Recruiters screen your resume in less than 10 seconds for a few very simple reasons. Do you know the top 5 reasons why a recruiter will toss your resume into the circular file after a quick glance? Are you making simple mistakes and errors that consistently get your resume thrown into the trash? Learn how to overcome those resume mistakes that are preventing you from being interviewed. In this radio program, Brad and Barry dissect, discuss, and recommend improvements to overcome the most common resume mistakes and errors that permit recruiters to read your resume in less than 10 seconds
You can read a complete and very detailed article on this topic.CLICK HERE
To download or listen to this recording CLICK HERE, then scroll down to the recording.
There are two types of resume key word searches. It is my opinion after having spoken with hundreds or maybe thousands of candidates that the vast majority focus on the wrong type. The result is they rarely get a call back.
The two types of resume key word searches are (starting with in my opinion the least important):
1) The automated key word search. The most commonly thought of when most people think of key word searches. It is used by resume management systems. This is the type used by most job boards like Monster and Careerbuilder.
Although these play an important role, for the most part they play a much smaller role than most think. Granted for those screening resumes using the resume databases on one of the job boards, the key word search is important. But how many hiring managers, HR execs, CEOs actually spend a lot of time doing this? I have asked hundreds of these and very few claim they even use the resume databases. They are just too expensive. Most just run an ad and wait for the responses. Third party recruiters and those companies that can afford on-site recruiters will spend time searching the databases, however, this is a small percentage.
The majority of hiring is not done by large or Fortune 500 companies. Iit is done by the mid and small size companies. The fact is most mid and small size companies can’t afford a sophisticated resume management system. This then eliminates the importance of the automated key word search in the vast majority of hiring.
It is for this reason, coupled with the fact that most hiring managers don’t spend hours sorting resumes on the job boards, that I believe this is the least important of the two.
The hands down most important resume key word search is done 100% of the time by every CEO, HR person, hiring manager or recruiter. This is why it is so important. Yet, most candidates show complete surprise when in our coaching session I mention it.
2) The human eye key word search. This is done with the eyes of the person scanning your resume. That person is looking for key words or phrases to jump off the page. They want their eyes to latch on to these as they move down the page. Most have trained their eyes to be on the lookout for these key words.
This is the key word search candidates should focus on. Yet so many candidates have a generic, one-size-fits-all resume that the key words are either missing, buried so deep in a paragraph or are mentioned only once on page two of the resume, the key words or phrases are never noticed.
Here are a few suggestions to get past the human eye key word search.
Do you:
1) have the key words or phrases embedded multiple times in the body of the resume. Not just at the top of your resume.
2) have quantifiable results associated with your accomplishments. Don’t write out numbers. Actual numbers stand out more to the eye.
3) have the key words or phrases listed under multiple positions or companies.
4) have these words or phrases at the beginning of the sentence or bullet point so the eye catches them. We read left to right. Don’t bury them in a long paragraph where it is hard for the eye to catch.
5) have them aligned with the advertisement or job description.
6) have them listed in your cover letter. You can download a sample cover letter for free that will show you how to do this. CLICK HERE to download.
7) have them re-enforced in your thank you letter. You can download for free a sample thank you letter that will show you how to do this. CLICK HERE to get yours.
These are just a few things you can do to get past the most important key word search – the person reading your resume.
In summary, if you do all the things necessary to get past the human key word search, I firmly believe you will by default have the proper key words to get past the automated search.
For more information on building a resume that will get noticed and get you the call back, take a look at our job search workbook. It provides solutions to the most common mistakes candidates make during a job search. Like this one. We will send it to you for just the cost of shipping ($5 USA only). CLICK HERE to learn more.
Join our Linkedin Job Search Networking group. Over 4200 people have. There is a wealth of articles and other resources for you in this group. CLICK HERE to join.
Here comes another basketball metaphor about your job search.
A few nights ago, my Varsity HS Girls Basketball Team played in the first round of the State Playoffs. In our section we were ranked 6th out of 32 teams. We played a team ranked 24 and almost lost.
Why? It should have been an easy win – a no-brainer.
At playoff time, teams change – they go from being conservative, playing careful, doing the same old thing, and usually playing within their capability. At playoff time, lower ranked teams hike it up to whole other level. They play with complete abandon – and give it a 110%.
