Beyond your resume

Times are changing; employers not only want to know what you have done in the past, but what you are capable of in the future.

While traditional resumes and cover letters are still being used (outlining your work experience, education, skills and achievements), people who are looking to hire and work with you now tend to use various means to find out more about you – for example, by Googling you. What will they find? Are you confident that what you have online is a good representation of yourself?

Developing a digital portfolio is one of the best ways to present yourself – knowledge, skills and abilities – in order to stand out from the crowd.

What tools and means are available for you to create and curate your digital self to present to the world? Well, a whole range of things. You might be interested in looking at:

• Personal websites and blogs – eg Medium, WordPress, About.me.
• Social media – LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Academia.
• Digital credentials – DeakinCo and open badges validated by an association or university.

Your task

Conduct some research on various digital portfolio/profile tools. Focusing on one of your choices (eg Linkedin), think about why you would choose that medium to represent your professional self. Is there anything missing? What else would you like to add to improve your digital presence? And how would you do it? If you already use one of these tools, it might be easier to talk about your current experiences.