image by Adam J. Merton

You hear a lot about getting your resume ready to apply online these days. This is very important and that’s why professional resume writers either offer the text resume as an option or as a standard item.

Recently, I heard a dialogue between resume writers about being careful to optimize the resume for online applications in case it is scanned in. Tables don’t read well in Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) so the thought was that you should never put a table in your resume.

Very interesting from a number of points. First of all, my clients are being hired in multiple fields from manufacturing to banking to pharmaceutical sales to defense contracting. And shocker… many of my resumes have tables in them. I teach my clients many back door strategies to put their resumes in front of decision-makers. Of course this means that they have to put in extra effort to find and make connections.

Everyone uses Applicant Tracking Systems – uh, No!

When you hear something from one employer or human resource manager and assume it is the only way, you are often missing the boat. Every company has not yet gone to ATS methods of resume intake. Your small businesses are more likely to either want the resume e-mailed or mailed.

Even if the company is using ATS methods, they are not all the same. In addition, your keywords should be in every facet of the resume, not just in a keyword table. The resume needs to have value-driven resume stories to make the employee worth hiring.

Here’s one of those resume stories from a recent client’s resume:

• Designed and implemented a computerized preventative maintenance program that notified drivers on the road when their truck was due for service.

He went to his second interview yesterday and his resume also had a table in it:

I think that if more people worked on building their skills, creating their resume “stories,” and making themselves invaluable to the employer, they would find their new positions much quicker. You don’t believe me? Then read this by Seth Godin:

“How to get a job with a small company”

Most advice about job seeking is oriented around big companies. The notion of a standard resume, of mass mailings, of dealing with the HR department–even the idea of interviews–is all built around the Fortune 500.

Alas, the Fortune 500 has been responsible for a net loss in jobs over the last twenty years. All the growth (and your best chance to get hired) is from companies you’ve probably never heard of. And when the hirer is also the owner, the rules are very different.

Listen to him. The rules are very different. Don’t assume the same rules apply all the time.

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Yesterday I refocused a resume for a returning client who landed her new position in July 2010. Her new company’s rule is that you need to be employed with them for 1 year before you can apply for any internal positions. She has met this goal!

Capture your success stories

She now is targeting a trainer position to use training skills she built in other jobs. My client knew that though she had a successful resume which worked last time, she needed help in capturing her new success stories and re-focusing her resume to match her new internal target.

Clients who work with me at Design Resumes know they participate in an interview-based, mainly real-time writing experience either in my office or via Skype. As I asked her questions and she answered, it was very obvious she knows what she is talking about. Since her particular position and department is new to me, I role-played with her to get her to demonstrate the calls she makes in her current position.

As we finished the update, I not only grasped the details of her present position but I understood why she was successful. Her answers exuded confidence and enthusiasm! The clarity of her answers coupled with her obvious caring nature had made her a natural. I have no doubt she will be able to translate this experience to the new role as a trainer and be an asset to the company as she teaches others the job.

Do you have a career plan?

As we continued our appointment, I asked, “You’ve always had a career plan, right?” Enthusiastically, she answered, “Yes!”

I have worked with other clients like her before and I have to say that they are my favorite type of client. Here’s what differentiates them from the average job seeker:

• They don’t necessarily have a specific job target with each step but they know even part time jobs and internships will build specific skills can tie into your end career goal.
• They are dedicated and willing to work hard to achieve their career goals and typically they also understand the key role fiscal management plays in this economy. She has not only a career plan but a financial management plan and to reach it, she doubled up at one point and for 9 months worked 80 hours a week. She said it was tough but it built skills and helped her reach some financial goals.
• They follow a path much like stepping stones or building blocks using each step to get closer to their goals.
• They see each step as another way to grow specific skills so when opportunity knocks, they are ready.

We hear stories every day of people who are unemployed for two to three years and who claim there are no opportunities. This young lady has no gaps on her resume. In fact, she has overlaps but she has put in her time, is not afraid of hard work, and learns from every experience including challenges, problems, and set backs.

