What’s Wrong With GenY?

Greetings from the lazy, entitled generation! You may know us as those lazy know-it-alls, who need constant positive reinforcement, ridiculously flexible work hours and a promotion every five to ten minutes. What happened to us? Why do we seem so much dumber than everyone else?

I think the real issue we have is a lack of communication. Much like the traditional married couple, where one stays home and takes care of the children, and the other is the primary breadwinner, there are arguments that are standard and could be avoided if both took time to see the other’s point of view.

For example: The person who goes to work all day often feels as though the stay-at-home partner is spending all their money, taking advantage of them, and is lucky to be staying at home. The stay-at-home partner often feels undervalued, because their contributions to the household aren’t measurable in currency.

I know this, because it has played out in every sitcom since the 50’s. If Archie and Edith Bunker can come to an agreement, surely the Boomers and GenY can figure something out. Let’s try and understand some things.

We Spend too Much Time on our Phones

Perception: We don’t look you in the eye when you’re talking, because we have a sweet game of Fruit Ninja on the go. Also, what you’re saying isn’t super important.

We don’t socialize the way people used to. I recently attended an Oscar party, where we were all watching the show together while simultaneously reading and tweeting commentary on our phones. This is how it works now. When we have dinner or go out for drinks, phones are on the table and active. You may find it annoying, but trust me…it’s only going to get worse.

Complaining about smart phones in 2013 the like complaining about rock music in 1984. Don’t be John Lithgow… nobody likes John Lithgow.

P.S. We’re not being antisocial, we’re experiencing life in augmented reality.

We’re Unprofessional

Perception: We dress too casually and we’re too informal.

Business attire is not a well-defined term. You can’t write it on an employment contract and expect everyone to dress how you think they should. I feel perfectly professional in a dress shirt, a blazer and a pair of jeans, so I will be surprised when the manager in the Cargo pants, that haven’t been ironed since the 70’s, tells me I’m inappropriately dressed for work.

Our communication style is admittedly more relaxed. Younger generations have been corresponding with their peers via the written word since before they were taught how to write proper correspondence. As a result, the English language is in the process of being completely destroyed. Emoticons are now accepted in work emails. Other less formal styles of writing will follow. Eventually, Twitter style abbreviations will become acceptable. As we transition, know that younger employee’s will jump the gun and start emailing that they will “tlk 2 u l8tr.” Be sure to correct this, because right now that sh*t’s annoying.

We Need Constant Positive Reinforcement

Perception: We need our hands held...pretty much all the time.

Having studied Human Resources, I know there are studies that indicate that positive reinforcement DOES motivate people. I also think some of us have taken this waaayyy too far. I actually find it condescending when someone throws out one of these.

“Thanks for putting that report together.” (i.e. Thanks for doing that thing I told you to do)

We don’t need the reinforcement as much as we need to know what the goals are, and if we are attaining them. We are much less likely than past generations to feel satisfied in a position where we’re doing what we’re told just because we were told to do it. You have to manage people like they’re people now. You can’t just tell someone to “push this button every hour” without telling them what the button does. My Dad has told me that if the boss isn’t complaining, everything must be fine. I’ve encountered enough managers who avoid negative feedback in performance appraisals to know this isn’t true.

We Expect Too Much Too Soon

Remember the olden days when you started at a company as the intern, and you got coffee for people until you were able to prove yourself, and you slowly moved up the ladder until you finally did something less degrading? I don’t…but I’ve read about it in books, and saw it on Mad Men.  What happened to this era?

Two Things Happened

1. An undergraduate degree costs as much as half a house. We can’t afford to get you coffee for a year before we start making money.
2. Google happened: Companies started publicly telling employees that they weren’t worthless or completely replaceable … and it just ruined us. 

