Resume Photo

I have a general question. What does everyone here feel about including a professional resume photo with a resume? It's required here in Germany and I figure if it's a good photo, why not include it for the States resumes as well?

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sheckler

It would probably get passed around the office for everyone to laugh at before going in the trash.

Hypntick

I know it's illegal to discriminate here in the states, however why take the chance? That gives them all the ammo they would need, your general age, your race etc. I know you shouldn't judge a book by its cover but I think we all know that a lot of people do.

djfunz

Hypntick wrote: »

I know it's illegal to discriminate here in the states, however why take the chance? That gives them all the ammo they would need, your general age, your race etc. I know you shouldn't judge a book by its cover but I think we all know that a lot of people do.

I agree with your logic, but what if the cover looks good? Here in Germany one wears a dress shirt and tie to a resume photo shoot and a professional attractive photo can get the visual discrimination out of the way a lot quicker. We all know it would happen during the interview process anyway and a photo saves everyone the time and stress of an interview if the looks aren't up to par.

Alif_Sadida_Ekin

Photos in resumes just isn't a common practice here in the States. It's often viewed negatively no matter how good the picture is.

Dr IT

In the MiddleEast as far as things go - a photo is a must and which most companies ask for .

Feels though it is sounds a bit discriminatory - thats the requirement ..

djfunz

Alif_Sadida_Ekin wrote: »

Photos in resumes just isn't a common practice here in the States. It's often viewed negatively no matter how good the picture is.

I'm a native Floridian and before I moved to Germany, I thought the same thing. Why would anyone be required to include a picture with a resume? After spending some time over here and getting to know the culture, I now agree with it. In Germany there are actually classes that people can enroll in to determine what color clothing and makeup (for women) are appropriate and best for each individual. Looks are in fact important after all, otherwise why would an individual get so spiffed up for an interview?

BradleyHU

yeah, dont do it. you might want to, but dont...

hex_omega

I don't think it's a good idea.

Akaricloud

I agree that in theory it could be beneficial but in practice deviating from the normal cultural resume standards of the US never looks good.

As an employer I would take it as you don't understand how to properly apply for the job in the US. If you want to be taken seriously you have to conform to the cultural standards for the region in which you're applying.

networker050184

Akaricloud wrote: »

As an employer I would take it as you don't understand how to properly apply for the job in the US.

That was my first thought. Might think you are a foreigner thats not professionally adapted, which may or may not be a negative, but no need to risk it IMO.

djfunz

Akaricloud wrote: »

I agree that in theory it could be beneficial but in practice deviating from the normal cultural resume standards of the US never looks good.

As an employer I would take it as you don't understand how to properly apply for the job in the US. If you want to be taken seriously you have to conform to the cultural standards for the region in which you're applying.

Good point. Thanks for the advice. I'll relay that to my girlfriend as well.

Turgon

djfunz wrote: »

I have a general question. What does everyone here feel about including a professional resume photo with a resume? It's required here in Germany and I figure if it's a good photo, why not include it for the States resumes as well?

I think if you were a hot girl a picture would get you a lot of interviews going by the number of connections some of the hotties have on linkedin. Many of the recruitment agents and female executives have some seriously good looking pictures. It seems to be competitive on there.

If you were not so hot or a bloke I would avoid doing this unless an application required it of you. The world isn't fair and people have a tendency to make stupid assumptions based on looks. Let people focus on the substance in your resume. They can always see you later and be pleasantly surprised by your magnetic personality and insane good looks.

pitviper

Save the photos for the social media BS! I've never seen a resume which included a photo around here because they don't make it past HR for some of the reasons stated above.

Lazydog

djfunz wrote: »

I have a general question. What does everyone here feel about including a professional resume photo with a resume? It's required here in Germany and I figure if it's a good photo, why not include it for the States resumes as well?

Yeah, I remember this all to well while applying for a few jobs in Germany while I lived there.

Here the thing I don't like about this, it give the hiring/HR manager a change to form an opinion before they event get to know you or interview you. If there is some thnig they don't like about your picture you could not get the interview.

I also don't like the some of the questions they do ask you here in the states as well. Like race and age to name a few. This allows them to discard your resume before they even know if you could do the job.

ViLeNT

Turgon wrote: »

I think if you were a hot girl a picture would get you a lot of interviews going by the number of connections some of the hotties have on linkedin. Many of the recruitment agents and female executives have some seriously good looking pictures. It seems to be competitive on there.

If you were not so hot or a bloke I would avoid doing this unless an application required it of you. The world isn't fair and people have a tendency to make stupid assumptions based on looks. Let people focus on the substance in your resume. They can always see you later and be pleasantly surprised by your magnetic personality and insane good looks.

Looks like you beat me to the punch :-p I was listening to the radio this morning one studies done regarding hot girls posting their photos on their resume and getting all sorts of phone calls / interviews setup. Life just isn't fair

BradleyHU

Lazydog wrote: »

Yeah, I remember this all to well while applying for a few jobs in Germany while I lived there.

Here the thing I don't like about this, it give the hiring/HR manager a change to form an opinion before they event get to know you or interview you. If there is some thnig they don't like about your picture you could not get the interview.

I also don't like the some of the questions they do ask you here in the states as well. Like race and age to name a few. This allows them to discard your resume before they even know if you could do the job.

I believe those are EEO questions, and you dont have to answer them.

contentpros

pitviper wrote: »

Save the photos for the social media BS! I've never seen a resume which included a photo around here because they don't make it past HR for some of the reasons stated above.

As a guy that has been in the hiring manager role, I would have to say leave the picture off of your resume. There are a number of EEO issues that have been mentioned in this thread and as a result we dread resumes with pictures.

If you really want to have a picture or similar it is perfectly acceptable to include a url to linkedin where you can post your picture. If you do include a linkedin url make sure your profile is professional and doesn't include any questionable material or look like a facebook/myspace page of a 13 year old.

Regards,

~CP

djfunz

contentpros wrote: »

As a guy that has been in the hiring manager role, I would have to say leave the picture off of your resume. There are a number of EEO issues that have been mentioned in this thread and as a result we dread resumes with pictures.

If you really want to have a picture or similar it is perfectly acceptable to include a url to linkedin where you can post your picture. If you do include a linkedin url make sure your profile is professional and doesn't include any questionable material or look like a facebook/myspace page of a 13 year old.

Regards,

~CP

That's an interesting idea. Include a URL to a LinkedIn page. A chance to give the company even more info before candidates are chosen for an interview. In my opinion, this would also show more initiative from the candidate because they took time to create and maintain a LinkedIn page to begin with. Thanks.