As part of the information discovery process, I usually ask clients to bring along to our meeting any additional information they feel is useful, relevant or in some other way important. Last month, one of my clients produced an old "questionnaire" they had been asked to fill our by a resume writing firm about 8 years ago.
The first thing that struck me about the document was how impersonal it all was. Stock questions, soliciting the inevitable stock answers, strengths, weaknesses, lists - endless lists of attributes to circle. What i was looking at, was a template to build a template.
The end result, the resume, was as bland and uninspiring as you'd expect from such a process. I was amazed by the blatant listing of attributes throughout the cover letter and resume without any supporting narrative to put the clients skills in context.
Here's a section from the cover letter;
"I am a great communicator, can multi-task, give and take orders, have listening skills, organizational skills, planning skills, speak french and have good computer skills".
The above extract is absolutely meaningless without context. It looks like every other D.I.Y. cover letter project out there and was clearly lifted verbatim from the questionnaire and deposited unceremoniously into the cover letter.
Is that what you really want from a process and service charged with the responsibility of demonstrating your unique qualities to a prospective hiring manager? Templates are for the masses - let everyone else use them.
Showing posts with label resume writing advice. Show all posts
Showing posts with label resume writing advice. Show all posts
Sunday, February 28, 2010
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
300:1
It wasn't so long ago that the buoyant job market and apparent shortage of qualified candidates spun a tale that brought the phrases "Gen X" and "Gen Y" into the mainstream lexicon.
Employee wages and benefits were on the rise as forward thinking companies embraced the realities of the market and took concrete steps to offer innovative incentives or sweeteners to make sure they snared the best candidates for themselves. Many business and HR publications ran headlines that screamed about "skill shortages" and space fillers such as "top tips for employee retention" flooded the media. Then came the financial collapse..
Now, it's a different story. These days I'm hearing the same thing time and again - "competition is fierce"! Case in point, I was talking with a resume client last week about this issue. She works for one of the larger finance firms in town and her company had been actively recruiting for a low level 'teller' position. More than 300 applications rolled through the door and the posting still had a week to run!
How do you stand out among the crowd? If you're application was one of 300+ - what would separate you from your peers? What would catch the eye of a hiring manager as they spend their 30 seconds skimming your profile and resume?
Having your resume professionally crafted will certainly give you an edge on your competition! The aim is to get you an interview, make the final cut, then let your masterful interview technique and solid interview preparation dazzle the awaiting panel of judges. If your resume isn't as competent as it should be then you will certainly be marginalized by applicants who may be no more qualified than you but who have invested in creating a professional portfolio that is presented in an easy to read, eye catching format.
As I say in my marketing material - "Partnering with us could be the best career decision you ever make!". I wasn't exaggerating!
Employee wages and benefits were on the rise as forward thinking companies embraced the realities of the market and took concrete steps to offer innovative incentives or sweeteners to make sure they snared the best candidates for themselves. Many business and HR publications ran headlines that screamed about "skill shortages" and space fillers such as "top tips for employee retention" flooded the media. Then came the financial collapse..
Now, it's a different story. These days I'm hearing the same thing time and again - "competition is fierce"! Case in point, I was talking with a resume client last week about this issue. She works for one of the larger finance firms in town and her company had been actively recruiting for a low level 'teller' position. More than 300 applications rolled through the door and the posting still had a week to run!
How do you stand out among the crowd? If you're application was one of 300+ - what would separate you from your peers? What would catch the eye of a hiring manager as they spend their 30 seconds skimming your profile and resume?
Having your resume professionally crafted will certainly give you an edge on your competition! The aim is to get you an interview, make the final cut, then let your masterful interview technique and solid interview preparation dazzle the awaiting panel of judges. If your resume isn't as competent as it should be then you will certainly be marginalized by applicants who may be no more qualified than you but who have invested in creating a professional portfolio that is presented in an easy to read, eye catching format.
As I say in my marketing material - "Partnering with us could be the best career decision you ever make!". I wasn't exaggerating!
Friday, November 13, 2009
Content is King!
During a recent association event I got talking to an old acquaintance who happens to be the CFO of a local junior resource company. We discussed career issues, hiring practices and resume writing, specifically, writing your own resume.
Having worked closely with this professional in my previous life as an executive recruiter, I had been responsible for re-writing his resume, providing interview coaching and actually placing him in a position he still holds.
During our discussion he gave me insight into the way some people in his network go about preparing themselves for career advancement and how some of them didn't see the value in working with a professional to help them with this process.
He wasn't complaining, as although his peers shared similar professional and experiential characteristics, he knew that he stood head and shoulders above his executive level competition on account of his superior personal branding strategy and portfolio of professionally crafted documents.
Apparently, some of his peers had scoured the internet for "templates" and inserted choice words and phrases into the slots in a bid to produce a document that at least looked like it had been formatted appropriately!
Further, how often have you been asked to tell someone what you do day to day and can only muster 3 or 4 sentences? Try it now. What do you do on a day to day basis? Do the sentences you have just articulated do you justice? Would you rely upon them to accurately convey the extent of your current level of responsibility? Are you confident they will set you apart from your peers and every other job competitor?