What do the lower ranked teams have to lose? If they don’t win, their season ends right now. And if they can pull off one more win – they get to come back and play another game. Many upsets occur, because lower ranked teams fight as hard as they ever fought, they do everything they can to influence the outcome, and they leave nothing on the table.
If you asked the team last night that lost to us in the last 5 minutes of the game if they had any regrets – if any of the players felt they had not played as hard as they could – and the answer would be an overwhelming “I gave it everything I could”.
When asked that question, our higher ranked girls would have said there was a lot they could have done and they were disappointed in their performance since they didn’t “work hard enough”. They were coasting on their high ranking, thinking their past track record could speak for itself.
Are you guilty of this dysfunctional thinking in your job search?
If you ask most candidates that question about their job search, I would predict that most candidates would have significant regrets about their commitment, energy, and intensity regarding their job search.
Most candidates are not willing to “go beyond the call of duty” in their job search.
Most candidates could not claim that they have “outworked their peers” in their job search.
Most candidates are just doing the same thing over and over (Benjamin Franklin’s Definition of Insanity).
No wonder the typical executive/senior management job search is now significantly over 6 months. Here are some questions to ponder about your job search:
What are you doing in your job search that your peers are unwilling to do?
What are doing this week that represents a high level of energy, commitment, and intensity in your job search than last week?
How would you quantify the effort and intensity of your job search?
Shouldn’t you be treating your job search like it’s play-off time and it’s the last 5 minutes of what could be the last game of the season or your entire career?
Are you going beyond the call of duty in your job search?
What could you be doing differently that would represent a higher level of commitment, energy, and intensity?
This is just a small list of the hundreds of things you could be doing in your job search to reduce the time it takes to find a great opportunity. Most of your peers are unwilling to invest the time to do these job search best practices. Are you willing be to do what it takes to win – to go beyond what most of your peers do in their job search – or would you rather coast in the middle of the pack?
No longer is a simple 2 page resume enough to capture interest.
It’s boring.
It’s mundane.
It’s ineffective at fully telling your story (especially if you missed the last dozen or so blog posts that Brad and I wrote about putting together a good resume and cover letter – cycle back and read some of the posts first).
Along comes the explosion of social media/social networking and like magic – instant resume booster shot.
So, if social media/social networking is so darn powerful, why are so few executive and managerial job seekers NOT using it effectively?
Let’s zero in on one specific tool – LinkedIn.
LinkedIn could be a panacea for job seekers. First, almost all recruiters, HR people, and hiring managers are doing two things when they see a resume that is a potential match for their open position – they Google your name and they search for you on LinkedIn.
Personally, I go to LinkedIn first.
As a Retained Executive Recruiter, I want more information about you.
I can’t get enough.
I’m insatiable when it comes to learning about who you are even before I pick up the phone and talk to you.
I’m trying to leverage my time, and this discovery process is far quicker than wasting time on the telephone.
I want the kind of depth of who you are that I cannot glean from your resume and cover letter.
This approach to researching job seekers is becoming more common.
Don’t be the one who misses the train.
You’ve now read about it in almost every business publication, heard from the experts, read about it on blogs such as this one, and your mother last week pointed out the growing importance of building your profile on-line when she saw the segment on the CBS evening news.
Unless your resume literally “blows me away”, I need more information to decide if I want to talk with you about one of my open executive searches. By the way, I might come across one resume every quarter that “blows me away”. Most just fade into the woodwork with their “bland” approach. I want your information to leap off my computer screen, smack me in the forehead, and scream at me that I would be an idiot not to want to learn more about you by immediately pick up the phone to talk with you.
Don’t fall victim to being “vanilla”
Don’t fade into the woodwork.
Some might call me lazy – I prefer to think of myself as highly effective at leveraging myself in time management. This process of quickly discovering whether you’re worthy of a phone call from me as recruiter – by matching your resume with your LinkedIn Profile has probably boosted my productivity by a factor of 2X-3X. I’m now able to spend time on the phone and in-person with the right candidate.
