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Do You Need a Resume in the LinkedIn Era?

Wednesday, March 29th, 2017

Now that LinkedIn (alongside numerous other online portals) has become the standard place to present your professional history and credentials — not to mention the fastest way to check somebody else’s — the humble resume has lost its once-hallowed position as the canonical version of your professional identity. Your LinkedIn profile should be the most-viewed and most current version of your professional life. But that has many people asking: Do I even need an old-fashioned resume anymore?

The answer is a highly qualified, but definite, “yes”.

The Value of LinkedIn

In the past, resumes have served several functions:

  1. Applying for a job: When you’re applying for an advertised position, you almost certainly need to submit a resume as part of the application process.
  2. Job hunting: Even if you’re not applying for a specific job, you may still use a resume as part of your search process, as a way of introducing yourself to people who may be interested in your skills.
  3. Professional credentialing: Resumes act as a way of establishing your professional credentials in many circumstances, like grant applications, requests for proposals, and conference or speaker submissions.
  4. Professional memory: Your resume is your own professional memory. Keeping it up-to-date is a way of ensuring you don’t forget the professional accomplishments or qualifications you may want to highlight during your next job hunt.

In the world of LinkedIn, blogs, and professional landing pages (a.k.a. “nameplate” sites), however, most of these functions can be better accomplished through your online presence. If you are job hunting, send people to your LinkedIn page instead of sending a PDF of your resume. (Unlike a resume, a solid LinkedIn profile includes not only your self-proclaimed qualifications, but testimonials from colleagues, clients, and employers.) If you need to establish your professional credentials, sending someone a link to your LinkedIn page will often be the most efficient way to convey your relevant experience. And for maintaining a professional memory, LinkedIn is unbeatable, precisely because it’s easy to update, and because you’re likely visiting the site on a regular basis.

To serve any of these purposes, however, your LinkedIn presence must be well-crafted and up-to-date. Even if you aren’t sending people to your LinkedIn page, it is likely to be one of the first results for anyone who Googles you to find out about your professional qualifications and experience. That’s why you need to ensure it’s accurate, compelling, and current; unless you’re updating your LinkedIn profile monthly or at least quarterly, you’re not putting your best foot forward. Setting up a memorable short URL for your LinkedIn profile, and including that URL in your email signature line, is a good way to remind yourself that this is something people are going to look at regularly.

Blogs, Websites, and Landing Pages

For all its merit, LinkedIn has limitations: you have to fit your career story into its structure, and you have only minimal control over formatting. That’s why many professionals use their own blog, personal website, or professional landing page to craft a more strategic online presence. For many professionals, the best bet is to maintain several presences, customized to different purposes, so that you can point people to the presence that is relevant to each specific scenario. For example, you might maintain:

  • A speaking profile: Professionals who do a lot of speaking or conference submissions would do well to create a specialized presence on a speaker directory like ExpertFile (formerly Speakerfile), a nameplate site like about.me, or even on Slideshare.
  • A services profile: If you offer services as a independent contractor, whether that’s as a web developer, a designer, a coach or an accountant, setting up a landing page for your contract work can be an efficient place to point potential clients.
  • An author profile: If you have a book, blog, or publication file, you will want to profile yourself for readers or future writing assignments with an author page on Amazon, a writing marketplace like MediaBistro, or a web presence for your book.

Why You Still Need a Resume

When you are actually applying for a job, however, neither LinkedIn nor a professional landing page can replace the resume. A strong resume is still the gateway to an interview, and with more and more employers relying on Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) — software that screens resumes to determine which applications warrant human review — you need a resume that you can upload to those systems. Nor can it be the same resume for every application; since an ATS typically screens for specific qualifications and keywords, you need to customize your resume for each job (or type of job) that you apply for, and optimize it for ATS screenings.

If anything, though, LinkedIn will be helpful at least as a reminder for keeping your resume as updated as possible. The standard wisdom — treat your resume as a living document that you update anytime you have a new accomplishment to record — applies to LinkedIn as well, and the two should be kept updated in parallel.