Every generation thinks the younger generation are idiots. I used to think it about freshmen when I was a senior. I thought it about undergrads when I was a grad student, I currently think it about some new graduates entering the workforce and I fully anticipate to feel this way about each upcoming generation. The important thing is that I know that they are not ACTUALLY all idiots, but I will perceive some of the things they do as unprofessional or stupid because they are different. As a younger generation, we also have a duty to manage and understand the expectations of our more senior counterparts. A lot of what we think is normal really gets under their skin.  The purpose of this post was not to call anyone out or justify anything, but to initiate an open dialogue to facilitate some kind of understanding. 

CAVEAT: There are some flagrant generalizations in this post. I chose Boomers and GenY to illustrate a point. I have met Boomers who blatantly answer voice calls in the middle of meetings, and have peers who glare at me when I check my phone. There are people at both ends of the spectrum in either age-range. 

Recruiting for Social Media: It’s Easier Than You Think

Your company understands that it needs to be active on social networking sites. Your Facebook page is quickly becoming more important than your website. The dilemma most small business owners face is though they understand the need for social media, they don’t understand the most effective ways to use it. You’d like to ask your marketing guy to do it, but yesterday you saw him make a voice call from a landline to a record store to see if they had the latest albums. At this point you resolve to hire someone to create and manage your online presence. Here are a few tips for when you’re looking.

1.  Age Doesn't Matter

Most people will assume that a young person will be better at social media, because they grew up in a generation that uses it more readily. This is incorrect. As a young person, I can tell you that we are literally not better at ANYTHING. Experience trumps (whatever the hell you think young people have) every time. We are more apt to engage in social media, but someone in their 40’s with an affinity for social media also has “life experience,” “related job experience,” “industry experience”  and other things to draw on that a younger person wouldn't.  Social media skills require a specific way of thinking. The person can’t be intimidated by a new program or feature, because there’s a new one every 5 minutes. There is no reason someone in their 30’s or 40’s can’t have this skill.

2. Hire a Writer

It’s all words. Your employee needs to make the words happen and he needs to make ‘em happen good.

3. Check Up on Them Online

If this person is planning to work in social media, they should have given you links to their social media accounts, and their presence should be quasi-professional. As much as you think you would like to separate the people from the organization, now that everything’s online, you really can’t. They will put your company’s name on their LinkedIn, and attach their Twitter feed to this account. Others will look your company up on LinkedIn and see who your employees are.  Anything they've made publicly available on purpose is fair game to use in your assessment.

4. Beware of Experts

Someone who walks into an interview telling you they know exactly what needs to be done and exactly how to do it is a dud. Social media is social, therefore you need to get to know the clientele before you’re able to really understand the best way to engage with them. A good candidate will offer suggestions of possibilities along with the caveat that everything is subject to change based on the results of the interaction.  

Don't make assumptions based on what you believe a good social media expert should be. Put these people through the same process you put all of your employees through. Identify the key skills and relevant experience you're looking for. Assess them thoroughly, and hire someone who is the right fit for your organization. 

Jumping Ship: Switching Careers

Remember when you started your career and you were super-excited about all the things you could accomplish? You had lists of goals, creative ideas, and enthusiasm. Over time, you may have found that the industry you work in, or the management team you work for, have slowly chipped away at all of that excitement and now every day is just a struggle not to slit your own wrists. It may be time for a career shift (or medication).

If you started in Human Resources like I did, you may have found that your position had significantly less “strategic consulting” and a lot more “glorified secretary” work. You also probably noticed that there was so much process and red tape, that anything new or innovative you came up with won’t be implemented for years, and by then it will be outdated.

Don’t’ get discouraged. Basically, you played Russian roulette with the career revolver and lost. Luckily, the consequences are less brain-spattery than actual Russian roulette and you can bounce back a lot faster.

Step 1 – Don’t quit your day job

The economy still sucks.  You need money. Food and shelter are still very important components of staying alive. You may not have any experience in this new industry you’re entering. Keeping your day job and testing the new industry in your spare time is an excellent way to not make the same mistake twice. Also, people will want to see proof that you know what you’re doing before they hire you. It’s a weird thing companies are doing now.