In the next few blog posts, we’ll re-visit how to specifically leverage LinkedIn as a Job Seeker to give your resume a booster shot in the arm. If you’re not effectively using LinkedIn as a resume enhancement tool, shame on you. If you’re not even on LinkedIn and you’re a manager or executive – sorry – but the train has left the station without you!
Here’s a suggestion I would like to toss our to our readers: In preparation for the next blog article in this series titled – “Job Search Marketing 101 – Your LinkedIn Profile Heading”, I would encourage you to complete our one page scorecard for assessing the effectiveness of your LinkedIn Profile for Job Search.
Thousands have used this FREE tool to dramatically give their paper resume an on-line booster shot in the arm. Now armed with your self-assessment of your LinkedIn Profile, you’ll be well prepared as we dive deeply into the various components of leveraging LinkedIn to create a powerful online personal brand for yourself, a powerful magnet to attract recruiters and hiring managers, and a beautiful enhancement to your resume that was not possible just a few years ago.
Did you know that the number one reason most candidates don’t get called for an interview after submitting a resume is that their resume and cover letter STINKS?
Reminder – LAST CHANCE to take Advantage of our Special One-Time Resume and Cover Letter Webinar tomorrow — Friday – January 29th – Special Appreciation Rate and Bonus Materials
If you’re not getting a high number of “bites” on your resume when you forward it to networking contacts and submit it to employers for their job postings, perhaps the problem is not so much with the economy – but rather in the document you’ve created to market yourself.
Can you afford to have a resume and cover letter that STINKS?
No wonder the average time for a manager or executive to find a job is creeping beyond 6 months into the 12-18 month plus time period.
How many months will you continue to deplete your savings account and base your job search on hope and luck by using a resume and cover that STINKS?
We’ve put together a very special webinar for the members of our job search community. One hour is all it takes to learn how to create a powerful marketing document that grabs employer’s attention and makes them want to pick up the phone and call you.
The best news is that we’ve cut the price in half for our loyal readers and followers and we’ve thrown in a few HOT items that will help your job search. You’ll NOT find a less expensive webinar packed with as many ideas – tactics – and helpful advice anywhere on the Internet.
Learn the inside secrets of creating and leveraging a power marketing document to get interviews and finish your job search quickly.
Join us for this webinar (probably will only be offered ONCE this year) which is special appreciation webinar for our job search community of loyal readers and followers.
Click the link below to take advantage of this unique private offer to our job search community reducing the normal fee for the webinar from $89.95 to $39.95 and the inclusion of two of our HOT audio programs – a total value of over $150.00.
Last chance to sign up TODAY. Click this link to register now:
I received 347 resumes just this week. On a weekly basis this is about average. Some weeks I get more, some weeks less, but over time 300 or so is not unusual.
Many of these resumes were received for a search directly via email, about 10% via snail mail, another 15% from referrals and another 15% completely unsolicited with candidates just introducing themselves.
Of these, maybe half to two-thirds had cover letters. Of those with cover letters, about 80% were worthless and I didn’t even take the time to read them. Why, because they all were almost exactly the same. As they say in the movies, “Only the names had been changed.” The other 20% I did take the time to at least scan them looking for points that might align with a current search or that at least piqued my interest. These 20% were different in that they were not long paragraphs that simply regurgitated the resume, but instead most were either bullet points or the two column type we recommend using and have a free sample available for all to download. (CLICK HERE to download). They were easy to scan to pick up the highlights and decide how to properly handle the resume.
Although I really don’t care one way or the other if a resume has a cover letter or not, but if a candidate is going to include one it should add value by intriguing the reader enough to look at the resume. If not, why include it?
I believe this is why most cover letters are ignored. They all look alike and do nothing to make the reader want to take a look at your resume, so the recruiter, HR, or hiring manager completely skips over them.
Of the 347 resumes, most were a complete waste of time to even review. Sorry, I know candidates don’t want to hear this, but sometimes the truth hurts. Sending me a resume when I don’t have an active search is not going to help you. As a retained recruiter, I work the searches I have and that is my focus. If your resume doesn’t match my clients needs then I rarely save it. Not because you aren’t a qualified person, not because you don’t have great experience, but because after 30 years of this I know the profile of candidates that I place. If you don’t meet that profile, I don’t need your resume regardless of your experiences and abilities.
This is true of most recruiters.
