Andrew Seaman的动态

I'm a huge proponent of always sending a cover letter. It's a matter of first impression. Even if cover letters have a low readability rate of around 30%, you should still send one. Remember that in the digital age, your cover letter functions as an e-note, which is why I recommend two strategies: (1) create a master cover letter that you can tweak accordingly for different positions; and (2) keep the cover letter to under 250 words.

I never recommend absolutes. Be mindful of where you are sending your cover letter to. If you are using a recruiting firm, especially in the Ottawa, Canada area, do not waste your time because it is most likely that no one will read it. My personal experience is that I never read a cover letter for the 15 years I recruited or managed recruiters, or in the more than 20 years hiring staff. I have also worked with many recruiters who never read cover letters. If the company did not ask for a cover letter, you are better off ensuring you have a well written customized resume that speaks to the role and the value you bring to that role. Have a well written career summary that takes the place of the cover letter. If the cover letter is not well written, it can hurt you rather than help. However, if you have special circumstances to explain such as, career gaps, career pivoting (things that that will reduce the flow of the resume) you may include one. Even in this case, do not be too detailed wherein you are not able to explain special circumstances well and you could better explain in a Face-to-Face or face-to- camera interview. Bottom-line, if you can avoid cover letters, avoid them.

Cover letters seem archaic. It's time that employers stop requiring them from candidates! As we move from an employers' market to a job seekers' market, it's important that companies streamline their hiring practices in order to compete for talent. A simple action might be adding 'no cover letter required' on job postings. This makes it that much easier for top candidates to apply. Plus, candidates will rejoice and this will reflect favourably on the organization's overall employment brand. Companies should cut requirements from candidates that don't bring value to the process. In most cases, cover letter requirements exist in the company's process, simply because they always have. They don't bring additional value to the assessment of the candidate and seem like a repetitive rehash of the resume. Candidates are much better served by having a strong LinkedIn profile where they can move from 'telling' the employer about their skills to 'showing' them with tangible work samples or recommendations. Nevertheless, job seekers looking for roles at more traditional organizations should follow the current norms and submit a cover letter. All the while knowing, it brings little value to their application or the hiring process.

In 3+ decades of recruiting that has included leading recruiting, uncovering some secret sauces of recruiting, speaking globally about recruiting, writing about recruiting, mentoring recruiters, building communities of recruiters, reading thousands upon thousands of résumés, and interviewing thousands of people, only one cover letter had me dialing the phone before even finishing the letter. One (happy to share it if you want). Your resume or profile has to tell me what you can or might be able to deliver (yes, info read between the lines); your LinkedIn profile is just a resume on steroids. If your resume can’t speak for you, your cover letter is has no chance to serve as a surrogate voice for you. The cover letter is the appendix of the hiring world. Move on and make your resume speak for you.

I think the reason recruiters don't read cover letters is because most cover letters are terribly written. "Dear sir/madam, I am writing to let you know about my interest in..." ?? is an awful cover letter. When I created the cover letter template below, I saw my interview rates instantly shoot up 10-20%. The beauty of this template is that you can fill it out in less than 10 minutes. Cover letters matter IF you write something meaningful. A cover letter is really your only chance of showing your personality before the interview so you should most definitely be including one.

Video cover letters & resume's are the future! The current application process is heavily automated and doesn't reward a well written cover letter. In this market, where TA and internal recruitment teams are overwhelmed with roles to fill, spending the extra five minutes per applicant to read a cover letter is just not happening. Do I think this is right? No, of course not but it's the by-product of market conditions and an inefficient hiring process. I believe there is room for a more humanized process, and this will happen when TA teams are not seen as a cost center but rather revenue generating and therefore would receive adequate resources to function more like a sales & marketing organization would.

Tom Kellum?While I agree that resumes can't sell you as well as you can sell yourself in person, I view resumes as a necessary evil, but still a necessary marketing tool. I teach my clients to avoid online applications, because that's what fails nearly 100% of the time. I also teach them to avoid using LinkedIn profiles as a replacement resume, as that also nearly guarantees failure. That's because I specialize in solving the most difficult job search problems (aggressive job search timetables, age 40+, searching for a promotion/raise, high competition levels,?career/industry/geographic?change, remote positions,?long term gaps, family leave,?industry?in decline/consolidation, job search turnaround, and other of the most difficult job search problems). I teach different techniques and give different advice than most?career?resources, because I focus on these specific problems, where job search generalist advice usually fails. Tougher problems require different solutions than easy job searches (ex: lateral move in 2019).

Bottom line - bad letters don’t get read and a hirer will know with a glance if it’s worth their time. A letter worth reading is one that adds to their information, not repeats it. They know you are applying to their role - no neeed to tell them that. They know you have attached your resume -it’s uploaded. They can see your work history and credentials. What they don’t know - -why you are excited about their organisation. -why you will add or complement their culture -how you can solve their unique issues and stories about how you’ve helped other organisations in similar positions I’ve seen letters motivate hirers to bring in candidates to interview even after the shortlisting process has finished but you have to dig deep and make it worth their while. A great letter can be a powerful asset. Great post Andrew Seaman

To me, there's no real downside in writing a cover letter. Worst case? They get thrown out (and anecdotally it seems this happens 1/3 of the time). Best case? They can make a big difference. What I appreciate about cover letters is they give you a chance to explain any potential "elephants in the room."

A lot of people will tell you this is a big waste of time, that no one reads them. The way I look at this, is one, a lot of jobs are now requiring cover letters and not submitting one is an easy way to get rejected and its also a way for a potential manager to witness your written communication skills. However, in the job search process, there are very few things you control once you hit submit, if I said, why submit a resume, no one reads them, you would still submit your resume for that chance, so a cover letter is not different. Secondly, wonder why no one reads a cover letter, THEY ARE BORING and the same thing is said over and over. So make yourself stand out. Be BOLD, Be DARING... tell a unique story, if you are pivoting careers, trying to get your foot in the door, or have a career break, address the elephant in the room from the get go! I have personally brought in people for interviewing based on a cover letter (one of my best writers on my team), I have had clients get calls about their cover letters and have been told that my own personal cover letters moved me through the interview process. Plus what do you have to lose?