When job seekers who've never had a problem obtaining a job interview begin experiencing long periods of no recruiter callbacks from their online resume postings or job applications, the natural response is to pursue a resume makeover. While this is a natural response, it may not always be a necessity.
If you've had success in the past with your current resume, what has changed? Most likely your resume has not. Rather, there must be something else that is interfering with your resume's effectiveness in "marketing" you. So, before you begin on the journey of a serious resume-rewrite, take some time to determine if there is anything else that's causing a problem the no response/no callback problem.
In general, there are many reasons why an experienced job seeker does not receive a telephone call for an occupationally specific interview. (I am excluding the calls for interviews that life insurance companies send nearly every job seeker who posts his or her resume on the most popular job boards.) One common reason for a lack of callbacks is excessive job competition.
Having been a job search consultant for over a decade, I've learned that most job seekers do not fully appreciate the level of job competition that exists in today’s job market, engendered by the precipitous adoption of online recruitment, and, more importantly, how this competition changes the resume sourcing or selection behavior of recruiters, which is the ultimate determiner of the effectiveness of a so-called "quality" resume.
What kind of competition am I talking about? 200 applicants is common. 1,300 applicants is possible. (As an aside, when an open position obtains over a 1,000 applicants, this is generally due to the centralized location of the job such that applicants are pulled in from the adjacent states within perhaps a 200 mile radius or the "collar" suburban areas.) When an employer or recruiter receives this many applications, there is NO way she will go through them all!
A couple of things go on with employers when they receive an excessive amount of applicants. If all these resumes are posted in a resume database, they will use a filtering parameter (education, salary history or specific job skill) to filter out a huge amount of applicants. Another option is that they will go through the pile and after identifying perhaps 25 high-quality applicants, they will pass over the remaining applicants. The final option (which I've heard happens in the Federal job sector) is that they will divide all the applicants' resume in three piles and give 3 different hiring managers a stack. Any error in the application package or a grammatical error will get the applicant disqualified.
So, how do you solve this problem?
Avoid the ‘distribution’ solution. Basically, this is the "shot gun" technique where you apply to anything in the hopes one application will hit the mark and get you an interview. The problem is that when there is a lot of job competition, everyone is using this failed technique. It only causes gridlock in the hiring pipe line. In addition, the job seeker has a tendency after getting frustrated to begin applying to jobs he is not fully qualified for. (In one case I know of, the employer got so many unqualified candidates, she set aside the entire stack of resumes and hired an external recruiter to source "qualified candidates.)
Be selective and only apply to jobs you are truly qualified for. That is, if you possess a unique or "desired" skill the employer is seeking, use that skill as your search keyword to find jobs. Now, I'm not referring to everyday skills like MS Excel. Rather, something truly rare such as Ruby-on-Rails or switched mode power supplies or Basecamp. This requires a lot of self-screening on your part. This will result in fewer jobs but by self-screened jobs you will find jobs where you are very competitive for.
Remove the middlemen out of the hiring equation. Take a break from the job boards for awhile. Make a list of twenty-five employers that are (a) local and (b ) you really want to work for because the company has always interested you. Then, go to their websites, search for jobs, post your resume, and set up job alerts on their career sites. Many times jobs will be posted there that are not indexed by a job-ad aggregator or posted on the popular job boards or simply overlooked. This will result in fewer applicants and less competition.
If you indeed have rare skills, and are very experienced, then go to Linkedin or other social recruiting platforms. But only if you have a rare skill. There is a lot of buzz about social recruiting. While it is true that job recruiting is moving to social recruiting, the actual hiring based via social media is still only about 3.5% of all hiring sources and far behind referrals at 28%.
Monday, September 17, 2012
Monday, September 10, 2012
How To Make Your Resume Come Alive With Hiring Appeal
All writings, documents, art, movies, videos, music, architecture are the artifacts of a culture. If an archeologist a thousand years from now dug up (or accessed in a database) the aforementioned artifacts, he would learn a lot about American culture today. In general, what would he learn? America today is a dynamic, creative and innovative culture that is infused with energy, enthusiasm and a desire to excel. If plunking a SUV-sized rover on Mars -- a planet human beings may never really visit-- is not an example of the innovation and search for excellence, I don't know what would be.
Now, if we were to expand the definition of 'cultural artifact' to resumes, what would the typical archeologist of the year 3012 conclude about American culture today in 2012 if he read thousands of them? It's a pretty simple answer to imagine: boring, unimaginative, and unenthusiastic. To the cynical archeologist, he may even think "a decaying culture."
The hypothetical opener to this blog entry is meant to be a humorous segue into into a serious question and topic: Why are so many resumes not read? In other words, if resumes in the resume databases of the large job boards number in the multi-millions, why are so few called for job interviews? The common answer is a lack of training or qualifications. But that answer is too simple and generic. As I will demonstrate later in this entry, the answer lies in the lack of hiring appeal the typical resume today possesses.