Technology and social media have transformed our daily lives in innumerable ways, with networking and job searching being just two areas where we regularly experience this constant change. But there are still ways in which the old-fashioned, the tried-and-true, remain relevant, and such it is with the humble resume. Don’t count it out yet.

Good luck!

Do You Need a Résumé in the LinkedIn Era? | Alexandra Samuel via Harvard Business Review.

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Crafting a “Tailored” Resume

Thursday, September 15th, 2016

Since the advent of modern computers, the job application process has certainly become more complicated than it once was. These days, instead of a typed letter of intent sent along with your resume via snail mail, to be screened by an HR clerk perhaps on the other end, you now have Application Tracking Software, massive job board application systems, and “shot-in-the-dark” emailing to hiring managers, all of which has made your job search a hundred times easier and a million times harder than it ever was before.

Imagine the postage and time necessary for each application in the past… now, it’s just a few button pushes and your resume is carried along automatically to the hiring company… to be trapped in an email spam folder, or discarded by an ATS robot for something as simple as using “online content” instead of “digital content”.

You’re also certain of getting into a much bigger pile of applications than ever before, as the ease of applying means dozens, if not hundreds, of totally unqualified people send along their resume as if it’s nothing, for just the merest possibility of an interview, or out of shear desperation, making it easier and easier for your resume to get lost in the shuffle of human and robot eyes.

So, it’s now become common to hear the advice “tailor your resume” to get around these obstacles. If you tailor your resume to a particular company and role, the choir says, it will have a much better chance of sneaking through the filtering of robots and a greater likelihood of being noticed by tired HR clerks, which in turn increases its chance of eventually being seen by hiring managers and the real decision makers.

The instructions are clear: no more stock and bog-standard resumes. Now, you’re making the suit fit the wearer. Certainly a lot more work than before.

encrypted_resume

But a major question remains: how do you craft a tailored resume?

Here are a few quick expert tips to get you started:

Actually Read and Try to Understand the Job You’re Applying For

First things first: Sit down with a highlighter and really read the job description. Go through and highlight the points that seem important (think the ones that are mentioned repeatedly or anything that’s slightly out of the ordinary) and the points that you could speak to with your particular experience and skills.

This is always step one—after all, you can’t tailor your resume for a position if you don’t really know what the gig entails.

Make Your First Point Immediately Relevant

Next, with your newfound knowledge of what the hiring manager is looking for, take your resume, find the experience that would make him or her most excited about your application, and rework the document so that’s what’s at the top. Maybe it’s your current position, or maybe it’s some specialized certifications or the freelance work you do on the side. Whatever it is, make it the first section of your resume.

And yes, even if it’s not the most recent. There’s no rule that says your first section must be “Work Experience.” Tailoring your resume means finding what is most relevant, creating a section for it, and filling it up with experience or qualifications that will catch a hiring manager’s eye. If that means nixing “Work Experience,” creating a “Marketing and Social Media Experience” section, then throwing everything else in an “Additional Experience” section, then so be it.

resume

Revamp Your Bullets Even for Less Relevant Experiences

Now that your relevant experiences are at the top of your resume, that doesn’t mean you should ignore everything else. Nope, it just means you need to pull out the relevant bits of those experiences in your bullets.

From the job description, you’ll likely find more than just the technical qualifications needed to complete the job. Strong communication skills, ability to work in a team, and other soft skills are probably listed as well. So, while your tutoring experience might not be directly related to the sales position you’re interested in, you can definitely still highlight some of the soft skills that both positions require.

Check to See if It’s Clear Why You Are Applying

Finally, your last quick assessment to make sure you’ve successfully tailored your resume is to see if someone else—like a friend or mentor—can explain why you’re interested in the position just based on reading your resume. If your friend can’t suss out why you’re applying or how you’re a good fit, then more tailoring is likely needed.

This largely used to be the role of the cover letter, and many companies and hiring managers still appreciate receiving these, but because of the shear number of applications they will likely be reading through, you can’t rely on them ever reading or even seeing it… so you’ll need to factor this into the resume itself as well.

Of course, sometimes there’s only so much you can do. If you’re making a big career change and you just don’t have the relevant experience, then no amount of tweaking bullets can spell that out. In this case — and only in this case, I might add — you may actually want to use an objective statement to properly explain your interest in the position.

