Some months back, I had an interesting discussion with a HR professional about the relevance of resumes in an age of social media. Some folks are traditionalists, but I make no apologies when I state that the resume is dead and job seekers (and HR professionals) better get on board with social media.

I look at this from two angles. First is the value of the information provided in a resume as it relates to the information needed. Second is how to collect that information.

When I seek candidates for a job, I want to know two things: what skills they have to do the job and what motivates them to want to do that job well. That is it. Why? Because job performance is based on what the person can do (their skills) and how they apply those skills (their motivation).

A resume is simply the documentation of biographical data points of a candidate’s professional life. It is not without some value, but as they say in the investment world, past performance is not indicative of future returns. The resume provides a sense of what a person could be capable of, but it is far from a certainty.

When I want biographical information, social media and search engines help fill the need. Tools such as LinkedIn make it easy get the typical resume fodder as well as recommendations and interactive data that provide a deeper view of the candidate. New tools are being released regularly to help give candidates more options to differentiate themselves and for hiring managers to get a more precise view of the skills of these same candidates.

This is when my HR friend interjected that not everyone is on social media and that it is exclusionary. However, it is only exclusionary for those people that are change-challenged. Social media is a phenomena that has become part of our cultural fabric and will only become more pervasive. It is to the benefit of job seekers to move beyond their comfort zone and learn the tools available to them.

So to job seekers, instead of sending your resumes, send a link to your online profile or add it to your email signature. Leverage Facebook, Twitter, social media sections of job boards, and other social media tools to post your profile, network, build your personal brand, and find jobs.

To HR professionals, start getting on board with social media. Your marketing and sales departments get it, and so should you. Just like the Internet, computers and business casual dress, social media is happening with or without you.