HR Executives: Do you Digitally Onboard New Staff to leverage their e-ttraction?

blog 2015
Written By Andrew Ford

Recently I was working with a large company to rebrand all of their top executives. The type of engagement I really love as we get the whole team looking awesome at once. After we had just finished the photoshoot and were working our way through their biographies we were told that one of the top staff members had left to go to another company. He was a great guy so I made a mental note to keep in touch.

linkedin fail.png

Once we finished the engagement about three months later, I decided to look him up on LinkedIn to see how he was doing at the new company. That's when I noticed something interesting - he hadn't changed anything on his profile. His title said the old company, the website linked to the old company and his experience said he was still working at the old company! This made me think - do companies digitally onboard staff?

 

Being a LinkedIn lover and working on it daily this confused me. Why would a C level executive damage his brand and embarrass his new company by not saying he worked there? Was he hedging his bets to see if he lasted the probation period? Was he so technology challenged and didn't know how to update it? Or was he just not paying attention to his brand? Either answer is damaging to his reputation in it's own way.

This lead me to think about the company he just started work with. They are a very large organisation and would have a whole team of marketing and branding staff. Why hadn't they created a process around Digital Onboarding for new staff? What was their social media policy? And what whose job was it really, HR, the recruiters or perhaps the hiring manager?

I dug around LinkedIn some more and also other social media channels and realised this isn't a one off case. I have noticed many high level people that are recent starts to new businesses haven't updated their profiles on LinkedIn. They haven't protected their privacy on Facebook and are promoting Twitter accounts that are downright embarrassing.

I'm confused what is this so? It's not like you can't find a social media 'expert' in Australia. I get five emails a day from them. 

My background is digital marketing not HR so I am asking for help to answer the question. Is digitally on boarding staff an issue and who's responsibility is it?  

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Andrew Ford
Marketing expert Andrew Ford, the founder of Social Star, has discovered the secret of ‘Powerful Branding’. With a fire for unleashing people’s inner brand and developing business models to generate profit from an individual’s passions, Andrew leverages ground-breaking digital and social media marketing techniques to create digital strategies for clients to attract maximum opportunities. Having established a strong name for himself in the field, Andrew blends traditional business techniques with now-necessary tools for entrepreneurs to achieve scale, quality, and influence in their niche. Andrew’s comprehensive business background and qualifications consist of a Bachelor of Business (Marketing) (RMIT 2003), a Graduate Certificate in Management (MBA Executive Program, University of Sydney 2005), and a Masters of Entrepreneurship and Innovation (Swinburne University 2011). Continually on the cutting edge of his own education, Andrew has tested his marketing theories in forums such as the BCG Business Strategy Competition, which he won in 2005 against all Victorian MBA schools, and the Venture Cup Business Plan Competition (Swinburne University 2003), which he won in the Masters category. With experience working at Hewlett-Packard, Sensis (Telstra) and IBM, Andrew also has mentored dozens of junior staffs to help them achieve their professional goals. Meeting and influencing high-profile public figures helped Andrew to realise just how many professionals require more understanding and control of their public brands or appearance, and need help with the skills to use the many amazing free tools at their disposal to generate success. At Social Star, Andrew consults with clients to uncover their personal brand – both where it is today and where it can be tomorrow – and refine and define how that should be displayed in social media in order to attract their perfect target audience. Andrew mentors his clients to rapidly grow their business’ audiences, resulting in larger potential client bases and higher revenue. Applying formulas that integrate over twenty years of Andrew’s business experience and fifteen years of formal business education, Social Star specialises in building clarity and velocity for clients’ brands using the ‘Understand, Build and Leverage’ methodology. ‘Having a Personal Business enables people to have an authentic, congruent connection with their valued clients and partners, using their brand as the bridge,’ says Andrew. ‘I’m highly driven to work with the new breed of entrepreneurs and small business owners – people who have a passion for making the world a better place. Traditional business models are stepping aside as people follow their innermost dreams and my role is to see them operate within their values while creating wealth. Some people think you have to sacrifice what you love to be successful in your business, yet it is actually the opposite. Follow your passion and success will come.’ Lecturing at Swinburne University from 2009 to 2011 on brand dynamics and digital marketing, presenting at numerous conferences, and consulting to hundreds of clients, Andrew has seen his philosophy work that if you follow your unique path, based on your skills, experience, values and goals, you will automatically attract the opportunities you desire and achieve the success you deserve. Living his mantra, Andrew has created a successful business and attracts high-profile clients including musicians, athletes, authors, models, entrepreneurs, professionals and small business owners, helping them find their ‘why’ in their business and fulfilment in their lives. Business for Andrew is more than work, it’s personal. Running a personal business means that he is able to fulfil all of his values rather than separating his life from work. It supports his two boys while providing social opportunities, educational development, fitness opportunities, spiritual fulfilment and many valuable friendships. Social Star has now become the vehicle for Andrew to crystallise his mission in the world, to help people love what they do, supporting his ‘why’, that if more people loved what they did, the world would be a better place.
http://www.andrewford.com.au/
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