[Cialug] resume assistance

[Matthew Nuzum]

On Tue, Aug 31, 2010 at 11:47 AM, Tim Champion <timchampion at gmail.com> wrote:
> I had absolutely no luck finding any quality resume & cover letter service
> in the area. I tried one guy, who promised that I would only pay him when I
> was happy with the cover letter, but I was never happy with the cover
> letter, and I didn't use it, nor did I pay him. I'm still looking, so if
> anybody knows of a good cover letter writer, pass it along!
>
> For resumes, just pack them full of specific technical accomplishments
> you've done in each job. I good IT resume should be 2-4 dense pages. At the
> top should be either a well formed paragraph, or a bulleted list (5 or so
> bullets) that summarizes your skills and talents.

I personally am opposed to the idea of "a" cover letter and resume. I
think that a resume is a sales brochure and assuming you're picking a
handful of organizations you're serious about, it should be customized
for each.

I abhor the "list of facts" types of resumes. I think you need to list
some facts but it is so hard to read through 20 such resumes. The ones
that move to the top will quickly and simply communicate what value
they'll bring to my company.

Alas, you do need a complete "list of facts" resume to upload to
dice.com and such websites where text searching is often used. But
I've never used a resume service and I've never been out of work. Just
get a good looking template for your favorite word processor. Make
sure your name and your contact information are clear and accurate on
every page and have more than one person who is strong on grammar and
spelling check it. (I've been in meetings where managers mocked
resumes with grammar errors (not at my current company))

The job description you're applying for will help you figure out what
skills they're seeking. Mention the ones they need near the top. If
you don't have a skill that they require, do some research on it so
that you can at least respond to it. Maybe you've used something
similar - for example, if they list Siebel experience but you've used
Salesforce.com then you can say "CRM experience with Salesforce.com
..."

Also, watch out for job descriptions where a lot of diverse skills are
required. This is kind of like when politicians work on a mega-bill
and everyone has to get their item on there. It just means you need to
be flexible. Highlight that on the resume. Every company or even
department has core values. Try to pick up on those and mention them.
Dependability? Knowledge? Good at following directions?

Regarding a recruiter, is your wife looking for a job at a bigger
company? Recruiters are expensive and a lot of good, smaller companies
refuse to pay them.

-- 
Matthew Nuzum
newz2000 on freenode, skype, linkedin, identi.ca and twitter

"Never stop learning" –Robert Nuzum (My dad)