Tailoring your resume, especially if you’re applying for a lot of positions, certainly isn’t the most exciting or enjoyable part of applying for a job, but it’s definitely one of the most important these days. After all, regardless of media reports to the contrary, the resume is not a “dead” document and is still essential… and it’s the document that decides what first impression you make. It might take a little extra work, but it’s worth it to be that much more memorable.

Good luck!

What it Really Means to “Tailor Your Resume” | Lily Zhang via The Muse

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How Long Is Too Long for a Resume?

Wednesday, August 3rd, 2016

The age-old question, that afflicts new college graduates, senior executives, and foreign applicants alike: how long should my resume be?

The dynamics of the question have changed significantly in the last few years, as online application and electronic resumes have become the norm.

The problem with the question is that it’s not framed properly. For people who prefer certainty, the real answer is disappointing: it depends.

In some cases, a long resume will do you no favors but in other cases, being too brief will cripple your chances.

Let’s look at some times when it pays to be brief:

long resume

  • Online Applications: When you’re submitting your resume to a company website or online job board (which is generally not the best way of approaching a company or job, though probably the most frequent), it pays to know your audience: the machine. ATS machines are fickle, easily confused entities, so it pays to keep format and length to standard when dealing with them, lest they spit you out with asterisks and hissing.

    And since your resume, in this case, will be stacked on top of myriad others being submitted via the same portal, getting your foot in the door would be better served by being brief, concise, and neat.

  • Human Resources: The bane of the modern corporate world (unfairly, to some extent), the HR professionals set to watch the outer walls of each corporate citadel are frequently overworked and tasked with sorting through thousands of resumes for jobs that they may or may not understand (and likely have never done), in order to meet metrics that may have nothing to do with department needs.

    In that environment, anything out of the ordinary regarding your resume (typos, excessive length, improper formatting, too many exclamation points) is likely to send it into the black hole instantly.

  • College Graduates: Someone just out of school will probably have a shorter resume, naturally, and one page tends to be the standard for college graduates or entry-level professionals.

    While it might seem like a good idea to dredge up every job you’ve ever done back to fry cook at McDonald’s, searching for those oh-so-relevant “cross-functional” and “intangible” skills, or adding all of your personal interests, if it ends up padding your resume beyond one page, it’s probably better to leave it off, especially if it’s not strictly related to the position for which you are applying.

There are plenty of times, however, when an expanded resume will come in handy:

stickynote

  • Hiring Managers: Once you’ve managed to get past the gatekeepers and your resume into the hands of the person you will likely be working under, they will probably want to see something far more extensive than just a one-page summary. Since at this stage, they aren’t sorting through a stack of 1000s of resumes, it will be coming down to a choice between just a few candidates, and having those extra details could make all the difference in being chosen for the position.

    If a Tax Director, for example, knows the department will be needing someone with FAS 109 experience, but of course HR didn’t include that in the job description, and you’ve got it on your resume, even though it may have seemed a minor thing, that could be what seals the deal.

  • Recruiters: Recruiters are a strange breed and very needy. If you’ve worked with them for any length of time, you’ll likely find yourself filling out dozens of forms and templates and being sent sample resumes to “update your resume”, probably with very little in the way of guidelines besides “make it more like this.”

    But since they are working directly with Hiring Managers on many occasions, they will probably not be interested in short resumes either, since all the details you provide could be what determines whether you’re selected for an interview (and whether they get the commission).

  • Referrals: If you have a former colleague, manager, or friend who can get you the inside track on a new role, it pays to have something more detailed at the ready, since it’s going to be read directly by the person responsible for hiring.

  • Format: In addition to situations where the person you are sending the resume to makes a difference, there also comes a point when you just can’t fit it on 1-2 pages anymore. A few lines just seem to fill out onto the next page, no matter how precise you are, leaving a big empty white space at the end.

    And no one wants to read tiny 8-point font with the margins shrunk almost to the page borders… and the game of decreasing font-size and zooming in Word might seem like a good idea until the person on the other end tries to import into an ATS system or print it.