If you were to have read as many resumes as I have --perhaps 5,000 over a decade--you would readily see that most resumes "read" the same and are uninteresting. Why? Part of the reason, I suppose, is the common, job-seeker habit of looking for a resume sample on the Internet and imitating it. But that's not the sole reason. Another reason is a lack of resume-writing training. If you suggest to a job seeker that he needs to get more training to be competitive, he will actively pursue more education or an industry certification. But suggest to the job seeker that he needs "job readiness training," and you receive a dumb look or the telling roll of the eyes that suggests, "you don't need any training to look for a job!" Perhaps that's why he is unemployed.
All other reasons aside, the primary reason why resumes are not read or candidates not called is the resume lacks hiring appeal. That is, the resume lacks information that suggests to the recruiter this person is a rare candidate and a great match for the job he is trying to fill. In other words, uninteresting resumes do not get read because they are after thoughts; the job seeker does not understand that a resume is primarily a marketing tool, that is, a personal-product brochure of what he is trying to "sell" to the employer. Boring resumes lack the salesmanship aspect of all job search campaigns.
Here's an example of a resume from a successful, technical salesman with a 20 year track record of achievements. He spends most of his 2-page resume communicating the following career information:
In defense of this job seeker, he does list his special accomplishments (sometimes called "achievements") on his resume. He has won some awards and published some software books. Of course, winning an award in a Business Plan writing contest is nice but if that's all he achieved, then he should be looking for a technical writer job, not a VP of Technical Sales. Having a business plan writing award on a resume and detailing how this award turned into a financed technical start up is something one would expect of a VP of Technical Sales. This is an achievement that could have come alive with hiring appeal had he invested more time in communicating the value he brought to the company, organization or local economy as a result of the award. He did not.
He mentioned at the very last line of his 2-page resume that he "earned 'President Circle' sales awards for my employer most of the years that I worked there." Looking at his resume, he states he worked there for 20 years. He apparently earned many of these sales awards. Yet, it is barely mentioned and he never details what all these awards involved.
To make his resume come alive with hiring appeal, he could have created a section called "President Circle Sales Awards." Then he could have detailed the reason he earned the award for each year. This is how he could have done it:
President Circle Sales Awards
Now, if we were to expand the definition of 'cultural artifact' to resumes, what would the typical archeologist of the year 3012 conclude about American culture today in 2012 if he read thousands of them? It's a pretty simple answer to imagine: boring, unimaginative, and unenthusiastic. To the cynical archeologist, he may even think "a decaying culture."
The hypothetical opener to this blog entry is meant to be a humorous segue into into a serious question and topic: Why are so many resumes not read? In other words, if resumes in the resume databases of the large job boards number in the multi-millions, why are so few called for job interviews? The common answer is a lack of training or qualifications. But that answer is too simple and generic. As I will demonstrate later in this entry, the answer lies in the lack of hiring appeal the typical resume today possesses.
If you were to have read as many resumes as I have --perhaps 5,000 over a decade--you would readily see that most resumes "read" the same and are uninteresting. Why? Part of the reason, I suppose, is the common, job-seeker habit of looking for a resume sample on the Internet and imitating it. But that's not the sole reason. Another reason is a lack of resume-writing training. If you suggest to a job seeker that he needs to get more training to be competitive, he will actively pursue more education or an industry certification. But suggest to the job seeker that he needs "job readiness training," and you receive a dumb look or the telling roll of the eyes that suggests, "you don't need any training to look for a job!" Perhaps that's why he is unemployed.
All other reasons aside, the primary reason why resumes are not read or candidates not called is the resume lacks hiring appeal. That is, the resume lacks information that suggests to the recruiter this person is a rare candidate and a great match for the job he is trying to fill. In other words, uninteresting resumes do not get read because they are after thoughts; the job seeker does not understand that a resume is primarily a marketing tool, that is, a personal-product brochure of what he is trying to "sell" to the employer. Boring resumes lack the salesmanship aspect of all job search campaigns.
Here's an example of a resume from a successful, technical salesman with a 20 year track record of achievements. He spends most of his 2-page resume communicating the following career information:
- identifying potential resellers
- researching target customers in reseller markets and creating contact information
- writing copy for all marketing, product instruction and reseller training material
- training reseller sales and service staff
- making joint sales calls with reseller sales people
- working trade shows, with or without reseller sales people
- creating and promoting workshop
- design marketing campaigns and webinars
- creating new markets for products
- identified software solutions to enhance this product
- wrote 175 page manual on software programs
- developed Windows OS software programs where there are gaps in our software offering
In defense of this job seeker, he does list his special accomplishments (sometimes called "achievements") on his resume. He has won some awards and published some software books. Of course, winning an award in a Business Plan writing contest is nice but if that's all he achieved, then he should be looking for a technical writer job, not a VP of Technical Sales. Having a business plan writing award on a resume and detailing how this award turned into a financed technical start up is something one would expect of a VP of Technical Sales. This is an achievement that could have come alive with hiring appeal had he invested more time in communicating the value he brought to the company, organization or local economy as a result of the award. He did not.
