Your resume is one of the main ways employers have of making a judgement of your ability to perform a role.

Your document requires structure and a pathway of understanding for your reader. It should not be a difficult maze of distracting information to navigate.

It should  reflect who you are, what you have done and what you could offer a new employer; it should not be an example of how much you don’t care about the impression you’re making.

Seriously, the resume that is highlighted below was an actual, live application (yes all the names and contact details have been changed to protect the innocent)

The font size and the layout is exactly as it presented and Dear Ruby (not her real name) was applying for a role as an office assistant. We have left all the errors intact so that you can judge for yourself.

This IS a BAD resume and it will not be able to allow Ruby to get to an interview.

• How many errors can you find?
• What judgement did you make of Ruby as a potential employee?
• Would you refer her to a position within your business?
• What advice would you give Ruby on improving her resume as well as he approach to work outside of Hospitality industry eg for Office work?

check this real example (names changed ) READ ON!

 …………………………………………………………………….

RESUME

 NAME:                Ruby Brown

ADDRESS:          Yada Yada NSW 2444

DOB:                    6^th December 1996

MARTAL STATUE:      single

MOBILE:            0400 600 211

EMAIL:               hotchick96@hotmail.com

PREVOUS EMPLOYMENT:                                  

September 2010 – currence

Company: Flynns on the water Café

Place: Port Macquarie

Position: Barista, Waitress and Cook

Duties:

• Taking orders
• Preparing food
• Customer service
• Cleaning
• Cooking meals takeaway and dine in
• Opening and closing the café
• Ordering stock
• Barista – Making Coffees
• Waitress
• Cash handling

November 2011 – April 2013

Company: Real Expensive Property

Place: Port Macquarie

Position: Traineee Property Manager –

Duties included:

• Answering the phone
• Scheduling and Conducting viewings of rental properties
• Scheduling and Conducting routine inspections

November 2012 – 2014

Company :Boring as anything

Place: Hell on Earth

Position: Admin

Duties included

• Organising repairs/sending work orders
• Entering new tenants in REST
• Updating owners on their investments weekly
• Sending emails
• Receipting rent and water
• Adding, editing and removing rental properties on Port Plus
• Archiving and allocating documents

EDUCATION AND QUALIFICATIONS                                                           

2014 Peak Coffee Coarse Module 1, 2 & 3 completed, Port Macquarie

2012 McCafe Barista Certificate completed, Port Macquarie

2013 finished highschool

REFERENCES:                                                                                                      

Joe Blogg

Manager

Mcdonalds

Hobbies

Surfing; swimming; crafts;singing; dancing; going out with friends; music; football; social media;gym; singing

How many errors did you find? This resume is in serious need of an overhaul!

Having your own troubles with resume writing – talk with our expert Ivana Agapiou resume writer and career advisor 

0404056278

The post OMG! A Resume with a bad attitude! appeared first on Eather Recruitment.

Spend valuable time on the writing, thinking, planning and reviewing and it will be worth every minute!

• It should be a breeze. A walk in the park. A lovely relaxing think, but all too often talking about ourselves in positive light, is the most difficult thing to do. Most of us need help with learning the Key secrets to writing responses to Key Section Criteria and other tricky demands of the application process.

Job Applications that require responses to  Key Selection Criteria (KSC)- or Capability Statements, can be an excruciating experience…especially if you don’t know what to do!

Firstly, you must respond to the Key Selection Criteria. If you only send in your Cover Letter and Resume for a job that has a request for you to respond to Key Selection Criteria your application will immediately be discarded

Don’t assume that employers or the selection panel will pull the information out of your application package and pick up the salient points.  They will not!  Even if they had the spare time for such insight, they are not allowed to infer anything.

