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Hints for Success
1. If asked to send a resume before the appointment, send it. This pre-review of your background is not a brush-off -- merely time optimization.
2. DON'T WASTE THE CONSULTANT'S TIME. Make an appointment to see a representative. Unexpectedly walking in is discourteous. Inform your consultant of contacts you've already made. Don't expect a consultant to be eager to work with you if you've shotgunned resumes all over.
3. LEVEL WITH YOUR PERSONNEL CONSULTANT. He or she is trained to sort your career pros and cons and will present you in the best possible light.
4. BE REALISTIC ABOUT SALARY REQUIREMENTS. Consultants know pretty well what you're worth. Inflating your salary is a knockout factor.
5. Once you've selected a consultant, stick with him/her. RESPECT THE CONSULTANT'S JUDGMENT about which interviews are best for you. The consultant knows the client and his particular likes and dislikes much better than you do.
6. DON'T CONFUSE QUANTITY OF INTERVIEWS WITH QUALITY-You'll be hired for the right job.
7. EXPECT TO SUPPLY REFERENCES and expect some you don't give to be checked.
8. Be sure your spouse agrees with your decision to make a change. New careers affect both of you. Personnel consultants shouldn't have to do a double selling job. That's your job.
9. DON'T BE OVERLY RESTRICTIVE. Company Human Resource departments funnel applicants from the large end to the small. Consultants reverse the funnel and may suggest career possibilities you've never considered.
For more info, visit www.asktheheadhunter.com
Make Your Resume A POWER RESUME
What used to work—an objective followed by a chronology of experience and functions—doesn't work anymore. Hiring managers and HR professionals look for the value-added resume, the power resume.
This means that for every position you’ve held , you should be able to give at least three accomplishments or impact statements. Describe that accomplishment in terms of time saved, efficiencies increased, money saved, money earned, or customer gained or saved, waste eliminated, redundancies deleted, processes streamlined, etc. Make sure you express your value in numerical terms. Tell how you impacted the bottom line.
When your resume describes the positive impact—the value added—you have had in past positions, then the hiring manager or HR professional is encouraged to believe that you can do the same for his/her firm.
1.) Omit an objective. Only recent college graduates with
little work experience should use one.
2.) Begin with a two to four sentence SUMMARY or value statement about your years of experience; the areas of expertise; the technology you use. Then add a few phrases that describe your work style and attitude.
Work Style
| ___ | Take Initiative | ___ | Adaptable | ___ | Analytical |
| ___ | Enlist Others | ___ | Persuasive | ___ | Articulate |
| ___ | Courteous | ___ | Imaginative | ___ | Deal Well with Others |
| ___ | Plan Ahead | ___ | Cooperative | ___ | Appreciative |
| ___ | Admit Mistakes | ___ | Ambitious | ___ | Accurate |
| ___ | Good Intuitions | ___ | Friendly | ___ | Fair |
| ___ | Good Communicator | ___ | Precise | ___ | Face Difficulties |
| ___ | Mechanically Able | ___ | Learn Quickly | ___ | Well Organized |
| ___ | Motivate Others | ___ | Good Business Sense | ___ | Trustworthy |
| ___ | Good in Crisis | ___ | Generous | ___ | Detail Oriented |
| ___ | Instruct Clearly | ___ | Creative | ___ | Financially Aware |
| ___ | Responsible | ___ | Politically Astute | ___ | Resourceful |
| ___ | Artistic | ___ | Quality Oriented | ___ | Well Liked |
| ___ | Positive | ___ | Dedicated | ___ | Disciplined |
| ___ | Neat & Orderly | ___ | Good Humored | ___ | Knowledgeable |
| ___ | Strategic Sense | ___ | Set Goals Clearly | ___ | Patient |
| ___ | Supportive | ___ | Energetic | ___ | Loyal to Superiors |
| ___ | Persistent | ___ | Think Quickly | ___ | Enthusiastic |
| ___ | Innovative | ___ | Leader | ___ | Spontaneous |
| ___ | Careful | ___ | Take Risk | ___ | Sensitive |
| ___ | Contribute Ideas | ___ | Caring | ___ | Rise from Adversity |
| ___ | Meet Challenges | ___ | Adventurous | ___ | Decisive |
| ___ | Calm | ___ | Thorough | ___ | Committed |
Choose 6-8 attributes that have been most useful and valuable.
This gives the hiring manager or HR professional a reason
to read the rest of the resume. Keep in mind that you want to get your
best shots in early so that the reader will be led to read your resume
in its entirety.
