Job Transition Workshop Series

1. Job Transition Workshop Series James Atkinson, CDF Steve Kraus, SPHR Deacon Dan Parker Bob Priest Shelly Trent, SPHR

2. Today’s Topics • Developing a Résumé • Common Resume Mistakes • Making Yourself Stand Out Above the Crowd • Dealing with Special Résumé Issues or Circumstances

3. Résumé vs. Application • Some jobs will require a resume and others an application. • We covered applications in our last session and will cover resumes today. • Some companies will require both a resume AND an application. Even if you feel that your resume is sufficient, don’t just attach it to the online application. • The company will not accept your application if you don’t take the time to fill in each box, even if it is “cut and pasted” from your resume.

4. Develop Your Résumé • A résumé is a self-marketing tool, designed with the goal of obtaining a job interview. • Résumé information is targeted succinctly to a career field and addresses the needs of a specific employer. • Your résumé should market your relevant skills, knowledge, and accomplishments. • Résumés should be developed for each type of job you seek. Don’t use the same résumé for everything—have several.

5. Develop Your Résumé • One-page résumés are preferred for most entry-level positions or for those without much experience. • Two-page résumés are acceptable if the information on both pages demonstrates experience relevant to your profession. • Highlight skills and accomplishments that meet employer qualifications, excluding irrelevant information and experiences. • Well-designed résumés will be visually appealing and free from any spelling, typographical, punctuation, or grammatical errors.

6. Résumé Checklist • APPEARANCE • Is inviting and easy to read; not too much information • Uses appropriate font styles and font sizes (10-14 pts.) • Incorporates enough white space between sections to facilitate skimming • Creates visual impact using bullets, boldface, underlining, italics, and font sizes (not ALL of these!) to emphasize key words (for scannable résumés, use boldface only)

7. Résumé Mistakes • Do you want to know why résumés fail? Here are the reasons given in a survey of employers: • No accomplishments (78%) • Negative visual impact (55%) • Poor or no cover letter (40%) • Lack of objective (36%) • Formatting problems (32%) • Irrelevant data (29%) • Inadequate job description (12%) • Time gaps unexplained (10%) • Résumé too long (10%)

8. Résumé Mistakes • Another survey of 150 employers showed: • Executives were asked, "In your opinion, which of the following is the single most common mistake job seekers make on their resumes?" Their responses: • Typos or grammatical errors—34 percent • Including too much information—22 percent • Not listing achievements in former roles—17 percent • Poor layout and/or design—17 percent • Including too little information—7 percent

9. Résumé Mistakes • From a Yahoo! Hotjobs blog post by Liz Ryan, a 25-year HR veteran and former Fortune 500 VP, entitled, “10 Boilerplate Phrases that Kill Resumes” • These statements are TOO VAGUE and mean nothing to a reader: • Results-oriented professional • Cross-functional teams • More than [x] years of progressively responsible experience • Superior (or excellent) communication skills • Strong work ethic • Met or exceeded expectations • Proven track record of success • Works well with all levels of staff • Team player • Bottom-line orientation • Your resume must PROVE you have these talents—not just “say” you do

10. Résumé Checklist • ORGANIZATION AND FORMAT • Printed on high-quality (16-25 lb.) bond paper (not general printer paper) • Print is letter quality (no smudges or flakes) • Appropriate format includes keyword phrases of profession • Presents strongest qualifications first • Appropriate length: 1 page for every 6-10 years of work experience

11. Résumé Checklist • WRITING STYLE • Begins sentences or phrases with powerful action verbs • Short paragraphs mostly under five lines; short sentences; bullet points • Brief, succinct language; no unnecessary words • Absolutely free from grammatical, spelling, punctuation, usage, and typographical errors • NEVER use I, Me, My, Mine or “Responsibilities included…”

12. Résumé Checklist • CONTENT • Contact Information • Address • Telephone number(s) where you can be reached 9-5, but NEVER your work phone number (be sure there is an answering machine with a professional sounding message) • E-mail address if you have one; be sure your e-mail address is PROFESSIONAL—NOT doglover@hotmail.com, iplayguitar@yahoo.com, etc.