    So in that case, a longer, fuller resume would be preferable to an empty white page, something important cut out, or formatting tricks.

  • Career Length: Obviously, the further in your career you are, especially if you’ve worked at many jobs and at many companies over the years, the longer your resume will be. A finance executive would have almost no space left for anything but titles if he restricted his resume to one or even two pages.

So what’s the bottom line? You’ll probably need a short and a long version of your resume, depending on who you’re sending it to and at what point in the process you are.

There may never be a need for a CV style, exhaustive treatise on your entire professional history back to your paper route and yard work and the articles you wrote for your high school journalism class, but it would pay to have an extended version with more details available just in case a recruiter or hiring manager wanted to see more before an interview, after the screening process matured to a later phase.

That one extra line could make all the difference.

Good Luck!

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4 Easy Steps For Creating A Targeted Resume

Wednesday, March 16th, 2016

Targeted resumes (customized resumes) get interviews and get jobs. Would you use the same resume to apply for both a teaching position and an office job? You’d better not if you want a decent shot at getting an interview.

A customized resume is one that is tailored to a specific job. You’d start with your resume template and strategically customize it to feature the skills and accomplishments that best match the typical job description for the job you want (or, even better, to a specific job you are applying for).

Why Custom Tailor A Resume At All?

Why? Because many companies don’t immediately read your resume anymore. Instead, they file it with the other 700 resumes they received and feed it through a computer filter called an Applicant Tracking System, which only looks for ‘keywords.’ This system excludes resumes that don’t contain keywords matching the job posting and spits out the resumes of applicants whose resume language closely matches the job skills required.

Think You Can Game the System?

ATS technology is getting smarter every day – keywords in a block of text dumped into the resume at the end will be ignored. The filters look for ‘context.’ That is, these filters want to see those keywords used with and near other relevant words. In other words, the system cannot be gamed.

Also, real, live people still read many resumes – and they are open to being impressed and persuaded. A good resume makes the employer want to hire you based on your resume – that’s the reason they call you in for an interview (to make sure you are as impressive in person).

The Process

First, you’ll start with your original resume, which has the information universal across all potential targeted resumes you’ll create (contact info, work experience, education, etc.). Next, you’ll convert that master resume into a targeted resume:

1. Copy Keywords From Job Descriptions

Read the job description (noting the position title) then copy the whole thing into a separate document. Do a search for six other job descriptions that use the same title (search the web or an online job site). Copy these entirely into the same separate document.

Finally, you can opt to check the free US Department of Labor Statistics’ free download, the “Occupational Outlook Handbook” since it happens to contain common job descriptions for US occupations that you can use in your job description collection (copy and paste the relevant job description to your list).

2. Determine Which Keywords Make The Most Appearances

These job descriptions contain words in common – KEYWORDS, words relating to THREE categories:

  • Education
  • Experience
  • Skills/Certifications

You are going to create a “tag cloud,” also known as a “word cloud,” using any online tag cloud generator (TagCrowd.com or Wordle.net work very well). These word clouds make the most commonly used words in the descriptions leap off the page. You will know exactly what skills, experience, and position titles are demanded by the position. Copy a list of the TOP 10-20 keywords that relate to the job you want in this situation.

3. Add The Keywords To Your Resume

Take the experience, credentials, and education identified by the tag clouds and include them in your resume. Input the Job Title in your template, then in the Summary section at the top of your resume you should include keyword transferable skills that relate to this role.

4. Capture The Keywords In Your Accomplishment Statements

Write your accomplishment statements to capture some of the keywords. This is what makes you the perfect candidate for this job! These statements should reflect skills that are your strengths and only skills that you want to use again. Be sure to repeat each skill listed in the Summary section in the section discussing your work history so that there is emphasis on your specialty in that area.

That’s it! Just make sure you are writing for real people in spite of the potential of ATS screening.

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6 Job Search Facts That’ll Make You Rethink How You’re Applying

Wednesday, December 9th, 2015

You’ve made up your mind: It’s time for a career change. If only applying for jobs were as easy as making that decision.

