How Your Resume and Cover Letter Story Work Together To Help Get You the Job!

How Your Resume and Cover Letter Story Work Together To Help Get You the JobHow Your Resume and Cover Letter Story Work Together To Help Get You the JobTo borrow from the world of boxing, your resume and deckblatt letter are like a one-two punch. Each one alone has power, but together they deliver a winning combo that can help get you the match for the job you want.Above all, its the match that you are after. The match to the job interview and the job. You need to help the employer see all the ways obvious and less obvious that make you a great fit for the job.And you do that by crafting both your resume and cover letter in a way that shows how much of your experience, even some of your older experience, is evidence of skills and natural talents that fit well with their needs. In effect, you are telling a story. But its a wonderful story. Its a story about you.So where to abflug?Lets Start With Your Resume Story I have other articles on this site (see links below) that offer you t ips about how to write a great resume (and how not to). But the most important thing you can do right this minute is to look at your current resume and see what story its telling. Try to pretend you dont know you and are seeing the resume of this person for the first time. What do you see?Start from the earliest job and follow your resume up to the present. Is there a story that makes sense? Does it show progress? Are there some things in common throughout the years that help show who you are in a job (and more importantly to the job you want now), or are they each written as if sitting on an island of their own?Ideally, you want a resume that is written as if, from the very beginning, you were working your way right up to this job you are applying for now. You were made for this job. A perfect match. And yesI hear you saying What are you talking about? How could I know what I welches going to do 10 or 20 years later? Of course you couldnt.My Own Resume Story Let me use myself as an example. I have what I like to call a non-linear career history. OK. Some people would call it job-hopping, and in most of my early years especially it was. But as I looked back over my experiences each time I was applying for a job, I saw that there were things I could pull together to help make the story a better fit for the job.After I graduated college, I worked for a bank as a credit analyst / trainee, and then for a major record company as a marketing finance analyst. But I didnt want to be an analyst any more. I wanted to be a project manager. (OK. I really wanted to be an actress and writer. But I had bills to pay.)So I thought about everything that I did for the bank and for the record company and I made sure to highlight times when I led a project or found solutions or improved methods that we were using. Or simply any time that I showed initiative and took the lead.Even coordinating or organizing something counted, since it painted a different picture than just one of m e analyzing numbers. It showed my people skills and my ability to follow through. All transferable project manager skills. And so, I wove those parts of the story into the picture and underplayed the analysis part. Its all me. Its just how I tell the story.Where the Cover Letter Comes Into the Picture So now that my resume was a little closer to what a project manager job description called for, I used the cover letter to help seal the deal. I used bullets to highlight my strongest project management or project-management-like experiences. I found a way to save the record company $100,000 by revamping the way they did sales forecasts.I took on a research project for the loan-workout area of the bank. I even pulled from jobs Id had while putting myself through college, including one where I helped reorganize the ticket sales for a show in my hometown that starred a well-known comedian.While none of these were exactly what a project manager does, my resume and cover letter now helped make the case for me that I did have project manager skills. And once they helped me get to the interview I was hoping for, it was my job to make the story ring true. And I did.OK. Im not saying this works every time. But it does work. And while I had to start as a junior project manager, that was all I was looking for a chance to prove myselfSome final thoughts Think about whatever you can do to have your resume and cover letter story work together and show the new employer just how well you can match the job you really want.Its not up to the employer to figure it out. Its up to you to help him see it What story do your resume and cover letter tell? What story do you want them to tell? mora articles you might enjoy? How to Write a Strong Resume that Gets You Real Interviews? Resume Tips 5 Biggest (Not Obvious) Resume Mistakes You Can Make? How To Target Your Resume To the Job You Are Applying For ? What Goes Into a Good Resume Cover Letter?? Cover Letter Sample How To Target You r Cover Letter To the Job? Resume Sample Business Analyst Resume Targeted to the Job

