Interview preparation – The Phone Interview

AUTHOR: David M. Young

Phone interviews occur in almost every job interview process. This is not just the first introduction. It may be the follow up with someone from Human Resources, could be during offer negotiation, and could also be based on location.   But, it is common for a phone interview to occur early on in the process to provide some sort of initial introduction for confirmation of skills in a resume, or could even just be a brief conversation for interest, soft skills, and assessment of personality fit with an organization.

A phone interview is important. Anyone who just “shows up” on the phone is putting themselves at a disadvantage. You should prepare for a phone interview in the same manner that you prepare for a face to face meeting. I will continue to cover details for a face to face meeting interview in subsequent blogs.   At a minimum make sure you cover the basics:

• Know your resume
• Know the job description
• Be ready early ( be near the phone number provided at least 10 minutes early.)
• Dress appropriately (even though it is on the phone, still dress sharply. If you are too relaxed, that will come across in your tone.

In addition, specific to a phone interview also make sure:

• Have a quiet location blocked off. Do not do this in your car, in a crowd, while you shop, or in an environment where others could be walking through or making background noise.
• Smile when responding. Your voice reflects attitude and that is magnified in a phone interview. Smiling may sound silly, but it affects the tone and quality of your voice over the phone.
• Stand up, no one can see you, if you are sitting, your mind can wonder while on the phone. Standing will make sure you focus.
• Have a mirror in front of you. This sounds cheesy, ut it greatly assists with focus and making sure you can see an audience, even if it is your face, it gives you the opportunity to see if you are paying attention.
• Take notes, you can highlight the question asked. But don’t get caught up in your notes such that there are long pauses.
• Pauses are good as it can be interpreted as you are being thoughtful, but be careful, pauses that are too long on the phone can be interpreted as a distraction.

Don’t read too much into the way the interviewer responds to your questions. Some people have great poker faces, or may have bad phone voices.  You create the energy on a phone interview, not the person calling. You may knock their socks off and without seeing them, you’ll never know. Believe you are hitting it out of the park and you will keep a strong energy in the phone interview, even if it is one sided.  And don’t make a decision of interest in a job as the candidate based on a phone interview.  Unfortunately, this is often a one sided conversation.  Even a great company will not try and “recruit” you on a phone call.   Your objective is to pass with flying colors so you can proceed to a conversation where you will learn more about the company.

And ….don’t talk too much. Just because you can’t see how they respond, make sure you are crisp in your answers. You have their attention for 10 seconds, after 30 seconds, they may start to drift off, after 90 seconds you may lose them. So if it is to talk through your resume, be brief on your past work. Highlight what you have done that matches the job description, but don’t’ drone on.

Ask them questions, feel free to get clarification on what they are asking, and make sure you are not the only one talking. What are they looking for, what are expectations of the role, how many people are interviewing, what are possible next steps, and feedback for you are all fair questions.

Don’t worry if it was scheduled for 30 minutes and went 15 minutes. Content, not duration is important.

As soon as you finish the call, write down notes, get their contact information for a thank you email, and prepare yourself for a “face to face” meeting with notes on the phone interview.

Above all else, don’t get bored. If you get bored, you lost the audience on the other end.

Phone interviews are not necessary evils. You can immediately separate yourself from other candidates with a brief time of preparation.

Enjoy it. If you do, the person listening to you will as well.

Unrelated Experience and Other interests….on the resume…or not?

AUTHOR: David M. Young

You worked through college, you started a business but after 3 years decided you no longer wanted to carry the burden of not knowing what tomorrow would hold as a business owner, you had a small hobby that turned into a money maker while you worked your “day “ job….or, your 50 years old, and there are gaps in your resume because you were “in between jobs” and you substitute taught, or you semi-retired and travelled, or you were a “stay at home mom” or had to care for an ailing relative…WHAT TO DO?

Often times in working with folks who are in the job search, I find they leave out anything that is not directly related to the type of position they are pursuing. And then the question comes up…why is that not in your resume? Well, I did not want them to think I would be distracted, or I was concerned since it did not relate it would dilute my actual experience.