He mentioned at the very last line of his 2-page resume that he "earned 'President Circle' sales awards for my employer most of the years that I worked there." Looking at his resume, he states he worked there for 20 years. He apparently earned many of these sales awards. Yet, it is barely mentioned and he never details what all these awards involved.
To make his resume come alive with hiring appeal, he could have created a section called "President Circle Sales Awards." Then he could have detailed the reason he earned the award for each year. This is how he could have done it:
President Circle Sales Awards
- For expanding the company's market share of technology products in a 3-state region that generated $1.2 million in new sales (2005--2007).
- For building new relationships with the University of Illinois system that resulted in an initial contract for $500K (2003-2004).
- For developing a sales training program for product resellers that resulted in expanding the customer base by 20% (1999-2002).
Tuesday, September 4, 2012
The Impact of a Resume Objective Statement
A quick review of articles, blogs and books on resume writing techniques reveals two philosophies regarding the use of resume objective statements. One philosophy cautions against the use of a resume objective because it limits the potential job opportunities the resume owner could be considered for. The other philosophy recommends the use of a resume objective statement because it assists recruiters who are looking for a job candidate with a specific set of skills and experience.
On the face of the matter, both of these philosophies sound sensible. But when they are considered in the context of the today's job market, which is best described as weak-to-moderate demand and possesses a lot of available talent, a one-size-fits-all philosophy regarding resume objective statements may be unwise. So, let us examine in this piece a resume with three types of objective statements: none, weak and strong. How do these three approaches impact the resume in terms of its ability to attract a busy recruiter in a competitive field of qualified candidates.
No Objective: Resumes written with no objective statement are like college compositions or essays without a theme statement. That is, they are difficult to begin because without a distinct theme, they lack a clear purpose or direction. Without a clear direction, the writer has a tendency to include irrelevant information. Perhaps the most egregious example of irrelevant information included on a resume is marital status. More common types are hobbies or personal biographies. Sometimes this information was included on resume in the distant past when it was common to have a mere handful of job candidates sourced through newspaper ads and the adherence of EEO guidelines was perhaps lax. However, today's generation of recruiters are seeking specific skill sets that match the requirements of a client's job requisition. When there are too many lines of irrelevant information in a resume, it is harder to skim, read or digest rapidly. In other words, the resume has a lot of "static" and has a greater likelihood of being set aside.
Weak Objective: One of the most common objective statements on resumes is written in the general form of "I am seeking a career opportunity where I can use my skills to the benefit of the organization." There are different iterations of this type of objective statement that may include the type of skills or the desire to add new skills as the result of being hired. This type of objective is weak because it is a job seeker centered objective statement, rather than an employer-centered statement. In other words, it is written from the job seeker's viewpoint and in terms of what the job seeker wants from an employer. While most employers like to know at some point in the hiring process what job seekers like to do in order to hire someone who enjoys her/his job, during the sourcing process, most recruiters are attempting to target job candidates who are likely to satisfy the needs of the employer first. A weak objective statement is an improvement over a resume with no objective. At least the job seeker is focused on his/her need to identify or communicate relevant job skills. Hence, this type of resume will not have as serious of an irrelevancy problem as the "no objective" resume. But since it is written from the viewpoint of the job seeker, it will tend to be written as a personal career biography. In other words, it will be a job history document rather than a comprehensive, job marketing document. Since it will be crafted only in terms of what a specific job seeker has experienced, it may lack communicating the full range of capabilities of a job seeker. Compared to other qualified job seekers with either more experience or a more comprehensive delineation of capabilities, the job candidate may risk being passed over.
Strong Objective: This type of objective statement is commonly called the "targeted objective" for a resume that is written for an employer in a specific industry who is seeking a job candidate with a specific skill set or job role experience. A common way to craft this type of objective is "I am seeking a career opportunity as administrative assistant in the financial services industry where computer proficiencies in MS Word, Excel and Access are critical." This statement provides a very detailed portrait of what the job seeker hopes to provide to the employer upon hiring. In this respect, it is an employer-centered objective. It communicates in a direct and confident manner that invites a recruiter to spend more time with the resume. In this way, it is much more of an effective job marketing tool. But the primary impact of the strong objective is that it sets the rhetorical control (theme) of the resume and holds all the resume components together in a cohesive fashion. Each section of the resume -- summary, profile, experience, education -- will be written such that they will support this strong objective. This type of resume can be skimmed very fast and its information is easy to digest. It has a greater likelihood of receiving a callback simply because it is both persuasive and has maximum market differentiation. The common complaint is that the strong objective is much too specific and will prematurely eliminate the job candidate from other open positions. This complaint does not necessarily reflect reality. When a recruiter sees a candidate who really stands out from other candidates, the recruiter is likely to contact the candidate to begin building a relationship.
