everything you want to know about career – must matters july 2012

W o r l d ’ s L a r g e s t U n i v e r s i t y

MUST Matters JULY 2012

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Editorial

Cover Story: What PotentialEmployers Look for in YourSocial Media Profile?

Expert Corner: What QuestionsDo I Ask a Hiring Manager?

World Events: LondonOlympics 2012

Testimonial: MUST University’s Career Counseling Services helped me change career paths!

Person in Focus: Steve Chen & Chad Hurley-Founders of YouTube

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Nowadays, prospective employers are turning towards social media for the screening of potential employees in order to see whether or not they are a

‘good fit’ for the organization. It is, therefore, important for aspiring candidates to minimize the possible damage caused by certain aspects of their online

profiles. Our cover story this month looks at the different steps you can take to make a good impression on your future employers.

The ‘Person in Focus’ this month spotlights on the talented duo - Steve Chen and Chad Hurley - behind the revolutionary video-sharing site, YouTube. Learn

about how they came up with the venture and managed to turn their lives around by becoming multi-millionaires.

We hope you will find this edition interesting and informative.

Happy Reading!


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What Potential Employers Look for in Your Social Media Profile?

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Unbeknownst to many, an increasing number of potential employers are accessing profiles on social media websites such as

Facebook and LinkedIn, in order to determine who they should hire. According to Mashable.com, 92% of all prospective employers

use social networking sites to scan the profiles of potential candidates. Out of this figure, 86% use LinkedIn, 60% use Facebook, and

50% use Twitter. 24% said they viewed social media profiles to examine ‘personality traits’ in order to determine the perfect fit for their

organization.

There is no doubt about the importance of the social media websites in our society; a recent survey reveals that over 65% of online

adults (and 50% of all adults) in the United States use Facebook or any other social medium. While such sites are great for keeping in

touch with friends and family, candidates should seriously think about making their profiles ‘employer-friendly’ as one never knows who

might be looking at their profile online.

Out of all social media websites, LinkedIn (a business networking site) is considered to be an immensely intelligent tool by which one

can not only connect with past and present colleagues, but also learn more about hiring managers at companies of interest. When

viewing potential employees’ profiles on LinkedIn, prospective employers look for the following key features:

Experience (The relevance and level of experience determines whether a candidate is able to land a good job or not)

Profile photo (aspiring professionals who add a photo to their LinkedIn profiles are 7 times more likely to have their profile viewed.)

Skills & interests (the right set of skills, combined with a diverse range of interests, contribute to ncreasing the worth of a potential

employee and adding value to his/her profile)

Facebook is considered to be the first choice amongst people who want to connect with friends and family. As it falls under the

category of a ‘social site’, it is easy for users to underestimate important aspects related to their profile that can communicate different

messages to potential employers. It is necessary to review your profile from a hiring manager’s perspective as it is possible that it will

be reviewed to uncover any potential red flags. The best way for users to ensure their profile appeals to future employers is to

constantly monitor what is posted online, review the ‘Info’ section to see whether it coincides with the information that you have

provided in your resume and upload appropriate photos as profile pictures. Remember what goes online can come back to haunt you

so it is best to be careful when uploading information about yourself online.


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What Questions Do I Ask a Hiring Manager? Whether to take up a job that pays less thanmarket compatible

Q. After much effort, I have finally managed to land my first interview. However, I am a little uncertain about how I can project the right image. I know that interviews are the best way to get to know more about the organization, its culture and its operations. Yet, I am unsure how to come across as interested and inquisitive without overstepping the line. What are the benefits of coming prepared with questions? Which are good to ask? How many is too many? Please help. Thanks.

A. It is very commendable that you have shown a deep interest in learning about the company, its origins, its scope of operations, activities, etc. This also shows that you also want to do some research about the company before you apply to it, which is a very professional attitude.

Knowing which questions to ask can be very tricky. Therefore, when the hiring manager asks, ‘Do you have any questions?’ I suggest that you cover the 4Cs which are Connection, Culture, Challenges and Closure. I will explain by giving an example for each.

