With the popularity of sites like YouTube and the ubiquitous Adobe Flash platform for playing videos online, the use of videos has become commonplace on the Internet. Online videos will only gain more and more popularity as new users become familiar with the technology. To upload a short video to the Internet, one only needs a digital camera or any common camcorder. It is no longer necessary to go through a complex transfer and conversion process to upload a video. A simple digital camera can often transfer a movie file in its native format directly to YouTube or any other video sharing website. Once the video is uploaded, an individual only needs to supply a link to their video for someone else to view it. In addition, these video sharing websites automatically create a searchable web page that holds their video and makes it available for interested parties if the creator chooses to make it public. For human resources professionals, this presents a new opportunity as wel l as a potential problem. The new opportunity is to harvest and utilize video resumes thereby making a search for the right candidate much more efficient. The potential problem is that employers are expected to practice a non-discriminatory recruitment process during every phase of the hiring process. If an employer where to require a video resume, they could be accused of discriminating against those without access to this technology and of course theyre now open to the possibility of an applicant claiming that they were discriminated against on the grounds of race, sex, age or disability. With the current loss of jobs and the ease at which video resumes can be created this will result in a surge of online video resumes. The unemployed will seek to do anything that will give them an edge over other candidates competing for the same position. Hiring managers will be compelled to search for online resumes, even if their company maintains a policy of not requesting video res umes. This is in part due to the nature of the internet. The employer will not have to request a video; they will simply search for the candidates name on some of the popular video websites such as YouTube. And as major search engines index the videos and web pages from sites like YouTube, hiring managers need only search at a major search engine to find a candidates video resume. Candidates will realize the benefits of having an online video resume accessible via these websites. Thus the employer wouldnt have to demand a video resume because they will be supplied one indirectly and without a risk of a lawsuit. As an experienced recruiter at Toronto Recruiter, I have found that sorting through video resumes is ten times more efficient than screening a candidate based on a traditional paper resume. There is far more information available when you can see a full auditory and visual response to a given question. For example, if an employer insists on obtaining an employee with excellent communication skills or someone with an excellent command of the English language it is much easier to determine this when you can see the candidate either trying to explain something or when the candidate responds to a question. Using just a traditional paper resume is very limiting in this regard, as the candidate can easily mask their inability to communicate well or speak English competently. As a recruiting agency, the risk of a lawsuit is not a major issue as our clients make the final hiring decision. Its also important to note that companies are essentially afraid of the hassle of a lawsuit. Theoretically there will only be a problem if the hiring manager did actually discriminate based on race, sex, age or disability. Hypothetically, a video resume can actually help combat potential discrimination. This is true for candidates who are at risk of potential discrimination who meet the qualifications demanded by a potential employer. These candidates stand a better chance if they have an accessible video resume. For example, if someone has a name that is foreign sounding but speaks English proficiently, they will have a much better chance at getting an interview utilizing a video resume. This is because of the process involved in finding a candidate. A recruiter will first narrow down a list of potential candidates from various sources typically the list will consist of about a dozen candidates. From there, they will screen out candidates that are not likely to meet the demands imposed by the potential employer. The conventional way of screening relies solely on the written resume. Candidates with foreign sounding names or candidates schooled in countries where English is not as dominant are more likely not to make it on to the short list. However, if video resumes are available, the recruiter can make a determination in the same or less amount of time than it would take to analyze a written resume. Under these circumstances, video resumes give candidates a better chance of making it to the recruiters short list. There is no doubt that video resumes will become more popular with the current pace of technology and the current economic conditions. Combined with the considerable efficiencies in the hiring process, this will result in its reliance increasing among recruiters and employers regardless of any official policies that may be imposed. The reliance on video resumes will become a standard procedure in the recruitment process as it becomes more and more commonplace, especially as video resumes can actually help to combat discrimination. Companies ought to relax their strict stance based on simply avoiding lawsuits and concentrate on truly imposing a non-discriminatory hiring policy. When this is a reality, we can all benefit from the efficiencies that video resumes bring to the recruitment process.