On the face of the matter, both of these philosophies sound sensible. But when they are considered in the context of the today's job market, which is best described as weak-to-moderate demand and possesses a lot of available talent, a one-size-fits-all philosophy regarding resume objective statements may be unwise. So, let us examine in this piece a resume with three types of objective statements: none, weak and strong. How do these three approaches impact the resume in terms of its ability to attract a busy recruiter in a competitive field of qualified candidates.
No Objective: Resumes written with no objective statement are like college compositions or essays without a theme statement. That is, they are difficult to begin because without a distinct theme, they lack a clear purpose or direction. Without a clear direction, the writer has a tendency to include irrelevant information. Perhaps the most egregious example of irrelevant information included on a resume is marital status. More common types are hobbies or personal biographies. Sometimes this information was included on resume in the distant past when it was common to have a mere handful of job candidates sourced through newspaper ads and the adherence of EEO guidelines was perhaps lax. However, today's generation of recruiters are seeking specific skill sets that match the requirements of a client's job requisition. When there are too many lines of irrelevant information in a resume, it is harder to skim, read or digest rapidly. In other words, the resume has a lot of "static" and has a greater likelihood of being set aside.
Weak Objective: One of the most common objective statements on resumes is written in the general form of "I am seeking a career opportunity where I can use my skills to the benefit of the organization." There are different iterations of this type of objective statement that may include the type of skills or the desire to add new skills as the result of being hired. This type of objective is weak because it is a job seeker centered objective statement, rather than an employer-centered statement. In other words, it is written from the job seeker's viewpoint and in terms of what the job seeker wants from an employer. While most employers like to know at some point in the hiring process what job seekers like to do in order to hire someone who enjoys her/his job, during the sourcing process, most recruiters are attempting to target job candidates who are likely to satisfy the needs of the employer first. A weak objective statement is an improvement over a resume with no objective. At least the job seeker is focused on his/her need to identify or communicate relevant job skills. Hence, this type of resume will not have as serious of an irrelevancy problem as the "no objective" resume. But since it is written from the viewpoint of the job seeker, it will tend to be written as a personal career biography. In other words, it will be a job history document rather than a comprehensive, job marketing document. Since it will be crafted only in terms of what a specific job seeker has experienced, it may lack communicating the full range of capabilities of a job seeker. Compared to other qualified job seekers with either more experience or a more comprehensive delineation of capabilities, the job candidate may risk being passed over.
Strong Objective: This type of objective statement is commonly called the "targeted objective" for a resume that is written for an employer in a specific industry who is seeking a job candidate with a specific skill set or job role experience. A common way to craft this type of objective is "I am seeking a career opportunity as administrative assistant in the financial services industry where computer proficiencies in MS Word, Excel and Access are critical." This statement provides a very detailed portrait of what the job seeker hopes to provide to the employer upon hiring. In this respect, it is an employer-centered objective. It communicates in a direct and confident manner that invites a recruiter to spend more time with the resume. In this way, it is much more of an effective job marketing tool. But the primary impact of the strong objective is that it sets the rhetorical control (theme) of the resume and holds all the resume components together in a cohesive fashion. Each section of the resume -- summary, profile, experience, education -- will be written such that they will support this strong objective. This type of resume can be skimmed very fast and its information is easy to digest. It has a greater likelihood of receiving a callback simply because it is both persuasive and has maximum market differentiation. The common complaint is that the strong objective is much too specific and will prematurely eliminate the job candidate from other open positions. This complaint does not necessarily reflect reality. When a recruiter sees a candidate who really stands out from other candidates, the recruiter is likely to contact the candidate to begin building a relationship.
Thursday, August 30, 2012
The Multi-Dimensioned Resume: A Primer
The success of your resume as a useful job seeking tool depends on its ability to get selected by a resume screener (e.g., recruiter or hiring manager) in a competitive field of candidates. This competitive field has drastically increased not only due to economic conditions, but also from the mass adoption of online recruitment, and its current iteration, social recruiting. To write a resume that can hold up against the competition compels a job candidate to go beyond one's personal career biography (employment history) to produce a multi-dimensioned document that is not only visible in a resume or social database, but is eminently persuasive. While writing a multi-dimensioned resume appears to be a complex task, it isn't if you plan your writing accordingly.
