Dear SafetyXChange Members:

It's the Friday before a holiday weekend and I'm sure you're all eager to get out the door. I know I am. So I'll keep it brief.

Question

A "webfolio" is a résumé web page posted on the Internet. Here's a question I recently received from one of our Execunet members about the use of webfolios:

Dear Lauryn:

In talking with recuiters and doing research, I'm seeing more and more webfolios. Posting a webfolio seems like an interesting idea, and I can certainly build my own page. But should I? Is there any real value to having my own résumé web page?

Answer

I forwarded the question to my colleague, Execunet senior editor Robyn Greenspan. Here's what she had to say.

The Internet is one of the tools in an executive recruiter's sourcing arsenal. More than half of recruiters find candidates through networking. And more than three-quarters of them use Google to learn more about the candidates they do find. Consequently, a "webfolio" that highlights your skills, experience and accomplishments will increase your chances of being found by a recruiter.

Getting the Most Out of the Webfolio

Use the webfolio as a place to post not only your résumé but other self-marketing documents. Examples:

• Links to published articles you've written;
• Information on conference panels in which you participated; and
• Transcripts from speaking engagements.

Conclusion

Building a webfolio and keeping it current requires more than a moderate amount of effort. Is it worth the hassle?

Here's a good test you can use to answer this question. Run your name through a couple of search engines. If you find favorable information that portrays a complete representation of your professional background, then you're in good shape and probably don't need to develop your own site. But if there's a lack of information and/or a presence of unfavorable information about you on the web, it's probably a good idea to build your own webfolio.

Wishing you career success and a happy Memorial Day,

Lauryn Franzoni
ExecuNet, www.execunet.com

THIS DATE IN HISTORY

The Alabama Drydock & Shipbuilding Company: Scene of 1943 race riot

May 25, 1943

By Glenn Demby

America during World War II is remembered as a nation united in its determination to produce the guns, ships, tanks, planes and other materiel necessary to defeat the Axis. And so it was. But what happened on this date in 1943 is testimony to the fact that the home front was not entirely devoid of economic and racial strife.

Before the war, the Pinto Island yard of the Alabama Dry Dock and Shipbuilding Company was a moribund ship repairing operation with fewer than 1,000 workers. By 1943, it was a major producer of "Liberty Ships" for the merchant marine. Of its 30,000 workers, nearly 7,000 were African American, most of them in skilled positions. A presidential commission ordered the company to promote 12 of these men to welder positions. But the company dragged its feet for six months. On May 24, the company capitulated and the welders got their promotions.

White workers were incensed. They hurled racial epithets and threats. The next day, they made good on their threats, attacking black co-workers with pipes and clubs. Troops from the nearby army post had to be brought in to restore order. Fortunately, nobody was killed. But many were seriously injured.

I try to end each of these "Dates in History" with an uplifting note and a description of the silver lining. But I’m afraid that there isn’t much positive to say about the Mobile shipyard riot. To make matters worse, what happened in Mobile wasn’t an isolated incident. Race riots occurred in other U.S. cities in 1943, including Los Angeles and Detroit. The U.S. would go on to defeat Hitler, Tojo and Mussolini. But it would take decades longer to finally defeat Jim Crow.

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