Many professions or industries require job applicants to present a portfolio of their best work and achievements over the years. It is a great way for employers to see the quality of work you produce — and gives you a chance to stand out based on your accomplishments, not just a resume. While a portfolio is not a professional work story of all projects over the years, it should compile your best achievements. As a portfolio offers insights into the detail and quality of work a candidate can produce, putting one together can be time-consuming…and should be updated often.
Writers, musicians, artists and graphic designers are just a few types of professionals that benefit from portfolios. They have concrete examples of their work that shows their quality and attention to detail. Especially among younger candidates, portfolios can put you ahead of the rest as they take time to prepare and require you to have classroom and outside work pieces. Additionally, from a personal brand perspective, an online portfolio or website is key in establishing yourself among the industry.
Prior to computers, portfolios were in the form of canvases or binders and were brought to interviews. Artists or graphic designers would bring their pieces to employers and would tell them about the work. Today however, personal websites make it much easier to post work online and add additional information such as a resume and personal biography.
Many universities are requiring students to prepare online portfolios because recruiting has shifted to an online space over the last few years. Everything from submitting your resume, to searching for jobs — and even the actual interviews — can happen online today.
If you apply for a job through LinkedIn and the company’s recruiter scans out your profile, having a link to your online portfolio will allow you to showcase your work to the company before they even agree to interview you. Recruiters appreciate well designed online portfolios, as it shows the candidate was willing to take the time to build and maintain a site for work purposes.
Websites such as Weebly and Carbonmade make it affordable and easy to upload your work and share with other professionals. After taking the time to pick a web host, designing the pages and uploading your pieces, the website takes little maintenance except for updating with new work, pictures or blog posts. Electronic portfolios allow far more people to view your work, as you are not only showing it to those that may potentially hire you. Sharing your website’s link through your social media pages such as Facebook and Twitter will allow your friends and family to view your work without leaving their desks. You can even catch the eye of recruiters and companies that may want to partner with you.
While online portfolios offer many benefits such as increased visibility, multiple pages and the chance to add a blog, you have no way of guaranteeing that the people you interview with will view them. It is still beneficial to produce a hard-copy of your work to take with you during interviews or important meetings. While technology is available, it can be hap-hazard — and some people prefer tangible products. The other benefit of a hard-copy portfolio is that you can leave it behind should the person want to look at it after the meeting.
If you are at an interview where you meet with five different people (some of whom are higher level executives), who have barely even had time to look over your resume, chances are they will not have seen your online portfolio. In this case, a hard copy portfolio will be essential in order to share your past work. Do not allow yourself to not be considered simply because you only have an online portfolio.
Similarly, if you are at an important meeting with a client and need to showcase some work for your company, do not always rely on technology to do the job. Having a backup hard-copy of your portfolio is still recommended, as to not rely too heavily on technology and to cater to those that prefer tangible work.
Are you seeing a significant shift from hard-copy portfolios to online portfolios?
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