It amazes me that people still think you can upload your resume to a jobs site and instantly land a job.

You have the credentials, the experience, so why the heck wouldn’t the Internet gods just bestow you with a coveted job after your resume hits cyber space?

It’s not a magic resume folks.

My column this week on MSNBC.com looks at how you can go about getting a job working for Barack Obama at any level.

I talked about how important it was to figure out who you know that’s connected to the Obama campaign. While Obama’s team has already set up a website where you can post your resume, Change.gov, and there are other sites that will also post government jobs, including USAJOBS, I stressed that job seekers would have to pull out all the networking stops if they were going to realistically have a chance at working for the President elect because a flood of applicants are expected to pour in.

Maybe you volunteered for the President elect in your home town, or know someone who knows someone on Obama’s transition team. It’s a smart move to reach out to these people and get your resume in the right hands.

Makes sense no? Not to everyone.

I was shocked to see some of the responses to the piece on Newsvine.

The comments went something like this:

WOW Obama really does bring change… want a government job… what contacts or “good ‘ole boys” do you know? Oh no one… send a resume but, by the way, make sure it is longer than necessary so already chosen team can spend extra time reading it and point to your explicit experience just in case you fail, their asses will be covered.

YEP the Obama administration will sure bring a change to the white house and politics! I can see that.

and

Are you the best qualified person for that position??? To bad you are not getting that job. Sorry you do not know the “right people” maybe if you hob nobbed in the right (or is that left) circles you could be interviewed. What you were to busy working.. Well then if you are making at least 250,000 a year you will help us anyway, even if you do not want to. Thanks for your upcoming financial support. Your a friend of Bill Ayers?? In that case we should definitely be able to interview you at least. Thanks for applying. Obama administration a somewhat equal employment opportunity.

I know there’s a tinge of political anger out there, especially if you voted for the other guy. (I’ve already gotten a few “Eve-you’re-Godless” emails.) But the cold reality is, especially in this tough economy, you need every advantage you can get when applying for jobs. The Obama administration will be no different.

And today it’s easier than ever to figure out if you’re connected to someone thanks to the Internet.

Pick any one of Obama’s transition team and research their background by Googling them, going to Facebook or LinkedIn. You can figure out where they went to school, and you can also see all of their connections and their connections’ connections.

There was a story in my local Delaware newspaper a week ago about some bigwig in the Obama campaign that grew up in the tiny state. I’m sure there are a lot of Delawareans who went to high school with the guy. Look him up. Why not?

You need a leg up people in almost every job you apply for today.

Is it fair? I can see why some of you would think it sucks. Our work, our merit, our education, our experience should speak for itself. That would be nice. And sometimes that happens when your resume lands in just the right hands and it ends up on just the right desk.

But let’s be realistic. Hundreds, thousands and even millions of resumes are now electronically heading for automatically-monitored jobs sites throughout Corporate America and the government, and your resume is just another needle in this cyber haystack. If no one sees it, it’s like you were never there.