I recently heard from a candidate complaining that he had sent out over 200 resumes and had heard back from only 5. Actually that isn’t bad. Mass mailing resumes is a waste of time and money. It is a complete crap shoot that anything will stick. I advise all candidates to never do this.
The best way to get your cover letter and resume noticed is to be very targeted and focused, especially with recruiters. We want to fill the position as badly as you want the position. From my perspective, if your background is consistent with my client’s needs and you meet the basic criteria I outlined in the article, How Recruiters Read Resumes In 10 Seconds (CLICK HERE to read), you will get a call from me usually within an hour.
Those 10% that were referred to me I responded to. I always respond when a person is referred to me, even if I can’t help them. I appreciate referrals and want to respect the person that made the referral. In my opinion this is the best way to get a recruiter that you don’t know to engage you.
The unsolicited resumes were put into a file that when time permits I will review. If they meet the profile of the type of candidate that I have a high probability of placing in the future, I will add them to our database.
My partner Barry and I have written extensively on what we believe is the best way to get your resume noticed by recruiters, HR, and hiring managers. These recommendations come from over 30 years of experience as recruiters, from asking hundreds in HR what they use as screening criteria, and from thousands of hiring managers, CEOs and key executives telling us how they review resumes. Barry and I try to pass this information along to all so it will be helpful and reduce your level of frustration by knowing what to expect when you send out a resume.
One more way we can help you is to speak directly with you utilizing our webinars. Our time and knowledge is valuable so YES, we do charge a nominal fee for the webinar. To balance that, we also offer a lot more tools and resources for FREE than what we charge for.
We’ve DEEPLY DISCOUNTED THE WEBINAR FOR THOSE JOB SEEKERS WITHIN OUR JOB SEARCH COMMUNITY – loyal followers on Twitter, readers of our blog, and members of our LinkedIn Job Search Discussion Group.
In a lively one-hour presentation, I’ll show you the inside secrets (from a retained executive recruiter’s perspective) of how to get your resume reviewed every single time and boost your resume acceptance rate (the number of times you get called for an interview from submitting your resume) from a dismal level of less than 10% to well into the 50% PLUS RANGE. If you’re reading this blog, when you sign up for the Webinar use the coupon code of IMPROVEMYRESUME.
If the small, inconsequential, almost non-existent fee for the webinar is too much to bear to boost your resume acceptance rate and cut your job search time dramatically, please feel free to download our many FREE resources for job seekers, including our radio show broadcasts, cover letter sample, and other tools.
There is a raging debate in many LinkedIn Professional and Networking Groups, on our own LinkedIn Job Search Discussion Group, hundreds of emails we’ve been sent, numerous blog comments, and an overwhelming number of tweets – all related to our last blog posting – “Pet Peeve – Your Resume and Cover Letter.”
Obviously, a few people have strong opinions on this subject.
Let’s review the debate:
We recommend you customize both your resume and cover letter for the specific job you are applying for.
Arguments for doing a cover letter and/or custom resume:
Employers and recruiters consider it disrespectful if you do not include a cover letter or resume
Employers and recruiters are looking for a reason to exclude you from consideration if you do not match up with their criteria. The custom resume or letter specifically addresses the key points in the job posting.
Employers and recruiters are overwhelmed in this poor job market with hundreds, if not thousands, of job applications per opening. They want to see an “extra effort” by applicants rather than a cookie-cutter shotgun scattered approach to applying for jobs.
Vast majority of job responses fall into the “Hot Potato” Method of applying for an opening.
The bland generic information in most resumes DO NOT give a recruiter or hiring manager enough information to decide whether or NOT to extend an interview invitation.
Arguments for NOT doing a cover letter and/or custom resume:
Low response rate from recruiters and employers – what’s the use. Even if I did one, the investment of time wouldn’t justify an improved outcome.
It takes too much time, is way too hard, and requires far too much effort.
Recruiters and Employers don’t read resumes or cover letters deeply enough, so why even bother?
It’s all a numbers game – the goal is to broadcast as many resumes to jobs I’m remotely qualified for, and maybe something will stick. I’m overwhelmed applying to jobs – no time to customize my response to each job posting.
Recruiters and Employers don’t provide enough information in their job postings to customize the cover letter and resume. They don’t list the important elements of the job or they have a laundry list of criteria that superman/superwoman couldn’t meet.