So do you include the “unrelated” experience? Do you leave out your hobbies, passions and personal interests. At the end of the day, this is your resume, so you have to discern what you are comfortable with including. If you are asked about it and you pause, stumble, or unintentionally look like you are not being forthcoming, then don’t include it. But if you when asked you can speak comfortably and confidently about it, then absolutely include.

The question is “Why should I include it”? In my many years of recruiting, there have been numerous times that I have received feedback from a hiring manager that something not related to the direct work experience peaked their interest and they found some common ground with the candidate that then shed light on their ability to communicate, display strong “soft skills”, or just promote some common item that led them to really “like” the candidate.

So, should you include these unrelated items. My guidance is that you should…BUT….it should only be done as a small/brief/short note. If it is unrelated professional experience, include it with a single brief description in the natural flow of the chronological resume. If it is of a personal nature, include it at the end with a brief bullet point. This could be under the title of “personal interests”…but make sure it is relevant. Don’t include the old “long walks on the beach”…but rather include “Southwest City Little League coach”. It could be where your heart is for volunteer work, it could be a significant life accomplishment, or even a specific hobby or interest. But let me restate…this should only be a brief bullet point or item in the resume. Your focus is your professional experience and how it relates to the prospective position.

 

Should there be a difference between my LinkedIn profile and my “Hard Copy” resume

AUTHOR: David M. Young

Should there be a difference between your LinkedIn profile and your resume? I get this question from candidates on a regular basis. More commonly this is asked by more experienced candidates who have not grown up professionally in the digital/social media age, but rather social media is catching up to them.

To determine this, you need to decide what the purpose of LinkedIn is for you and your career? For many it is a necessary evil in today’s day and age. If this is you, you must change your mentality. For others, LinkedIn is an online page that they feel is their electronic resume. But for others, it is a professional networking and social media forum.

So yes, I believe there should be a difference between your profile and your resume.

On LinkedIn, at a minimum, you should post a summary of your professional background in the “Experience” section. You can post as little as the company, dates of employment and title. If you choose to post more, be careful. I’ll explain shortly. When you are in the job search, you want your LinkedIn profile to gain exposure to others who might be searching for someone like you. If that is the case, you should also write a short and precise summary. In the summary, you want to include power words to increase the chance of your profile matching what someone is searching for based on the simple word match. To make LinkedIn “like” you (or to rank you higher), you should also include a professional picture, education, and professional organizations. Google LinkedIn tips and tricks for more details on how to raise your “value” on LinkedIn.  For this discussion, and for the job search, this could be where you stop.

BE CAREFUL: why be careful on what you put in your LinkedIn profile.   I have seen people develop their LinkedIn Profile on the fly. When they do this, they may leave out employers, possibly “guess” at dates of employment, or even “Elevate”, “Sterilize” or just plain ole LIE on titles. I have also seen people put more details on their LinkedIn profile than they do on their resume. DON’T do any of these things. Make sure your dates match up. Make sure the titles match up.

If your LinkedIn profile is longer than your hard copy resume, an employer may wonder why you are “hiding” some details from the formal resume. If what you do have in both the resume and LinkedIn do not match up, you might be eliminated from a job selection process because they perceive you are not being truthful in one place or the other. My guidance is to make LinkedIn your billboard that is shorter and more precise than your resume. On your resume, include the detailed job responsibilities and your organizational impact, but don’t do this in LinkedIn. On your resume, you can include a link to your LinkedIn profile so you can expand your network through the connections.  If you read back through the resume tips, you will find that often times you might include job specifics that are appropriate on a resume, but not as appropriate on a social media sit.

Once you have made sure all things line up between your profile and your resume, then you can ensure you are not creating questions for an employer but rather answering their questions. LinkedIn is a professional social media site. If worked appropriately, you will be able to follow discussion groups, professional contacts, as well as search for open positions. If you present yourself clearly and concisely, you will increase the possibility a recruiter or company may see you and reach out to you for their job search. If this occurs, then you can feel confident you are setup on LinkedIn appropriately. If this happens, they will ask for your resume, and you want to be able to provide something that gives them further details beyond what they see on LinkedIn.