The Foundations of a Multi-Dimensioned Resume
Multi-dimensioned resumes are built on three foundations. They are:
The technical dimension is a rather new phenomenon which, as previously cited, has been driven by the growth of online recruitment and is essentially the sourcing of candidates from resume or social databases hosted on job boards, corporate career sites, or social media venues. To satisfy the requirements of the technical dimension, the resume writer must ensure that the resume information mirrors the database's structure or fields and the type of information contained within the resume will have search terms that correspond to those used by recruiters who search candidate databases.
The persuasion dimension positions the resume to 'rise to the top of the application pile.' This dimension focuses on adding information to the resume, which demonstrates tangible successes that directly impact an organization. Adding these successes to a resume assists the recruiter in gauging how to 'sell' you to the employer. In addition, it gives credence to the high probability that you will positively impact the employer or work team upon hiring.
Writing a Multi-Dimensioned Resume
One can use the three foundations as a 3-draft, structured writing guide for producing this type of resume. Here's how:
Draft 1 (Communication): After assembling all the supporting information to write your resume, begin the writing task using a simple, expository style in the universal format including, objective, career summary, education, employment history, professional development and affiliations. Target the resume’s objective around your preferred job title. Each section of the universal format should support the targeted objective. This will tightly focus the resume’s content thereby increasing its relevancy. The result of this resume draft should a basic resume, which will communicate a job candidate's objective, experience and credentials in a quick skim of 20 seconds or less.
Draft 2 (Technical): Prior to writing this draft, take a few minutes to visit the resume or social database of your choice and review its structure (fields). Now, compare the resume you produced in draft 1 to the fields of the database. If your resume is missing information that is requested in the database, then take some time to add this information. For example, if the database has a skills field, then detail your skills and add them to your resume. Finally, think about the search terms a recruiter would use to find your resume in the database. Add these terms to the appropriate sections of your resume rather than in a separate section. Recruiters place more weight with terms used in context than grouped in a summary section. The result of this resume draft should a detailed resume that has a high level of visibility in a resume or social recruiting database.
Draft 3 (Persuasion): At this point, you have a documented and detailed resume. But, everyone you are competing against has a similar type of resume. In other words, the recruiter who is viewing resumes sees the haystack, not the needle, so to speak. To make your resume stand out, go back to the employment history and review each position. Reflect on what you achieved or accomplished for the organization. Did you improve customer service, productivity, or efficiency? Did you reduce costs? Did you generate more revenues? After reflecting on these elements, write a brief description of each and add them to the resume. If you have more than 10 years of experience, add them to each chronological position's narrative. If you are an early career professional, you can opt for placing these achievements in a discrete section of the resume. The result of this resume draft will be a concisely written, detailed resume that has a high level of visibility in a resume or social recruiting database with maximum market differentiation.
Writing a resume using this writing guide will create a decisive, job seeking tool. You will receive more callbacks or interview inquiries. Since successful job seeking is essentially a numbers game, the more calls you receive, the more interview you will have. This increases the likelihood of obtaining a job offer quickly.
The Foundations of a Multi-Dimensioned Resume
Multi-dimensioned resumes are built on three foundations. They are:
- Communication
- Technical
- Persuasion
The technical dimension is a rather new phenomenon which, as previously cited, has been driven by the growth of online recruitment and is essentially the sourcing of candidates from resume or social databases hosted on job boards, corporate career sites, or social media venues. To satisfy the requirements of the technical dimension, the resume writer must ensure that the resume information mirrors the database's structure or fields and the type of information contained within the resume will have search terms that correspond to those used by recruiters who search candidate databases.
The persuasion dimension positions the resume to 'rise to the top of the application pile.' This dimension focuses on adding information to the resume, which demonstrates tangible successes that directly impact an organization. Adding these successes to a resume assists the recruiter in gauging how to 'sell' you to the employer. In addition, it gives credence to the high probability that you will positively impact the employer or work team upon hiring.
Writing a Multi-Dimensioned Resume
One can use the three foundations as a 3-draft, structured writing guide for producing this type of resume. Here's how:
Draft 1 (Communication): After assembling all the supporting information to write your resume, begin the writing task using a simple, expository style in the universal format including, objective, career summary, education, employment history, professional development and affiliations. Target the resume’s objective around your preferred job title. Each section of the universal format should support the targeted objective. This will tightly focus the resume’s content thereby increasing its relevancy. The result of this resume draft should a basic resume, which will communicate a job candidate's objective, experience and credentials in a quick skim of 20 seconds or less.
