2 MORE CHALLENGING but Must-do Resume Improvers

3. Create a Powerful Professional Summary or Executive Profile

At the top. You should change this summary to reflect the specific opportunity you’re entertaining.  Even if you aren’t looking for a new role and were recruited. Especially important as your skills expand as you grow your career. Don’t make the reader guess why they should read further. Provide a few sentences to include the most relevant accomplishments. Experiences that set you apart in the areas that you know are key for success in the specific role. Too many candidates try to throw in the kitchen sink or use general terms (“change-agent”, “leader/leadership”) the reader can’t verify on paper.

4. Communicate how well you carried out your job

You have made many contributions in your career. Your resume lists what you’ve been doing. The key to a stand out resume is in indicating how well you did your job – i.e. significant results.  It’s not easy to come up with the right words which require more reflection that just listing what you did.  What was the accomplishment that resulted from this line item?  Time/effort saved? Happier customers? Happier people reporting to you?

Improve Your Resume – The Easy Way

Two EASY resume improvers for any level.

We’re posting these because we find that even exceptional A-Player executive candidates need to make these changes.

1. Change the font.

Calibri looks better than most others. It’s easy to do.

2. Describe each employer organization in one or two sentences

Just below the Company (your past employer). Describe product, markets, size for example. A reader always wants to know the context of your role in the particular company. And, if the company is not a household name, all the more important.

Tomorrow, we’ll post two CHALLENGING but must do resume improvers

Tips on Recruiting Those Hot Software Engineers: Part 1

Today’s market for Software Engineers in the Silicon Valley is on FIRE.  Our firm, Colosi Associates is focused on executive search.  We manage the 128 details of a search. Any of which, when not looked after, could lead to a mis hire.  Many of the same details can and should be managed for any level hire.

A client who trusts us called us for advice with hiring on roles we were not sourcing for them: less-experienced engineering posts. The issue: candidates who verbally indicated they would accept an offer then declined the offer once papered up.

Were the candidates’ purported reasons for declining the offers legitimate? What was causing this last minute rejection?  Is there something they could do differently going forward?

The candidates’ stated reasons for declining the offers (if honest), were objections that likely could have been uncovered early in the process.  (e.g. Could not leave contract role, wanted a different industry). Wonder if the real reason was “fit” with the company.  ”Fit” is not always easy to put a exact finger on.  It’s certainly harder to discuss.  Hiring managers don’t often name this as the reason when they are doing the rejecting of candidates.  We know it is a huge, if not number one factor when one of the parties runs away from the alter.  If the true reason the candidate declined was “fit” that’s ok.  But that too can be tested very early.  Next up: 6 tips for smartly vetting your software engineering candidates.

Part Two of “Tips on Recruiting Hot Software Engineers”

Jobseekers: How You Ask Your Questions Matters

Whether you are actively looking for a new role or you were recruited as a “passive” candidate, the content of your questions in an interview as well as how you position your questions can determine if you receive an offer or not.

It’s especially easy as a passive candidate to think that the company is recruiting you, so why should you research and think strategically about questions?  We strongly encourage you to work closely with the recruiter who approached you or someone else who is very experienced interviewing executives in your field.

During our firm’s national search assignments for experienced financial and other executives such as Chief Financial Officer, Controller, Human Resource Director and Division President, our clients often disqualify candidates based on questions asked (or not asked).

What does the “best” question really mean?  It’s thoughtful.  It demonstrates an understanding of the business and mostly importantly a key issue, risk or market awareness. The hiring company begins to see how you think about the position and how you would add value through your questions. You may even bring up a business issue or idea the company had not thought of.  The company begins to see how you would complement their current team’s skills with your own.

Seems straight forward, right?

Questions Should Reflect Thorough Research

Having the best questions can only come from research and preparation and talking to others in like businesses or industries in-depth.  It does not come from a 20 minute glance at the company website.

Don’t ask “What keep you up at night?”  Yes, you want to understand directly from the company what the challenges are, but through your research, you should have several very good ideas of what keeps that company up at night.

Practice this format, “I understand that…I’ve read that……Your competitors are…”, then continue with the specific question.  Demonstrate knowledge.  Then ask the question.

We learned from the results of candidate interviews that the client wondered why the person asked a question about the many locations of the business units.  The simple answer could have been found on the Internet. I knew that the candidate really had a more thoughtful underlying question.  The candidate could have framed it or set it up differently.

Use Your Recruiter to Prepare Appropriate Questions

Go over your questions for the hiring manager with the recruiter just before the interview.  Ask that recruiter to help you frame the question.  Colosi Associates executive candidates tell us our preparing them prior to interviews sets us apart from other firms and then certainly sets them apart in the interview. We’re thrilled to help the A-Player candidate better communicate and sharpen up their interview game.  To increase the possibility of  landing a great career move.