tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-50973652344949806072024-03-13T07:24:29.683-04:00i gotta a job... and now you want one, toojob seeking advice from an honest-to-goodness, know-it-all recruiterRachaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11472112302015222797noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5097365234494980607.post-41902650763315439532008-05-22T14:11:00.000-04:002008-05-22T14:11:00.631-04:00How to: Prep the ResumeAHHH the big 'R' word. Tackling a resume freaks the hell out of people, and rightfully so. It's a daunting document that will make or break the chance for an interview in the traditional job search. With that being said, the traditional job search odds are not in your favor. What is in your favor is putting yourself out there, connecting with people, and forming lasting relationships that will help to carry you through your career, if not propel it.<br /><br />Anyway, as a recruiter, I have some serious resume pet peeves:<br /><ul><li>Color</li><li>Orphaned pages</li><li>Lack of formatting consistency</li><li>Improper verb tense (If you're first job out of college was 3 years ago, you reported to your supervisor and implemented programs to reach the company's objectives. For the position you currently hold, you report your supervisor and you implement programs to reach the company's objectives.)</li><li>Misspelled words</li><li>Missing contact information</li><li>Unprofessional email addresses (You might have the exact skill set I'm looking for, but if I see <a href="mailto:babydaddydunmewrong@hotpants.net">babydaddydunmewrong@hotpants.net</a>, I will think twice about calling you.)</li><li>Multiple pages (I do, however, have a forgiveness factor here if your industry and skill set qualify you to submit a CV. Notice that does not include number of jobs you've had or how long you've been working.)</li></ul><p>Let me add a few examples here to drive home what I'm getting at when we talk about resume etiquette. In the job description or in the profession, if it is understood that working knowledge of MS Word is required, and you demonstrate the following with your document:</p><ul><li>Using more than 2 consectutive spaces rather than the tab key for formatting</li><li>Typing 'Page 1' and 'Page 2' at the bottom of the document rather than using the footer to automatically insert page numbers</li><li>Using the '-' instead of bulleting your skills in a job description of a current or past position</li><li>You don't save the document as a .doc file, leaving the manager or recruiter unable to open or read the document</li></ul><p>Then you don't have working knowledge of MS Word and you are not qualified for the position.</p><p>What do I want to see when I look at a resume for the first time? Well, thanks for asking!</p><p>I'd like it to be easy on the eyes. Use a sans serif font, it's easier to read when you're sifting through 50 resumes in your Inbox each morning. I also appreciate clever formatting, bullets, and whitespace. When in doubt, basic is best. I like for a resume to help me understand how you can contribute to my organization, why your skill set if of value to the position you're applying for and what you have accomplished. Oh, and I would like to learn this about you in 10-20 seconds.</p><p>You're best bet to acheive this:</p><p>Objective: This is the part where you tell me the strengths you have to contribute to my company's mission. Bonus points for how you will achieve the client's mission who my company serves.</p><p>(Insert Appropriate Adjective) Skills:</p><ul><li>Use bullets and columns here to make the best use of your white space and one page format</li><li>Make sure the skills are required for the position you're applying to</li><li>Don't lie, but give yourself credit and demonstrate your abilities appropriately</li><li>Use common phrases and industry jargon as appropriate, if you don't talk that way, don't write it on your resume that way</li></ul><p>2003-Present My Favorite Company, Insert Current Position Title, Anytown, USA</p><ul><li>Use time wisely to save company $5,000 annually</li><li>Collaborate with team members and client to implement new branding strategies</li><li>Successfully integrated the demanding clients needs into their under utilized system to save them 3 months of time and $10,000 quarterly, which was then dedicated to their other under performing product and enabled their team to boost profits</li></ul><p>Those three sections told you a lot about a candidate. Clarify, quantify, format and keep it clean.</p><p>There, you're resume just got a lot easier to put back together.</p><p> </p>Rachaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11472112302015222797noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5097365234494980607.post-32567447487476382042008-05-21T22:21:00.000-04:002008-05-21T22:51:27.405-04:00How to: Approach the SearchSeek with great patience and persistence and ye shall find. It could take you a week, it could take you a year, but regardless of how long it takes the job search will need a combination of: planning, networking, tweaking, confidence and persistence.