My encouragement to you…spend time on your LinkedIn profile, but be intentional. Don’t just throw it out there for the world to see.

So should there be a difference between your LinkedIn profile and your resume…..ABSOLUTELY.

Should I apply online? Or … Should I submit my resume online?

AUTHOR: David M. Young

Last week I received a phone call from a fairly high level Information Technology executive. This individuals division was cut from his past employers company during a round of layoffs, resulting in him being unemployed for the first time in decades and active in the job market. He was frustrated because he had applied to several positions that he felt were strong matches for his background and he had yet to get anyone to respond.

His questions included why would they post a job on their website and not respond, is the job really open, who is really looking at online submittals, and if the companies are not responding to online job applicants, is it a sign that there are bigger issues within that company. While these specific thoughts have merit, there are numerous assumptions being made to get to the point of questioning the company based on an online submittal.

As a candidate, put yourself in the company’s shoes. They most likely are receiving resumes from good, bad, strange, and overqualified candidates. Without knowing who is receiving your online application, how do you know what they are looking for, or if it is even being read? What is their process?

So should you apply online? Applying online is one of those things where you have no other audience immediately providing feedback or giving you any negative information on yourself. As a result, to many it makes them feel as if they are accomplishing something in the job search, when in actuality, there is no way to know. Is there a time to apply online? YES. But not as the first interaction with the company. If you see a job position at a company online, take a step back and formulate a plan of action. You will always be best served if you have an ally inside the companies walls. If not inside the companies walls, then find an ally who is knowledgeable about the company, and can assist in getting your name and information directly into the right hands so that you can verbally introduce yourself and have the company ask you to send your resume, or possibly apply online. This begins by determining who you know at the company. If you know someone, reach out to them via phone or email. Let them know you saw an open position and wanted to see if they could provide further insight on that role, or point you to a person who might be able to assist. If you don’t know someone at the company, check with friends, your LinkedIn contacts, or professional recruiters to see if they have any relationships with individuals at the targeted organization.

Once you have a contact inside the company’s walls, pick up the phone and call them. A hiring manager will be much more impressed by a candidate who is solving such a small problem as this knowing that they would be a person who is results oriented in the actual role. I had a candidate who was scheduled for a phone interview. The hiring manager could not connect with the candidate. After the designated call time had passed, the candidate found the person on LinkedIn and directly contacted them. As a result, the hiring manager spoke with the person after deciding not to move forward since they could not contact the candidate. In this case, a “wrong number” almost sabotaged the candidate, but instead, the candidate impressed through a simple effort of LinkedIn email, and was able to move forward. So remember, PICK UP THE PHONE.

You may not have a contact, if not, call into the company and ask to speak to the manager of the group, the name listed on the posting, or the person who handles the hiring decisions. Let the person know you saw a role on line and wanted to follow up on it. If you get brushed off, you will know quickly not to waste your time.   But you will be surprised, 9 times out of 10, someone will speak with you. And a majority of those times, you will find out where to send your information so that you do not fall into the online Black Hole. You now have a contact and can call to follow up appropriately (don’t wear them out…they are looking at numerous resumes and candidates.)

If all else fails, yes, apply online, but do not expect anything to happen. If there is no one on the other end, then no one will know to respond.

 

 

The difference between a resume and a curriculum vitae (CV)

AUTHOR: David M. Young

• What is a CV?
• Is there a difference between a CV and a resume?
• When would I submit a CV vs a resume?

These are some of the very basic questions you may have.

As a recruiter, I hear individuals refer to their “CV” interchangeably with their resume. But often times, a candidate merely has a summary resume and one with more detail included. If you are a resume reviewer, or building your own resume, make sure you know the difference. If a prospective employer asks for a CV instead of a resume, make sure they are not just asking for a detailed resume as opposed to a classic curriculum vitae.