13. Résumé Properties • Objective or Positioning Statement • Briefly indicates the sort of position, title, and possible area of specialization sought • For management or supervisory positions, indicates level of responsibility sought • Language is specific, employer-centered not self-centered; avoids broad or vague statements • Don’t say “To obtain a position using my skills and education…” That’s what everyone wants! BE SPECIFIC! • It’s not about YOU; it’s about THEM! • Try something like this: “Senior Software Engineer with 10 years of experience developing leading-edge technologies” or “Seeking full-time position as an events planner.” • Keep it simple and to the point. The reader should know from the objective exactly what job you seek.

14. Résumé Properties • Objective • Good objectives: • A senior position in a non-profit, social services agency. • A management position in the banking industry. • A position in the retail industry. • An internship in sales or marketing. • An entry-level position in a market research firm, leading to account management. • A position in public relations in the healthcare field.

15. Résumé Properties • Objective • Poor objectives: • Seeking a position where I can utilize my skills and education. (That is what everyone wants!) • A position where I can grow with the company. (That’s what YOU want.) • A position where I can use my talents to maximize company profits. (Too general!) • Position where my electrical engineering background can be used for a rewarding experience. (That’s what YOU want.)

16. Résumé Properties • Summary of Skills, Accomplishments, or Expertise • Identifies 3-6 key achievements that support your listed objective • Summarizes relevant work experiences and accomplishments that support your stated objective • If using numbers, below ten should be spelled out (one, six, etc.); over 11 can be numeric

17. Résumé Properties • Education and Training • Highest level of attainment is listed first; work from most current degree/education backward • Degree in progress or most recently completed degree; include type of degree, name of university, location of university, date of graduation or anticipated date OR list high school if no college • List of other degrees, relevant higher education coursework, continuing professional education or training courses, and study abroad • Major, minor, or areas of concentration

18. Résumé Properties • Education and Training • Omit high school if you have completed more than two years of college • Relevant courses, papers, projects; include paper or project titles if you are a recent grad • GPA, honors, awards, scholarships if in school or recent grad • Percentage of educational expenses earned if recent grad

19. Résumé Properties • Employment ExperienceInclude all paid and volunteer experiences relevant to your objective. Start with most recent experience if using chronological format. • title held, organization name, city, state • dates position held; if several positions for one employer, list employer only once • responsibilities listed in order of each item's relative value to the future employer; indicate transferable skills and adaptive abilities used on the job

20. Résumé Properties • Employment Experience • Accomplishments on your job; what problems did you face? What solutions did you find? • Contributions to the organization, i.e., ways your work helped increase profit, membership publicity, safety, funding, motivation, efficiency, productivity, product quality; saved time or money; improved programs, management, communication, information flow, etc. • Quantitative or qualitative indicators that describe the results of your contributions or accomplishments, i.e., "increased sales by $50,000"; "reduced staff turnover by 25%"; "significantly improved staff ability to access data"

21. Résumé Properties • Employment Experience • Learning that took place on the job that is relevant to your job objective (optional) • Describe accomplishments in jargon of the field • Employers want to see PROOF on your resume of your skills in: • Leadership • Communication • Organization • Problem solving • Teamwork • Creativity • Technical skills

22. Résumé Properties • BAD Experience SectionSenior Commercial Loan UnderwriterSeptember 2005 to PresentLotsa Bucks Trust, St. Louis, MO • Took commercial and construction loan applications • Negotiated terms • Five direct reports in commercial loans division • Trained new hires on loan research methods • Organized company softball team

23. Résumé Properties • GOOD Experience SectionSenior Commercial Loan UnderwriterSeptember 2005 to PresentLotsa Bucks Trust, St. Louis, MO • Processed $10 billion in commercial construction loan applications for the top commercial lender in Eastern Missouri • Managed a team of five junior underwriters who exceeded departmental goals consistently for past six months • Facilitated professional training on loan research methods to shorten learning curve for new hires • Applied professional team-building skills to development of successful company softball team, resulting in higher corporate visibility in local community and enhanced employee morale

24. Add “punch” to duties • Job Requirements: • 2 years’ experience in marketing • Create mail promotions • Develop brochures • Research target audiences • Analyze sales figures • Create marketing plans • Maintain database of customers • Take calls from customers and resolve issues

25. Add “punch” to duties • Your Resume Says: • 2 years’ experience in retail and restaurants • Typed letters to send to clients • Helped with newsletter to mail to our customers • Performed data entry to maintain client list • Created flyers about our products • Attended and took minutes of sales meetings • SO WHAT? Give it some PUNCH! This is underselling!

