First Impressions Now Happen Online, Not in Person

Whether you like it or not, the first few search results for your name are your "online reputation." These are the first bits of information a public agency will find when they do a background check on you as part of the hiring process. Or what reporters and community members will find when they want to learn more about their city/ county leader. For younger Gen X and "elder" millennial managers, you may have started seeding your online reputation with blogs and social media while in your teens or early 20s. Was that version of you the best one to present to the world? The internet has become the dominant place to make a first impression, and leaders in the public sector have the most at stake when it comes to their online reputations. The nature of your leadership role in local government puts you in the public eye.