She loves her current company and believes in their mission. This attitude adds to why she may very well succeed in achieving her next target. Do you have a career plan?

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Everyone can have scheduling conflicts and those of us who live by a calendar know that there will be cancellations and postponed appointments. Even doctors and dentists run into people who cancel or reschedule so it is something that goes with the territory. But many professionals charge a fee for a cancellation or at least require 24 hour notice so they can fill your slot with another patient or client.

We all run into scheduling issues. With my new puppy, Buddy, I have unexpected delays every day but I try to let my Design Resumes clients know if I am running late.

I’m venting a little because I had a pro bono client no show on me this noon. I take on pro bono clients now and then to help someone in dire need of services and am happy to do so but you do have to respect my time.

How do I define a no-show?

The no show is the appointment that is scheduled but never shows up and doesn’t call to cancel or reschedule. I always call to follow up because there is always the possibility that I have the appointment wrong on my calendar. Today the call was an hour ago and the client has not replied to my voicemail. If he does call, I will reschedule but since I have a high volume of clients, his appointment will have to fit into my schedule.

What if you no show in job search?

In job search, if you have to cancel or postpone an interview you run the risk of losing the opportunity but it can happen. Let’s examine the possible reasons:

1. You are sick — the common courtesy is to cancel if you are contagious or are too sick to go to an interview. Most employers will understand and if you are valuable enough to them, they will reschedule. If there are many applicants, you may lose the opportunity. Write a letter apologizing and re-expressing your interest in the job and the company.
2. Your child is sick — sometimes you are the only child care option. If you cannot find someone else willing to watch your child, cancel. However, the potential consequence is that the employer may not have a flexible child care policy and may wonder what you will do as an employee. Again, write the letter.
3. You have car trouble — if you breakdown on the way or your car won’t start, go ahead and cancel but realize that the employer may wonder how you will get to work if you are hired. Try for alternative transportation or make sure you have reliable transportation on the day of your appointment. Worst case scenario? Cancel and write the letter.
4. You forget. This is probably a no show. Call as soon as you realize it. Most likely you have now lost the opportunity to be interviewed but at least be respectful and call. Oh, and write the letter!

You get the idea. If you have to cancel an appointment or reschedule, as long as you are aware that it can possibly cost you the position, you have some options. But be respectful of other people’s time. Many of them place high value on their time.

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Are you using thank you notes in your job search? The road is often paved with good intentions but sometimes saving thank you is forgotten in the blur of finally having an interview or perhaps you don’t use the best strategy when you write the thank you.

A new client had me review a thank you note he sent after a recent interview. The note itself was the type many job seekers send and he had gotten some things right. We discussed what was right:

1. First of all, he remembered to send a thank you. Many job seekers never do and employers I have talked to have told me that a thank you note can be the teetering point of who is selected for the next interview or who is hired.
2. He got the name of the person who interviewed him. She didn’t have a business card but he did remember to ask her for one and jot down her name. Always get the name!
3. He sent it promptly after the interview. Waiting a week or longer will not help you.

Then we talked about how he could have improved it. I told him that after the interview, the first thing he should do, before he even leaves the parking lot is sit down with a pad of paper and write notes. An alternative is to use an app on your Smart Phone such as Pocket Recorder or EverNote and record the points you need to remember. These are the points I suggested:

1. What did you like about the company? Do they have a great product line or are they launching a new product that you really are excited about? Did they just remodel their facility? Or was their staff extra friendly and helpful? Find a good point to talk about.
2. What do you bring to the table that correlates well with their products or services. This is the time to reinforce your value.
3. What is their pain? Every company is challenged by something. Your job before the interview was to figure it out so that you could point out how you could help with their issues. If their sales are dropping, you could point out how in company XYZ, you were able to boost sales by x%. If their costs are too high, you can share how changing this process at XYZ company, saved the company X%. You get the idea. Find what their issues are and show them how you can be the solution.
4. Finally, close by telling them that you would love to be the solution to their problems and you welcome the next step in the process.

Now you have delivered not just a thank you note but an effective job proposal that resells you to the employer.