The job search process can be confusing and intimidating, to say the least. But the good news is that there are some little-known facts that can actually clear up a lot of that confusion and make the process a little more approachable.

So, check these out—they just might make a big difference in your next search:

1. Most Jobs Are A Secret

OK, they’re not a secret, per se, but 80% of jobs never get posted and are only found through networking.

Which means, scouring the web is not enough. It works great for seeing what’s out there, but for all those other jobs, you’ll need to talk to other humans.

So, make sure to supplement your online research with real-world activities. As a first step, map out who you know. You can start by creating a list of former co-workers, classmates, teammates and more. Then, reach out to friends and acquaintances for informal advice and to learn more about their roles.

Take some time crafting your message:

Weak: “Hey, I noticed you have an open job at your company. Can you help me?”

Strong: “Hi, I’m really interested in exploring different ways to grow my career and enhance my learning. I’d love to learn more about your experiences.”

2. Knowing Someone On The Inside Can Get You Hired

Maybe the job you’re looking for is posted online, but that doesn’t mean you should keep your interest to yourself. With so many applicants, more and more companies rely on the networks of their existing employees. Especially because companies want to hire people who “get it” and who’ll click with the current staff.

Here’s the thing: Only 7% of job applicants get an employee referral, yet referrals account for 40% of all hires! So, basically, having someone put in a good word will give you a serious leg up on the competition. Luckily, asking is easier than you think.

3. Recruiters Don’t Really Read Your Resume

Well, they do, but they don’t. Recruiters spend, on average, six seconds reviewing your resume. Translation: A resume alone won’t get you a job, but a bad one can ruin your chances.

So, you need to make it as user-friendly as possible. Include relevant experience, keep it to one page and whatever you do, don’t forget to run spell check. A quick scan might not capture all of your awesomeness, but it will catch any glaring errors that will send your application right to the trash bin.

4. Hundreds Of People Are Applying For The Same Job

Did you know that a typical corporate job posting will attract 250 resumes on average? With this in mind, you might want to think twice before just throwing your resume in with the other 249 again and again. I know, that number’s scary. But it’s a good reminder of why you do need to tailor your application and put in that extra energy.

So, the first thing to do before you submit any applications is make sure you really want this position. Because if you don’t, you won’t be motivated enough to do what it takes to stand out. (Or you’ll burn out spending hours applying to jobs you don’t actually want.)

5. The Job Search Drags On (For Everyone)

On average, it takes about 52 days to fill a job opening. In other words, this won’t be a fast process. And that’s something to keep in mind when you see an opening that looks amazing. It’s better to take a few days to submit the perfect application than it is to fire off your materials right away without customizing them at all.

It’s also something to remember when you’re waiting to hear back after an interview. While “having patience” is easier said than done, it’s certainly key.

6. Your Embarrassing Email Address Will Disqualify You

Hey, hotstuff12345@hotmail.com, unfortunately you and your friend Ih8work@aol.com, will fall into the group of 76% of resumes that are thrown out simply because your email addresses were unprofessional. I know that seems like an unbelievably high number, but the good news is, it should cut down on the competition from the 249 applying to the same job as you!

Please, please don’t be the person to use your email from middle school. And don’t overlook less obvious things—like if your email address is “engineersteve@yourdomainename.com” and you’re trying to land a job in a completely new field.

It’s easy to get discouraged during your job search, but knowledge is power. Hopefully these facts will motivate you to switch up your process and land that job you deserve.

Original from the Daily Muse

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4 Resume Tricks That Will Definitely Backfire

Thursday, February 26th, 2015

Bad job search advice. It’s everywhere.

Don’t shoot the messenger (even though he’s also a purveyor of job search advice).

It’s everywhere for a number of reasons, including:

  • Those delivering it often have a bias that affects the nature of the counsel (e.g., spouses, parents, BFFs).
  • There are no licenses or certifications that career coaches are required to carry (which results in a mixed bag of talent in the world of “experts”).
  • Textbook advice—the kind that many of us have the most ready access to during our formative years—can be severely old school (or worse).