Connection: ‘How did you land at XYZ Corp?’ This will tell you how the company finds its key talent and show your interest

Culture: ‘How do the corporate values compare to your own?’ This will provide you with the chance to see what is most valued and respected at the company to which you are applying and also show that you are willing to incorporate those values.

Challenges: ‘Tell me about the greatest challenge you think the company will face this year and how you plan to overcome it.’ This will not only show the company’s commitment towards resolving pressing issues but it will also display your desire to help the company succeed.

Closure: ‘If there is anything about my background, skills or experience you wish you could add or change to make me a better fit for this job, what would it be?’ This is your chance to demonstrate that you in fact do have what they are looking for.

Q. I don’t have a lot of experience under my belt; hence, I am usually passed over at interviews as I am found normally to be competing with people who have had several years worth of experience in the field. I know that the only way to increase my worth as a prospective employee is to gain experience. Currently, I have been offered a job at an advertising company. The exposure that I stand to get is very good; the only problem is that its pay is far less than market compatible.

My question is, should I go ahead and take up this offer? I know it will help my resume but I’m just worried that it will turn out to be a waste of my time. Please help.

A. I greatly value experience, even the ones you in which you stand gain absolutely no monetary benefit, provided that they offer the right kind of exposure to students. The important point to consider here is the fact that the job you are being offered is ‘less than market compat-ible’ – this means that you stand to gain far less than what one would normally gain for their efforts.I suggest you analyze the offer against the following criteria in order to help you make an informed decision:

a) See if it is worthy of your time. When it comes to jobs that provide minimum monetary compensation, it is worth the time spent to research the nature of the job offered, the experience that you stand to gain and the exposure that you will receive as a result of accepting the offer.

b) What you will receive in return for your efforts. Doesn’t matter if the compensation is not monetary. You can make the most of your time spent at the job by asking your superiors to write favorable recommen-dations about you combined with a certificate for your efforts.


World Events: London Olympics 2012

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The 2012 London Olympic Games promise to be a historic event unlike any other. Since its inception in 8th Century B.C., the Olympic Games are considered to be the world’s most foremost sports competitions with up to 200 nations as participants. London will become the first city to host the modern Olympic Games three times, having previously done so in 1908 and again in 1948.

In order to make the 2012 Olympic Games a spectacular event, preparations are currently underway. A number of existing, historic and temporary facilities (some of them well-known locations such as Hyde Park) will be used as venues for the Games. In addition, there are other venues that, by necessity, are outside the boundaries of Greater London. These will host the sailing events, some 125 miles southwest of London. The football tournament is also meant to be staged at several venues across the city.

Public transport is another aspect that is undergoing immense improvements and thereby adding more value to the Games scheduled to be held from July 27th until August 12th, 2012. Expansion of the London Overground’s East London Line, upgrades made to existing railways and the introduction of a new, Javelin high speed railway service are just some of the developments that have taken place. The idea is to have 80% of athletes travel in less than 20 minutes to their respective events. With the Olympic Park connected to 10 separate railway lines which can carry a combined capacity of nearly 240,000 passengers per hour, it can be guaranteed that a maximum number of people will be able to reach the venue on time to experience the exciting atmosphere surrounding the Games.

Security is another very important factor that is being seriously considered related to preparation for the London Olympics. The security operation is led by the police, with 10,000 officers available, supported by 13,500 members of the armed forces. Naval and air assets, Eurofighter jets and surface-to-air missiles will also be deployed as part of the security operation.

The opening ceremony of the London Olympic Games promise to be an event to be remembered. Named the ‘Isles of Wonder’, the opening ceremony of the Games will be directed by Oscar-winning director Danny Boyle, supported by music directors, Rick Smith and Karl Hyde of the electronic music duo, Underworld. The ceremony will also comprise the official opening of the Games by Queen Elizabeth II and her husband, Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh after which a short film starring acclaimed actor Daniel Craig as the highly popular secret agent James Bond will be screened.


MUST University’s Career Counseling Services helped me change career paths!

