Getting noticed by an employer

Great article and I would certainly place eagerness/enthusiasm associated with personal confidence about handling the job high on the list

Regarding applying for a job, I offer the following suggestions. 1. Engage & capture a hiring pro’s attention starting with word one of your resume with your summary. Make it absolutely clear who you are, what experience and value you bring. And why they should hire you. 2. Craft your resume to fit the job. While this has been mentioned it can’t be overstated. Hiring pros read resumes – often in one quick pass - eliminating those which don't fit the job at hand. 3. Use subheads to help your resume stand out. These can also help you get past a company’s ATS. 4. Content should be aligned to the left, use a 12 pt font for easy reading, bullet points to bring attention to valuable facts & info. Embolden as necessary; never a whole paragraph. 5. As you state each job, add an achievement or two & sharable stats. 6. ?Add certifications, volunteer work, internships. These can be considered in lieu of required experience. 7. Never ramble; be factual & precise. Once written, review your resume for typos & readability; eliminate unnecessary words to help your resume flow and keep the hiring pro reading. 8. Your Cover Letter font style and size should match your resume – also for ease of reading and continuity.

Be. Qualified. I see so many resumes from people who read only the first line in the job description and then applied. If you're looking to make a career change, then make sure that you explain at the beginning of your resume how your past skills and work qualify you for the role you're applying for. Don't include it in a blurb at the bottom of your 2 page cover letter. And if you're looking to make a career change, don't apply to a senior-level role that required 10+ years of specific industry experience. Recruiters have ton on their plates and don't have time to call back every single person who applied because "The job looks interesting".

In order to gain the attention of recruiters and hiring managers, the candidate should know what position he/she applied for and their resume should reflect it. Too often, I receive generic resumes that do not show how their skillset is transferable to the position or it was a just a submission no real interest in the position. Second, the candidate should proofread the resume prior to submission. If a candidate uses a resume template, make sure the template information has been deleted. Unfortunately, depending on the size of the company and the position, a candidate may not hear back after submission. Some companies processes are antiquated and some are not. Sometimes it is nearly impossible to contact every candidate but the candidate can do a follow up call to show interest.

I believe everyone has hit all the high points but here are my insights: 1. Get some recent activity going on LinkedIn and update your profile pic, skills, whom you follow. 2. Sign up for job alerts with key words of positions you are mostly qualified for. 3. Be an early applicant, as soon as you get an alert, immediately research the job description and the company website as well as LinkedIn and reviews on Glassdoor and Indeed. Write a cover letter, make it short and HONEST, it should be a reflection of who you actually are. Then apply, now! 4. Don't let the requirement of "Must have a Bachelor's degree in..." scare you away, if you have equitable certifications, knowledge and experience, apply anyway! 5. Some jobs on LinkedIn list the recruiter, get in touch asap. 6. If you get rejected, ask for feedback as to why and how you can improve. 7. Follow the company on LinkedIn and if you were interviewed but rejected, connect with that person regardless and always send a Thank You via e-mail.

My best advice would be to: 1. Research the company - network to understand what they are trying to accomplish 2. Use your company research to help portray what value add YOU will bring to the organization 3. Back up your value add by documenting your past achievements in your cover letter and resume (make sure your resume isn't like a generic job description for the role - tailor it to the specific job opening) - what sets yourself apart from the other candidate? 4. Be authentic and yourself 5. Lastly, don't be afraid to jump out of your comfort zone. Even if you don't have all the experience requested but can demonstrate your success and how you are already utilizing the skills and competencies to be successful, apply for the job. Don't get discouraged if you don't hear back or you are not selected. Your time will come, this just wasn't the opportunity for you. A better one will come along when the time is right!

In my opinion, they should show how eager and ready they are to work - in the resume and cover letter. Also, list as many relevant skills as possible so we can see your entire skillset. In the current market, it's hard to find the perfect candidate. We need to be open to finding candidates who may not have as much experience as we want, but have the necessary skills and trainability. If I see a candidate has the skills, looks hungry and is trainable...I consider them, even without the 3-5+ yrs of experience that our company prefers. Candidates should find a creative way to showcase this information in their resume/cover letter. Another great tool is adding their Linked In profile to their resume and adding a picture as well! It's nice to see a face with the name when reviewing a resume. I've been conversing with a lot of Recruiting professionals and one thing we all have in common is that we are thinking outside the box to get new hires. I absolutely encourage applicants to do the same....think outside the box for creative ideas on how to get your resume viewed and get that interview! Best of luck!!

This may be an obvious one for some, but don't wait for the 1st interview to research the company--do it prior to applying. Tailor your resume based on the job description provided by the company; go on their website and identify a few reoccurring verbiages and incorporate them into your resume/ LinkedIn profile. It will increase your chance of showing up in the recruiter's search and impress the HMs (so it is important that if you do choose to use industry-specific terms that you do so correctly).

As a recruiter I see 100s of resumes each week and can tell you that yes, we do read them, and yes, they do blend together. Candidates that stand out send a cover letter telling me about their specific interests and relevant skills (think: make it easy for me to connect the dots). They have a really good, current format resume that is compelling and truly a marketing document (read: a document I want to pass along to my client). They have an updated LinkedIn profile with a good “about” section that tells us fast moving recruiters what they’re targeting. They engage on the platform in a way that is positive and compelling - we all love a good cheerleader - and demonstrate that they’re current and committed to a profession. And lastly, they do their research. When I interview someone who knows their target audience (translate: I know you’ll be prepared for your interview and reflect well on my firm), I am 10x more likely to recommend them to a hiring manager because I know they have thought about the role and company.