How to Avoid the Pathetic Pitfalls of the Hiring Process
Steven Sosland
Vice Chancellor for Leader & Culture Development at the Texas Tech University System
Avoiding the Pathetic Pitfalls of the Hiring Process
In the last few weeks, I have suffered through reading dozens of pathetic cover letters and résumés. The easiest thing for me to do as a hiring manager would be to rule these applicants out of consideration.
The problem is that very good candidates wrote them. I am writing this article for potential candidates and hiring managers in the hope of minimizing the suffering for candidates who never get the interview they want and hiring managers who struggle finding good candidates to interview.
?The Basics
There is only one purpose in submitting a cover letter and résumé: to get an interview. No matter how good you look on paper, no effective hiring manager will hire without a robust interviewing process.
Cover Letter
The cover letter should prove three things:
·????? Interest – why does this job and company interest you?
·????? Research – what research have you conducted about the job, company, and most of all, culture?
·????? Desire – what do you want to happen as a result of your letter?
Please do not send your letter to “whom it may concern, search committee, sir or madam,” or anything else that proves you’ve done no research into who leads the organization. Write the letter to a person by name and to their address. If you cannot do that little research, then don’t expect them to respond to you in person either.
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Résumés
Résumés should highlight specific accomplishments that connect with the opportunity. The first word of each bullet should be an action verb that connects with what’s required in the job to which you are applying. If it is a team leader role, then the verbs should show your best accomplishments leading teams. The same applies for project management, technical skills, administrative skills, etc.
Note to Hiring Managers
My experience conducting over 20,000 interviews is that the very best candidates may be very poor at the paperwork. I personally interview every applicant for the positions I post. I evaluate culture fit before I approve candidates for interviews with my team. I also give them specific feedback during the interview on how they can improve. My goal is to add value.
It is the hiring managers responsibility to create a safe place for candidates to be vulnerable and authentic, ask probing questions to determine fit, and build an advocate for your organization. ??
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