Unfortunately, if you don’t use care in choosing trusted sources for job search advice, you may run into resume advice that teaches you how to “trick” the applicant tracking system (ATS) or hiring managers. I’m not here to say that there are no effective “resume tricks,” but there are a few that could very well backfire on you.

Here are four of them.

1. “Borrowing” Entire Phrases Right out of the Job Description

Yes, yes, yes: You absolutely should study the job description for each job you plan to pursue, and you should mirror some of the keywords that describe the skills and qualifications on your resume. You should not, however, lift entire sentences or text blocks from that job description. This will put you on the express train from solid on-paper match to shyster who’s trying too hard.

2. Thinking a Functional Resume Will Serve as the Perfect Disguise

It’s so common for job seekers with career gaps to use the old “hide the gaps with a functional resume” trick that, every time I see one, I just assume there’s going to be a gap. And then I set out to find it. Functional resumes are almost never the right solution. Not only can it be difficult for an ATS to read and parse a functional resume into the electronic database, it also screams “I am hiding something!” Better to use a hybrid resume with a strong summary at the top of the page followed by career history (with details) in reverse chronological order.

3. Listing Completed College Coursework as a Degree

Oh, have I seen heartbreaks with this one. Among them, a job seeker who was about to be hired by one of my recruiting clients—a global manufacturing firm—for a field engineering role. He actually didn’t need the degree as a requirement for this job, but he still felt it necessary to list a bachelor’s degree on his resume. Unfortunately (for him, me, and the hiring manager, who loved the guy), he was a few credits short of having that degree. This little nugget of information came out when the firm’s HR department did a standard degree verification. He did not get the job.

It doesn’t matter if you’re 20 or two credits away from earning the degree. If you didn’t finish it, you need to state “Coursework completed toward __,” not “Have degree.”

4. Fudging Dates (and Then Having Different Dates on Your Application)

Let’s face it. Sometimes it’s just easier to say that the job you stormed out on last July actually ended in November. Smooth over that gap, right?

Wrong. Fudging dates is not only called lying, it’s an easy way to land yourself in hot water with decision makers, especially if you accidentally list out different dates on the official job application. You can certainly strategize if you need to de-emphasize time gaps (for instance, use years instead of months and years), but fudging dates can be a true recipe for disaster.

Without a doubt, it can be confusing, overwhelming, and downright mind-numbing trying to figure out how to set up a resume that snags attention and positions you to sail through the hiring process. As you consider the “tricks,” always keep in mind that some are clearly better than others.

(Avoid these.)

Original from Forbes

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Resume Trends for 2015 and Beyond

Thursday, January 8th, 2015

Resume writing is constantly shifting and changing. Although resumes are only one part of the job search journey, they are still a vital requirement in every job seeker’s toolbox. Compile a resume incorrectly and you could find yourself being overlooked by employers and losing out on opportunities to advance your career.

Yet it can be challenging to know what is trending as ‘current and savvy’ in resume writing versus ‘old-fashioned and obsolete’. In order to increase resume success you need to keep abreast of evolving advances. Here’s some quick advice for the upcoming year.

Resume Trends for 2015:

  • Brevity and more concise content are growing in importance. Even more targeted positioning, messaging, and branding are required to market one’s self. Resumes need easy-to-follow and easily digestible points.
  • Short branding statements are replacing lengthier resume profiles.
  • As ATS (Applicant Tracking Systems) continue to advance, so does the need for compatible resume formats. Job seekers must use the appropriate resume format when applying for online positions.
  • Employers spend the majority of time reviewing the most recent role in a resume, so these roles must captivate and pack a lot of immediate punch.
  • With the changing economy it is becoming more common to see short-term contract, multiple part-time roles, or diverse industry experience in a resume. The key is presenting varied work history in a relevant format that still aligns with targeted job requirements.
  • Infographic and video resumes are gaining momentum. When used correctly, for the right industries, these visual resumes can help job seekers stand out.
  • Integrating the right keywords in a resume increases the chances of the document being read – either electronically or by an actual person.
  • Overuse or misuse of keywords is cautioned. Only add keywords to a resume in proper context, supporting them with examples of application and impact.
  • If content is king in a resume; design is queen (for non-ATS applications). Spend equal amounts of time on content AND format. Employ savvy design components to attract attention, make certain elements stand out and, guide the reader through the document.
  • Modern resumes commonly contain hints of color, unique section headers, different fonts, italics, decorative lines, charts, images, testimonials, or boxed text to capture and keep the reader’s eye.
  • Finally, remember that resumes are career story-telling and not career obituaries. Avoid generic tasks or boring job overviews and focus on results, achievements, and accomplishments. Always demonstrate value.

