Are social networking websites failing to help jobless graduates? Duan Yan in Beijing finds out.His resume is probably one of the most viewed in China - but instead of finding "Ma Wen" his dream job, it propelled the desperate graduate to Internet stardom.
When the 21-year-old multimedia designer uploaded a video showcasing his talents on a Chinese social networking site last year, the idea was to increase his chances in a tough job market.
But although the clip attracted millions of hits, very few of them were prospective employers.
"Most e-mails were from other students asking me how I made the video," Ma Wen told China Daily via MSN chat and e-mail (he refused to talk on the phone or use his real name).
Although video resumes are not a new concept, more graduates are now using them to improve their prospects in the chilly economic climate. However, analysts say most employers and online businesses in China are "stuck in the past" and are failing to exploit the recruitment opportunities offered by social media.
Ma Wen graduated with a degree in computer science from Xi'an University of Technology in the summer of 2008, shortly before the world entered the worst financial meltdown for decades. With most companies putting a freeze on hiring new staff, Ma Wen soon became exasperated by the lack of job opportunities..
Popular social media sites in China:RENREN
Launched: 2005 (formally Xiaonei, it changed its name in 2008)
Typical users: Mostly students and recent graduates. The emphasis is on connecting with real-life friends online.
Interface: Almost identical to early versions of Facebook.
It has a few unique features, such as a footprint , and a funware platform for games.
Popular functions: Mostly games. It has more than 250 game applications, which are often copied by its competitors.
Estimated market share: 17 percent
Popularity ranking in China: 17
KAIXIN001
Launched: 2007
Typical users: Office workers. Its users spend twice as much time on the site, compared to users on other social networks
Interface: A simplifi ed version of Facebook with very little advertising.
Popular functions: It has about 50 applications, the majority of which are games (the site launched the social games craze in China but Renren has since stolen its thunder).
Post-forwarding of celebrity gossip, photos and funny stories is also extremely popular.
Estimated market share: 12 percent
Popularity ranking in China: 13
51.COM
Launched: 2005
Typical users: People from small cities
Interface: Simple. It is far more functional than elegant. Popular functions: Again, games. In all, it has 50 applications.
Estimated market share: 12 percent
Popularity ranking in China: 40
"I sent out my resumes to many companies but got no replies at all," he said. "And when I did get interviews, as soon as they found out I didn't go to a 211 project school (a national initiative that includes what are considered the top universities), they passed to the next person."About 13 percent of the 6.1 million new graduates last year failed to find work, while another 6.3 million are expected to enter the job market across China this summer, according to figures from the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security.
With such fierce competition, the Internet can be a vital tool for jobseekers, say analysts.
Use the word "resume" - jianli in Chinese - to search any Western or Chinese video-sharing website and you will see short films made by students to show their skills in design, production, animation, music and even teaching.
After months of fruitless searching, Ma Wen decided last April to join them by uploading his video resume to 56.com, a website similar to YouTube.
During his 1-minute 37-second clip, which is based on television advertisements for Hewlett Packard that feature only celebrities' hands, he uses various computer-aided design techniques to display the films and directors he likes. At the end, he introduces himself as a graduate and his e-mail address appears on the screen.
But the response he received was far from impressive and instead of attracting offers from movie companies and large Web firms, "all I got were e-mails from individuals or small groups", he said. "They were offering me work but they didn't provide suitable career directions."
Disappointed, he turned down all the offers and is now studying English at a college in Harbin, capital of Heilongjiang province. He is now working on setting up his own social networking site for netizens to share software.
"It will be more user-friendly and less commercial than the others," he added.
Although Ma Wen failed to land a job, other graduates told China Daily that they believe social networking sites had been instrumental in finding their jobs. One of them was Huang Dongyu, 28, who used a video resume to land a career in advertising.
Creative thinking
After graduating from Xi'an Fanyi University in 2005 with a degree in communication technology, Huang found the only option was to become a technician for a cell phone firm.
