By Ms. Twentysomething

Getting old is a bitch. But for a woman in her fifties, job hunting might be the biggest bitch of all.

At my last job, when the boss who hired me left, a woman in her late fifties took over. She had seemingly never used a computer, hoarded at least six overstuffed rolodexes on her desk, and printed out every email and filed a hard copy. It’s mean, but my first impression: dinosaur.

To this Ms. Twentysomething, she came off more as a liability, a weight that would drag down the team’s progress rather than lead us forward.

A lot of employers recognize the delicacy of hiring middle age workers. Namely: tech proficiency. But in this digital age, it pays to take advantage of online professional networking sites, even if, actually especially if, your degree dates in the 1970s and you once typed office memos on a … typewriter.

Joining a network and putting your resume on the Internet shows that you’re comfortable with technology, and get the new digital model. It also makes it possible for you to control what potential employers find when they Google you.

Colleen Eddy writes on the Poynter Institute website that according to ExecuNet,  a career management website, 77 percent of recruiters use Internet name searches to gauge potential hires.

First, Google yourself. If you have a common name, like Jane Smith, put your name in quotations marks and pair it with the town or state you live in to find hits  that might actually be you. If you find any unsavory sites that features your name, or sites with outdated info, contact the Web administrator and ask to have the information removed. Chances are, she’ll happily comply.

If that sounds daunting, Lorraine Ali wrote an article for Newsweek earlier this year on companies that will clean up your online image for a fee.

Next, put yourself out there by creating profiles a few online professiona/social networking sites.

We’ve outlined the big two.

LinkedIn:  LinkedIn has more than 30 million professional members. This is networking at its best, nothing more than exchanging a virtual business card. You can put your career interests and experience, resume, and photo on the site and invite others to be part of your network by sending them an email through LinkedIn.

It also gives you the option of searching through individuals on their site by colleges you attended or institutions you worked at. In a New York Times article this summer, writer Sarah Jane Tribble told the story of a man who used LinkedIn to score interviews less than a week after his employer eliminated his position, resulting in his employer finding a new spot for him in the company — with a $25,000 pay raise.  While this story isn’t typical, it speaks volumes about the power of growing your online contacts.

Facebook: Although it started with college students, today anyone can join Facebook, which will be one of the top sites that pop up when recruiters Google you. But unless they “friend” you, they will only be able to see your public page, which shows your photo and samples of your other friends. (You can manage this by checking your privacy settings.) Choose a photo that you would be comfortable showing to the world, and choose your friends carefully (just like in real life!)

And for extra credit, check out Karen Riggs’ book Granny @ Work: Aging and New Technology on the Job in America