How to get your resume noticed!

A little foreground before I give you tips on how to get an employer or recruiter to read your resume:

Why do you need to create a resume?

• The resume is the tool that will typically get your foot in the door
• If it is done correctly it will land you the interview
• The resume is the "first impression" of you to an employer. Remember the old saying "you only get one chance to make a first impression"!

Important Note: You should consider Linkedin and other social media as a resume of sorts.
Do your social networking sites represent you appropriately to your future employer? Even if you are not looking, your next employer might be passively looking for you!

Keys to getting your resume noticed:

• Create a resume that is easy to read - bullet point format is typically best- it allows you to concisely relay your KSAA's (knowledge, skills, abilities, accomplishments)/paragraph form is NOT an effective way to relay your KSAA's...(it is overwhelming to read this type of format). Imagine yourself, for a moment, as a recruiter or hiring manager and you are up against a large stack of resumes...Would you want to read a labor intensive paragraph- even with good sentence structure!?
• Make sure your resume succinctly relays your KSAA's- you should spend the most time on your accomplishments and the least amount of time on skills- although they are important and should be mentioned!
• Be consistent in your format throughout the resume
• Flow it similar to a book (you read left to right) use that same format in your resume...requiring them to read the resume in another flow is confusing and takes precious time that they do not have!
• Create a tag line with appropriate buzz words in your industry or key skills that you are looking to incorporate in your next position (list skills that you possess not desire to gain). This will get your resume to come up when employers/recruiters "search" databases or surf the web
• Keep your resume length to two pages (1 page for 5 or less years of experience)

I could spend a whole day on this topic, but hopefully these initial tips will get you off to a good start!

What does this economy mean for a candidate/job seeker and how do you appropriately follow up?

What does this economy mean for a candidate/job seeker?

You are now competing with many more candidates (not necessarily more qualified candidates) than you were a year ago. This means that the hiring process may be slower. HR/Hiring Managers have to filter through a lot more resumes to find the "diamond in the rough". Additionally, they may be taking on multiple job responsibilities (due to downsizing) leaving them less time to focus solely on recruitment.

Appropriate follow up would include:

• An e-mail to HR or the Hiring Manager (whom ever was listed in the job posting) to clarify that they received your resume NOTE: If you do not get a response from your e-mail it would be appropriate to follow up with a phone call, but wait several days to give them a chance to respond!
• A telephone call to HR/Hiring Manager to confirm receipt of your resume. NOTE: If they do not answer please leave a message. People are extremely busy and leaving a message will still get you the same results: your resume to the top of the pile.

A word of caution (coming from in house recruitment for 9+ years) if your follow up is too aggressive, it may hurt your chances of getting an interview.