3.) Under EXPERIENCE, list your employment
chronologically beginning with your current employment or your most recent
if you’re unemployed. Include dates. Describe your function briefly and
then using bullets, give at least 3
impact statements about your accomplishments. If you are responding to
a particular ad in the paper or on the Web, try to include examples that
relate to the job qualifications.
4.) Use concise language. Omit the articles a, an & the before nouns. Begin each statement with a verb whose implied subject is I.
Example: Managed 5 person warehouse operation.
5.) Avoid statements beginning with: Duties
or Responsible for. Do not use as well
as, including or resulting in.
6.) Be accurate. Recent studies show that resume fraud is on the rise; 30-40% of the information in resumes is inaccurate or misleading. Do not overstate but do take credit for your accomplishments.
7.) Use active verbs: EXAMPLES
| accomplished |
initiated |
renewed |
| acquired |
installed |
solved |
| approved |
instituted |
selected |
| audited |
launched |
specified |
| balanced |
led |
suggested |
| calculated |
maintained |
simplified |
| conceived |
managed |
streamlined |
| computed |
marketed |
tested |
| controlled |
minimized |
trained |
| created |
modified |
translated |
| cut |
negotiated |
unified |
| delivered |
organized |
upgraded |
| detailed |
originated |
visualized |
| designed |
presented |
verified |
| devised |
processed |
saved |
| developed |
purchased |
increased |
| discovered |
rectified |
decreased |
| edited |
resolved |
restructured |
| re-organized | re-designed |
8.) Give accurate educational information. List the most advanced degree first. Give the name of the university; its location; your degree.
Use standard abbreviations such as BA, BS, or MBA; your major and GPA if over 2.7 on a 4 point scale. If you financed more than 50% of your educational costs, say so.
It is not necessary to include the date of graduation since
this information may suggest your age.
9.) OMIT any personal data: age, race, religious affiliation,
marital status, number of dependents, etc.
10.) LIST activities such as civic leadership, volunteerism,
etc.
11.) NOTE that references will be furnished upon request.
Prepare a separate reference sheet.
12.) DO NOT include reasons for leaving or a salary
history within the body of the resume.
13.) PROOF your resume and then ask someone else to
review it for you. Typos, misspelled words, punctuation errors, poor grammar
and syntax are all knockout factors.
14.) NEVER go over 2 pages. Use a letter quality printer
on good bond paper. Have your resume professionally duplicated. Be aware
that the reader retains about 60% of the information on the first page
while only 40% of the second page is remembered.
15.) DO NOT put a photograph on a resume. Companies
are reluctant to have resumes in their files that contain discriminatory
information - a picture can imply gender, racial and age bias.
16.) DO NOT use all upper case letters.
Do use bold, upper case or Italics to highlight a position
or a company name.
17.) If all your efforts fail to produce the results you desire,
consult a professional resume writer.
Preparing for your Interview
Experts tell us that more opportunities are lost because of poor communication than any other factor. You can improve the odds in you favor by using this guide and thinking through your responses in advance.
Writing in the answers will help "print them in your memory circuits". This will help you avoid breaking essential eye contact while you rummage around in your personal database for the responses.
Employers seek goal-oriented employees in
the belief that they are superior to employees who work for a paycheck
alone. Employers will hire a qualified candidate who states that he/she
is committed to doing an excellent job. How can you take advantage of
this mindset to get the job you want?
1. Know yourself.
Be ready to tell your prospective employer a good deal about the traits,
characteristics, attitudes and behaviors that you posses that are and
will be assets.
EXAMPLE: I am…. Prompt, able to complete most tasks ahead of deadline, good at getting others to cooperate with me to meet goals, an analytical problem solver, etc.
LIST
20 traits, characteristics, attitudes and behaviors. The attributes listed
in the Resume section are good examples of traits
and characteristics.
| 1. | 11. |
| 2. | 12. |
| 3. | 13. |
| 4. | 14. |
| 5. | 15. |
| 6. | 16. |
| 7. | 17. |
| 8. | 18. |
| 9. | 19. |
| 10. | 20. |
2. Define your personal goals
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3. Define your financial goals (money and benefits)
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4.
Define your professional goals with special
attention paid to
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Hiring managers tend to believe that candidates with specific
goals make better employees, show maturity and are more likely to be groomed
for promotion.