Step 2 – Start doing what you love

Just start doing it. If you want to be an events planner, start small. Host a dinner party. People will give you feedback on how terrible you are, and you can see if it is something you want to do full time. You can take on additional, larger events as opportunities arise. Once you develop a reputation, people will start asking you to do it, and maybe even pay you! …unless you suck…in which case, you still have your day job.

Step 3 – Advertise

Keep a portfolio of the new projects you’re working on. You don’t have to spend money on advertising. Post your portfolio on LinkedIn, Facebook, Blogger or any relevant account where your target audience would be.

Step 4 – Network

Develop a list of relevant people to follow and engage with online and learn how to do it properly. Think about where your target customer/employer will see you and who they engage with. If you would like to become an event planner, you should be interacting with companies that plan events, the events themselves (which will normally have their own social media accounts or at least a Facebook event) , and anyone else who is interested in what you’re doing. The more people sharing pictures of your place settings on Pinterest, or talking about you on Twitter, the better.

This gives you an opportunity to test out a new job risk-free. It’s like an internship, but more impressive because of the entrepreneurial aspect of having to create the opportunity yourself. After a while, you’ll have developed enough experience to make yourself a marketable employee in a completely new industry. …or you’ll have realized this job isn’t for you, but without getting all wrist-cutty. 

Resume Do’s and Don’ts

Remember when I used to blog about things? Well I’m doing it again! I committed a cardinal sin of social media and took a short hiatus while I started a new job. Since my last post in April, my Klout score has dropped 6 points. This can mean one of three things.

1. My social media presence is strong enough without my blog to sustain a fairly consistent score.
2. No one was really reading my blog anyway.
3. Klout doesn’t really measure anything accurately.

Luckily, for you guys, my new position is in recruitment. I have spent the last month going through resumes of marketing and communications professionals from all over North America, and I have put together a list of tips that can help you get from the recruiter to the hiring manager.

A while ago, I wrote a blog about how no one really knows what is supposed to go on a resume. After screening hundreds of applicants, I have a general idea of what “I” like to see on a resume as well as what I hate to see.

Do

Add links to former employer’s websites – If you were the marketing manager of a company I’ve never heard of, I will want to see that company’s website. If I can’t find it…how good were you?

Insert a brief description about what your former employers do – It’s possible that your business development experience at company ABC is a perfect match for one of my vacant positions. If you don’t tell me that company ABC produces widgets for a specific niche market, you’re assuming I will know or that I will go looking for that information. If you didn’t intrigue me somewhere else on the resume, I probably won’t do that.

Insert links to your social profiles – If I’m on the fence about someone or I like them and just want to learn more, I will try to creep them on LinkedIn. If you’ve applied for a position that requires social media experience, I’m going to creep you. If I can find you easily and see that you’re active, you get bonus points. (Warning: bonus points are non-transferable and have no cash value)

Be specific about what you did – If you worked in business development, throw some numbers in there. If you don’t have numbers, tell me about some specific impressive accounts you landed.

Example: Generated $1.2M in revenue from new accounts in fiscal year 2011-2012. OR Secured accounts with Unilever and Proctor & Gamble.

Don’t

Only include generic tasks you would read in a job description – A lot of people appear to copy and paste job descriptions to their resumes. (i.e. conducted research, lead generation, created marketing collateral.) This gets scanned over really quickly and doesn’t catch the eye of the recruiter (i.e. Me). If you do get to an interview I have to make sure I know:

• ·         What kind of research it was and what the results were.
• ·         What kind of leads you were looking for, how you looked for them, and which ones you were able to secure.
• ·         What kind of marketing collateral you created, who the target audience was, and how effective it was.

Include an Objective Statement – No matter how good you are at writing, these are always terrible. I don’t know who invented these, but I wish someone would have stopped them from doing so. Include a point form list of your strengths. These should be correlated to the job description.