Recruiters and Employers are doing nothing more than box-checking resumes – a custom cover letter and resume will not help in this process of asking for everything under the sun and eliminating candidates if they don’t have one little inconsequential element checked-off.
Recruiters and Employers are using low level unskilled and untrained clerical staff to review resumes. Not possible for this level of person to accurately judge the resume of a managerial or executive candidate. Custom cover letters and resumes will NOT help (see bullet point about box-checking above).
Have I missed any of the arguments from each side? These would comprise over 90% of the responses to our last blog posting.
So, what to do from this point forward?
In my ever so humble opinion, I am going to stick by the perspective that for management and executive positions, a detailed cover letter should be written specifically addressing the top 3 points identified in the job posting and a custom resume should be submitted. If you don’t have the time to customize your resume, then at least have 3-4 versions of it and submit the one that matches up most closely with comparable accomplishments for the level of the job, the industry segment, or the common core success factor of that position.
We’re open to hearing from you as to your experience in this job market if you’ve really tried the custom approach. If you’ve not tried it yet, please don’t knock it. Test it and play with it. This strategy is but one of the many we recommend in our Career Success Methodology®. We’ve discovered that most job seekers at a managerial and executive level DO NOT conduct an effective job search. Implementing a few best practices in a structured framework can make an enormous difference in reducing the time it takes to find a great opportunity.
As a special offer to our job search community which includes:
Managerial and executive candidates who read our blog
Following us on Twitter
Participating in our LinkedIn Job Search Discussion Group
Following us through our discussions in a variety of LinkedIn Groups
You’ve downloaded our FREE Job Search tools and content
You’ve attended one of our webinars
You’ve bought one of our job search products
You’ve engaged us in one of our Job Search Coaching Services
We are offering a deep appreciation discount on our upcoming Webinar about resumes and cover letters this Friday January 29th, titled:
GET JOB INTERVIEWS WITH
POWERFUL RESUMES AND COVER LETTERS
This offer of over 50% off the public quoted fee is a special one-time appreciation offer for our job search community and is available only to a selected group – such as our loyal blog readers.
We also have to make a living. It’s very hard to be successful by constantly giving away free tools, templates, audio programs, examples, illustrations, responding to requests for help, and responding to hundreds of comments on our blog and within LinkedIn. We are both trying to build a successful business around effective job search and hiring top talent.
Sometimes, we’re going to make special offers to our job search community for products, services, subscriptions, and webinars. Don’t hold it against us.
If the content was crap – then you can complain. However, Brad and I believe we provide some of the very best content on the Internet for job search and hiring. As many of you know, we give away an extraordinary amount of information in solid tactical tools to improve your job search – maybe to a fault.
We believe the best way to build a loyal following is to give away a lot of our content and as a consequence many job seekers or hiring managers who have found the information useful will move to investing a few dollars in our professional products or services.
Brad and I would like to extend a big thank you of appreciation to all our loyal fans and readers.
This is about your “digital first impression” and six ways to screw it up. Every recruiter has his pet peeves about resumes and I’m no exception. Like it or not, in this digital, email, on-line world, your first impression as a candidate is often the resume and cover letter you send. (OK, I admit, I don’t read cover letters much. I cut to the resume first. Sometimes I come back and read them, but the resume is what I’m interested in.)
I’m not going to write about all the strategies and methods of creating a resume and cover letter, I’m just going to tell you the things that will irk most recruiters (or at least this one) so you should avoid them. In no particular order:
• Size matters: Look at the whole first page of your resume. Would you want to read it or does it look like the fine print on your credit card statement? Don’t cram so much information into it or make the type font so small that people will strain their eyes to read it. I know, we can enlarge it, but it just shows you aren’t thinking about your reader.
• I won’t believe you can walk on water: A summary of your experience in terms of function, industry and accomplishments is fine, but skip the flowery descriptions. I see “hands-on”, “profit driven”, “strong leader”, “dynamic”, “visionary” in summaries all the time. I don’t read them because I know the candidate wrote them. I’ll decide how “dynamic” someone is when I interview them, not when I read their resume. Save the space for more accomplishments.