<br /><br />If you're out of work and looking, attack the job search with equal time to the job you're looking for: full time job = 40 hours of work per week. You get the picture. When you are working full time and you're looking for the next career opportunity, it gets a little tricky. As tempting as it maybe, DO NOT SEARCH JOB BOARDS AT WORK. Do NOT use company time or property to land your digs in a new land of cubicles. Unless, of course, you were hoping to get fired or not get a quality reference in the future.<br /><br />When you're gainfully employed, it's going to be necessary to carve the time out of your personal life, 10 hours a week or so. You'll decide how much time will be necessary based on how badly you want to find a change of venue (because it won't find you).<br /><br />Consider the following, and time block your schedule to include a variety of activities, whether you're an active or passive job seeker:<br /><ul><li><strong>Resume:</strong> It's always a work in progress. It's often best to update it when you're not looking for a job & at times when you feel good about the work you do. This will help you highlight your accomplishments. Add or edit a bullet or two to the resume after you complete a major project, training module, or after a solid annual performance review. While surfing the job boards, as tedious as it can be, tailor your resume to each position and company you're applying to. If your skill set can help a company to achieve it's core objectives, demonstrate it in your resume, aka, your foot in the door.</li><li><strong>Networking:</strong> Professional and casual happy hours, job fairs, even weddings or birthdays are a time to network. If you don't have a copy of your resume on you, at least have a personal or professional business card available with your preferred contact method noted on the card.</li><li><strong>Interview & Presentation:</strong> Yes, you want to find a company that will sweep you off your feet & make it impossible to accept the counteroffer from your current employer, but you need to sweep the new hiring manager off her feet, first. (Important life long tip: Always accept a breath mint when someone is offering you one.)</li><li><strong>Training & Skill Set Development:</strong> If the job postings you gravitate toward don't match the skills that are currently highlighted in your resume, you're going to have to invest in yourself to make good on the pieces that are missing from your repertoire.</li></ul><p>Over the next few days, I'll break down the bullet points above with a more indepth analysis. Stay tuned. Have a happy job search!</p>Rachaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11472112302015222797noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5097365234494980607.post-15723602133555355962008-05-20T19:39:00.000-04:002008-05-20T20:26:02.094-04:00Open Call for Comments & Requests<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_RHaAq9wwP_U/SDNn8dt7p3I/AAAAAAAAAAg/BBZygVSBqiE/s1600-h/selectme.gif"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5202616283010148210" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_RHaAq9wwP_U/SDNn8dt7p3I/AAAAAAAAAAg/BBZygVSBqiE/s200/selectme.gif" border="0" /></a><br /><div>While you might not know me personally, (if you're reading this you probably do. and I've probably read your resume, and then hacked it apart, put it back together again, and then you got a job - not to brag or anything) you want some job seeking advice and I have some pearls of wisdom to share with you. there's something I know that you can glean from me to take with you on your job seeking journey.</div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div>I'm sharing my job seeking know-it-all-ness with the world and I want you to be a part of it with me. What's the sense in blogging without an active audience? I have a sense of the direction I want to take this site, the information I'd like to provide, and the interactive service I'd like to offer to people, but I'd also like you to be a part of it, too.</div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div>Help me by reminding me how I helped you - and I'll shape the future postings from there. Resume styling, third party job searching, websites, recommended recruiters, job fairs, interview techniques, offer negotiations. We've all been there, we've read a million books - hell, we all go to work everyday - yet, there has yet to be an interactive resource and tool for the active and passive job seeker that provides some decent answers and substantive results. Lets do just that.</div><br /><div></div><br /><div><span style="font-size:85%;">image courtesy </span><a href="http://faculty.buffalostate.edu/scalialm/intern/intsea.htm"><span style="font-size:85%;">buffalo state college</span></a></div>Rachaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11472112302015222797noreply@blogger.com0