Please note: This is a proof of concept post to illustrate the creation of a social media release. It is not an actual release. It is an exercise to illustrate to the format and creation of such posts in a WordPress blog.
Social Media Feeds Explode with a Creative Resume Causing International Buzz: How one daughter seeks to help her dad find work through a BuzzFeed listicle

John Roadman | (c) CRPhotography
John Roadman: the man one young woman calls her dad and says you’ll call your hero. This is a story about the power of social media, but not like anyone has ever heard before. This isn’t just a Hallmark greeting; this is a true act of love that has revolutionized the PR industry.
As of April 2, 2014, Roadman’s layoff became effective.
His daughter, Chelsea, is a public relations senior at Auburn University. Using her keen understanding of social media and today’s job market, she composed an article that left the Internet buzzing about John Roadman. Using BuzzFeed, she masterminded “11 Reasons You Should Hire John Roadman” to create possibly the first example of a listicle resume.
“Some people say he dreams too big,” says daughter Chelsea. “But, I don’t think there’s any other size dream worth having.”
BULLETPOINTS:
- Who: Chelsea Roadman (daughter and post author/imagineer), John Roadman (father, seeking job)
- What: The social media resume 2.0
- Where: from her small apartment in Auburn, Ala. | BuzzFeed -> Facebook -> Twitter -> LinkedIn -> Pinterest
- Hit West Coast | March 10, 2014
- Went International | March 7, 2014
- Picked up by ABC affiliate WEAR 13 in Pensacola, Fla.
- Became promotion assignment for all of one AU professor’s PR students
- When: Posted March 7, just 1 day after John was given the news
Views: 3,152 to date | April 16, 2014 (In just a week, it racked up nearly 2.2K views.)
QUOTES:
Robert French, PR professor at Auburn University: Post by Robert French.
- “One of the by-products of all of this is … a *lot* of PR people are now going to know who Chelsea Roadman is…. that’s for sure!”
–via Facebook message from Robert to Chelsea | March 7, 2014
- “I think this is excellent. It certainly is touching. It’s also a great example of how a student can put social media to work for their family.”
–via Facebook message from Robert to Chelsea | March 7, 2014
- “Here is a proactive student putting her social media skills to work. Out of love for her father and family, Chelsea is sharing this story to help her father land a new job. This is still a rough economy and Chelsea isn’t going to sit by and wait.”
–via Facebook article-sharing post | March 7, 2014
- “I really like and respect Chelsea’s initiative and style. She’s being the proactive person we always encourage our students to be. She’s using resources that many might not consider.”
–via Facebook article-sharing post | March 7, 2014
- “This is the type of Buzzfeed post I prefer to share over any others. It’s sincere, prompted by love of family and quite compelling. Chelsea’s initiative to share via Buzzfeed and then into social networks is quite clever. I wonder how many people realize that they, too, can post to Buzzfeed.”
–via Facebook article-sharing post | March 7, 2014
- “A daughter’s love for her father drives this story. Auburn PR student Chelsea Roadman’s story has been shared by Stuart Bruce in the UK, Jeremy Pepper on the US west coast and many others.”
–via Facebook article-sharing post | March 10, 2014
Rusty Nelson, head pastor of The Rock Family Worship Center based in Huntsville, Ala.:
- “[This] is the best layout of a resume I have ever seen!”
–via Facebook message from Rusty to Chelsea | March 8, 2014
Meg Edwards, Auburn University student and PR major:
- “It’s true when they say a father is a daughter’s first love, and that couldn’t be proven more by the lengths Chelsea Roadman has gone to help her father find a job!”
–via Facebook article-sharing post | March 28, 2014
Catherine Watson, Auburn University student and PR major: Post by Catherine Watson.
- “The sweetest thing! Her father gets laid off so she created a Buzzfeed post to help his job search. This father-daughter duo is adorable, smart and inspiring.”
–via Facebook article-sharing post | March 20, 2014
Elizabeth Sheldon, Auburn University student and PR major:
- “Our father’s do so much for us, why not return the favor like Chelsea Roadman did. Check out this Auburn father-daughter relationship that not only is touching, but is also becoming famous via BuzzFeed!”
–via Facebook article-sharing post | March 23, 2014
- “[She is] the sweetest daughter and will do such great things! [Her] BuzzFeed article was perfect and I’m inspired that [she] did something so out of-the-box and ingenious!”