THE RESUME – In order to best determine, you need to understand the difference yourself. In very simplistic terms, a resume is a 1-3 page summary of your education, skills, and highlights of your experience. We discuss resume length in another blog post, so yes, if written cleanly and concisely, your resume may be longer than 4 pages, but be careful. A resume may be modified for each position that the applicant applies for. You would do this to highlight different responsibilities, career accomplishments, and expertise required for past positions.

THE CV – A “CV”, or curriculum vitae, means course of life in Latin. A CV is an in-depth document that includes a great level of detail about your achievements. It is a summary of your educational and academic backgrounds, teaching and research experience, publications, presentations, awards, honors, and affiliations. A CV is a static document and does not change for different positions. The CV tends to be organized chronologically and is most commonly used when applying for academic, research, or very specific teaching positions.

One final item of note. In the US and Canada, a resume is the preferred document when applying for a position. In Europe, the CV is used and resumes are generally not utilized. In Australia, South Africa, and also India, the CV and resume terms are used interchangeably. (thus causing some of the confusion).

Why spend time on this? As a Technology recruiter, I often see resumes that a technical candidate has written, and they call it their “CV”. But instead of focusing on the items mentioned above, it is a painstakingly detailed document that takes the persons resume and provides each and every job responsibility, team responsibility, and possibly even technical coding examples. I have seen a document like this submitted as 18 pages. It is great the individual has this detail on their work history, but it is not a CV….it is an extremely long resume that the reader will never finish, and most likely eliminate the candidate because they can’t figure out the persons career strengths and path.

Make sure you know the difference.

So which one should you use? I’d recommend you use the one that is preferred in the given country. Often times the receiver will flex. But regardless, beware of the “CV” that is actually a resume that is 20 pages long. You will lose every time.

Resumes – Power Words

AUTHOR: David M. Young

Words Matter! That is especially so when it comes to your resume. I read many resumes that read like a job description instead of reading like a summary of one’s career accomplishments separated by positions. Often times I will also read a resume that utilizes the same word over and over again. That word may be “Managed” or may be a phrase like “Was responsible for”. Both of these are not good resume words. And when they are repeated multiple times, all you do is lose your reader since they have already seen the word. So how do you accomplish having a precise resume that accurately demonstrates what you bring to the table, while accurately demonstrating what you have done in your past positions? I will expand further on what a resume reader is looking for in your resume in a later blog update. This week, my challenge to you is to look over your resume and do two things.

• Look at any descriptive word that you have used more than once. Review my list at the end of this post and find another word which could be used to “spice” up and eliminate the repetition.
• Review your resume and if it looks like a job description that could be anyone, change it and identify the specific things that you did which are unique and make sure they are highlighted.

 

The list below is a fairly exhaustive list, but it is not all inclusive. Pull out a thesaurus and dictionary and use it. It can only help to make your resume stand out.

 

A
accelerated
accomplished
accounted for
accrued
achieved
acquired
acted
adapted
adopted
addressed
adjusted
administered
advanced
advised
advocated
affirmed
aligned
alleviated
allocated
allotted
altered
analyzed
answered
anticipated
appeased
applied
appraised
approached
approved
arbitrated
articulated
assessed
assigned
attained
attended
audited
authored
authorized
automated
awarded

B
balanced
began
benchmarked
benefited
bid
billed
blended
bolstered
boosted
broadened
budgeted
built

C
calculated
calibrated
cemented
certified
chaired
challenged
championed
changed
charted
checked
chronicled
circulated
circumvented
cited
clarified
classified
coded
collaborated
collected
combined
commended
commissioned
communicated
compared
completed
composed
computed
conceived
concentrated
conceptualized
confirmed
consolidated
constructed
consulted
controlled
converted
conveyed
convinced
corresponded
counseled
created
cultivated
customized
cut

