thecareerbeat.com Blog

Avoiding the resume ‘black hole’

I’ve heard some recruiters say they usually scan a resume in seconds. That boast could challenge job seekers to stand out as much as possible, but it also feeds the impression among candidates that their resumes end up in a black hole.

But that dominant view — “you have to capture a recruiter’s attention within seconds or else” — ignores others who might assess your resume.

For example, an executive acting as the hiring manager will spend much more reading time — an average of 6 minutes — with each resume. That statistic emerged in a recent survey of senior executives by staffing firm OfficeTeam.

Granted, most of those managers have a smaller stack to read through than the  recruiters who narrow down the pool first with their screenings.

Other cases, however, may not involve humans at all. The first screening could be done by a software program that looks for keywords among your skills and experiences that match the job description.

Know Your Audience

“Job seekers need to keep in mind three audiences when crafting their resumes: keyword-scanning software, recruiters, and hiring managers,” says Robert Hosking, executive director of OfficeTeam. “The first two will be looking for keywords and requirements that match the job listing.  But the last group will be looking carefully for applicants’ key accomplishments in previous roles.”

He adds that managers are taking more time to avoid costly hiring mistakes in this tight economy, and to reduce the number or hours needed for in-person interviews.

Getting Their Attention

Hosking recommends these simple tips for writing your resume to stand out:

Get off to a good start. Be specific and concise when describing past accomplishments and highlight these achievements up front. This allows an employer to clearly recognize how you can impact the company’s bottom line.

Tailor the content. Customize your resume so it speaks directly to a potential employer’s needs — mirror the language and keywords found in the job description.

Keep it simple. Refrain from using complicated language, graphics or distracting fonts that can make the resume difficult to read.

He also suggests asking a friend or family member to do a “two-minute test” on your resume. Have them read the resume in two minutes and summarize for you the key points.  Also have someone else proofread your resume for typos and errors.

More Resume Resources

You can find many other useful tips in these articles:

• Recruiters Offer Hints for Following Up
• Great Resume Beginnings: Objective or Summary?
• ‘Accomplishments’ to Leave off Your Resume

Work humor: the wacky secretary

I have been sick for a little over a week, so my blog output has slowed.  At times like this a good work-related “SNL” skit can do the trick:

Myths about dream jobs

Everybody wants a dream job. But, like the characters in this funny video, most people’s ideas of dream jobs are fantasies.

dream job video clip

Really, who wouldn’t want to be a hand model?!

A helpful new article on Yahoo! HotJobs debunks five myths about dream jobs. It even suggests that the statement, “There is no such thing as a dream job” is a myth.

Hmmm, maybe one day I will get to be a talk-show host.  Here’s to dreaming!

Changing your looks to get a job

A majority of job seekers this year have changed something about their physical appearance in order to impress employers, according to an online poll.

The respondents in the Yahoo! HotJobs poll made changes in several areas:

• Clothing style: 11%
• Lost weight: 13%
• Hair style and/or color: 12%
• Face (Makeup, teeth whitening, Botox): 4%
• Two or more of the above: 19%
• Nothing: 41%

Some might consider these appearance-changers to be shallow or insecure, but maybe they recognize that “don’t judge a book by its cover” isn’t in the playbook of most hiring managers.

In fact, changing aspects of your appearance can be a very smart move. Experts say that most hiring decisions are made within 10 minutes, so the first impression is everything.

If you look too old or too young for the job — and you think it might be a distraction for your interviewer — try some inexpensive changes to your hairstyle or wardrobe so that it will be easier to focus on your achievements in the interview.

As executive image consultant Anna Soo Wildermuth says in her book “Change One Thing”: “Your change doesn’t have to be dramatic. It might mean sacrificing something you love, but it is guaranteed to make a difference in your life.”

Some folks will always go too far, but the lines are blurry. I may think men in their 40s paying big bucks for Botox and liposuction is too extreme, but tomorrow some newly hired, newly svelte CFO might call it his wisest investment this year (as he laughs in my face).