–via Facebook wall post from Elizabeth to Chelsea | March 23, 2014
Thaddeus Roppel, Auburn University engineering professor:
- “My good friend, former student, and awesome EE is looking for a job. CDMA, Cellular Communications, Cisco Technologies, Embedded Software, Embedded Systems, Ethernet, GSM, Mobile Devices, Network Engineering, Satellite Communications, VoIP,Wireless Networking, etc. , etc. Check out his daughter’s awesome (totally unbiased!) BuzzFeed.”
–via Facebook article-sharing post | March 7, 2014
John Roadman, Chelsea’s father:
- “I’m going to need an assistant after [she] get[s] done promoting [me].”
–Upon learning of Chelsea’s efforts to help | March 7, 2014
MENTIONS | Social Media Shout outs from the acclaimed:
- Mack Collier, bestselling author of “Think Like a Rock Star”
“Alabama friends, if your company has an opening for a Network Systems/Electrical Engineer, please check this out cc Chelsea Roadman.”
–via Facebook article-sharing post | March 10, 2014
- Isaac Pigott, head spokesman for Alabama Power
“ALABAMA people… an Auburn student is trying to find her father a new job. Check out his qualifications…”
–via Facebook article-sharing post | March 10, 2014
- Jeremy Pepper, West Coast PR consultant based in L.A.
“A daughter using social media (and listicles) to find her dad a job. Hopefully it spreads far and works.”
–via Twitter article-sharing tweet | March 10, 2014
- Stuart Bruce, founder of PR Week Top-Rated UK Firm: Stuart Bruce Associates
“Seriously all of my US friends should share this and help this daughter find her dad a job.
–via Facebook article-sharing post | March 7, 2014
VIDEO:
BOILERPLATE:
Help Chelsea help her dad by simply sharing this story via your social media outlets. The Roadman family wishes to convey their deepest appreciation for your help. To contact John Roadman or find more information, visit his LinkedIn profile.
SOCIAL MEDIA LINKS:
John Roadman | Contact Info.
Chelsea Roadman | Social Media Links and Contact Info.
[contact-form][contact-field label=’Name’ type=’name’ required=’1’/][contact-field label=’Email’ type=’email’ required=’1’/][contact-field label=’Website’ type=’url’/][contact-field label=’Comment’ type=’textarea’ required=’1’/][/contact-form]
INFORMATION:
- Title: “11 Reasons You Should Hire John Roadman”
- Subtitle: “Need an amazing Network Systems/Electrical Engineer? Here are 10 reasons why this guy should be YOUR next employee!”
- Original Post: Buzzfeed, March 7, 2014 at 2:24pm EST
- Author: BuzzFeed User, Chelsea Roadman
- Disclaimer: This post was created by a user and has not been vetted or endorsed by BuzzFeed’s editorial staff. BuzzFeed Community is a place where anyone can post awesome lists and creations.”
1. Over 30 years of industry experience!

10 reasons your company needs John Roadman
From working with companies such as Motorola, Adtran, Harris and AT&T, Roadman was most recently employed at Northrop Grumman where he served as a systems engineer. As a deputy for Warn Spiral Development, he developed RF modeling tools for a warning system to predict node placement performance and network design.
“I have a proven background as a Lead Network Systems Engineer and Manager with both RF and wired data networks. With a design and hands on implementation background in both ICDMA, CDMA, 802.11b/g,a, and all levels of RF and wired data protocols, I can provide solid technical and managerial direction to all levels of technical projects and new product development. I will consider any position that may utilize my extensive skills and experience, coupled with my leadership capabilities, as an asset in becoming more successful. I welcome the opportunity.”
-John Roadman, LinkedIn Summary
2. The Finest Education!
Roadman is a 1988 Auburn University graduate
Earning his degree in Electrical Engineering, the school’s Office of Communications and Marketing proudly reports the U.S. News & World Report’s ranking that AU’s Samuel Ginn College of Engineering is in the top 15 colleges of its class. Auburn’s bachelor of wireless engineering degree is the first in the country.
Continuing his education to become CCNA (Cisco), CWNA (Certified Wireless Network Professional) and amateur radio certified, there’s no doubt that Roadman received his education and training from the finest!