26. Add “punch” to duties • Your resume should say: • 2 years’ experience in the retail and restaurant industries, resolving customer issues and providing excellent customer service (if you have specific examples of this, list them!) • Developed marketing communications to send to our client base • Produced company newsletter on our products and services that was sent to 10,000 customers • Maintained client list in database; ensured contact information was consistently updated; merged mailing lists into our database • Marketed company products through creation of promotional pieces • Attended sales/marketing staff meetings and gained knowledge of analyzing sales figures • This version is much more professional sounding! You are NOT lying on your resume just because you explain your job in better terminology! Which person would YOU hire?

27. Résumé Properties • Skills • Computer skills: software applications, languages, hardware, operating systems that you know WELL • Language skills: specific level of fluency and ability to read and write as "basic," "intermediate," or "advanced" • Other possible headings • Honors/Awards • Community Service/Volunteer Work • Leadership Experience in Organizations

28. Listing Accomplishments Examples of your accomplishments: • IMPORTANT! Throughout your resume, if you have a statement that you can quantify, please do so! Here are some examples: • Poor: Provided excellent customer service. • Better: Served telephone and counter customers while meeting shipping and delivery deadlines. • Best: Recognized by supervisor for tactful dealings with difficult customers. Received award for having highest customer satisfaction rating for the quarter.

29. Listing Accomplishments • Poor: Trained employees. • Better: Developed customer service training program and provided training to new staff. • Best: Developed customer service training program and presented it to 100 staff members over a 6-month period, resulting in a 110% increase in customer satisfaction levels.

30. Listing Accomplishments • Poor: Used accounting software. • Better: Taught self to use QuickBooks. • Best: Taught self and others to use QuickBooks and set up first computer-based bookkeeping system for small business.

31. Listing Accomplishments • Poor: Worked while attending college. • Better: Worked 20 hours per week while attending college full-time. • Best: Maintained high GPA while working 20 hours per week and being involved in campus activities in leadership roles.

32. Be Specific! • “Contributed to product design.” This tells the employer nothing about your actual contribution. • “Conducted market analysis for widgets to determine design and mechanics. Led changes to original design specification despite initial developer objections. Received critical acclaim and sold over 4 million units.” • See the difference?

33. Résumé Properties • Activities, Community Service, Professional Associations • List significant positions of responsibility; include title, name of organization, dates • Leadership roles, achievements, and transferable skills that are relevant to job sought • Include hobbies and personal interests only if they are relevant to job sought (avoid anything that might lead to discrimination) • Example: Would you want to hire someone whose hobby was listed as skydiving? No! Too risky for employer’s health insurance policy, and not related to job! On the other hand, if the candidate’s experience was marketing, and a community service activity was creating brochures for a non-profit, that is job related!

34. Résumé Properties • MARKETING FOCUS • Demonstrates ability or potential to do the job; supports your stated objective • Speaks to the employer's needs and requirements (employer-centered, not self-centered) • Indicates knowledge of the field, typical issues or problems, solutions • Omits racial, religious, or political affiliations unless a bona fide occupational qualification (BFOQ) • Contains only personal data relevant to your objective; omits age, sex, marital status, national origin, health, names of references, hobbies

35. DO NOT • Use the word résumé on the top—it is obvious what it is by looking at it • Put a photo or any pictures on it • List any “personal” info on it (such as age, religion, health, children, hobbies) • List reasons for leaving • List your salary history in the résumé • Use many different fonts or typeface styles • List social organizations, such as Greek groups (may make you appear to be a “partier”)

36. Other Résumé Tips • Don’t fold it • Use a large envelope (9 x 12) • Use the past tense for past jobs and present tense for current jobs • Make sure that the TOP of the resume is going to get the reader’s attention—totally relevant to the job posting • For example, if your education is most related to the job sought, that can be at the top; if your experience is most related, that can be at the top • Be consistent in the format (use bullets in the same places, put dates in the same format, etc.)

37. Other Résumé Tips • Recruiters only scan your resume for about 10-15 seconds before they put it in the YES, NO, or MAYBE pile. • The YES pile gets further review and the others probably don’t. • Make sure to “name” your resume file something like John.Doe.Resume.doc, NOT mydraftresume.doc or resume1.doc. It needs to be obvious who it belongs to.