Draft 2 (Technical): Prior to writing this draft, take a few minutes to visit the resume or social database of your choice and review its structure (fields). Now, compare the resume you produced in draft 1 to the fields of the database. If your resume is missing information that is requested in the database, then take some time to add this information. For example, if the database has a skills field, then detail your skills and add them to your resume. Finally, think about the search terms a recruiter would use to find your resume in the database. Add these terms to the appropriate sections of your resume rather than in a separate section. Recruiters place more weight with terms used in context than grouped in a summary section. The result of this resume draft should a detailed resume that has a high level of visibility in a resume or social recruiting database.
Draft 3 (Persuasion): At this point, you have a documented and detailed resume. But, everyone you are competing against has a similar type of resume. In other words, the recruiter who is viewing resumes sees the haystack, not the needle, so to speak. To make your resume stand out, go back to the employment history and review each position. Reflect on what you achieved or accomplished for the organization. Did you improve customer service, productivity, or efficiency? Did you reduce costs? Did you generate more revenues? After reflecting on these elements, write a brief description of each and add them to the resume. If you have more than 10 years of experience, add them to each chronological position's narrative. If you are an early career professional, you can opt for placing these achievements in a discrete section of the resume. The result of this resume draft will be a concisely written, detailed resume that has a high level of visibility in a resume or social recruiting database with maximum market differentiation.
Writing a resume using this writing guide will create a decisive, job seeking tool. You will receive more callbacks or interview inquiries. Since successful job seeking is essentially a numbers game, the more calls you receive, the more interview you will have. This increases the likelihood of obtaining a job offer quickly.
Saturday, June 30, 2012
Best Sites for Creating An Online Resume
According to the U.S Bureau of Statistics, the unemployment rate as at April 2012 was 8.1%. Although it is an improvement on the 10% figure of October 2009 (the highest since June 1983), it is still far above the heady days of May 2007 when it was at just 4.4%. In a nutshell, employment is still hard to find so those of you looking for jobs need to create a killer online resume. This is also the case for people currently employed but looking to either move up the ladder in their existing industry or change to another one completely.
Online resume sites claim to help jobseekers by helping them create a portfolio of work and a job history rich in detail. They allow individuals to create far more impressive resumes than the traditional paper equivalent as the site can be improved by adding different colors, templates and fonts. But what are the very best online resume sites? Which websites enable you to stand out and grab that much needed job? We look at three of the best below.
Visualise.Me
This online resume website enables you to create infographics which look fantastic on a page and makes a nice change from the traditional bland contents of a resume. There is no download required and it takes about five minutes to create an account and begin building your resume. The array of graphics, colors and other options are so dazzling that you may just want to add a link to it from your website rather than sending them to LinkedIn! The layout is quite simple and offers plenty of room for your skills, education and work experience with many more options, none of which needs more than a handful of clicks to utilize. The main downside is that employers are still looking for traditional resumes but Visualise.Me is a fantastic change from the norm.
ResumUP
This is yet another online resume site that goes a different route. Again, you can take your data and make a startling presentation out of it using charts, graphs and more. The site’s main strength could arguably be perceived as its main weakness however. When you log in for the first time, you are greeted by a resume that can be customized to suit your needs. The only problem is that there are almost too many options. There are so many things happening at once that it can be confusing. However, once you sort this out, you will love ResumUP as you can show your profile on social networking sites like Facebook and include your work details in a unique format.
About.Me
This is far less ostentatious than the other online resume sites mentioned but this site uses this relative simplicity to its advantage. All you really need on this site is a nice background picture and text. The layout tools on the site are extremely easy to use and can be utilized to create a fantastic profile. You can even choose what to share with people who visit your page. Therefore, you can ignore Facebook and concentrate on LinkedIn and Google+ if you’re only interested in attracting potential employers. When a visitor clicks on these links, the content pops up which is very clever. All in all, this is an excellent resume online site and you can put everything together in a matter of minutes.
There are dozens of other online resume sites worth using. Do some research to find out the site that suits your needs best and start creating your website resume today.
Online resume sites claim to help jobseekers by helping them create a portfolio of work and a job history rich in detail. They allow individuals to create far more impressive resumes than the traditional paper equivalent as the site can be improved by adding different colors, templates and fonts. But what are the very best online resume sites? Which websites enable you to stand out and grab that much needed job? We look at three of the best below.
Visualise.Me
This online resume website enables you to create infographics which look fantastic on a page and makes a nice change from the traditional bland contents of a resume. There is no download required and it takes about five minutes to create an account and begin building your resume. The array of graphics, colors and other options are so dazzling that you may just want to add a link to it from your website rather than sending them to LinkedIn! The layout is quite simple and offers plenty of room for your skills, education and work experience with many more options, none of which needs more than a handful of clicks to utilize. The main downside is that employers are still looking for traditional resumes but Visualise.Me is a fantastic change from the norm.