D
debated
debugged
decided
decoded
decreased
dedicated

defined
delegated
delineated
delivered
demonstrated
deployed
derived
described
designated
designed
detailed
detected
determined
developed
devised
diagnosed
directed
disbursed
discovered
discussed
dispatched
dispensed
displayed
disposed
disproved
dissected
dissolved
distributed
diversified
divided
doubled

E
earned
eased
edited
educated
effected
elected
elevated
elicited
eliminated
embraced
emphasized
empowered
enabled
ended
enforced
engaged
engineered
enhanced
enlisted
ensured
entered
enticed
equipped
estimated
evaluated
examined
exceeded
executed
exercised
exhibited
expanded
expedited
explained
explored
expressed
extended
extracted

F
facilitated
filled
finalized
financed
finished
fixed
focused
followed
forecasted
forged
formalized
formed
formulated
fortified
forwarded
fostered
founded
framed
fulfilled
funded
furnished
furthered

G
gained
garnered
gathered
gauged
generated
governed
graduated
grasped
greeted
grew
grouped
guided

H
halved
handled
headed
held
helped
honed
hosted

I
identified
ignited
illustrated
implemented
improved
improvised
included
incorporated
increased
indicated
induced
influenced
informed
infused
initiated
innovated
inspected
inspired
installed
instilled
instituted
instructed
insured
integrated
invented
invested
invigorated
invited
involved
isolated
issued
itemized

J
joined
judged
justified

L
launched
learned
lectured
leveraged
licensed
lifted
limited
linked
liquidated
listened
litigated
loaded
located
logged

M
made
maintained
managed
mandated
maneuvered
mapped
marked
marketed
mastered
maximized
measured
mediated
memorized
mentored
merged
minimized
mobilized
moderated
modified
molded
monitored
monopolized
motivated
mounted

N
named
narrated
navigated
negotiated
netted
neutralized
nominated
normalized
notified
nurtured

O
observed
obtained
offered
officiated
operated
optimized
orchestrated
ordered
oriented
originated
outlined
outperformed
overcame
overhauled
oversaw
owned

P
participated
partnered
passed
perceived
perfected
performed
persuaded
pioneered
placed
planned
played
prepared
presented
prioritized
processed
procured
produced
profiled
programmed
progressed
projected
promoted
proposed
protected
proved
provided
publicized
purchased
pursued

Q
quadrupled
qualified
quantified
queried
questioned
quoted

R
raised
rallied
ranked
rated
reached
realigned
realized
rearranged
rebuilt
received
recognized
recommended
reconciled
reconstructed
recorded
recovered
recruited
rectified
redesigned
redirected
reduced
re-engineered
referred
refocused

rehabilitated
registered
regulated
reinforced
reiterated
related
renegotiated
renewed
reorganized
represented
reproduced
requested
researched
reserved
resolved
responded
restored
restructured
retained
retooled
retrieved
returned
revamped
reversed
reviewed
revised
revitalized
revolutionized
rewarded
risked
rotated
routed

S
safeguarded
salvaged
saved
scanned
scheduled
screened
secured
seized
selected
separated
shaped
shared
sharpened
shipped
shortened
showed
signed
simplified
simulated
solved
sourced
sparked
spearheaded
specialized
specified
speculated
spent
sponsored
spurred
staffed
started
steered
stimulated
streamlined
strengthened
stretched
structured
submitted
succeeded
suggested
summarized
supervised
surpassed

T
teamed
tempered
tested
traced
tracked
trained
transformed
transitioned
tripled
troubleshot
turned

U
uncovered
underlined
underscored
undertook
unified
united
updated
upgraded
upheld
utilized

V
validated
valued
vaulted
verified
visualized
volunteered

W
won
worked
wrote

Y
yielded

Resumes – How do I address a gap, contracts/temp work, or re-entering the work force?

AUTHOR: David M. Young

When a potential employer is reviewing your resume, you have to remember that they are screening you in, not screening you out. When people write resumes, they often forget this simple concept. If there is something that you may be concerned about in your resume history, you must be intentional in addressing it as opposed to hoping it goes “un-noticed”. Trust me … whatever it is, it will be noticed.

