Tuesday, November 15th, 2011
Seeking employment at any age and in a poor economy will be daunting to most. Add in the worry about being too seasoned and you may wonder if you have a chance.
You do. What employers want is quite simple:
1. An employee that requires little to no training
2. Someone who works well with others and fits easily into the company structure
3. An achiever rather than an individual who just puts in his/her time
Experienced professionals can easily meet the above ‘wish list’. However, to wow an employer it’s important to structure your resume in a certain manner to showcase what you can offer.
Begin with an opening summary that proves you are the ideal candidate for the position. Dovetail all that you know to what the employer needs. Add one, preferably two, recent/relevant/quantified accomplishments.
Follow that section with even more accomplishments. Most candidates won’t do that. So you’re already well ahead of the pack. Make certain that you add dollar figures of cost savings or earnings, time periods in which the achievement took place and how you managed to excel. Tell a story.
Your professional experience comes next. Don’t make the mistake of listing every job from college on. Go back no further than 15 years (10 for someone in IT). You’ll avoid age discrimination that way. Again, focus on the results of what you did rather than tasks. There are many individuals who can do the same job. There aren’t as many who can make the company money or save it money.
End with your education. If you’re 50 or older it’s best to leave off dates of graduation. Again, you don’t want to invite age discrimination. You want to compel the hiring manager to offer you an interview.
It isn’t always age that keeps a candidate from succeeding. It’s not knowing what to showcase in a resume or how to organize the document.
Keep the above tips in mind and you’ll stand out from the rest.
Tuesday, November 8th, 2011
If you have to think about the answer too long, or if you’re satisfied with a flip response such as: “A great employee” without providing any supporting data to your statement, then you’re in trouble.
More and more companies are demanding that their employees prove their worth. It’s not enough to simply come in on time, engage in the tasks in your job description, then go home, especially if you’re in a contracting industry or your company is downsizing.
To be retained in this poor economy, you need to show your employer that you are invaluable. And if the worst happens and you’re laid off or your employer goes out of business, then you must market yourself to another company as being their only choice in a new hire.
How do you do this?
At your current job, keep updating your resume with all of your accomplishments (those activities in which you have either made your company money or saved it money). An up-to-date, polished resume will be invaluable should a promotion come available or if staff is going to be cut and your job is on the line.
If you’re looking for new employment, updating your resume is even more essential. Hiring managers and recruiters don’t know who you are and they won’t believe blanket statements like “I’m great at what I do”, “I’ll be an asset at your firm”. They want proof.
The only way to provide that proof is to again showcase what you’ve done at previous jobs. Make your resume accomplishment-focused rather than task-focused. There may be hundreds of other individuals who can do what you do on the job. But there’s only a few that will excel, proving they will grow a company, adding to its success.
From the first day of any job, you should be looking five years down the road to what you want next and how you intend to succeed. During that time, you should do all that you can to make certain your employer sees you as an asset rather than a liability.
Keep a running record of what you’ve achieved. That running record is a resume. Make certain it’s always updated, always ready for the new job search.
The kind of employee you should be is one that everyone wants. All you have to do is prove it.
Tuesday, October 18th, 2011
Many jobseekers today are constantly reinventing themselves in order to stay afloat in our poor economy. For some, that means returning to a previous career when their current industry is downsizing.
While that can be a great move in terms of job prospects, it does present a challenge in updating your resume.
Let’s say for example that you’re in retail management and have been for the past 15 years. However, before you were in retail you were an accountant for 5 years. Given the state of the economy, you see that there are more accounting than retail jobs available and you decide to go for it.
You create your reverse chronological resume (latest job first) and send it out, knowing you’ll be called in to interview. Days pass, then weeks without one call.
You can’t figure out what you did wrong. You’re a seasoned professional. You have the requisite accounting experience. It’s all there near the bottom of page two on your resume. Didn’t the hiring managers see it?
Probably not.
Hiring managers are very busy. They scan opening summaries and then the most recent work experience. They see that you’ve been involved in retail management, so they move on to find someone with accounting experience. They never bothered to get to the second page of your resume, because they don’t have time to search for important data.
How do you overcome this problem?
Rather than writing a reverse chronological resume, consider a combo type format. It’s a combination of a functional resume and a reverse chronological resume, and is popular with those in career transition.
After your opening summary – in which you state clearly that you have 5 years of accounting experience – you would have a section titled “Relevant Experience” - here, you would list what you know about accounting in subsections. They might be titled: AP/AR, reconciliations, payroll, etc.
Following that section, you would have a section titled “Professional Accounting Experience” – this would be listed in a reverse chronological order detailing your accounting career. Following it would be a section you’d call “Other Experience” – here you would list your retail management experience. However, you wouldn’t detail it as much as your accounting tasks.
By showcasing your accounting experience first, you’re providing the hiring manager instant access to the data s/he needs to make an informed decision about your candidacy. You’re not forcing the individual to search for the data. Trust me, most won’t. They’ll simply move on to the next candidate.
Whatever path you’re taking in your career, it’s wise to remember to dovetail and highlight your skills as they relate to the job you’re targeting.
Tuesday, October 11th, 2011
Many in today’s job market have had to reinvent themselves in order to apply for positions in growth industries such as healthcare.
Perhaps you had your start in sales or accounting but are now looking for a position in a new field. What do you showcase on your resume when your past experience is in a completely different industry?
1. First and foremost, place your Education and Training in the new field above Professional Experience rather than below it. Be certain that you include coursework studied in your new field. Did you receive an internship in it? Include that. Was your GPA 3.5 or higher? Be certain you state that on your resume. Were you involved in any special projects that prove you excelled in this new field? List details of that in the Education section.
2. Include only those tasks and accomplishments in your Professional Experience that will dovetail toward your new goal. If you were a whiz with details in your accounting career, play that up if you’re moving into healthcare, IT or any other field that requires meticulous attention to detail. Although the career paths are different, how you handled daily stats, etc. will prove to a hiring manager that you’ll be equally responsible in your new position.
3. Never state in your resume or cover letter that you have no experience in the new field. That’s opening with a negative rather than a positive. Play up what you do know, what you have done/accomplished and how it translates well to the new field. Highlight your education and training in the new industry. Play to your strengths, not your weaknesses.
Moving from one industry/career to another is never easy. However, you can prove to the hiring manager that you have what it takes in the new field if you organize your resume according to what the new company needs and your ability to accomplish it.
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