Original from Career Impressions

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Improve Your Job Application ROI

Thursday, April 24th, 2014

Before you hit the “apply” button, make sure the application is worth your time.

Many job seekers are frustrated over the lack of response from employers. This phenomenon is commonly referred to as the “Black Hole,” and leaves most job seekers discouraged with no updates on their application’s status and no feedback to help improve their future applications.


While you can’t control the recruiter’s actions, there are things you can do to combat the Black Hole and improve your application’s return-on-investment.

Take more time

A recent eye-tracking study found that the average job seeker only spends about a minute reviewing a job description before deciding if it’s worth an application. Let’s face it – applying to jobs can be a very tedious and time-consuming process, especially when each application is properly tailored. With that in mind, I encourage you to take a few extra minutes before you apply to carefully read the job description and assess the application’s potential ROI.

Consider the location

Are you within commutable distance of this opportunity? Or if you’re in sales, do you have an established book of business in this area? If the position requires relocation, let employers know in your cover letter that there’s a good reason for the move. In other words, make it clear you didn’t make this decision on a whim and that you’re not an expensive flight risk.

Focus on responsibilities & requirements

Read the responsibilities and requirements sections of the job description carefully – what skill sets, education level and years of experience do they require? While the employer probably doesn’t expect you to have every single qualification, they do expect you to meet all the core “must-have” requirements. Only apply to jobs where you possess these must-haves. Remember, job titles often carry different meanings depending on the organization and its industry, so the responsibilities and requirements are a better indication of the level of the role (and its budgeted salary).

Identify the industry

Have you worked in the same or a very similar industry within the past 3-6 years? Not every position requires industry-specific experience; however, possessing this background is often more attractive to employers. If you don’t have relevant industry experience, be ready to highlight your transferable skills in your resume and cover letter. If you’re looking for a change, research your former colleagues to see where else their experience was accepted.

Tailor your applications

Edit your resume and cover letter so that your job goals and qualifications are obvious. Incorporate key terms from your targeted job’s requirements into your resume to make it past the electronic gatekeeper. Test your application’s readability by handing it over to a friend with a copy of the job description. If your friend has trouble identifying your qualifications, then you know it’s not clear enough. If you need help, seek out a resume expert.

Check your network

Map out your personal and professional network so you can easily research connections between your contacts. Before you apply to a job, check to see if you know anyone who currently works at the company and seek their endorsement. Studies have shown you are ten times more likely to land an interview when your application is accompanied by an employee referral.

Original from TheLadders

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What’s In and What’s Out for Résumés in 2014

Friday, February 7th, 2014

On “Project Runway,” Heidi Klum often declares, “One day you’re in, the next day you’re out.” While she’s referring to fashion, the cyclical nature of trends extends to résumés and job-search tactics as well. And if your résumé style is out in 2014, you may well be out, too.

To make sure you’re keeping up with the trends and away from major résumé disasters, check out what’s in and what’s out in 2014.

IN: Keywords that match job descriptions
Many employers use applicant tracking systems to screen résumés and generate a short list of candidates. To ensure that your résumé makes it through the ATS, try greater research into the position and employer to identify a higher percentage of the employer’s keywords associated with specific positions, then creatively embed them in the application and résumé.

OUT: Listing your daily tasks as experience
Instead of using valuable space to tell employers about your basic responsibilities at previous jobs, use the section they’re most likely to pay attention to for impressive feats and stand-out accomplishments. Include quantified, employer-focused accomplishments listed in bullet point under each work experience. For example, “With team of 12 telemarketers, achieved 131 percent of productivity objectives, with a customer positive rating of 98.2 percent.”

