Hi, it is a while back that I posted my last blog. Some of you might know that in addition to my role as Associate BM at RB US I am the founder of Career Rocketeer and Launchpad.

I wrote about the professional social networks Beknown and LinkedIn on my blog recently which I think is worth sharing with you as well:

Should you BeKnown or LinkedIn?

LinkedIn has long been the leading personal branding and professional networking tool and network online for professionals and students worldwide.

However, Monster.com just launched BeKnown, a professional networking app for Facebook that dramatically changes the way Facebook users can leverage this traditionally social network to establish their personal brands, develop connections and advance their job search and careers.

Many careerists have leaned on LinkedIn as one of the few effective tools for personal branding and career management, sharing concerns about conducting their professional networking and job search on Facebook due to the more social nature of the network and in some cases, due to the potential liability their profile content may be to them in their career.  As a result, they have done everything from censoring their profile photos and details, hiding their Facebook profiles from non-friends with increased privacy controls, and even creating separate Facebook pages for their professional selves.

With BeKnown, these concerns are no longer an issue and such counter efforts are no longer necessary.  BeKnown is an app that brings the power of professional brand building, career networking and job searching to Facebook while simultaneously keeping them as separate from your social profile, connections and activities as you feel comfortable.

On BeKnown, you can:

• create a professional resume profile with their step-by-step guide, importing your current information from your Monster, Facebook and/or LinkedIn profiles
• make selective career connections from both your social and professional spheres
• follow companies and stay up-to-date on their activities and job postings
• search jobs posted by your connections and via Monster.com
• review job listings tailored specifically to your listed experience, education and skills
• and much more…

Supported by both Monster.com and Facebook, BeKnown is already big and is just going to get bigger, conveniently consolidating all of these top features and benefits on the most popular social network on the web.

But, as per the post’s title, now that BeKnown is available, should you BeKnown or LinkedIn?

Honestly, my recommendation is that you be present and active on both.  The launch of BeKnown is very exciting and offers professionals and students a new and powerful tool to leverage in their career progression, but by no means negates LinkedIn or anything you have already done to build your brand and your network on this platform.

LinkedIn still provides incredible value with highly-search-engine-ranked profiles, a network of millions of professionals, networking groups and Q&A, a comprehensive company directory, its own job board with unique listings and countless other features and benefits.

I know that there are tons of different tools and networks available to you and it can be overwhelming to look at them all and decide where to dedicate your time and efforts for maximum career ROI.  BeKnown and LinkedIn are easy to start, build and regularly maintain, are definitely worth the investment and will undoubtedly serve you in your career moving forward.

What do you think about BeKnown?

I suppose it depends largely on what you’re following them for, but as this blog is about careers and discovering what it’s like to work at a company like RB, that’s what I’m going to talk about. So, how do you like to follow a company when you’re looking for information about jobs and careers and what it would be like to work for them?


We asked this question on the RB Facebook page and answers were very varied. Which goes to show that when it comes to engaging online, people like to have a variety of channels to visit.
People said they liked being able to ‘chat’ on Facebook, the business themes of Linked In and the immediacy of Twitter. And some liked to use all of them. But how can graduates/students or anyone thinking of taking up a career in the FMCG industry benefit from all of this?


When you’re faced with a whole internet full of information it can seem very daunting. Where do you begin? What do you search for? Where should you target your research? An article back in August on The Work Buzz revealed what it is job seekers are looking for on a company’s social media profiles.


The survey showed that the majority of people were looking for job listings, followed by fast facts about the company, information about career paths and employee testimonials. They also like to see photographs of company events, videos, company awards and videos of a day on the job. However, what they didn’t want to see was company communication that reads like an ad, failure to reply to questions and failure to post regularly.


RB wants to show anyone looking to start their career what sort of opportunities are open to them here. What sort of career path you can expect, what sort of people thrive here, what sort of environment you will work in. And to do that we have employed different social media platforms to ensure the message is filtered out effectively. I suppose it’s about empowering people – the more knowledge you have about a company the more likely you will know if they are a good ‘fit’ for you and whether their company culture aligns with you. And obviously, for me as an intern, this is invaluable.

So where can you find RB online?

RB Facebook page: There is lots of information about careers and what your future could hold at RB on here. Feel free to join in conversations on our wall or ask questions. There is also lots of generic advice for students, with hints and tips of how to go about your job search.
RB on Twitter: An insight into what life is like at RB, jobs, interesting links. If you have any questions just ask as there are three RB employees tweeting on there.
RB on Linked In – community group and company profile: Corporate news, conversation, new hires, and profiles of people working in the business.
RB on YouTube: All our adverts and promotional videos as well as some really good advice from senior managers on what it takes to work at RB.
RB careers: Obviously this isn’t as interactive as the previous sites, but it’s a great resource if you’re looking for facts, career paths, employee testimonials, job opportunities, graduate news.