• Attendance doesn’t count: Companies don’t pay you just to do things; they pay you to accomplish things. Resumes that are long on responsibilities and short on accomplishments indicate someone who just ‘showed up’ and are not the top quartile talent that companies are looking for.
• Osmosis is not my strong suit: Probably the best way to get your resume tossed is to list the name of a company with no description of what it does. This is especially true of middle market companies. (Even if a company is a household name, include what your division, group, etc does!) The reader has no context from which to assess your accomplishments until they know what the company does and its relative size. I automatically toss these resumes. How can you present an executive to a client if they don’t demonstrate this simple piece of common sense?
• Chronological or functional? No contest here in my book, make it chronological. I want to know what you accomplished and where. If you just list a bunch of accomplishments and a list of jobs, I can’t tell where you did what. You may have the exact accomplishment I’m looking for, but if you’ve worked in different industries or different sized companies, I can’t tell how relevant the experience is.
• Goldilocks syndrome: Resumes can be too short or too long, and there is a “just right” length. In general, I find one page resumes to be too short to be meaningful, and they don’t “peak my interest”. I don’t want to ask you for more information. Give me what I need to assess your background against my requirements. Three page resumes or more are usually too long. There’s either too much detail or you’ve gone back beyond 10-15 years in your career. Put those older jobs under Prior Experience. The last 10 to 15 years of experience is usually the most relevant to what we’re looking for.
OK, I got that off my chest. These tips aren’t going to guarantee you get the job, but they should help keep you from being eliminated before the game starts.
When you land that next job, and start to build your team, check your hiring process first.
For more, join our LinkedIn Job Search Networking Group. CLICK HERE to join.
View our 5 minute video, Vital Information Missing From Many Resumes. CLICK HERE to view.
Download a FREE sample cover letter to go with a great resume. CLICK HERE to download.
For information on how to arrange for Hagerthy & Co’s complimentary Hiring Process Assessment go to www.hagnco.com/page13.html#HiringProcess. Mike Hagerthy is the founder of Hagerthy & Co, an executive search, training and consulting firm.
The 10 or 20 seconds it takes to read a resume seems to always generate a lot of controversy. Candidates comment on how disrespectful it is, how one can’t possibly read a resume in that time and some get angry at recruiters when we talk about this. I hope this article will help everyone understand how we do this. I realize that some still may not like it and will still be angry, but at least you can understand how it works.
First, let me say I’ve been a recruiter for 30 years. I’m sure I have reviewed over 500,000 resumes. I can’t prove this but I’m reasonably confident that this is the case, as this is only an average of about 46 a day. I know many days I have reviewed hundreds of resumes and most in less than 20 seconds. I would say the average is probably around 5 to 7 seconds.
So for the record when you hear or read about, “reading a resume in 20 seconds,” that isn’t completely true. It is more than likely, “reviewed the resume in 20 seconds.”
Here is my process for getting through 100’s of resumes in a short period of time. Others may have different ways and I welcome your comments.
I set up a hierarchy of certain “must haves” or you’re out, so at first I’m really just box checking. Generally, 80% of the time these are my knock out blows. There are exceptions to each of these, but I’m dealing with the 80/20 rule. These are not cumulative times. This is box checking, if I see any one of these as I scan your resume you will be excluded.
1. Location. If the client is in Los Angeles, CA and you aren’t – goodbye. Few if any clients want to relocate anyone in this economy, and I believe most shouldn’t have to. Especially in a huge metropolitan area like Los Angeles. If they do have to consider relocation the position has to require some very unique experience that few jobs do. I can do this in about 1 second.
2. Industry. If my client is in banking and your background is primarily manufacturing – goodbye. These two often are so different that the client isn’t open to considering such different industries. This works both ways, if you have a manufacturing background I’m not going to consider someone with banking. 2-3 seconds to determine this.
3. Function. If I’m doing a sales search and your background isn’t sales – goodbye. Generally companies are paying recruiters to find them a perfect fit. We never do find a perfect fit, but we have to be very close. They don’t need a recruiter to find them someone in a completely different function. 2 seconds to figure this one out.
