Mike Perry

By Mike Perry

In the Business of You

Job Seeking Tips From a Hiring Manager's Perspective

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Good Signs for 2012

Tuesday, January 24, 2012

Over the last few months I’ve made presentations at area job seeker’s groups and corporate outplacement companies to nearly 1,000 people in transition. The bad news is that there were nearly 1,000 people at the presentations (this is one of those situations where I would have welcomed a smaller audience!).

The good news (which never seems to make it to the various news media), is that virtually all of the leaders/directors of these groups and the employees at the outplacement firms report that people are landing new positions in nearly half of the time that it was taking just a year ago..!

Over the last twelve months, our company has co-sponsored a networking event with a local restaurant. The average number of attendees has remained somewhat the same, but that is because many who have landed new jobs come back to help those still in transition…they’re “paying it forward”.

I've heard the following statement dozens of times from people who find new employment after being in transition for a few months (or more), “I never realized how difficult it would be to find a new job after being laid off and I want to keep coming back to this job seekers/networking group and help those who are still here.” Kudos to those folks…they “get it”.

College graduates learn, over time, how valuable it can be to network with alumni in their industry or geography. Often, no matter how long it’s been since a person has graduated, reaching out to someone from your alma mater often results in a quick return call/email. Job seekers are learning that there is also a growing number of “transition alumni” out there (and now employed) who are committed to providing them assistance (i.e., informational interviews, networking meetings, connections to decision makers within their companies…etc).

Unfortunately, this new and significant resource for job seekers is under-utilized. Although more job seekers’ groups are doing some record keeping regarding their alumni, there is room for improvement. This is another case where you never want to assume…Ask the staff at the corporate outplacement firm you are using/used or the directors of the job seekers’ group(s) you attend if they can provide you with contact information for their respective “alumni”. Never pass up an opportunity to make a good networking contact! And, remember – these folks have walked in your shoes and felt your pain…they’ll be more willing to help you than someone who has never been through a forced job transition.

  • So, if you have not yet attended a meeting of a local job club/job seekers’ group – do so, as it is well worth the time (of course, remember that you’ll only get out of these groups what you put into the effort).

  • If you are attending job club meetings or networking events – invest the time to do some meaningful networking with the others in attendance, the group’s director(s) and the invited speakers.

  • If you have “graduated” from the job club circuit as a result of landing a new job – please consider returning to the group every so often to provide assistance to those still in transition and “pay it forward”.

  • All that said, I must take a moment to express my deepest appreciation to all of those folks who have volunteered their time to form, direct and maintain the job seekers’ groups and job clubs that have sprung up in nearly every city and town. You truly are unsung heroes..!!Quietly (few if any of the directors of these organizations ever take credit for their tireless efforts) these groups have played a significant role in the overall success enjoyed by the growing legion of “former” job seekers.

Thank you..!!

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What's Your Story..?

Friday, March 30, 2012

My last post discussed what I felt were a number of good indicators over the last several months that the employment picture was looking better…not nearly great yet, but much improved when compared to even just a year ago.

The turnover experienced by job seekers groups has increased (this is one situation in which turnover is a good thing!) with the time period between separation to landing a new job significantly decreasing.

Yet, I continue to speak with people who are very frustrated with the lack of activity/success in their respective job searches. I know one of the main reasons why that is…but most folks don’t want to hear it or become exasperated when I tell them that:

Their resumes are boring.

Over the last month, I’ve done resume reviews at the networking events our company sponsors and a “resume clinic” sponsored by a local corporate outplacement firm along with making presentations at a Career Transition Camp, three job seekers’ groups, a corporate outplacement firm and for a Fortune 500 company that had just laid off a number of employees. With all of the resumes I reviewed at or as a follow up to all of these events, not even one of those documents would have caused me, as a hiring manager, to schedule the respective candidate for a phone screen or first interview… not one.

Why? The resumes read like a job description vs. an engaging “story” about the candidates' skills, competencies and accomplishments – customized to the criteria noted in the description for the job they were seeking.

Although the employment landscape is improving, it is still clearly a buyer’s market, with hiring managers continuing to exercise their right to be very picky and deliberate regarding their ultimate candidate selection…(by the way, employers continue to report receiving hundreds of resumes per posted job opening). Thus, one of the first objectives of every job seeker should be to put as much distance as is possible between themselves and their competition, and that most often begins with the resume.

The resume is your “novel”…the story of “you” and why you, the candidate, should be one of the few people who are selected (from the stack of hundreds of resumes received) that will be called for a phone screen or to schedule the first in-person interview. Think of it this way - You go into a book store where there are hundreds of books from which to choose…but you only budgeted to purchase one…so, the book selected has to be something that really sync’s up with your criteria for a “great read”.

Thus it is with resumes and hiring managers.

Here are some of the key components that will make your resume a “great read” for the intended employer:

  • Key Achievement bullet points that speak to what you accomplished at your previous employers, NOT what you “did” (duties & responsibilities). Demonstrate clearly, using specific examples, how you applied the skills & competencies listed in the job description to produce exceptional outcomes/results.

  • Provide perspective for each accomplishment. Include factors/metrics that describe timeframes, rankings, awards, recognition (i.e., don’t just tell me that you “increased sales by 30%”. Tell me that you “increased sales by $5MM or 30% in 90 days, which was the shortest period of time needed to achieve that level of growth amongst the 15 members of the sales team, resulting in recognition by the CEO as ‘Sales Leader of the Quarter’.) How do you think that compares to another candidate whose bullet point reads, “Built strong relationships that resulted in an increase in sales”..? Incorporating the use of perspective into your accomplishments will do much to separate you from the other candidates.

  • Content customized to the specific criteria being sought by the hiring manager for the job you are seeking. Folks, cookie cutter resumes are not going to get any hiring manager excited about the prospect of you working for them. This also means only relevant information is included in your resume. What if author Dan Brown included several pages of love poems throughout the many chapters of his book, "The Da Vinci Code"? It would obviously disrupt the flow of the reader as it would have no relevance to the story. Dan Brown might be very good at writing love poems…but that is not why the reader purchased a copy of "The Da Vinci Code".

  • Enable me to visualize you as a “game-changer” on my team by clearly demonstrating why you have been so while at past employers, in similar situations/environments to that found in my organization.

Just today I met with a job seeker who had held a high level sales position at a very large company. Her resume did not reflect what I believed to be (after meeting and speaking with her) the level of sales skills to support her verbalized accomplishments. I reminded her that hiring managers and HR recruiters have to rely on the resume – without her in the room to explain what each bullet point really means – to learn enough in order to decide to schedule an interview or send a “No thanks” letter. Her “story” – as told by the resume - fell flat and was not engaging to me, the hiring manager. I would not have spent more than 30 seconds or so on this person’s resume if submitted to me for consideration. And, there would have been no interview scheduled.

We discussed how, with some revamping using the concepts noted above, her resume could become a great read for hiring managers and recruiters.

In a job search, EVERY candidate is now a salesperson…and, they are the “product” being sold. The “features” of the product are skills, competencies, experience, drive, enthusiasm, passion and ability to apply the skills being sought to produce excellent results. The benefits of the “you” product are the many ways in which you will convince me that my team/group/division will be better because of bringing you on board.

So…time to write your “best seller”.

What’s your story?

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