ResumUP
This is yet another online resume site that goes a different route. Again, you can take your data and make a startling presentation out of it using charts, graphs and more. The site’s main strength could arguably be perceived as its main weakness however. When you log in for the first time, you are greeted by a resume that can be customized to suit your needs. The only problem is that there are almost too many options. There are so many things happening at once that it can be confusing. However, once you sort this out, you will love ResumUP as you can show your profile on social networking sites like Facebook and include your work details in a unique format.
About.Me
This is far less ostentatious than the other online resume sites mentioned but this site uses this relative simplicity to its advantage. All you really need on this site is a nice background picture and text. The layout tools on the site are extremely easy to use and can be utilized to create a fantastic profile. You can even choose what to share with people who visit your page. Therefore, you can ignore Facebook and concentrate on LinkedIn and Google+ if you’re only interested in attracting potential employers. When a visitor clicks on these links, the content pops up which is very clever. All in all, this is an excellent resume online site and you can put everything together in a matter of minutes.
There are dozens of other online resume sites worth using. Do some research to find out the site that suits your needs best and start creating your website resume today.
Wednesday, June 20, 2012
Do Resume Blasting, Resume Distribution Services Work?
It’s important to note that resume blasting and resume posting is not the same thing. Resume posting involves a site sending your resume to the top resume services such as Monster and Career Builder. There are services that post your resume to over 50 career sites. They will provide you with login information for each site and allow you to update your resume as and when you see fit. Resume blasting on the other hand involves sending your resume to hundreds or even thousands of recruiters and employers. Many of these services send resumes to companies with jobs you’re not even qualified for though the best sites target suitable employers.
Pros
The most obvious benefit of resume blasting and resume distribution services is the fact that your resume is sent to potentially thousands of employers and recruiters. It is also rather inexpensive on the face of it with many services performing the necessary steps for less than $100. Most services will also send your cover letter with a handful of different ‘disciplines’ targeted. If you were to post the resumes to individual sites yourself, it would take several days of constant work. With resume blasting services, you can sit back and relax as thousands of resumes are sent in no time. As such a huge number of resumes are sent, it’s almost certain that you’ll receive replies.
Cons
You need to ask yourself if it really is inexpensive and good value for money. It’s normal for the response rate to be in the region of 0.5%. So if you sent 3,000 resumes for $100 and received 15 replies, that’s $6.66 a reply. Bear in mind that resume website services such as Monster are free to use.
Your resume probably won’t even be read by a huge percentage of recipients. These companies receive junk mail all the time and are likely to see your resume as just another unwanted burden. When you send resumes yourself to individual companies, you do so in the knowledge that they are looking for employees. With resume blasting, your resume is being sent to thousands of companies who many not even be looking for staff at this time. This could damage your chances of getting a job with these businesses in the future.
Overall
When you use resume blasting, you’re not sending applications that are tailor made for 99.9% of the jobs you will be applying for. The low response rate suggests that this is really a case of throwing mud to the wall and hoping that some sticks. Resume website services such as 4Jobs.com are a much better bet as you can filter job openings yourself and tailor your resume to each specific vacancy thus improving the response rate. The best way to get a job is by building relationships so start networking as well as using resume services. The more people you know in your chosen industry, the more likely it is that someone will inform you of a job opening that is not known by 99% of people. Resume blasting may have some success but it’s relatively limited.
Pros
The most obvious benefit of resume blasting and resume distribution services is the fact that your resume is sent to potentially thousands of employers and recruiters. It is also rather inexpensive on the face of it with many services performing the necessary steps for less than $100. Most services will also send your cover letter with a handful of different ‘disciplines’ targeted. If you were to post the resumes to individual sites yourself, it would take several days of constant work. With resume blasting services, you can sit back and relax as thousands of resumes are sent in no time. As such a huge number of resumes are sent, it’s almost certain that you’ll receive replies.
Cons
You need to ask yourself if it really is inexpensive and good value for money. It’s normal for the response rate to be in the region of 0.5%. So if you sent 3,000 resumes for $100 and received 15 replies, that’s $6.66 a reply. Bear in mind that resume website services such as Monster are free to use.
Your resume probably won’t even be read by a huge percentage of recipients. These companies receive junk mail all the time and are likely to see your resume as just another unwanted burden. When you send resumes yourself to individual companies, you do so in the knowledge that they are looking for employees. With resume blasting, your resume is being sent to thousands of companies who many not even be looking for staff at this time. This could damage your chances of getting a job with these businesses in the future.
Overall
When you use resume blasting, you’re not sending applications that are tailor made for 99.9% of the jobs you will be applying for. The low response rate suggests that this is really a case of throwing mud to the wall and hoping that some sticks. Resume website services such as 4Jobs.com are a much better bet as you can filter job openings yourself and tailor your resume to each specific vacancy thus improving the response rate. The best way to get a job is by building relationships so start networking as well as using resume services. The more people you know in your chosen industry, the more likely it is that someone will inform you of a job opening that is not known by 99% of people. Resume blasting may have some success but it’s relatively limited.