Strengthening Your Business Network Through Volunteering

Strengthening Your Business Network Through VolunteeringStrengthening Your Business Network Through VolunteeringNetworking remains a vital activity for accounting and finance leaders, one that appears to be returning to its more traditional roots. Beyond a job search tool or way to tally connections, executives are using their outreach to stay up on the latest trends and grow their business.Robert Half Management Resources research found the popularity of reaching out via email is surging among chief financial officers, while the preference for social media is falling. No matter their favorite outreach vehicle, one way many executives build their business and careers through networking is volunteering.Making volunteering work for you and your companyHow can philanthropic work enable financial executives to help their companies and grow their careers? Here are just a few waysImprove recruiting and retentionMany job seekers include the charitable activities of a prospective employer a mong their priorities when making a decision on a job offer, says Robert Half community relations manager Lisa Montagna. As competition for talent heats up, volunteering can offer you and your company an edge.Echoing Montagnas insights, a survey by our companys OfficeTeam division found more than four in 10 workers said a companys participation in charitable activities influences their decision to work there. The appeal of philanthropic firms is particularly strong for the youngest generations in the workforce. The majority of respondents ages 18 to 34, including Millennials and Gen Z, are attracted to organizations involved with charitable outreach.Meet new customers and business contactsPeople want to buy from businesses they know and feel good about. Reaching out to your community will help you spread the word about your products or services and build affinity for your brand.Many of our managers have built their networks through volunteering, especially when they have transferred to new states or cities, adds Montagna. Volunteering allows them to meet people immediately and abflug to network from day one. Several of our executives now sit on boards for groups like Boys Girls Clubs of America and Junior Achievement.Enhance your companys reputationPhilanthropy gives your company positive exposure in the communities where your employees live and work, Montagna says. You have the opportunity to build goodwill for your business, including among people who may not have been familiar with it previously.Boost your healthHelping the community also offers health benefits. Citing academic research, Dress for Success notedon its website that studies show volunteering can reduce the risk of death by 25 percent, improving both physical and mental well-being.Getting startedIf youre looking for a volunteer activity, below are a few recommendations from MontagnaStart with your passionFor example, if you like sports, offer to coach a Little League team. If you enjoy cooking , once a month you could make meals for a soup kitchen.The key,says Montagna, is to do something you enjoy because you will be motivated to stay involved.Know its OK to start smallIf youre not sure where to start or where youll fit, take comfort knowing everything you do no matter how large or small it may seem will help.If all you can offer is one hour a month or a quarter, dont think that wont make an impact, says Montagna.It is amazing what you can accomplish in an hourCheck out your companys activitiesMany organizations help facilitate volunteer work for employees. In addition to having all the information you need to get started available internally, you may even be able to make your outreach a group outing or team-building exercise.Consult your networkComing full circle, Montagna recommends talking to your contacts for their thoughts. Get advice from friends and colleagues who are already active volunteers. Talk to a variety of people involved with different causes and see w hich interest you most.A more personal approach to business networkingCFOs shift from social media to email as their preferred networking tool suggests they seek more personal outreach. And there are fewer things more personal than enriching the lives of others.How have your volunteer activities helped you build your business network? Please share your experiences in the comments section below.For more information on Robert Halfs philanthropic work, download our corporate citizenship report.Editors Note Boys Girls Clubs of America and Dress for Success are nonprofit partners of Robert Half.Related postsIs Corporate Citizenship a Priority at Your Business? If Not, Heres Why It Should BeHow CFOs Engage on Social Media 5 Key InsightsNetworking at the Top 7 Tips for Current and Aspiring CFOs3 Networking No-Nos for Finance Consultants

