Recently in Resumes Category

On Tuesday December 8th at 1pm, my students at SUNY Delhi at SCCC in Schenectady will be debating hot issues in human resources.  

Another recurring theme from the Saratoga Job Fair was speaking with applicants of selling their personality, their role as a great teammate, and adaptability and flexibility to the situation.

While many applicants brought similar skill sets, the ones who impressed me the most were the ones who focused on selling how well they got along with others, and were able to express that well both to me and in their resume.

In a world where many people are applying for the same or similar jobs, selling you as a brand or as a good ambassador of the companies you work for can be the difference between a job offer and a thanks but no thanks.

I reviewed several resumes this week at the Saratoga Job Fair, and a recurring theme that came up was whether or not to include self-employment on a resume.  A couple candidates had 2-5 year gaps since their last position, and when I asked them why, they said they had been working for themselves on various projects.

I explained how it certainly is valuable to show that you are doing something during gaps in employment.   When I left retail in 2005, even before I left, I founded my consulting business.  This left no gap of employment and allowed me to showcase all the small to large projects I have been working on since then.   Even if some of the opportunities didn't work out, showing the drive to strike out and to fill the gaps with productive activity can make the difference between a job offer and continued unemployment or underemployment

Q:  My friend's father is interested in having me join his company as an intern.  I have been interested in his company for a long time, and known him for a long time as well.  How do I approach the application process?

A:  I'd approach it with the same professionalism as you would with any other process; send him your resume, address him formally, and proceed through the process as would any other candidate.  This will demonstrate to the employer that you are not just applying because you know him, but because you really enjoy the company despite the relationship to him.

Your teachers, your peers, even your boss has their opinion on what belongs in a resume.  Would you like another set of eyes?

Q:  Should I put an objective on my resume ?

A:  Depending on who you speak with, you will get a different answer.  To me, an objective OF a resume is more important than the objective ON the resume.  

Are you looking for a job in your current field?  Focus on your accomplishments within that field and make subsidiary any other work you have done.

Are you looking for a job outside your current field?  Focus on your SKA's (skills, knowledge and abilities) that transcend a particular field of study

Are you a student seeking your first job? Focus on leadership roles and the coursework you have taken at school.

I find the objective ON the resume to be somewhat intrusive and not well thought out by most.  If you lay out your resume properly, it indicates to the reader what your goal is, based on the three questions above, or others you may be trying to get across.

If you are going to use the objective ON the resume, be sure to be succinct and clear of what your objective is.

Examples

- Seeking a front desk management position at a resort larger than the one I currently work at.
- Seeking a management position in Dallas, TX so I may accompany my spouse who is being relocated (this will help identify you as a soon to be local who may be living elsewhere).

Share your examples of good objectives at robert@galaconcierge.com

Q: I recently submitted a resume for a position as Director of Innovation for a hospitality industry company. I had prepared an "innovative" cover letter presentation but was unable to get it attached through their website process. I posted my resume through the website but also sent a hard copy with the cover letter presentation Express Mail.
 
I received a call the next day from an HR recruiter that she had received my resume through the web site and would send it on to the hiring manager. I asked did she receive the hard copy; "yes but it's against policy, so I won't be able to pass that on." I explained my inability to get it attached through the website and given this was a creative position I was applying for, I felt compelled to go a bit beyond the norm.  The cover letter consisted of a cover letter and a two page attachement. In the end she agreed to submit the letter without the attachment. But without the two additional pages, the cover letter on it's own is not likely to have the same impact.

A:   I am saddenned to hear a company looking for someone innovative isn't innovative in their hiring practices!

Unfortunately in many situations, people are "hiding behind rules and regulations" in the immortal words of Leonard McCoy.  Certainly, I can understand a company not wanting to be bombarded by extraneous paperwork, but in your case it seems like a simple request yet they turned into a problem.

Smart HR departments now ask for more than just a resume; many ask for a portfolio of work, links to references, and in some cases links to social networks you belong to so they can see consistency as well as how you market yourself.

Certainly in positions like the one you speak of, a sheet of paper may be good enough to vet away poor matches, but what really helps the company in the end make one person stick out from another?

There are so many resources out there where one can post job openings and calls for resumes, but there still are ineffective employee searches going on on both sides of the fence.  Employers are posting very often too late in the search process, or posting openings too often.

After the disappointment of not getting the job I flew in for, I attended what I called "the career fair to end all career fairs".  I had saved up about 6 weeks of vacation pay to support me from my departure from Florida on September 10th 2000 until whenever I landed something permanent.  I had a goal of starting a new job within three weeks.

I stopped over for a couple days in CT on my way to Boston, and decided to plan out some career fairs and locations I'd like to work as I was preparing myself for beginning school the following fall.   One fair had about 5 companies I was interested in and others that seemed worth exploring.

In my back pocket I knew I had the vacation pay to wait on, as well as some guaranteed temporary work at the store I managed during my college years in the event nothing turned up right away.

I went to the career fair about 7 days after my last day at Disney.   What I walked away with was 3 job offers, links with new companies I had never considered before, and many choices that led me to a decision that helped me get the sales experience I never had before.   But there were a few hiccups along the way...

When it comes to business, sometimes,  "shaving our head and starting over" means throwing out old practices completely and starting fresh with something knew.

I was asked last week what was the meanest thing I ever said to someone.

A few years ago, someone new I had met about 5 minutes earlier said "I'm not sure what I should do with my hair."  I told her "Maybe you should shave your head and start over."  My friends were aghast, but she actually said "Yeah, maybe that's not such a bad idea."

Whether it is restarting your website, changing your orientation program, or changing your hiring strategies, putting a fresh look on things may require getting rid of any type of material related to your old way of looking at things.  The same thing can be applied to redoing your resume or looking at ways to search for work in the first place.

Sometimes, we have our "head shaved" when somebody ends up deleting files, losing information, or because circumstances require a total shift from the old way of doing things.  This could present for you a unique opportunity to give a fresh outlook to your ways of operating.

Share with me stories of "Shaving your head and starting over" at robert@galaconcierge.com