Here are some General hints to follow when responding to KSC (Key selection Criteria)

• Read the vacancy announcement carefully  ( I often read it out aloud and slowly – it helps!)
• Gather the information needed to begin writing
• Be specific and be precise
• Get to the point and don’t ramble
• Use poignant examples to support your assertions (current and past colleagues may be able to assist you remember)
• State specifically what you have done, and the results or outcomes
• Do not use acronyms
• Present yourself in “clear and plain” language
• Do not borrow language from the position description
• Make sure you answer each Key Selection Criteria separately. NEVER, ever, write a response that combines 2 or more Key Selection Criteria in one response or write, eg, refer to para 1 or refer to resume
• Study each Key Selection Criteria very carefully. Note the language used and the very specific areas the question covers. Underline any key words and phrases. Then write your response.

For each Key Selection Criteria, delve into your career history and work experience and come up with an example that demonstrates the particular skill or experience that you are being asked for. Try to find examples of a project that was completed (i.e. something that started and ended, with a definable result, while you were there) and write a response outlining what you actually did to assist with the project

Use the STAR (Situation, Task, Action, Result) structure to respond to the Key Selection Criteria

Keep your responses to Key Selection Criteria within the guidelines on the advertisement.

Keep it succinct and brief. More than 3 or 4 pages per criterion is almost certainly too much. Less than this is to brief and more than this will put you at risk of waffling. Please Note that waffling does not cut it. The questions are very specific and it’s critical you provide specific responses.

There are a number of publications and further information on the web .Let us know if  these tips are useful!

Ivana Agapiou resume writer and career advisor

0404 056 278

The post Let’s explore the Excruciating “Writing Part” for Key Selection Criteria appeared first on Eather Recruitment.

Big fish are attracted to the right bait – is your resume the “right bait?”

Ever wondered why you never hear back from your job applications? Are you frustrated with not landing an interview, let alone “that”  job? Do you send out the same resume  for a variety of jobs?

Consider job searching is just like fishing.  Seasoned fisherman know that you need 3 main things to capture “that” particular fish.

The right bait on the right line – 

Resumes are not supposed to be one size fits many. They should be tailored and and pertinent to the advertised job. They should tell the reader that you have most of what they are after – the experiences, the skills and the knowledge required to perform the job that they advertised. Don’t make it difficult for them to see the “fit”. Don’t be too abstract and fancy. Just like a fishing lure, attract them to your resume, with attractive, yet highly relevant information. It’s important to meet at least 80% of the criteria or your resume will fall into a waste area and just be food for other less important fish.

The right time and place

You may want to apply for a CEO position, and you may even do a great job. However… are you really ready? Is this the right time, and is this the right organisation? Make sure you research and investigate not just the future of the company, but the demands of the role.  Realistically revise your work history. What aspects of your past and current career make you a serious contender for this role? Can you match your skills, experience and knowledge to their requirements? Hate to harp on…but you need to meet at least 80% of their essential criteria to get to a shortlist,let alone to the interview!

The right technique

Yes, you can send your resume in for loads of jobs, and yes, you can feel like you have invested a great deal of time job hunting, but if your technique is always the same, you may just be attracting more of the same.  AND be super frustrated. If you are lucky, perhaps you get little nibbles, little bites, enough to ruin your bait, (and your day)  but not enough to land you that interview.  Not all jobs are the same, therefore not all applications should be the same. It’s not a factory. It’s not a science. But it is common sense and a mark of a great communicator, if you can step into the reader’s shoes and consider what it is that they really, really want!

In summary, consider the end-game and the fish (the jobs) you want to attract . Which fish do you want to attract? Imagine what will attract them to you. Because, just like employers, not all fish are the same, you need to stand out and at the same time, look like a perfect fit! Will you be the solution that they are looking for? Will they rush to your application and want to contact you immediately? if not, why not?

Hopefully, if nothing else, you will think twice before sending out copious resumes and applications. One size does not fit many.

Ivana Agapiou career and outplacement advisor ; resume writer

#resumes #resume #resumewriter #jobs #jobapplications #FIGJAMresumes

The post Landing that big fish is just like landing that big job! appeared first on Eather Recruitment.