How to Deal at Work When Your Mind is on Something Else

How to Deal at Work When Your Mind is on Something ElseHow to Deal at Work When Your Mind is on Something ElseOver the past few months, Ive planned a wedding, bought a house, and moved out of my apartment- all while working two jobs. And so, during the workday, instead of focusing on my day-to-day responsibilities, it wasnt unusual for me to actually be thinking about paint colors, honeymoon destinations, credit scores, event vendors, and endless paperwork. And that made it pretty hard to get any real work done. When you have something big going on in your personal life, its nearly impossible to block it out from 9 AM to 5 PM. At the same time, you cant let it take over your work life, distracting you from your responsibilities and tanking your performance. Instead, Ive found it best to somewhat meet in the middle. In a few small ways, its OK to give in to the distraction. Of course, its also important to learn how to stay strong and overcome the temptation to focus entirely on whats going on outside of the office. Here are a few ways I do both. Give In Add it to the ListWhen I had a lot going on in my personal life, going to work didnt exactly take my mind off of it- in fact, it did the opposite. Id spend meetings mentally going over my never-ending to-do list if I got a quiet moment at my desk, Id forgo any focused work and start thinking about upcoming commitments, conversations I needed to have, and personal phone calls I should have returned last week. When your mind is buzzing with outside distractions, its OK to indulge in a few minutes of planning to organize those thoughts and to-dos so that you can refocus on your job. But the key is to write it down with the purpose of getting it out of your mind and moving on to otherbei (read work-related) things. For example, I started several ongoing to-do lists in the back of my work notebook. Then, whenever my workday got interrupted by my wandering mind (I need to buy stamps, track down those old tax returns, address invitations), Id jot it down on the list- to tackle later. Its a simple solution, but getting it out of your mind and onto paper will help you focus on whats happening now- instead of what needs to happen tonight, tomorrow, and next weekend.Stay Strong Minimize Your TriggersWhatever it is thats distracting you, theres probably something that triggers those feelings. Maybe its a text from your significant other, an email newsletter with tantalizing headlines (The 25 Songs That Will Get Your Guests on the Dance Floor), or messages from friends on Facebook, asking if youre OK or if you could use a drink at happy hour tonight. Believe me, I know how it feels. The minute I got engaged, I was suddenly on a hundred email lists that I never signed up for, all of which sent me daily emails about cake flavors and honeymoon destinations. Seeing those emails first thing in the morning got me excited about planning a wedding- but certainly didnt get me in the mindset to get some serious work done. So, figure out how to minimize that trigger. Unsubscribe from those lists, save social media checks for your lunch break, or tuck your phone away in your purse or briefcase. Separating yourself from the things that spark your distraction will help you re-establish your workspace as a place you should be, well, working- instead of thinking about your life outside the office. Give In Let Yourself Have a Lunch BreakTake a glance around my office at noon, and youll see occupied desks, noses buried in work, and the occasional dejected Lean Cuisine, tossed aside after a few tasteless bites. In other words, lunch breaks arent the norm.When I was deep in the trenches of the house-buying process, though, I desperately needed that free hour to look at houses, gather and fax paperwork, and drive to my real estate agents office when I inevitably missed a signature line.At first, I let that make me feel guilty. Here I was, traipsing around town, popping in and out of potential houses, while my co-workers kept their heads down and worked through lunch. But eventually, I realized that if I didnt get those tasks out of the way during my midday break, Id spend my entire afternoon worrying about when Id be able to get to them- and subsequently, get no real work done. In the end, allowing myself to use my lunch break however I needed helped me refocus for the rest of the workday. Whether you need that hour to meet with vendors, stop by the post office, sign papers, or just vent to a friend, dont feel guilty. Its your lunch break- take advantage of it Stay Strong Hold Yourself AccountableOne of my former bosses used to have me email him every Monday, outlining my focus for the week, which typically included two to three major projects or goals that I wanted to accomplish. On Friday, hed check back in for an update. And knowing that a So, where are you on your goals for this week? was inevitably coming, I was much more apt to get my mind of personal issues and get my he ad in the game.If you dont want to make that kind of arrangement with your boss (or clue him or her in on whats going on in your personal life), make a mutual agreement with a co-worker. Exchange lists at the beginning of the week, then chat over a cup of coffee on Friday about how you did. (Just make sure you pick someone who will hold you to your commitments- and not just reassure you that its OK that you spent the entire week browsing Zillow.)Whatever youre going through- whether its sad, exciting, distracting, or all of the above- it probably wont stop running through your mind when you get to the office. But you know what? Thats just life. Manage that distraction with a few of these tips, and youll stay successful in and out of the office.Photo of woman thinking courtesy of Shutterstock.

