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#BestofFSCBlog : Reality Check- Recruiters are Not your Friends. There’s No Such Thing as a Professional Job-Finder. MUst REad!

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This fact may burst a bubble for most job seekers. The hard reality is job seekers have the wrong idea about what recruiters and headhunters do for a living. When one starts a search for a new job, the first professional they may try to connect with is a recruiter. A recruiter would know where to find a job…right? They can take the resume and push it to everyone they know…right? Dead wrong.  

Here is the hard-core truth. Recruiters are too busy to call anyone their company isn’t ‘interested in’ for a specific job. Recruiters will not return phone calls, voice mail, email, or text messages to strangers or applicants who don’t meet the minimum job requirements. They are already overwhelmed with communications trying to find the ‘perfect candidate.’ If you are not ‘the match,’ – you can talk ’til you’re blue in the face,’ but it won’t change circumstances. You will only waste your and the recruiter’s time.

There’s no such thing as a professional job-finder. Resume writers, career advisors, career counselors, life coaches, or outplacement service professionals may operate with parallel tasking – but they’re not job-finders. Recruiters are candidate finders. It’s not their responsibility to find a job for job seekers. Don’t blindly contact recruiters and ask them to help you find a job. 

 

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What Skill Sets Do You have to be ‘Sharpened’ ?

Did you know?  First Sun Consulting, LLc (FSC) is celebrating over 30 years in the delivery of corporate & individual outplacement services & programs to over 1200 of our corporate clients in the U.S., Canada, UK, & Mexico!  

We here at FSC want to thank each of corporate partners in the opportunity in serving & moving each of their transitioning employee(s) rapidly toward employment !

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It’s also a numbers game – job seekers submit resumes, aim for multiple interviews, and hope for an offer letter. Recruiters review hundreds of resumes from websites, headhunters, or employee referrals for each position, query the resumes for matching keywords, and send the top 5-10 results to a hiring manager. The hiring manager picks the top three to interview and make a decision based on salary (budget), availability, knowledge, skills, experience, abilities, and personality in the interview.  

It sounds harsh, but it is reality. Finding a job is not a matter of justice, fairness, or luck. No one owes anyone a job. Recruiters are your ‘friend’ only if you meet the immediate requirements of an open job requisition. Recruiters don’t have time to invest in job seekers, their inconveniences, and their car or family problems.  Recruiters do care about recruiting, filling jobs, keeping hiring managers happy, and staying within a staffing budget. They will be polite to qualified candidates and perform the steps necessary to get that candidate hired.  Likewise, hiring managers do not care about applicants’ inconveniences and problems.  Hiring managers care whether the qualified candidate has great skills, stays within a labor budget, and can get the job done.  

Recruiters and headhunters are ‘people finders,’ not ‘job finders.’ They have a set number of specific openings at any given time and usually only hire one person per seat. One. Recruiter’s jobs are to conduct a ‘high throughput’ process. It is a matter of getting the right resume with the needed skill set to the recruiter to solve a company’s problem.  

Job seekers must ask when the decision will be made during the interview. If the company is interested in hiring, they’ll call. If you know when the position closes, call the day after if you haven’t gotten a ‘sorry, we found another more qualified candidate’ message. One call…no more. Drop that job lead into the dead file if you get a voicemail and no callback. Most recruiters have an email management system within their ATS, and there is a chance they’ll notify the ‘rejects.’ But most likely, they don’t have time for follow-up. 

To summarize, there is little point in calling a recruiter to ask them to help you, the job seeker, to find a job. Job seekers should recognize the recruiters’ viewpoint for what they do for a living. It is up to the job seeker to find that job and apply. It’s not a recruiter’s responsibility to help the job seeker find or get that next career position.

 

FSC Career Blog Author:

Dawn Boyer, Ph.D., is an associate of First Sun Consulting, and the owner of D. Boyer Consulting – providing resume writing, editing, and publishing consulting services. Reach her at: Dawn.Boyer@DBoyerConsulting.com or http://dboyerconsulting.com.

Bio: Dawn D. Boyer, Ph.D., manages and operates a consulting firm in Norfolk, Richmond, Colonial Beach (Dahlgren), and Gloucester, VA. Her background is 24+ years in the Human Resources field, of which 12+ years are within the Federal & Defense Contracting industry. She is the author of 940+ books on business, human resources research, career search practice, women’s studies, genealogy lineages, and adult coloring books. Her books are listed on Amazon.com under her author’s page for Dawn D. Boyer, Ph.D.

 

FSC Career Blog | October 13, 2022 | Dawn Boyer, Ph. D. 

 

 

 

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#JobSearch : Best Practices for a Job Seeker’s Cover Letter. Great Eight(8) Points Checklist.