Former educator and current associate professor in the engineering department, Dr. Thaddeus Roppel, weighs in:
“I was fortunate to be one of John’s professors early in my teaching career. He was a truly exceptional student who inspired me to do my best job as a teacher because of his diligence, intelligent questioning, and excellent work ethic. I have followed his career over the years, and I have been quite pleased to see his talent and hard work flourish at a variety of highly reputable organizations. I would be enthusiastic to hire him if I were staffing an organization in his field.”
-Thaddeus Roppel recommendation (Nov. 3, 2009)
3. Innovative
Roadman is constantly dreaming up new ideas. He’s an outstanding problem-solver and works as well in a team as he does managing it.
Former manager at Walter Kane and Associates, Walter J. Kane describes Roadman:
“John is a pleasant, talented team player who works diligently to achieve the desired results. He has managed several technical assignments in association with my company. I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend him for any position or opportunity that would be well served by his warm personality, technical knowledge and industry experience.”
-Walter Kane, LinkedIn recommendation (Oct. 1, 2009)
4. Acute Attention to Detail
Roadman is constantly observing. He strives to keep the big picture in mind, while displaying his acute attention to detail.
Currently a senior embedded engineer at Clever Devices, Kevin Farley working with Roadman at Tantivy Communications.
“I was consistently impressed with his ability to assimilate the myriad aspects of technical problems and find solutions to them,” Farley said. “He is an excellent problem solver and solutions designer, a definite asset to our company and his contributions were great. John is the kind of guy you want on your team to bring reason and well thought out solutions to your problems. Both personable and ethical, John Roadman has remained my friend these many years.”
-Kevin Farley, LinkedIn recommendation (Dec. 3, 2007)
5. Well-Liked Personality
Well-liked by his peers and co-workers, Roadman facilitates productivity and enjoyment in the work environments he manages.
Former Harris Corporation co-worker Charles Westerfield reports these and other valuable characteristics of Roadman’s:
“John is a very knowledgeable network engineer who I can always rely on for an accurate answer. In addition to technical product details, I have relied on John’s in-depth understanding of standards and government processes several times. His upbeat personality always makes meetings and trips more enjoyable.”
-Charles Westerfield, LinkedIn recommendation (Nov. 27, 2007)
6. Dedicated, hard worker
It never takes long for Roadman’s name to become synonymous with hard work.
Current senior software business analyst at Duke Energy and former co-worker at Tantivy Communications, Sandi McDaniel describes working with Roadman.
“John is extremely dedicated to the task at hand. He is a hard worker, not stopping until the customer is satisfied with the quality of the product for which he’s responsible. He is easy to work with, easy to communicate with and highly skilled at assessing the needs of the client. He makes an excellent asset to any company which hires him.”
-Sandi McDaniel, LinkedIn recommendation (Feb. 28, 2008)
7. Patient
From pumpkin carving to product developing, Roadman always has been the picture of patience.
Roadman is the quintessential example of staying calm under pressure and maintaining an unfailing patient demeanor.
As perhaps the most reliable source of all, his daughter, I say: “thank goodness ‘habits die hard’.”
8. Supportive
From providing trusty technology remedies to kindly mentioning the troubleshooting suggestion to plug in the power supply, Roadman values support highly. This is easily seen when noting the strong trust he instills in his co-workers and family.
9. Highly Skilled
Skills, upon skill, upon skills…
- CDMA
- Cellular Communications
- Cisco Technologies
- Embedded Software
- Embedded Systems
- Ethernet
- GSM
- Hardware
- Integration
- IP
- Linux
- LTE
- Mobile Devices
- Network Architecture
- Network Design
- Network Engineering
- Networking
- RF
- Satellite
- Satellite Communications
- Security
- Switches
- System Architecture
- System Deployment
- System Design
- Systems Engineering
- TCP/IP
- Telecommunications
- Testing
- Troubleshooting
- VoIP
- WAN
- Wireless
- Wireless Network Design
- Wireless Networking
More details available on Roadman’s LinkedIn profile.
10. Government Security Clearance: SS Level
Roadman has a secret level government security clearance.(Shh…we won’t say much about that!)
This article may be freely reprinted or distributed in its entirety in any e-zine, newsletter, blog, website or distribution format of any kind.
The author’s name and website links must remain intact and be included with every reproduction.
© Chelsea Roadman 2014