Such folly fails to appreciate that a significant part of the job of a resume writer is to extract minute detail and construct a narrative that incorporates the needs and wants of the hiring manager or executive designated to make a determination as to who gets selected for interview...and who does not. Templates are for the masses. Let everyone else use them!
By working with a consultant who has an extensive background in recruiting, placement, resume writing and interview techniques, we can uncover the detail you need to do you justice in front of the hardest task master of all - the hiring manager!
It's not just the way the resume looks - it's the content that counts. As the saying goes...Content is King!
Having worked closely with this professional in my previous life as an executive recruiter, I had been responsible for re-writing his resume, providing interview coaching and actually placing him in a position he still holds.
During our discussion he gave me insight into the way some people in his network go about preparing themselves for career advancement and how some of them didn't see the value in working with a professional to help them with this process.
He wasn't complaining, as although his peers shared similar professional and experiential characteristics, he knew that he stood head and shoulders above his executive level competition on account of his superior personal branding strategy and portfolio of professionally crafted documents.
Apparently, some of his peers had scoured the internet for "templates" and inserted choice words and phrases into the slots in a bid to produce a document that at least looked like it had been formatted appropriately!
Further, how often have you been asked to tell someone what you do day to day and can only muster 3 or 4 sentences? Try it now. What do you do on a day to day basis? Do the sentences you have just articulated do you justice? Would you rely upon them to accurately convey the extent of your current level of responsibility? Are you confident they will set you apart from your peers and every other job competitor?
Such folly fails to appreciate that a significant part of the job of a resume writer is to extract minute detail and construct a narrative that incorporates the needs and wants of the hiring manager or executive designated to make a determination as to who gets selected for interview...and who does not. Templates are for the masses. Let everyone else use them!
By working with a consultant who has an extensive background in recruiting, placement, resume writing and interview techniques, we can uncover the detail you need to do you justice in front of the hardest task master of all - the hiring manager!
It's not just the way the resume looks - it's the content that counts. As the saying goes...Content is King!
www.DON'TDOTHIS.com
With the advent of the internet and myriad of related technologies, it is easier than ever to connect with people online and promote your particular skills, experience and personal attributes in the hope of expanding your network or pitching for an open position.
However, things can go awry.
Consider this. A recent graduate engaged us to work solely on his cover letter as he was quite pleased with his resume and "online presence". He was convinced that his inability to construct a professional cover letter was hindering his ability to connect with an employer, specifically, some of Vancouver's larger corporations.
On reviewing his resume, I couldn't help but notice the web address that adorned each page, enticing the reader to view www.HISNAME.com.
Naturally, I followed the link into his "online presence" and was greeted by a picture of what appeared to be a magician with magic dust circling his head and skulls and crossbones in each corner of the screen. The site had several public access areas but the content did not get any better. In among this strange blend of artistry, detailed personal preferences and inappropriate symbology lay his online resume profile!
The candidate had been sending out his resume for lower level roles in large corporations and was not receiving any encouragement whatsoever from the employers he was contacting. I wonder why!
Sometimes I think it goes without saying that this approach should not be aspired to, but perhaps i'm being presumptuous. There are many people out there keen to leverage any perceived advantage in order to steal a march on the competition. Ironically, in such cases, you're guaranteed to have your resume make acquaintance with the corporate shredder in short order.
I don't recommend www.YOURNAME.com type profiles. There's no need for them. Further, there is always the tendency to "expand" upon irrelevancies, upload a mugshot, customize the template to include favourite colours and designs or include information that is entirely inappropriate for review by a CORPORATE hiring manager.
As an experienced Recruiter, I often came across online resume links. It gave me another opportunity to vet the applicant and assess his/her suitability for the role. Read that line again. It's all you need to know!
However, things can go awry.
Consider this. A recent graduate engaged us to work solely on his cover letter as he was quite pleased with his resume and "online presence". He was convinced that his inability to construct a professional cover letter was hindering his ability to connect with an employer, specifically, some of Vancouver's larger corporations.
On reviewing his resume, I couldn't help but notice the web address that adorned each page, enticing the reader to view www.HISNAME.com.
Naturally, I followed the link into his "online presence" and was greeted by a picture of what appeared to be a magician with magic dust circling his head and skulls and crossbones in each corner of the screen. The site had several public access areas but the content did not get any better. In among this strange blend of artistry, detailed personal preferences and inappropriate symbology lay his online resume profile!
The candidate had been sending out his resume for lower level roles in large corporations and was not receiving any encouragement whatsoever from the employers he was contacting. I wonder why!
Sometimes I think it goes without saying that this approach should not be aspired to, but perhaps i'm being presumptuous. There are many people out there keen to leverage any perceived advantage in order to steal a march on the competition. Ironically, in such cases, you're guaranteed to have your resume make acquaintance with the corporate shredder in short order.
I don't recommend www.YOURNAME.com type profiles. There's no need for them. Further, there is always the tendency to "expand" upon irrelevancies, upload a mugshot, customize the template to include favourite colours and designs or include information that is entirely inappropriate for review by a CORPORATE hiring manager.
As an experienced Recruiter, I often came across online resume links. It gave me another opportunity to vet the applicant and assess his/her suitability for the role. Read that line again. It's all you need to know!
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