Saturday, June 16, 2012
Top 3 Job Search Sites
A job search engine is a massive aid to both employer and employee. Employees can seek jobs best suited to their abilities while employers can find exceptionally talented individuals to help take their company forward. Traditional methods of job advertising such as newspaper classified are being replaced by resume website services. The power of the internet ensures that more job openings than ever are being posted online. Instead of waiting months for the right job, ideal openings could come along on a daily basis. Below are the top 3 job search websites. This award is based on the ease of use, number of visitors, features and other criteria.
3 - Career Builder
As far as employers are concerned, Career Builder supplies free screening questions for companies, helps businesses reach candidates located within 30 miles of the posted job location and allow the organization unlimited edits on each posting for a whole month. The resume search engine page provides immediate access to the resumes of the most suitable candidates.
Job seekers can post resumes and look for jobs with international jobs also listed. Posting a resume is free and each job can be filtered according to location, keywords, experience and whether it’s full-time or part-time. Career Builder also provides job seekers with a resume writing service which is extremely useful.
2 - 4Jobs.com
This is a site custom built for the needs of employers. Services for the employer include a free corporate career site, free job postings to this site, resume submission tracking and the receipt of targeted resumes for free. With 4Jobs.com, you can post/remove a job in minutes, market to an estimated 25 million professionals via email and enjoy center stage with a company spotlight.
As well as the basic resume services, 4Jobs.com is filled with an incredible number of articles and information about employment for job seekers. Like Career Builder, there are filters which enable you to narrow down your search from thousands of jobs to a handful that meet your specific criteria. Tools for prospective employees include continuing education, background checks, featured resumes, career advice articles, certifications and much more. Once you register with the site, you receive a free Salary Finder report which allows you to discover your current market value when compared to professionals of similar skills and experience.
1 - Monster
This is known as the granddaddy of resume website services with employers having access to over 17 million adults in the United States per month. Employers can attract targeted local traffic to job listings, create screening questions and browse resumes within a 100 mile radius with the site’s patented 6Sense search technology which makes it easy to prioritize and compare candidates.
Job seekers can look through jobs in 25 different categories and over 50 industries. The level of content contained within the site is impressive with advice ranging from finding jobs to overall career guidance. It’s possible to quickly post your resume on the site and with Monster’s unique service, you’re very likely to receive interviews provided you have optimized your resume with the requisite keywords as employers will find you on their resume search.
These are the top 3 job search services but there are dozens more that could help you either find the ideal candidate or the job of your dreams. We advise you to post your resume/job on as many sites as possible for best results.
3 - Career Builder
As far as employers are concerned, Career Builder supplies free screening questions for companies, helps businesses reach candidates located within 30 miles of the posted job location and allow the organization unlimited edits on each posting for a whole month. The resume search engine page provides immediate access to the resumes of the most suitable candidates.
Job seekers can post resumes and look for jobs with international jobs also listed. Posting a resume is free and each job can be filtered according to location, keywords, experience and whether it’s full-time or part-time. Career Builder also provides job seekers with a resume writing service which is extremely useful.
2 - 4Jobs.com
This is a site custom built for the needs of employers. Services for the employer include a free corporate career site, free job postings to this site, resume submission tracking and the receipt of targeted resumes for free. With 4Jobs.com, you can post/remove a job in minutes, market to an estimated 25 million professionals via email and enjoy center stage with a company spotlight.
As well as the basic resume services, 4Jobs.com is filled with an incredible number of articles and information about employment for job seekers. Like Career Builder, there are filters which enable you to narrow down your search from thousands of jobs to a handful that meet your specific criteria. Tools for prospective employees include continuing education, background checks, featured resumes, career advice articles, certifications and much more. Once you register with the site, you receive a free Salary Finder report which allows you to discover your current market value when compared to professionals of similar skills and experience.
1 - Monster
This is known as the granddaddy of resume website services with employers having access to over 17 million adults in the United States per month. Employers can attract targeted local traffic to job listings, create screening questions and browse resumes within a 100 mile radius with the site’s patented 6Sense search technology which makes it easy to prioritize and compare candidates.
Job seekers can look through jobs in 25 different categories and over 50 industries. The level of content contained within the site is impressive with advice ranging from finding jobs to overall career guidance. It’s possible to quickly post your resume on the site and with Monster’s unique service, you’re very likely to receive interviews provided you have optimized your resume with the requisite keywords as employers will find you on their resume search.
These are the top 3 job search services but there are dozens more that could help you either find the ideal candidate or the job of your dreams. We advise you to post your resume/job on as many sites as possible for best results.
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