Most business people are self-absorbed and a recent survey says maybe they should be.
Four out of five workers, or 81%, have punched their own names into search engines at some point to see what's printed on the Internet about them.
The survey was conducted by Accountemps, a temporary staffing service, and is based on 341 interviews with workers employed in an office environment.
"The abundance of information available online has resulted in the need for increased vigilance when managing one's digital footprint, and this is especially true for job seekers," said Kathryn Bolt, president of Accountemps' Canadian operations. "Employers are increasingly performing web searches to source information about an applicant's interests, experience and professional involvement."
Bolt said job seekers should pay careful attention to what they share online.
Accountemps said applicants can do several things to better manage their online profiles that include: adding Google alerts to track what's said about them online, adjusting privacy settings on social networking sites to restrict access, commenting on more articles related to their field of interest, watching how their statements or postings could be misinterpreted and keeping their profiles current.