4. Level. If I’m doing a VP level search and your title is “manager” and you have never been a VP – goodbye. There are exceptions to this, but again it is the 80/20 rule. Again, clients pay me to find them the perfect fit. It is generally way too big of a jump from manager level to VP level, all other things being equal. It works the other way too. If I’m looking for a manager and you are a VP – goodbye. I know you are qualified to do a manager level role, but it is clear you have grown past. Most clients and recruiters aren’t willing to take the chance that when a VP level position comes along that you won’t be gone. Less than 5 seconds to figure out.
5. Recent Experience. There is some overlap on this one. If I’m searching for someone with international sales experience in the aerospace industry and the last time you held an international sales position in this industry was 20 years ago and since then you have been in retail – goodbye. I can find people with more relevant experience and that is what my client expects me to do. 5 seconds to do this.
6. Education Like it or not, I will only work with people that have a college education and most of the time a master’s degree. This is mainly because, as I indicated before, I need to find the very best for my clients. I realize an education doesn’t mean by itself that the candidate is the best, but it is one qualifier of many. Also all of my clients require at least a BA.
7.Turnover. If you have had 6 jobs in the last 4 years, or have a track record of high turnover – goodbye. I realize there are good reasons for turnover and that falls into the 20% of the 80/20 rule. I can’t define high turnover, but I know it when I see it. 3 – 5 seconds.
8. Functional resume. I don’t read them. It is obvious when one has a functional resume they are trying to hide something and I’m rarely going to take the time to attempt to figure it out. 1 second.
9. Obvious things such as, spelling errors, poor format, errors in grammar, too long, verbose and rambling. If after reading it I still can’t figure out what you do, goodbye. 5 – 10 seconds
After all this, 80 – 100% have been eliminated. If there are any left, then I will take the time to actually read them in detail.
Here are some FREE downloads to help you get your resume past the 10 second screen.
Download our free Job Search Scorecard. Use this scorecard to assess the strengths and weaknesses of your job search. Then work on the weaknesses. CLICK HERE to download.
Download our free LinkedIn Profile Scorecard. Is your LinkedIn profile compelling? Use this tool to help you build a great profile so people contact you. CLICK HERE to download.
Join our LinkedIn Job Search Networking Group for a lot more discussions, information and articles on your job search. CLICK HERE to join.
Download a sample cover letter proven to work with recruiters and get your resume noticed. CLICK HERE to download yours. Over 2,000 people have done this.
If this was helpful to you, please pass it along to help others in your network. Consider adding it to your status on LinkedIn, posting on Twitter, or emailing the link to your network. Please help others if this helped you.
I receive hundreds of resumes daily from candidates in relationship to the searches we have underway. So many of these candidates actually believe they are qualified for the position. Many may in fact be qualified, however, many of these candidates will never get a call from me because basic vital information is missing from their resume.
I’m not talking about the content of their specific jobs, the accomplishments, or the activities they performed, I’m talking about the basic information the recruiter needs to decide if this candidate meets the minimum requirements for the position.
For example, I recently tested this theory. I sent out an email to my database regarding a search I was conducting. The total email was maybe 6 sentences. I kept it short so that the things I was looking for would stand out in the email. In the email I mentioned 6 times the words “outsourcing manufacturing,” 7 times I mentioned, “contract manufacturing,” and 4 times I said, “must have industrial manufacturing.” Given all that in just 6 sentences, what do you think I’m looking for on your resume?
Not in your cover letter, not in a follow up email, not on the phone interview, but on your resume, so I will pick up the phone and call you.
For those with an immediate grasp of the obvious you answered, contract manufacturing, outsourcing, and industrial manufacturing experience. Right answer.
How many of the 188 responses I received do you think took the time to include this vital information on their resume? Note that the vast majority, either in their cover letter or reply via email to me, mentioned how perfect they were for this position. If you answered 2 you scored 100% again. Go to the head of the class.
This is so important that I put together a short 5 minute video for you to watch that gives you the details on what basic vital information you need to include on your resume. CLICK HERE to watch this video.
I hope this short video will help you as you put your resume together. Making sure this information is on your resume will help ensure recruiters and hiring managers don’t put your resume in the trash because it is missing important information.
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To help with your resume, download a free sample cover letter specifically designed to align your resume with the company needs. CLICK HERE to download.
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Resume | bradremillard February 25, 2010 | 
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