"I didn't want to do maintenance work for telecom companies," he said. "My passion was design, so I taught myself how to use graphic design software in my spare time. I made my video resume in 2009 as practice when I was learning to use Flash software."
After uploading the video online, as well as sending it to employers and recruitment agencies, he got a job as a web designer with Sheer Digital Technology based in Chengdu, capital of Sichuan province.
"The human resources department (at Sheer) mentioned they saw my video resume," said Huang. "I did other things and I don't think the resume was the only reason they hired me - after all, a resume is only one part of the whole job hunting process - but it definitely helped."
Although some experts argue video resumes are unpopular with employers and job agencies, Jack Lee, a recruitment manager with the Beijing-based Apex Recruiter, encouraged graduates to exploit all avenues to improve their prospects.
"Companies that are hiring usually have too many resumes to deal with, so it is important not to wait for HR staff to come to you. Explore your contacts and find a way to contact them," he said.
However, uploading video resumes is just one of the ways jobseekers can target recruiting companies through social networking sites, as online businesses in the West have proved. Many websites now already set up job search forums and message boards.
The fact that Facebook, Twitter and YouTube - arguably the world's three biggest names in social media - are not available in China should open the door for domestic services to dominate. Yet few are even attempting to enter the recruitment market, say experts.
Renren.com, which is similar in style to Facebook and is among the country's four most popular social networking sites, is the only one that offers a job-searching platform for college students. Most of its rivals are still focusing on pushing entertainment services.
Since the platform was launched on March 9, about 200 companies have posted advertisements for more than 1,000 positions.
Most of its functions are similar to zhaopin.com and 51job.com, both online recruitment agencies, and to ensure security, recruiters must get permission before they can access members' profile pages.
"If companies are interested in any candidates, they can add them as friends and get that person's permission to view their information and network," said Song Tiantian, spokesman for Oak Pacific Interactive, the Beijing-based firm that owns renren.com and mop.com, an online forum also popular with students.
Although no other social networking sites have yet launched job services, Yu Yi, an analyst for Analysys International, a Beijing consultancy firm that specializes in telecommunication and media, is confident they will.
"These sites have attracted lots of users through various game applications. Now, to make a profit they are exploring new revenue streams," he said. "Developing a job-searching platform and other practical applications will attract specific demographic groups and will help websites expand their value."
Meanwhile, several online firms already offer video interview services, including production and distribution to domestic and international recruiters.
The first in China was cnvhr.com, which was launched in 2004, and now has 20,000 registered users and 2,000 affiliated companies. However, it is yet to make a profit and owner Guo Xu said he has stopped paying to promote the service.
"There are still companies and individuals using our video interviewing service every day since it's free of charge, but I don't manage it now," said Guo, whose site is hosted on a free server provided by Tianjin's education authorities and is used to organize job fairs in the city. "It doesn't cost much to maintain the site."
Killing time online?
In the United States and Britain, as well as in multinational corporations like IBM, executives now actively encourage workers to open accounts with Facebook, Twitter and Linkedin to not only advertise events and vacancies organized by the company, but to aid communication between staff.
Chinese companies, however, still rely on "old-fashioned" job fairs to find staff, and even continue to block access to many sites because they believe workers waste too much time playing online games.
"Most firms in China are being too slow in utilizing these new (social media) tools," said Hu Yong, an associate professor at Peking University's school of journalism and communication. "Bosses still think these websites are where office employees spend all day stealing vegetables."
The vegetables he referred to are on Happy Farm, one of several games that have attracted millions of users to kaixin001.com.
Are bosses wrong to think their staff would waste all day playing online games at work?
Not according to a recent survey by the China Internet Network Information Center. Of the 3,007 netizens polled, 42 percent admitted the main reason they log on to social networking sites is to "kill time".
However, if human resources and recruitment firms do not change their mindset and tap into the power of social media, they risk being left behind, Hu said.
"They need to learn how to use Web 2.0 (applications that aid global interaction and collaboration) and social networking. They need to be part of this new environment," he said.
(China Daily 04/23/2010 page1)
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