Some problems that you must address when you write your resume include:

• An employment gap
• Job Hopping
• No Degree
• Concurrent Jobs
• Re-entering the workforce

Employment Gap – So what if you were laid-off, took a leave from employment for personal reasons (sick relative, personal sickness) and were not employed, or just took a long time to find a job? Is this a concern for an employer? Yes. They will wonder why did you not work? Is there an issue in your past? Were you not competent? Did you burn too many bridges? These are all questions an employer might wonder. So if there is a gap in employment, what can you do on your resume? One quick and easy item if it is just for a few months is to use years instead of months on your date of employment for past organizations. You never want to lie on a resume, but if asked about months during an interview, you can then explain briefly…and at this point, you know the employer is interested because they have selected to interview you. If your gap was for an extended period of time, stretching across years for instance, you need to either just leave it on your resume, or, if you did any consulting or related work, include that on your resume. It will show initiative and drive.

“Job Hopping” – Or a bunch of short term projects/contracts? First off, don’t try and explain in the resume. If these are independent consulting projects, then identify them as a single “grouping” of employment. If you have a personal company, you can use that name (i.e. Smith consulting, or John Doe Enterprises.) If not a common company, then group this effort under a single title. Don’t over explain, rather be ready to discuss in an interview. But, if you present appropriately, truthfully, and show the associated skills used, you will create conversation in your favor during an interview.

No Degree – You never finished your degree and it is commonly required in your field. You could address this by not addressing it and not include educational background. But again, never lie. You could show hours achieved towards your degree or hours remaining to earn your degree, but only do this if you plan on completing your degree. Do not list a degree with no explanation if you have not completed the degree. This may be well intentioned, but it is false and you will be perceived as lying on the resume. If not having a degree is keeping you from gaining employment, then it is time to pull up your boots and just get it done. Once you have a degree, it is no longer a concern and often times just having a degree is required, not a specific degree.

Concurrent jobs – You had to work two jobs to make ends meet, or you worked your full time job and were an advisor for another job. If you show these as two simultaneous jobs, an employer may question your loyalty or that you may get distracted. You want them to know you are a hard worker and will be dedicated. If you held two roles for a single employer, then no issue. Just list the employer and then show each job as separate duties. But if for two separate employers, you should either show both roles and give simultaneous dates and be ready to discuss, or if one is a very minor role that never required much time, do not list it. But remember, most importantly, always be honest…don’t change dates.

Reentering the workforce – You stayed home to raise kids, you had an elongated health issue, or something along these lines and it has required you to reenter the workforce after not working for many years. Most importantly, that is fine. It allows an employer to understand what is important to you. Never put “sabbatical” on a resume as it just raises more questions and may lend someone to thinking you are lazy. Rather leave the gap in place. If you did some applicable volunteer work or education while you were out of the workforce, then list that work. You may have handled the PTA budget, you might have managed people as a volunteer, or you may have developed programs that solved problems. Were you involved in fundraising or worked as part of team? Life experiences can be applicable. Note these experiences, but be careful to not water down your resume with experience that is not applicable to your field. Rather list the roles and allow them to speak for themselves (showing you will work hard at whatever you do.) But be comfortable with a gap in your resume. You will be able to address this in a cover letter or through conversation. But, it may still prevent you from getting to the point of having a conversation. Just be ready.

There are so many more issues that can be “red flags” on a resume, but these items discussed above cover most of the main ones. Of course on each specific concern, there is so much more to think about. Google your concern and see what other experts have to say. Then embrace what makes sense and don’t follow advice if it does not make since to you. Your resume is exactly that….YOUR RESUME, and no one else’s.

 

 

Resumes – What not to do…..

AUTHOR: David M. Young

Last week I identified numerous questions that I receive from candidates when we discuss their resume and the job search process. As we dive deeper on resumes, let’s first identify what you should not do on your resume.

 

The Don’ts of resumes!

