I recently met with Matt Jones of Q100 Atlanta to record a radio segment on what has changed in the job search world. Many clients come to us who have not looked for a job in so long, that they are lost about how to go about it these days. We had one client recently who had not updated her resume since it was typed out on her typewriter! She had to type the whole thing into her computer. Here are the 10 tips I shared with our local audience:
1) Resumes are pretty these days. It’s not just a text document with your work history. People are using text boxes, light shading and other formatting tools to enable a recruiter or employer to quickly scan their resume and determine right away why they are qualified for the job!
2) Ditch the objective statement, include a professional profile instead. Have a summary of qualifications at the top. You can call it a professional profile, summary of qualifications or executive profile, whatever you feel is most appropriate. Tell them right up front why you are qualified for their job. For example, “marketing strategist with 10 years of corporate advertising experience.”
3) Your LinkedIn profile goes at the top. Put a link to your LinkedIn profile at the top in the contact information section.
4) Focus on results and accomplishments, not a glorified list of duties. How did your being in that job make an impact in that organization? Quantify it as much as possible. “Managed staff of 15 sales people. Increased revenue by 20%.”
5) Your resume is not the kitchen sink. Some of our clients are very attached to certain things in the work history understandably. Remember, only include items that are relevant to the position. Adding things that are not diffuses your message.
6) Google yourself! The employer will. You want to know what they will see.
7) Clean up what you can if there is anything you would rather not be visible, on Facebook, on the association’s website where they posted photos of the holiday party last year.
8) LinkedIn, clean it up and update it. Up to 80% of jobs secured out there are found through the hidden job market. Employers are reporting that up to 80% of their recruiting efforts are conducted on LinkedIn. http://www.recruitingblogs.com/profiles/blogs/80-of-today-s-jobs-are-landed-through-networking
9) Add a photo to LinkedIn. People hire people, not a piece of paper (or in this case an online profile.) Here’s a good article featuring several good LinkedIn profiles. http://www.linkedinsights.com/3-stunningly-good-linkedin-profile-summaries/
10) Create a card for your search. Business cards for your search are critical, and I suggest creating one specifically for your search. Don’t use your current employers card, especially if you don’t want the potential employer to contact you at work. Have one created (on Vistaprint.com for example) specifically for this purpose.
Hallie Crawford
Job Coach
P.S. Are you in the ideal career for you? Find out if you’re in the right career with our Ideal Career Quiz.
