Readying Your Resume for Hiring Managers
by
Diane Domeyer, executive director of Office Team
If you’re like most job seekers, the hiring
process can sometimes make you scratch your head in confusion. Much of the
time, the situation is out of your control: The position may have already
been filled by the time you inquired about it or simply wasn’t as good a fit
as you thought. However, that doesn’t mean that there’s nothing you can do
to improve your odds of being called for an interview. Following is an
inside scoop on the questions hiring managers ask themselves when evaluating
resumes.
Can the applicant fill my need?
Admittedly, it’s an obvious question, but even if you possess the necessary
experience, if your resume isn’t targeted to the specific company and job
opening, your qualifications could seem equally unrelated. Tailoring your
resume to the position involves positioning your administrative skills and
experience in a way that shows the hiring manager that they align perfectly
with the open position.
If you are applying for a job as an administrative assistant, for example,
the company will want to see previous employment experience in addition to
strong computer, communication, interpersonal and organizational skills.
Will the applicant remain with my firm for
the long term?
Because of high turnover costs, hiring managers seek employees who are not
likely to leave the company soon after accepting an offer. They’ll look to
your resume for proof of a stable work history.
If you have job-hopped in the past, consider
submitting a functional, rather than a chronological, resume. A functional
resume is organized around your skills, experiences and accomplishments, not
the specific roles you have held at various points in your career.
Is the potential employee professional?
Imagine trying to convince someone to buy a product by providing them with a
description of it but not allowing them to see or test it. Sounds difficult,
doesn’t it? In essence, that’s your challenge when submitting a resume. A
hiring manager will use just a few sheets of paper to determine if you are
the right candidate for the position. So, make sure your resume is free of
typos and grammatical mistakes and that it is easy to understand. Because
hiring managers may receive hundreds of applications, they’ll eliminate you
from contention for the slightest infraction.
Before you submit your next application, think like a hiring manager to
ensure your resume doesn’t get lost in the crowd.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Diane Domeyer is executive
director of OfficeTeam, the nation’s leading staffing service specializing
in the temporary placement of highly skilled administrative and office
support professionals. OfficeTeam has more than 300 locations worldwide and
offers online job search services at
www.officeteam.com.
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