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In this technology-based age, many companies are foregoing cover letters in the electronic uploads for digital resume storage, but some systems allow cover letters to be added separately.

Recruiters may review the cover letter for various reasons, but here are a few discriminators used to consider or to reject a candidate. 

1- What positive things do recruiters want to see in cover letters?  The ability to write an idea concisely, proper grammar, spelling, and punctuation demonstrate a well-rounded education.  Aesthetic placement of type font, white space, centering (vertical and horizontal) demonstrates a technical skill to use word processing software and awareness of creating a professional look and feel.

It’s hard to address a ‘real human being’ in any HR department. A Boolean search might bring up a point of contact in the company on social sites (company website, LinkedIn, or Facebook).  If your query and find an employee’s name, they may be willing to share an HR rep’s name and contact info.  ‘Dear sir or madam,’ is the professional alternative, if you can’t find any names.

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What Skill Sets do You have to be ‘Sharpened’ ?

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2- Cover letters should be one page – no more – with one-inch margins and 11 or 12-point type font (Arial or Times New Roman).  If you can’t get the message across in three paragraphs, it’s too wordy.   The contents of a cover letter should be concise and within those three paragraphs. A well-written paragraph has at least three sentences.  Don’t start sentences or paragraphs with prepositions (e.g., and, but, because, etc.).

Recruiters prefer resumes and cover letters uploaded into Automated Tracking Systems (ATS) resume databases or may ask for an e-mailed resume.  Copy and paste it within the body of the email, but place it after your signature line.  You should have a very short notification, e.g., “Per request, please find my cover letter and resume after my signature for your consideration.”  Computer viruses make recruiters nervous about attachments.  Recruiters would rather have an opportunity to scroll down for information versus opening documents to save time and effort.

3- The first paragraph emphasizes the applicant’s interest in the company.  Explain why you are targeting the employer and the job title.  ‘Name drop’ a mutual contact if you have that advantage.  “I am applying for the Whiffle Ball hole-driller position because your company’s reputation is stellar in the junior-league baseball industry for making the highest quality play equipment.  Your emphasis on quality makes my skills as a driller a good match for (name of company)’s strategic objectives noted on your website.”  This shows the applicant has performed research and shows the ability to communicate a point effectively.

4- Name-dropping might be impolite in some circles, but for job shopping, it might get your foot in the door.  Mention a common contact to attract the attention of the recruiter.  “Joe Bob, Pellet Supervisor in your molding plant, suggested my candidacy for this position.”  Additionally, some companies provide incentives such as cash bonuses for employees, so this gives the recruiter documentation of the referral.

The cover letter is not your resume – provide a few salient points of interest in the second paragraph not already explained in the resume.  “A recent trip to the Congo provided valuable experience in creating Whiffle Ball leagues for schools in a district with three different languages.  This experience has enriched my capability to use diverse communications skills to ensure your company has effective methods of obtaining customer suggestions for where Whiffle holes are drilled in the balls.  This explains the gap in employment for the summer of YYY and the change in my career from nursing hamster pups to drilling Whiffle balls.”

5- The third paragraph should emphasize availability and refer to attached (or uploaded) resume and availability for interviewing (either telephonically or in person), accompanied by phone and e-mail information.  The applicant’s return address is already in the resume – don’t waste precious text or white space on repeat information.

6- The cover letter is not a place to try sarcastic or witty humor.  With no context or visible body language, the attempt at humor may backfire.  Write professionally.  Emphasize what you can do for the employer versus asking them to do you a favor.  Try to avoid using the word ‘I’ in the cover letter – it is, but it is not about you – it is about the company’s need to find a qualified candidate for a position.

7- Even English professors can misspell words or get a comma in the wrong place.  Send the cover letter through the grammar and spell check several times and then read the letter out loud to a peer to ensure it makes sense.  Just because a word is spelled correctly, doesn’t mean it’s correctly used (e.g., granite = granted, fast paste = fast-paced).  Get an unbiased outsider to proof the letter, a teacher, mentor, or a student in AP courses to check the spelling.  Look for sample letters on the Internet to compare.

8- The final piece of your cover letter is your signature.  If you have your address on the resume and telephone number and/or email address in the third paragraph, all that is needed is a full name under a ‘wet’ signature.  Applicants can scan a copy of their signature and insert the graphic to look like a real signature, which enables them to send the letter digitally without further scanning.

 

FSC Career Blog Author: Ms. Dawn Boyer, Ph.D., owner of D. Boyer Consulting – provides resume writing, social media management, and print-on-demand author coaching and consulting. Reach her at: Dawn.Boyer@DBoyerConsulting.com or http://dboyerconsulting.com.