5. Illustrate your best traits in action:
Many employers believe that your interview
style is an illustration of your work style. Most of us are much
more comfortable at work where we enjoy some expertise. It is crucial
that you show yourself in a more favorable light by telling war
stories. A war story allows you to
illustrate your best traits in action
| Think of
some challenges in your work background -- positive
and negative -- Tell how you answered those challenges, your
response, and the results. This will help the interviewer get into the situation with you. [This also illustrates your ability to communicate in a logical and effective manner.] |
|
Tell what you did. [This illustrates your attitude toward problems and your ability to implement solutions.] |
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For example:
- Challenge: Your sales division's productivity decreased,
and it seemed your division would not meet/exceed annual goals.
- Response: Observed the staff to see where bottlenecks
were occurring. Determined a need for additional employee development
and training. Focused on employee development through intense training.
- Results: Hit corporate budget at year-end and was
noted by management for exceptional problem solving and turnaround capabilities.
So when asked "What is one of your biggest strengths?" your response might be "My biggest strength is my ability to identify potential problem areas, solve the problem, and produce results. An example of this would be when my division's productivity decreased and it seemed as though we would not meet/exceed our annual goals..." and continue with the story above.
If the interviewer fails to ask questions about your work style, work habits, traits, behaviors and attitudes, look for the opportunity to insert this information into the interview. The best opportunity usually comes toward the end of the interview. Wait to be asked, " Do you have any questions?’ and begin by responding, " Yes. I expect you’d like to know something about my work habits and abilities. They are…….. " Then you should add: "I expect you’d like to know how I respond to pressure". Begin to tell your war story.
Once you have taken control of the interview, continue by asking questions that indicate your focus in on the performance expected in the position.
Do not ask about benefits or compensation. (Employment Consultants handles this aspect for you).
The focus of your questions sends a powerful message about
you. This allows the interviewer to gather valuable insights that will
influence his/her hiring decision. You also gain valuable insights into
the corporate culture; behaviors that are rewarded; attitudes toward excellent
performance; attitudes toward other employees; and into the personalities
you will interact with once hired.
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ALWAYS ask the employer to tell you more about the job so you can learn what matters most to the hiring manager.
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FIND OUT why the position is open. Get some idea whether the company is expanding, reorganizing, promoting or replacing someone.
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ASK what "my predecessor" did well. It shows that you are mentally placing yourself in the job You are asking what skills and performance are highly rated by the company in this position.
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DETERMINE if there are areas where additional improvement is desired. [This may indicate some problem that will require extra effort when you come on board.]
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ASK about the first problems, projects or assignments you’ll be expected to handle. Ask the hiring manager how he/she would like these assignments handled. [This will give you helpful insights into that person’s managerial and communication style and whether your styles are compatible.]
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ALWAYS ask the employer to tell you what he/she sees as the difference between satisfactory and excellent performance.
This is the question that can turn a ho-hum interview into an a-ha! interview. This is an extremely powerful interviewing tool. It reveals a good deal about the person who asks it. It also lays the foundation for Employment Consultants to negotiate the best offer for you.
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AVOID salary discussions during an interview. Your recruiter is better equipped to deal with financial negotiations. Please see Tip # 10 for more about salary negotiations.
- Closing the Interview:
If you've made a good impression up to this point, you want to make sure you end on a positive note. If you decide you want the job, be prepared to say so in a clear, convincing manner.
Say thank you.
Regardless of whether you feel things went well or poorly, remain friendly and courteous to the interviewer and thank him or her for taking the time to meet you. Ask when a decision will be made.
- WRITE a thank you letter
to each person who interviewed you and after every stage of the interview.
Be sure to restate the strengths you bring to the table,
your commitment to being part of the company’s strategies
for success, and the particular high points of the
interview.
Be prompt in attending to this bit of etiquette.
In a survey commissioned by Robert Half International, 76% of hiring managers noted the importance of sending a thank-you note following an interview.
- Salary Negotiations:
If asked about salary requirements, you should say: "Why don't we put off discussing money & give ourselves time to discover if we are a fit?"
Never discuss price before you've established your value.
If an employer insists on your naming an amount, DON'T PANIC.
LEAN forward slightly, LOOK the interviewer in the eye, then SAY:
If your future employer responds by making an offer that is not what you had in mind, DO NOT SAY ANYTHING. Look down. Slowly, silently count to 30. If no better offer is made during that period of silence, then STAND UP, SHAKE HANDS AND SMILE. Then SAY ”We both have a lot to think about , I’ll call you tomorrow at ______”I like it here (puts the interviewer at ease)
From what you’ve told me about the position (confirms information)
And from what I know about myself (shows confidence)
I know I can do an excellent job (makes commitment)
With your help & support (elicits cooperation & involvement )
I’d like to hear your best offer (asks the value of excellence)
Leave the interview and call your recruiter immediately !