• Never Lie or “stretch the truth”.   Don’t “tweak” dates or titles on your resume to hide the fact that you have been unemployed, switched jobs frequently, or that you held low-level positions. If a prospective employer conducts a background check and discovers that you lied, you will be eliminated immediately from consideration
• Don’t send a resume that contains miss-spellings. If you cannot take the time to proofread your resume, then you are not going to take the time to do your job well.
• Don’t include reasons why you are no longer at a company. I see resumes that will have an employer name, position title and then “company downsized, company was acquired, division was severed, “laid off”, left for better opportunity, left for career opportunity, spouse moved, etc. People indicate that they are asked why they left a company and to save explanation will include this on the resume. That is what you do not want to do. If this is a question, you want to have the chance to have a discussion. Someone is obviously interested, then that is great as you may get an interview. An objective of a resume is to get an interview. If you answer a question that has not been asked, you might get eliminated without ever having a chance to demonstrate why you are great for the job.
• Don’t include references. References belong at a later stage of the interview process. Have a separate page listing your references that you keep with you and can provide if asked during an interview.
• Don’t leave out the locations of your past jobs (city and state). Employers expect this information but many resumes do not include it.
• Don’t use expressions like “Duties included” or “Responsible for”. This is job description language, not “home run” resume language. It sounds like you understand how to just “get by” and do the job. This language is not what you’ll see on the future organizational leader’s resume that will improve the role and find new ways to do the job.
• Don’t attach extra papers to your resume. This means do not include transcripts, letters of recommendation or awards, or past performance reviews. Yes, I have seen all of these added to a resume. If needed, you will be asked for these at the appropriate time and then you can provide them. Additionally, sometimes confidential information is included on extra papers and you do not know who might see this information or who might be handed your resume.
• Don’t provide personal information. Personal information does not belong on a resume. International resumes may need some of this, but you will know based on the specific organizations instructions and should only include for that specific resume submittal. Information on your marital status, age, race, family, height, age, date of birth, social security number, names of former supervisors, picture of yourself, salary information, or potentially controversial information such as church affiliation or political affiliations should not be provided unless asked and generally is done so on a job application outside of the resume.
• Don’t use justified or centered text blocks; they put inconsistent spaces between words. Make your paragraphs left justified, or “flush left”.
• Don’t highlight skills and job activities that you do not want to do, even if they represent great strength. Why describe how great your typing skills are if you do not want to type. Or why discuss how great you are at PowerPoint presentations if you do not want to present PowerPoint presentations. These are simple examples that provide clarification of this point. Instead, you can note this skill or strength, but spend time discussing your strengths on the roles you want to take on.
• Don’t repeat the same action words throughout your resume. Instead of using the verb “led” over and over (I have seen this recently), pull out the thesaurus and mix in terms like accelerated, established, and reengineered.
• Don’t use more detail than needed to convey your accomplishments. Dense, paragraph sized bulled points are tough to read. A great rule of thumb is to limit each bullet point to one to two lines of text with three to five accomplishments for each position.
• Don’t make your resume a list of your job duties…make it a list of your accomplishments. Integrate your responsibilities into your descriptions of your accomplishments.
• Don’t use clichéd adjectives like dynamic or self-starting. Let the details of your resume convince the employer that you have these qualities.

Yes, this is a long list of don’ts. As you review them, many probably seem like common sense to you. But as I speak with folks who are working on resumes, there seems to always be one or two of the above “don’ts” that they have not thought about, or don’t agree with based purely on always violating this “don’t”. I can explain in much more detail on the above, but just as in a resume I have tried to be as brief and precise as possible while still stating my point.

When writing your resume, always think of your audience. Why do you have a resume? To get a job, and the first step is to get an interview. How does your resume get you an interview? It does this by being a professional, polished, clear, and accurate representation of your work accomplishments and ability.

Resumes – Do I need one?