So with all that wealth of information out there in the internet, how do you like to follow a company online?

How do you know whether you’ve reached your career nirvana? In fact, is there really such a thing as a dream job?

Different jobs suit different people; so what is a good fit for one person may be hell on earth to another!

But one thing is for sure: you are going to be spending a lot of time there so surely it makes sense to take some time out and think about what it is you are looking for from your career?

If career satisfaction is high on your agenda (and why wouldn’t it be?) then you need to put some thought into what you want to do, where you want to do it and what sort of company you want to be a part of.

And then ask yourself: what do I want from my ideal career? What are the golden opportunities I’m looking for?

One of your first port of calls should be to determine what a company’s culture is like. Does it align with you? Do the people who work there have the same work ethic as you? Would you ‘fit’?

And it’s never been easier to research these things.

It’s easy, it’s free and you just might discover an amazing career opportunity.

Here at RB we’ve tried to make it as easy as possible to peek through a window into our working day.

We are on Facebook (http://facebook.com/reckittbenckiser), Twitter (http://twitter.com/discoverrb) and on here blogging about our day-to-day activities so you can see exactly what it means to work here, what sort of people thrive here and how we function.

We’re also on Linked In (http://linkedin.com/companies/reckitt-benckiser) where you can get an overview of who works where – plus with the platform’s new ‘follow’ feature you can also now follow a company to keep up to date with events.

You can even ‘chat’ to us if you like – that’s why we’re here; to share our experiences and to help answer your questions.

So drop us a line: it could be the difference between getting a job and getting a job you love.

As you may have read, some posts on this blog give advice to those job seekers who really take their search seriously, going further than just looking at the careers section on an online portal and applying.
Of course, that may work on some occasions, but why not stand out from the crowd right from the start of the process?

Have a look at some of the interesting posts published on My RB Opportunity regarding this area:

4 Steps to getting the job you really want
Choose a career not a job

In addition to these tips - and thinking of those who like to be different or creative when facing the challenge of finding a job - I would like to put forward some ideas I found in a post at the College Recruiter Insights by Employers blog called How to humanize your job search.
The post highlights how helpful socializing and building relationships with what could be your future co workers can be.

It basically gives three bits of advice:

1. Meet the bloggers:
This point recognizes companies’ blogs as a great opportunity to connect with employers: you can understand them in terms of how they work and you can even contact them (leaving relevant comments that can also be read by hiring managers!)

2. Connect with future co-workers:
This is mentioned as a way to get directly linked to someone who is inside the organisation you are interested in. The fact is that many companies look for referrals to cut their hiring costs (even RB has its own Employee Referral Program, where employees can recommend new hires).
So you should not underestimate this opportunity, as it can lead you to a job.

3. Humanize your LinkedIn profile:
Finally, the post emphasizes the importance of having recommendations on your LinkedIn profile and gives you some advice about when you should ask them (ie. A current client tells you how much they enjoy working with you, someone emails you to compliment you on a facet of your work, etc.)

So, as a blogger, all I can say is: what are you waiting for?!
Here we are – this blog is open to all the comments you want to leave us. Don’t hesitate to ask us questions, or strike up a conversation. Use us, that’s what we are here for.
It could be we are your first step on your way to find a job.

LinkedIn is the leading professional network on the web, so if you don’t have an account already, get one today! If you have one already, you’re off to a great start.

LinkedIn is an invaluable asset to all professionals and students out there providing you many unique features, including your own professional online resume, its own job board, a comprehensive company directory and more.

One feature you job seekers may not know about or have fully explored is LinkedIn Groups. LinkedIn Groups are free to join, and you can choose to join up to 50 groups from a list of thousands of user-created groups for literally just about anything. Not only do these groups provide you access to connect with and contact fellow group members who could become future partners, employees, investors, customers etc., but the groups’ discussion board and news sections can provide more networking opportunities, answers to your questions and insightful advice, tips and support. You can also contribute answers, comments and your own expertise to the groups’ discussion boards to establish your own online personal brand on LinkedIn.

While there are thousands of quality groups out there that I encourage you to check out, here are the Top 10 LinkedIn Groups for Aspiring Brand Managers to help you build your own brand and launch your career:

• 1. Reckitt Benckiser Community
• 2. CPGpeople
• 3. CONSUMER PACKAGED GOODS CONNECTS
• 4. CPG Branding and Marketing Forum
• 5. Brand Innovators Network
• 6. 280 Group: Product Management & Product Marketing
• 7. Shopper Insights & Marketing Professionals
• 8. Future Trends
• 9. MBA Highway
• 10. Career Rocketeer

*These groups are not listed in any particular order.