We work with a lot of people remotely and we’re all on Skype daily for our business communications.”
Nicolas Gremion, Free-eBooks.net
6. GitHub
“We have a very development-heavy culture, and as such, we expect our key hires to work on code professionally and simply for fun. GitHub is the prime network for collaborating on open and closed-source projects. Not only is it a great way to promote a company and the work it is doing, but it’s an easy way to see how someone works and what their code looks like.”
James Simpson, GoldFire Studios
7. All of Them
“Due to the nature of our business, we expect all key hires to be familiar with every platform. We do not expect them to be an influencer or even necessarily post to the platform, but they must at the very least be familiar with the experience. And as the heavy majority of people are “lurkers” on digital platforms, understanding that experience is valuable as well.”
Adam Stillman, SparkReel