As a student, there are countless times where you are faced with total uncertainty regarding the career path you wish to pursue.

Such conditions can prove to be very dire, especially at the time of graduation when you are just setting foot into the corporate

world. For me, it was no different. I had initially taken admission to MUST University’s School of Business and Management with a

major in Marketing in the hope of making it big in the advertising industry. I thought I had everything planned out but halfway through

my time spent at MUST University, I began to have second thoughts about the career path that I had chosen. The appeal that

marketing held for me notwithstanding, I began to realize that I probably didn’t possess the capability or the acumen for that

particular field. This propelled me into a state of confusion; I was lost as I had no idea what to do or where to go.

Luckily for me, MUST University’s Career Center—which provides a range of services including job placements, career counseling

and resume and cover letter writing services – provided me with the opportunity to seek the guidance that I needed. Its career

counselors helped me develop a vision of where I wanted to be down the road through a self-assessment of my skills and capabili-

ties and even provided me with the necessary tools to help further my career objectives.

Now I am working as a Human Resource Professional in a leading organization. MUST University’s career counselors helped me

identify the talents that I could use in the achievement of my career goals; hence, I am now happily involved in the current field that I

have chosen. Thank you, MUST University!

Michelle Adams,

Jacksonville, Florida, USA.


Steve Chen & Chad Hurley – Founders of YouTube

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What started as a means of uploading and sharing funny videos made at a local dinner party soon turned into a worldwide phenom-enon. Launched first in 2006, YouTube has transformed from merely a platform for people to share their video experiences to a multi-million dollar venture that enables people and businesses to share valuable information with the rest of the world. Replacing television as the traditional medium, YouTube has grown by leaps and bounds. From Michael Jackson’s funeral ceremony to the revolution in Egypt, YouTube has earned the label as the number one source of all information – all thanks to Steve Chen and Chad Hurley.

Steve Chen (born in Taipei, Taiwan in August 1978; moved to the US at the age of 15) and Chad Meredith Hurley (born in Pennsylva-nia, 1977) along with another friend, who eventually separated from the group on account of a disagreement, came up with the idea for YouTube in the back of a garage. The reason they named it ‘Youtube’ was so that people could upload and share content that was according to their preferences (‘You’) on a video-sharing site that replaced the ‘tube’ (a reference to the television back when it had picture tubes). At the time, all three were working as employees of PayPal—a global e-commerce company—that allows payments and money transfers to be made through the Internet. Steve Chen—a risk-taker—had left the University of Illinois a semester and a half earlier to join PayPal. Chad, on the other hand, possessed an inclination towards art that coincided with an interest in business & technology. Their purpose was to develop a space that enabled users to upload video content and share it with their friends. This site would enable anyone to upload content for everyone else to view as opposed to people owning the website providing the content. The initial idea was to help people share videos for online auctions. Pretty soon, however, both Steve and Chad found that people were posting whatever videos they wanted. “In the end, we just sat back”, says Chad, referring to the rate and frequency at which people began to upload their content. This attracted big investors such as Time Warner who approached YouTube about buying in. Ultimately, it was Sequoia, which has helped finance other business entities such as Google and Apple, which provided the twosome with nearly $ 8.5 billion to help them meet their expenses.

As soon as it set off the ground, YouTube began to gain momentum. Pretty soon, millions of people had started visiting the website to create, upload and share content with close friends and loved ones. ‘Just YouTube it’ became the popular catchphrase used for the search of such and other kinds of videos.

One of the most unique features of the video-watching experience that YouTube promotes is the absence of pre-roll ads during the playing of videos--a crucial decision made by both Steve and Chad. Introducing ads in between the streaming of videos would’ve definitely helped their bottom line in the first few months but it would never have enabled the brand to reach the near-mythological status it possesses today.

YouTube has definitely impacted our lives in ways one would never have even imagined. Thanks to the creativity and resolve of two extremely talented and intelligent young men, people around the world can share their experiences with their loved ones in the simplest and quickest way possible.



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everything you want to know about career – must matters july 2012

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