Trinity College Robot Contests Help Spur Interest in STEM

Trinity College Robot Contests Help Spur Interest in STEM Trinity College Robot Contests Help Spur Interest in STEM Trinity College Robot Contests Help Spur Interest in STEMASME member John Mertens, the advisor for the Trinity College ASME student chapter, has been the administrator for the International Robot Contest for the last two years. For mora than 20 years, Trinity College in Hartford, Conn., has hosted an annual international robotics competition that inspires college and pre-college students alike to learn about science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) while piquing their curiosity about the field of robotics. This spring, more than 300 middle school, high school and university students from across the United States - as well as Israel, Indonesia and China - traveled to the school to take part in the two-day competition.More than 80 teams participated in the two competitions that made up this years Trinity College International Robot Contest the Robowaiter Challenge event on March 28, where students tested the capabilities of robots they designed to help people with disabilities perform daily chores, and the Fire Fighting Home Robot Contest on March 29, where teams battled to see whose robot could most effectively respond to a fire alarm and extinguish a fire. The contests are open to students of various ages, from middle school students who competed in the junior category, to high school and college students who contended in the standard and senior categories, respectively.At the end of the two days of competition, Anna Garner and Kate Shaffer, two students from Pennsylvania, were named overall winners of the event. Garner and Shaffer, who represented Mercer Area High School in Mercer, Penn., were awarded the Best Unified Robotics Performance (BURP) Award for their fire-fighting robot prototype Anouk. The Trinity College International Robot Contests are supported by a dedicated group of faculty, students and alumni from the college .Other teams who excelled during the contests included two teams from Talcott Mountain Science Center in Avon, Conn., who took first and second prize in the Robowaiter Challenge junior level category, and two Trinity College teams who took the first- and second-place honors in the standard category. In the Firefighting Robot Contest, teams from Talcott Mountain Science, Israels Ironi G University, and Indonesias Politeknik Negeri Bandung University were among the top winners in their respective categories. ASME member John D. Mertens, PhD, who has been the advisor for the ASME student chapter at Trinity College for 25 years and the contests administrator for the past two years, sees his colleges event as a good complement to the higher-profile FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Robotics Competition. Were more grassroots, said Dr. Mertens. The team members - the students - do the work themselves and try to do it really inexpensively. Plus, the vehicle s in our contests are all autonomous robots, whereas most of the FIRST robot activities are remote-controlled. We really dont compete with FIRST. But, I think we both serve a great purpose, which is increasing interest in STEM.According to Mertens, students at his school get involved through a freshman elective class in robotics that requires the students to take part in one of the Trinity Robot Contests. This year, for instance, eight freshmen teams from Trinity competed in the Robowaiter Challenge. That experience is usually so stimulating that most of these students go on to join the Trinity Robotics Team, where they study more advanced robotics over the subsequent three years. In plus-rechnen to taking part in the Trinity Robotics Contests, members of the robotics team also build robots to compete in the annual Intelligent Ground Vehicle Competition (IGVC) that takes place in Michigan. In fact, a Trinity team will be heading to Rochester, Mich., in just a few days to take part i n the event from June 5 to 8 at Oakland University. For the Robowaiter Challenge, students design robots that perform simple daily tasks, such as delivering a bowl of cereal to a table, placing the bowl in a sink, and opening a refrigerator. Robotics is a wonderfully interdisciplinary engineering activity, Mertens said. It brings computer engineering, electrical engineering and mechanical engineering together. Its a fantastic educational experience, and the evidence is there. Many of our robot team alums from Trinity have gone on to get PhDs in engineering, and a significant number work in the robotics field. He added that the robotics activities at Trinity have put the school on the map internationally. Weve got students coming from all over the United States - as well as Israel, Indonesia and China - to be a part of the contest, and weve gotten international students to come attend Trinity simply because of the competition, he said.While ASME is not an official sponsor of the event, Mertens said it is supported by student, alumni and faculty volunteers from Trinity - many of whom are ASME members. Still, he would like to encourage more participation from other ASME members and leaders from the area. I would love to get ASME more aware of the competition and more involved, by becoming a sponsor of the event, or sponsoring an award, or providing volunteers, he said.Mertens is currently seeking engineers from the Hartford area to volunteer with the competitions supervising committee, which meets several times a year to plan the Robot Contests and to advise the Trinity Robot Team as it prepares for the IGVC each June. Interested ASME members should contact Dr. Mertens at (860)297-2301 or by e-mail at john.mertenstrincoll.edu. To view the complete list of this years Trinity College International Robot Contest winners, visit www.trincoll.edu/events/robot/faq.html.

What Everyone Is Saying About Downloadable Free Resume Templates Is Wrong and Why