 

FSC Career Blog |  April 12, 2020

#Leadership : #CareerAdvice – How To Complain While Still Being Professional….So, What Exactly Should you Do when you Disagree with a #CompanyPolicy , or Need to Lodge a #FormalComplaint About your Annoying #CoWorker ?

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At any job, issues are bound to come up. From your coworkers to your company policies, not everything can be perfect all the time. So, what exactly should you do when you disagree with a company policy, or need to lodge a formal complaint about your annoying co-worker?

There’s a huge difference between exhibiting radical candor and becoming the office complainer. In order to help employees strike the right balance, Glassdoor spoke with a few career experts to help you resolve your office woes the professional way.

Turn Complaints Into Requests

The first step to take when raising concerns in the work place, according to Amy Van Court, CPCC, PCC, is to talk to your direct supervisor. Despite any past experiences you’ve had bringing feedback to your manager, Van Court notes this is always the best way to start addressing your concerns.

“Start clean. Give your boss an opportunity to surprise you, to advocate for you if necessary,” says Van Court.

But, before actually going in to make your complaint, Van Court suggests taking a moment to consider what you want to happen.

“Turn every complaint you have into a request,” suggest Van Court. “Then you’re creating a path instead of staying stuck in the mud and expecting someone else to get you out.”

8 Little Things That Drive Your Coworkers Crazy

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What Skill Sets do You have to be ‘Sharpened’ ?

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Identify the Solution Ahead of Time

Before you walk into your manager’s office, it’s best to go in prepared with solutions. If you walk in with a long list of complaints and no proactive steps to take to solve them, you’ll end up sounding like a complainer.

“If you have concerns, take some time to get clear on what they are and why they upset you — journaling is great for this,” says Laura Weldy, leadership mentor and life coach at The Well Supported Woman. “Taking some time to prepare will allow you to be precise with your concerns and also help you to avoid saying anything too hastily.”

Laura notes she encourages clients who experience this issue to take this practice one step forward and actually identify what their ideal solution to the problem would be. Whether it’s changing the way you communicate with someone, or requesting a change in your schedule, coming to this meeting prepared will help your manager better understand how to help you.

“Your manager may not be able to make it happen, but they will never know what you’re hoping to see happen if you don’t tell them — plus it shows that you’re proactive about problem-solving,” says Weldy.

When to Take a Complaint Above Your Boss

If your manager can’t help with the situation, or nothing gets resolved after your complaint is made, what steps should you take next? Try taking the request to the person’s boss, or to your manager’s supervisor. Then, if the issues continue to be ignored or unresolved, you can go to human resources.

“I have heard of many examples of people feeling they are not treated justly by their boss (or their boss being unreasonable or speaking in nasty tones) and issues with a fellow employee — such as inappropriate behavior, irritation by sitting too close in a cubicle situation or gossip, etc.,” describes Anne Angerman, MSW at Career Matters. “If there are still issues, I would recommend consulting with an employment attorney and learning if the grievances are valid. Also, it depends what the issues are:  Are they personal, such as age discrimination? Or is it an issue with a boss or another employee? Or treatment by another employee?”

Make an Agreement With Your Boss

If you want to ensure your complaint gets the attention you feel it deserves, the best way to keep this conversation professional and between you and your manager is to come to an agreement on how to best handle the situation.

“When you approach your boss with your request, ask him/her if they will agree to look at it and get back to you,” advises Van Court. “Agreements are far better than expectations because they represent a dialogue, where expectations are just something we place on someone whether they want it or not.”

Van Court notes that, if your boss agrees to look into your request, make sure you ask for a date that you can both agree to that the issue can be resolved by. But, if it’s a more serious issue, such as sexual harassment or illegal actions, you will want to have this resolved within a shorter time period, if not immediately.

How to Get Your Boss to Actually Listen to You

Don’t Be Afraid to Issue a Complaint — You’ve Got This!

Though making a complaint at work can feel intimidating, approaching the issue in a professional manner will help you reach a resolution.

“I think that the biggest difference between a complaint and constructive feedback is that constructive feedback is solution-oriented,” says Weldy. “Everybody needs to vent now and then, but make sure that the person you’re complaining to is the right person — let small frustrations about scheduling, slightly annoying coworkers or not-so-fun tasks out during conversations with friends and family, not your boss. If you have a bigger problem to address, don’t be shy about addressing it with your manager — you’re both here to make your team better!”

 

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Your #Career : 7 Smart Ways to Be Amazingly Professional & Look the Part…What Brings You the Extra Mile is In the Details.

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It’s all in the details. Once you’ve got your basic professional attire mastered* (for whatever your line of work/dress requires), what brings you the extra mile is in the details.

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These are two-pronged: attitude and accessories.