38. Show Results! • Don’t provide a laundry list of responsibilities without showing what results you achieved. Most employers already know what the main responsibilities of your job were. They want to know what makes you different from all the other applicants. • An effective résumé summarizes job responsibilities in a few sentences and then provides details of quantifiable achievements.

39. Dealing with “Problems” • Gaps in employment • When listing dates on your resume you don't need to list the month/year if you were in a position for over a year or if your position spans multiple years. For example, you could say 2004 - 2008 (rather than May 2004 - April 2008) which would give you some room to cover a gap. • It's acceptable to limit the years of experience you include on your resume to fifteen years when seeking a managerial or professional position and ten years when looking for technical or high-tech job, so anything prior to that can be left off.

40. Dealing with “Problems” • Gaps in employment • What did you do while you weren't employed? Did you freelance or consult? How about volunteering? All those experiences count as work and can be included on your resume. List them as you would list your other jobs - with job title, company name, job description, and dates of “employment.” • When you have employment gaps that don't fit on your resume (you took time off to care for an aged parent or to raise a child) use your cover letter to explain the gap. That way, the employer will know that there's an explanation for your being out of the workforce.

41. Dealing with “Problems” • Gaps in employment • Tell the truth. If you lie on your resume, it will probably come back to haunt you. Employers verify work history and if you put incorrect information on your resume, they'll find out.

42. Dealing with “Problems” • Being fired • Try using a “functional” resume rather than a “chronological” one. • Like with the gap, say 2004 - 2008 (rather than May 2004 - April 2008) which would give you some room to cover a gap. • Never explain on a resume that you were fired. • No matter how you try to explain your dismissal (e.g., "It was office politics." "My manager didn't like me; I have no idea why." "It's because I'm old; they wanted someone younger."), the explanation will still sound negative and self-serving.

43. Dealing with “Problems” • Being fired • If your company downsized and you were let go, that's not the same as being fired. You weren't technically fired. Hiring managers tend to look at "being fired" as a negative that was caused by the employee (e.g., stealing company funds, being late to work, not fulfilling work duties). • It's essential to showcase what you achieved at the job, and to minimize the negative (confrontations with management or co-workers). An interview is not the time to prove that you were treated unfairly at the last company -- rather, it's the time to prove to the new company that you can excel because of your unique set of skills and qualifications.

44. Dealing with “Problems” • Being fired • Answering the question, “Why were you fired?” • If you’d rather not go into detail, simply say, “It wasn’t a good fit, so my boss and I mutually agreed to end the working relationship.” • Were you at fault, even a bit? Take responsibility. Did you learn from the experience? Say so.

45. Dealing with “Problems” • Being fired • Joyce Lain Kennedy's sample answers to the interview question "Why were you fired?" • My competencies were not the right match for my previous employer's needs but it looks like they'd be a good fit in your organization. In addition to marketing and advertising, would skills in promotion be valued here? • The job wasn't working out so my boss and I agreed that it was time for me to move on to a position that would show a better return for both of us. • Certain personal problems, which I now have resolved, unfortunately upset my work life. These problems no longer exist and prepared to exceed expectations in my new job.

46. Dealing with “Problems” • Poor Grades • If you are asked to submit a school transcript that shows poor grades, what should you do? • Usually, an employer doesn’t pay that much attention to grades unless you are a recent grad. Mostly, they just want to see that you graduated and/or what your major or degree was. • A couple of poor grades will likely be overlooked. An overall GPA of 2.5 or below might be addressed, but not likely.

47. Dealing with “Problems” • Arrest Record • An employer is not legally allowed to ask you if you have ever been arrested. The only legal question is, “Have you ever been convicted of a misdemeanor or felony?” • Unless the conviction is or could be work-related (embezzlement, sex offenses, workplace violence, etc.), you can say that it is not related to your ability to perform the job.

48. Dealing with “Problems” • Arrest Record • Here is a sample answer from the Washington Post: • I was convicted of a DUI two years ago, the result of a brief episode of stupidity rather than a drinking problem. My probation is completed and I have no lingering legal concerns.

49. Resume Samples Review • Let’s take a look at some bad and good examples • Point out what you see—good or bad • Tell us about any special circumstances on your resume