TITLE: Resumes – Do I need one

AUTHOR: David M. Young

Previously we discussed the “Don’ts” of resumes. This makes the assumption that you have a resume or are writing a resume. With today’s technology, I have been asked if someone needs a resume. Keep in mind, this may come from person who has settled into their career and has not updated their resume in many years or the recent college grad who is very technology savy or social media aware.

The tenured professional asked if they really needed to spend time on a resume because they felt that their extensive network would reveal their next job. They had a copy of their internal organizational resume and had “tweaked” that as their own. But, this person had felt speaking with a recruiter such as myself might be beneficial.

I was asked by a recent college graduate who had created an online version of their brief work history combined utilizing a highly interactive website why I felt I needed a piece of paper. They did not want to hand a person a piece of paper because they knew if someone looked at their site, they would be impressed.

 

Although there may be some merit to both discussions, to compete in today’s professional atmosphere, a resume is a “must have”. Yes, it may be through your network that you will find your next position, or it may be that someone see’s that recent college grads online work and wants to hire them. But even in these instances, most likely, the Human Resources department will require a resume on file. This after thought could still make or break obtaining the position. If it is poor, someone not emotionally involved may step in.

I have also had candidates focus on their “linkedin” profiles. They then will print this as their resume (or even in a newer format). Yes, it is fine to make sure your linked profile and your resume are in sync, but if your resume is a scaled down version of your linkedin profile, a hiring entity may wonder why you have elected to “leave”information out of your resume since in their eyes, the resume is your “master file” that respresents you.

For those not so social media savvy individuals, do not worry. Personal social media pages have not replaced the resume. But, for those who are active on social media, you MUST know what is representing you online. You may think that you have password protected or made private something that may not be in your best interest with a prospective employer. But as technology so rapidly changes, you never know who is in your network, or what tools allow someone to see your every move.

So do you need a resume? YES! At the end of the day, that piece of paper will be placed next to someone else’s resume and you want to make sure that how it represents you will make you stand out. Most likely, it may be next to the resume of a person with exactly the same years of experience and same skills. So you should focus on the details of the resume to make sure you stand out.

Your Resume and the Job Search

AUTHOR: David M. Young

Over the next several weeks, we are going to discuss resumes. This is not a small subject when it pertains to your job search. Your resume is a reflection of you, your work history, and most importantly, what you can bring to the table to add value to your future employer. Even if you are sharing your resume with friends, make sure you have a high bar as your target on presenting yourself. Friends know you and a great resume will Wow them and only serve to increase their desire to be a lead generator in your job search. Of course, in cases where you are giving a resume to someone you don’t know, then they will make judgments on your career, capabilities, and value based purely on the written word in your resume.

So where do we start? As you begin to develop, refine, market, distribute, apply, and present your resume, what are the questions you will uncover?

• Do I need a resume?
• How long should it be?
• What makes my resume stand out if I post it online?
• What do I include and what should I not include?
• What are Power words and are they necessary?
• What is an online resume?
• Should I post my resume on Social Network sites (Linked-In)?
• Is there a difference between my online resume and my “hard copy” resume?
• Does formatting matter in today’s electronic age?
• Is a cover letter necessary?
• Should I put references on my resume…Nobody does?
• What are common miscues on resumes?
• What is a “CV” and is it different from a resume?
• Are there “types” of resumes? (executive, management, general, sales, broad)
• Should I have multiple versions of my resume?
• Does formatting matter?
• Is a professional resume writer worth it?
• How do I address employment gaps during times when I was searching for a job?
• How far back should I go on my resume?
• I’m 60 years old, how can I make sure my age is not an issue?
• Should I have links to my facebook and twitter accounts?
• Should I have a URL (Website) that is my resume?
• Should I have business cards that are generic and have my name and title aspirations?
• Do I need a personal marketing plan?
• Does volunteer work help your resume and should I include it?

 

Resumes can be an exhaustive topic when it comes to your job search. We will cover the above questions and much more. The bottom line, your resume does matter…it is a reflection of your career, so spend time working it and make it count. Stay tuned as we break down the resume….