What Everyone Is Saying About Downloadable Free Resume Templates Is Wrong and Why You are able to easily include your social websites profile urls too. Moreover there are several resume templates Microsoft Word to pick from it is really tough to land on that 1 link which will actually do the job for you. A number of the templates are in PDF format and a number of them are in Word format. Show your total eignung by producing the most effective possible CV through their disruptive on-line resumes and eye-catching PDF templates Profile is intended to do only that. All sections may be visible so you recruiters will know where to search for the templates important info about you. Word Resume templates are simple to find or spot on the web and can be downloaded for more use. As an additional bonus, you also receive a work interview tracker that will help you keeping track of passed and upcoming job interviews. Professionally, our resumes are often the very first impression a possi ble employer gets of us. In that perhaps you understand how certain absolutely free resumes to complete and print. You are able to say thats quite opposite of functional resumes that are very traditional. Learn why Resume-Now is a top alternative for job seekers. Its important to get your resume stand out from the work competition. Its not worth to shed a job youve always wanted. Submit the same resume for each and every job. Choosing Downloadable Free Resume Templates Is Simple There are several premium CV templates to be found on the Web but these totally free templates are classy choices too. It features several layout choices and may also function as a single page theme. There are several free resume writing templates on the internet that will assist you with design etc.. The premium edition of the theme also will come with additional page templates and more customization choices. If You Read Nothing Else Today, Read This Report on Downloadable Free Resume Templates B ear in mind an immediate cover letter is equally as critical as a great resume While theres an absolutely free account, you will unlock its potential starting at $39 each year. If you are searching for Work Resume Template Free youve come to the proper spot. Uptowork isnt entirely FREE. There are lots of people out there searching for work nowadays. All you need to do is choose the one which is most suitable for your personality. If you choose a one-page resume, be sure that you tailor it like the example above. There are lots of beautiful resume templates out there, but nevertheless, it can be simple to feel as a lot of the greatest cost a ridiculous quantity of money, require special design programs in order to edit, or both. The Good, the Bad and Downloadable Free Resume Templates Your resume is your introduction to a prospective employer that is exactly why it important to ensure which you are in a position to set up a terrific first impression in your resume. The majo rity of the moment, applicants waste plenty of time worrying what things to write in their resume, rather than how it must be written. Its possible your interviewers will cross-check all of the information and verify all the details before recruiting you, so there isnt any scope for virtually any mistake. Its very essential to know the schriftart of resumes preferred by the establishment that you need to work for. Getting the most of a resource that wont only help save you time, but is demonstrated to elevate your opportunity of scoring a work simply is reasonable. All you need to do is point and click. No matter if its your very first job resume or not, its important to know that any resume should have 5 important elements. Its the very best format alternative if you wish to earn a career change and feature your transferable abilities or job titles which do not clearly describe the degree of your responsibility. Introducing Downloadable Free Resume Templates Its very quick to setup and simple to customize. This easy and totally free Word template is contained in this list not due to its design but due to what the concept and structure of an extensive CV ought to be. CakeResume is a drag-n-dropped editor where you are able to customize the info, layout, images, social icons, colours and everything to create a perfect resume. The Argument About Downloadable Free Resume Templates Conversely, locating a scheduling app that operates seamlessly in the background is heavenly. Its should you stick to the process that I am going to share with you step-by-step. There are more than merely a couple of pointers which you have to remember and fully adhere to when designing a resume even when youre employing a readymade template. Avoid messing up the dates, especially when you have been unemployed for a very long moment.

Making the Case for a Case Study - Spark Hire

Making the Case for a Case Study - Spark HireMany companies today are turning to behavioral based interviewing, also called behavior description interviewing, or BDI. In this kind of interviewing, questions generally require the candidate to describe a situation they have faced personally and interviewers focus on their specific response to these cases. A typical BDI question could be something like, Tell us about a time when you disagreed with your boss. What did you do? The general idea and goal behind this type of interviewing is that those doing the hiring might be able to predict how a candidate would respond to situations they might face in the future, should they be asked to join the company. If youre interested in a more in-depth look at this kind of interviewing, you can check out my previous post here.While this sort of interviewing can prove useful in certain hiring situations, the issue often faced is that the answers received are based on the candidates singular recall o f the events which took place. Namely, with no one to corroborate or disagree with the story, it is difficult at times to tell if the candidate is truthfully representing the situation or their actions in that situation.Hiring managers and a hiring committee can attempt to avoid this by using a case study. This usually consists of a predetermined, hypothetical situation that is relevant to the position being applied for. The situation is laid in front of the candidate and they are asked to respond to it as they see fit.Writing for The Chronicle of Higher Education, John R. Lubker says this method of interviewing was used successfully to hire a new dean for the university where he was previously holding the interim dean position. Their case study involved the head of a department who was eligible for the status of full professor and denied the promotion. The candidates were given time to become familiar with the case and then asked to respond to the issues that arose. In Lubkers view , the case-study approach provides a behavioral window through which to view your potential hire in action. Like any assessment, it should not be used alone but it can contribute greatly to the success of your search.This method of interviewing can be adapted to just about any job interview within any industry. It can be more time-consuming for both the candidate and the interviewers, as well. But coupled with a few behavioral based questions, it can help to create a more complete picture of how a candidate has performed in the past and how they may perform in the future.Do you use case studies in your interviewing process? Tell us about it in the comments.IMAGE Courtesy of Flickr bywhatleydude