A few years ago, video resumes got a bad name when aspiring
investment banker
Aleksey Vayner made the now infamous video showing off
his many talents (including images of himself bench-pressing 495
pounds, karate-chopping a pile of bricks, and serving a tennis ball
at 140mph). Vayner's
video went viral, but not in the way he wanted. Rather
than causing a stir around his creative efforts to find a job,
Vayner's name became shorthand for "video resume
disaster."
But when video resumes are good, they can be very good. As is the
case with "Hire Me," a new video created by recent
Bentley University graduate Alec Biedrzycki, which was released on
Tuesday.
This video resume succeeds for several reasons. It lays out
Biedrzycki's talents and experience: he graduated summa cum
laude with a major in marketing; he had several unpaid internships;
he worked on projects with Bentley's faculty; he has studied
Japanese. By using his skills as a songwriter and musician,
Biedrzycki also demonstrates that his creativity can be applied to
a job -- in this case selling himself, but perhaps also in meeting
the goals of a prospective employer. Most importantly, the video
shows off his personality and sense of humor in a way that is hard
to do in a traditional resume or cover letter, and perhaps even in
an in-person interview. After watching the video, it's hard not
to like the guy.
I spoke with Biedrzycki on Friday afternoon and he said that his
idea for the video resume was as simple as he describes in the
video's opening scene. After sending out countless resumes and
cover letters, he decided it was time to do something creative to
get himself noticed. A song-writer and guitar player, he wrote a
song about his fruitless job search and then enlisted his sister to
help him shoot a video around it. That happened on Sunday. By
Tuesday, he'd finished the video and by Wednesday he had shared
it with one of his professors and mentors, Perry Lowe, as well as
other members of the school's faculty and administration.
"We all loved it," Lowe told me, "and we were all
anxious to (1) help him get a job, and (2) see how viral marketing
really works." Which means that the school's faculty and
adminstration have been forwarding the video around ever since.
When I spoke with Biedrzycki on Friday afternoon, he said he'd
received ten requests for his traditional resume and had already
booked two interviews for potential jobs. He'd also just done a
television interview with CNN.
Who knows if all this attention will lead to a job. But
it's hard to see what bad can come out of it. What do you
think?
Thinking about a video resumé? Watch this.
user
- Let’s talk: Comment (9) | Blog
- Email to a Friend
- Print this Page
Syndication:
From the Community…
-
Posted by Sun Jul 19, 2009 2:03pm PDT
Report AbuseThis is truly an impressive video that any employer would be impressed with. Not only does it show his qualifications but it shows that he has a sense of humor and is very out going. The only thing missing from this video is the exact job that he is looking for. Hopefully he will create another one that answers that question.
Trace
-
Posted by Mon Jul 20, 2009 6:42am PDT
Report AbuseThat was a great video, but I noticed that it's very casual and I'm just wondering what people think about the whole creative/clever thing versus a video resume that's more conservative and professional. I guess if the point is to go viral and get creativity points, then Alec's video does the job. And it fits for the more creative marketing industry. But I would think that if you're applying to be an investment banker, this kind of video may not work.
-
Posted by Mon Jul 20, 2009 8:40am PDT
Report AbuseThat is an excellent video! I think for this tack to work, the video has to be this good, chock full of info delivered in a creative way. Also, there has to be real experience to point to, which Alec does beautifully. He also nicely weaves in personal tidbits when they apply to reasons why he would be a good hire.
-
Posted by Mon Jul 20, 2009 9:46am PDT
Report AbuseI agree, Dory. All I know is that I was humming this tune the whole weekend!
Scharfcara, I don't think the casual treatment works against him. Sure we see him with no shoes, sprawling on a chair. But we also see him in a suit, touting his professional accomplishments. So I think he's hit on a good mix and shown that he has both a fun and a serious side. You're right that there are jobs for which a more formal approach might be better. But as a marketing major, looking for a job that uses his creativity, it seems like he's not taking too much of a risk by showing his personality and casual side.
-
Posted by Mon Jul 20, 2009 11:28am PDT
Report AbuseHaving the "guts" to sell your inner capabilities will be effective. Being innovative and creative will be very helpful to land a job and bring a person more opportunities to be sucessful!
-
Posted by Tue Jul 21, 2009 11:30am PDT
Report AbuseBest commercial I've seen in years!
Alec,
Suggest you send your video to Conan O'brien.
He is one of the best writers in the biz, and has a good eye for marketing.
Luck to you!!!
-
Posted by Wed Jul 22, 2009 4:10pm PDT
Report AbuseI love this video resume, what a Great Creative Idea you have come up with, i wish you the Best of luck finding A new job, im most positive that Creative upbeat companies will be interviewing you soon. whoo hooo you go boy!!!:)
-
Posted by Thu Aug 20, 2009 8:36am PDT
Report AbuseHere's a different take on a video resume -
http://webcastcity.com/WhyHire/BrianMcCullough
-
Posted by Mon Dec 14, 2009 8:47pm PST
Report AbuseGetta load of this video resume! Hilarious!
http://unemploymentality.com/2009/03/recession-job-hunting-michael-spaffertys-video-resume/
leave your comment
You must sign in to post a comment