Attitude:

  • Projecting confidence will make you look more professional. Some things you can do to help with this are maintaining good (but not uncomfortable) eye contact, smiling, nodding occasionally, and being both an active listener and a clear and thoughtful speaker.
  • Being approachable and open to discussions of all kinds helps, especially when paired with confidence (you’re not a doormat, but you’re also not standing on a high pedestal unable to be reached). The best professionals I know in any line of work, whether it’s at a coffee shop, an investment firm, or a startup, are approachable (when appropriate). The least professional are unapproachable, albeit for a variety of reasons (whether it’s simply that they have an air of being too important or it’s just clear that they’re hostile and not open for discussions).
  • Composure. Maintaining your composure at work is critical to looking more professional. When you do it a majority of the time, you can then use the small occasions to emote more than normal to great effect — whether it’s to celebrate a really big win (oh man, Alecia’s REALLY happy about that, and she’s usually pretty calm, though positive, this must be huge!) or a pretty critical miss (Oh wow, she looks pretty intense and serious about what happened with X, this must be a pretty big lost opportunity in her eyes). And the rest of the time, composure inspires trust from those around you and helps establish you as a professional in all situations, good, bad, and everyday.

 

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Accessories. This is where it’s a little debatable, and we could say that you should be able to be professional without X, Y, or Z. That’s true. But on the other hand, if you’re looking for the small signals to just help with your overall big picture, these are some tips. It’s not even about just looking a certain way to outsiders, it’s about how these small things may help you feel more “ready” for anything. There are jokes about war paint, etc, but the basic idea was to get them in a mind spot for something, and that’s why it’s an idea used across the world throughout history.

  • Over your basic attire, anything “extra” that you don to go the extra mile just makes you look that much more put together. As a manager whose professional wardrobe consisted of all black, this meant a range (depending on where I worked) of accessory options like a splash of color at the ears, a statement necklace, a tasteful bracelet, or a really nice pair of shoes. For my husband, who wears a dress shirt and slacks to work every day under his white coat, this means that I buy him a wide array of colorful, fun statement socks. He gets remarks daily — they really make the entire thing look that much more thoughtful and appealing. I worked with a young man once who over his black attire would always wear a colorful bow-tie. People loved this. They assumed that he was a leader in our team — and he wasn’t, at least, not at first! But he saw himself as one eventually, and so did we, and he became a part of the leadership team. As a mom, I can throw a whimsical scarf on over a sweatshirt and yoga leggings and suddenly look 10x more put together than I did before. This is great for the days when I maybe didn’t even get to comb my hair before putting it up!
  • The varnish. That coat you put over paint or wood to make it just seem a little more eye-catching and finished? People can get that too. Depending on your line of work, you’ll know how much is appropriate or not (and it’s always up to you whether you decide to do it or not), but if you do decide to polish up, those details help. A coat of tasteful nail polish, a dusting of some powder blush, etc. Sometimes it’s as little as a simple, eye-catching pop of lip gloss or a little extra beeswax to get a perfect pompadour. Just a little statement to say that you put in that extra moment will project to people that you’re that much more together – and also likely make you feel more confident as well. A wise friend told me that whatever you do to look/feel good is great, but when people show a little more effort or creativity, it instills a sense of confidence and interest that they are also going to show a little extra effort or creativity in other situations.
  • The grooming. Whatever you’re doing, be thoughtful about it. If you’re culturing a look of deliberate scruff, great, just make sure it’s neat around the edges so it looks purposeful and not just lazy. Even if you never paint your nails, you should make sure they’re clean, trimmed to a good length (whatever you decide that is), and generally neat-looking (unless you work hard with your hands, and then maybe the dirt or scars, etc, lend to that air of professionalism, too!). Hair that looks deliberately cared for is nice, whether that’s simply having it clean and neat or you like a more styled option.
  • The smell. Although in many fields, wearing a perfume or scented lotion is eschewed (for anyone in most service industries, etc), if it’s not, smell good. But do not overdo it! Being lightly scented, whether it’s cologne, perfume, lotion, or just freshly soaped, generally is more appealing than not. When people are standing near you, it should be mostly a pleasant experience, without any real reason to feel put off.

*Regarding mastering basics, I’d say stick to these things when building your wardrobe: fit, function, quality, and classics.

This question originally appeared on Quora – the knowledge sharing network where compelling questions are answered by people with unique insights. You can follow Quora on Twitter, Facebook, and Google+. More questions:

PUBLISHED ON: APR 26, 2016|  Inc.com 

What are some simple tips that can help people look more professional? originally appeared on Quora – the knowledge sharing network where compelling questions are answered by people with unique insights.

Answer by Alecia Li Morgan on Quora:

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