IN: Creating and using multiple drafts and formats
Just as no two jobs are the same, no two résumés should be the same. Boyer suggests creating multiple drafts and formats for different roles, to make it through different application mediums and screening tools. Create multiple résumés, customized for each position, in both .txt and .doc formats to allow for use in online applications and ATS‘s (.txt), and for traditional printed copies and PDF emailing (.doc).

OUT: Including an objective statement
Replace the outdated ‘objective statement’ and include a summary of your qualifications at the top of your résumé. This swap offers a more personal look at you and what you could bring to the job. This should be three to five sentences long and should be tailored specifically for the job you are applying for. Be straight to the point, and market yourself as the ideal person for the job. Be compelling and concise, using this section to paint a picture of your characteristics, experience and achievements.

IN: Pointing employers to your online presence
While you only get so much room on an application or résumé, there’s likely much more you’d like to share with prospective employers. The best way to do this? Include your LinkedIn URL. First, if you haven’t already, you should create a LinkedIn profile, as LinkedIn profile URLs are becoming standard to put on your résumé. A LinkedIn profile will allow prospective employers the opportunity to learn more about your skills and better assess your qualifications. Make sure to fully develop your profile prior to listing your URL and align your résumé’s goal with your profile, so both are telling the same story.

OUT: “References available upon request”
Similar to the objective statement, including references or “references available upon request” is a waste of valuable résumé real estate and just repeats the obvious. ‘References available upon request’ was great in 1955. Not so much now. What are you going to say — ‘References not available upon request’? Instead, expand other sections that need the space. Create an “Additional relevant information” section, where you can list your skills, languages, training, certifications, and technologies that are immediately relevant to the desired targets.

Original from MSN

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Application Tracking Software – Brings Out the Robot in You

Thursday, March 7th, 2013

Job seeking is challenging and often leads to frustration. Professionals browse for the right jobs, keep an eye out for profile fits, and send in their resume expectantly but often do not receive a response, any response, from the myriad of job boards they apply to. The main reason that your resume may not be soliciting a response is because it is being read first by companies’ Application Tracking Software (ATS), which is promptly filtering your resume into oblivion before human eyes ever see it.

ATS is a software application that enables the electronic handling of applications according to a predetermined search criteria based on keywords or other qualifications. To get a response for your resume, it is important to understand that resume design is as important as resume content. In fact, for online applications, it is even more important than the content, as most times it is the ATS which will scan the application first and not the recruiter and may discard it for trivial or technical reasons.



Meet Your New Robotic Hiring Manager

So what can be done to ensure that the ATS picks your resume and passes it along instead of junking it? Here are some simple rules to follow that will maximize your success when dealing with the “robots”:

  • Generic resumes do not work well with an ATS system. Your resume must utilize words from the job description or it will be declined immediately. This means that each time you apply for a job, you need to “tweak“ your resume to match what the job is looking for, using its terminology (even if you utilize slightly different wording at your current role).
  • Avoid images, shading, graphics, special effects, arrows, and any other special characters. Stick to simple text and numbers on the resume (and you can’t go wrong with bullet points). Use of images just confuses the ATS and it may reject your resume as a result. And if you are attaching a photo of yourself, that’s a big HR no-no in the first place, as it can lead to all sorts of hiring discrimination and bias issues.
  • For your resume, only use standard fonts like Arial, Georgia, Calibri, or similar that are commonly used on the web and easy to read. Use Word format, not PDF!
  • Always include a carefully worded professional summary, which should also incorporate important keywords from the job description.
  • Use spell check on your resume. Words that are not recognized in standard dictionaries will not be picked up by the software so proofread your resume as well. Where use of acronyms is necessary, ensure that the explanation is provided alongside to maximize search fit percentages.
  • Don’t ignore designations, titles, and relevant certifications. They attract attention and are likely to be keywords in the ATS.
  • Contact information should always be at the top so the recruiter knows where to reach you once the ATS has chosen your resume to be short listed. It is now common to have more than one page in a resume but it is important to ensure that the first page of the resume has all the contact details and keywords in case the second page is misplaced.

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