If you’ve been job-hunting for months with no results, maybe changing one aspect of your appearance could help your confidence, if not your career path.

For more related tips, see the following:

• Using Your Looks for Career Success
• The First 10 Minutes Are Top Priority
• 5 Threats to Your Job-Hunting Stamina

Bosses’ reputations get no help with recession

Friday is National Boss Day (Oct. 16), but most workers probably won’t be celebrating, if recent polls are any indication.

A recent Yahoo! HotJobs weekly poll found that 69% of respondents don’t think their bosses are doing a good job.  That figure is essentially unchanged from last year, when 68% said the same thing.

Q	Do you think your boss does his or her job well?
A	Yes 31% No 69% 6845 Votes to date

Last week, results of a five-year comparative survey took a similar toll on the overall reputation of bosses, comparing many of them to bratty toddlers.

The study monitored traits of bosses, as perceived by 345 white-collar workers. Between 2004 and 2009, the number of respondents who rated their bosses “self-oriented” or “interruptive” rose 50%.  The research was conducted by author Lynn Taylor, CEO of Lynn Taylor Consulting.

Maybe the best thing about the “holiday” this year is that it happens on a Friday.

‘Unreality TV’ that distorts job duties and pay

When I began my career in journalism, I secretly hoped to find a newsroom that resembled the one on “The Mary Tyler Moore Show.”

The camaraderie with coworkers, the breaking-news excitement, and the pleasant communal atmosphere seemed so attractive. And though I knew nothing about the show was real, I still longed for a similar sense of fun and purpose.

Today I wonder how many budding police detectives feel the same about “The Closer” or magazine editors about “Ugly Betty.”

PayScale.com has done some interesting research on how these and other popular shows distort the realities (often unflattering) of certain careers. My favorite is the analysis of “Ugly Betty,” where junior staffers at the fashion mag Mode live lifestyles that aren’t possible on real starting salaries in New York.

Also, PayScale took a fascinating look at “Mad Men” and how the fictional salaries of the various characters stack up against today’s advertising professionals.

Of course we don’t watch sitcoms for guidance in our professional lives, but who can help wishing? If you want TV with accuracy about the working world, try “Dirty Jobs.”

Common interview surprise: illegal questions

More than half of job seekers have been asked an illegal question during a job interview.

That eye-opener comes from a Yahoo! HotJobs online poll, in which 62% of respondents reported being on the receiving end of a question about a verboten topic, such as one’s religion or marital status. Almost a third (32%) had not been asked such a question, and 7% said they didn’t know.

The numbers surprised me and several of my colleagues, so it’s worth reviewing what’s permissible and not.  Interviewers are not allowed to ask about:

• Your age
• Your race or ethnic background
• Gender or sex
• Marital status
• Country of national origin or birthplace
• Whether you have children (or plan to)

If you find yourself being asked a question you believe may be illegal, you can handle it in a variety of ways.

You can answer the question. This option may work if you’re not offended by the question and you really want the job.

You can tactfully point out that the question is illegal. Your interviewer may not even know that he or she has crossed a line. However, you also run the risk of putting your interviewer on the defensive, which won’t work in your favor.

You can side-step the question and bridge to something relevant.  Respond with something like: “I’m sorry, but I don’t think that is pertinent to the job we’re discussing, but I can tell you about [insert segue topic here].”

Avoid letting loose with indignation — unless you really don’t want the job and want to make an unpleasant scene.

Check out these three articles for more tips:

• How to Handle Illegal Interview Questions
• Using Tact With a Rude Interviewer
• When Interviewers Attack!

On the lighter side, check out one of the funniest depictions of an interview with illegal questions: It’s in the first episode of the “Mary Tyler Moore Show.” (You can fast-forward to minute 6 to get the interview scene.)  She tries a combination of the above three tactics, with hilarious results. What a classic!