Star Wars Resumes?

The obscenely virtual workspace that Pruitt and Barrett lay out in their article seems to be a glorified exaggeration to us now, but when taken with a grain of salt, it sheds a decent amount of light on the issue. The concept that information, ideas, and actions are instantly accessible via the internet, and a task that had previously taken someone like Austin Curry 4 hours to do now can be completed in less then 1 minute is a concept within mental reach for us. But will the space ultimately be diminished? I don’t think so. Similar to the new age library/education space discussion we had in class, I think that some sort of space will be important. An office is where we can delegate who is who and reinforce and elaborate, physically present structure that just simply cannot happen if everyone is sitting in the comfort of their own homes, putting on a ‘virtual suit.’ But when my parents were younger they couldn’t even imagine something as advanced as a Google Search. Regardless, I think the way that we communicate WITHIN the workspace will ultimately be more advanced, but we still need some form of physical structure or it could become increasingly difficult to define and make decisions about who is who and why they do what they do. Or maybe the way we form opinions will just be altered? Facebook is a good example of this integration of physical and virtual- it is successful because of the idea that there are actual people displaying and recording things that happen in the physical world. That’s why it is so appealing for so many people.

Another issue to touch on as an upcoming grad taking part in the grueling job hunt, is Pruitt and Barrett’s idea of the Virtual Resume. It has only been in the last few years (and now even more with the down economy) that we have relied completely on the internet to send out dozens and dozens of mindless resumes with the touch of a button. Making your resume stand out is key. The future of the resume is at our fingertips, but what will it be? Will it be what the article suggests, with a ‘Star Wars’ type of theme, or will it include video? Career Builder seems to think this type of connection doesn’t work, as they previously tried an experiment in 2007 allowing job seekers to post a video along with their resume, but have discontinued the service. Now some are suggesting that their will be no more resume, it will simply be a LinkdIn or Facebook profile page, that will act as a social networking tool as well as a ‘resume.’ This is already prominent today, as many companies ask in their postings to include a social networking link and often list it as ‘preferred.’ Will this hinder our job search or will it make it easier for HR to weed through based on simply what we look like, just as Austin Curry hired someone for his project based on the 'fluff' he liked, not simply on the on paper qualifications.