Local Startup Hops On Video Resume Bandwagon

Putting their best face forward, an increasing number of job candidates are applying for jobs by e-mailing prospective employers a video resume.

It’s a trend that is gaining in popularity. A year ago, YouTube counted about 1,700 resumes; it now counts nearly 29,000.

A Rocky Hill startup wants to jump on the video resume bandwagon and help job candidates set themselves apart from their competition.

Motion Resume, a division of the New Day Group, opened its doors last month with the hopes that the traditional cover letter will go the way of VHS tapes and record albums.

One of the company’s founders, Albert Petrunti, said Motion Resume was spun off from New Day, a media production company with offices in Winsted, Torrington and Rocky Hill.

“We had been thinking about it for a while, spent several months conducting market research, and we developed the company after that,” Petrunti said. “It’s a very customized product, depending on what a person needs.”

The process is fairly straight forward, Petrunti said. The job seeker follows a scripted format to answer questions potential employers might ask while also highlighting the candidate’s strengths.

Essentially, the video resume is meant to replace the cover letter.

“It’s a way for someone to get noticed and to stand out,” Petrunti said.

Seeking New Grads

Motion Resume is targeting soon-to-be graduates of local colleges and universities to promote its product, particularly students pursuing creative careers.

“Another job that’s popular for video resumes, which may be surprising, is either priests or the clergy,” Petrunti said.

Motion Resume is also seeking out a deal with CareerBuilder.com to allow job seekers to upload their videos online in addition to a standard resume. Clients receive their video resumes in a computer-friendly format that can be uploaded or e-mailed, Petrunti said.

But not all employers are enthusiastic about video resumes. While Motion Resume was announcing its launch, Robert Half International released a study that revealed only 24 percent of senior executives would accept a video resume.

“It’s new territory for job seekers, and early on there is apprehension, as can be expected,” said Anna Soderlindh, branch manager for Robert Half’s Hartford office. “There are a couple issues that have caused some corporations to not accept them.”

Legal Issues

The most pertinent issue is the legality of accepting a video resume, Soderlindh said, because companies are not allowed to hire — or not hire — based on age, sex or race.

“It’s opening Pandora’s Box and a lot of companies do not want to go there,” she said. Soderlindh added that only Robert Half’s creative side accepts video resumes.

Brian Greer, president of Hartford-based employment agency RJS Associates, also had concerns about video resumes, noting that he has received only a few.

“If you’re a minority candidate with a video resume and you don’t get hired, what’s the reason?” Greer asked. “Typically, on a resume, you avoid talking about race.”

But Greer isn’t surprised by the trend. “It’s like something that happened in the 70s or 80s, where people would put their resumes on legal paper or on plaid paper or other weird things to get noticed,” he said. “Sometimes it defeats the purpose of trying to get noticed.”

Although Petrunti is aware that some companies will shy away from video resumes, he remains confident.

“We feel that this is something that will become more popular,” he said. “When we did the market research, it was very thin for information because it’s just not out there yet. We understand that some companies are not on board with this yet.”