Forget to market your abilities in other ways – If you have a graphic design background, don’t give me a crappily formatted word document. Show me you know what you’re doing. Don’t tell me you have strong attention to detail and then leave typos in your resume.

Ignore the job description – I have read objective statements for applications to marketing positions that state “looking for exciting new opportunities in human resources” …FAIL! I mostly hire independent contractors, and though the ad specifically states “contract position,” candidates tell me they are not interested in contract work. I already have frown lines from calling these people. 

Apply for jobs you’ll never get – Sometimes, you can get to an interview without all the required specifications. For example, I might still consider someone for a position where I’ve asked for 5 years’ experience if they only have four years, but an impressive resume. I will not consider you for a marketing manager position if you’ve only ever been a cashier. Think before you apply.

Cram everything into two pages – Someone made a rule that resumes had to be two pages long. It’s a stupid rule. If you have 5 years of experience, your resume will be longer. If you have an impressive resume that is clear and concise, it can be as long as it needs to be. Don’t leave out important details or reduce your font to 8 points thinking that you’re helping yourself get an interview…you’re not.

This is just a short list of my own pet peeves disguised as tips and tricks for job applicants. I’m sure there will be many more to come. If you’re a marketing and/or communications professional, feel free to send your resume along asking for feedback or a job. Our contract positions are listed here: VentureWeb Jobs, but often we have many more that aren’t posted. 

Stalking Your Way To Work

Have you ever been reprimanded for following someone too closely? Have you ever been served with a restraining order? Well then I have good news! Because of the internet’s ability to lull people into a false sense of security, causing them to report all of their personal details on a public forum, you can use these skills to find employment.

A lot of job-hunting enthusiasts will give you all kinds of information about how to set yourself apart using your cover letter and resume. They also give you a general overview of how to network, but don’t really get into the nitty-gritty of how to do it. The current job market is …terrible, and any advertised job you apply for is going to be riddled with competition. Unless you have been in the industry for years, have won some kind of award or have like a third arm or something, it’s going to be difficult to stand out… unless you have an “in” (a contact who is aware of your talents and your job situation). The more “in’s” you have, the better. A lot of jobs won’t be advertised, because they’ll be given to people with “in’s.”

First: Find A Company You Want To Work For

Start following these companies on every social media account they have. Engage with them. Their websites will also name their executives and employees, who will most likely also have social media accounts. You need to follow these people too. Passively begin to engage with them. Retweet, Like, Share, etc. relevant industry material, current events or general information. (You should already be doing this…we’ve discussed this already).

This part is important. Don’t be creepy! Do not comment on pictures of their vacation (where they’re wearing bathing suits) or on things their mom may have posted on their wall. If you have difficulty with this…maybe just skip Facebook altogether.

Through these accounts you’re using your online presence to let them get to know you. You’re also getting to know them. They’re going to tell you things like:

• ·        What committees they are on
• ·        What charity/networking events they go to.
• ·        What events they are hosting, sponsoring or just attending.

You need to go to those and meet them in person.

If they’re sponsoring an event, you can go, network and take pictures of yourself there. Use your social networks to tell them what an awesome time you had and post pics of you there on your networks. Blog about it! Companies will eat this attention up.

Once you’ve spent some time doing this, find a tasteful way to tell them you’re looking for work. This at least puts you on their radar. They can let you know if something comes up. Also, when you apply for an advertised job, you can let the people you’ve been in contact with know you’ve applied.

If you were successful, and they like you, they can give you tips and keep you abreast of the status of the competition. They can also favor you over other candidates, because they are familiar with you. This is your “in” and you did it using social networking…which is something your body needs anyway. 

Protect Your Career From Your Personal Life

Remember a couple of months ago when we were discussing whether it was a good idea to use Social Networking to find job applicants? Some of us were a little gun-shy. These online profiles have pictures, and information about age, political affiliations, religious beliefs, sexual orientation, and all of the other things recruiters/employers aren't supposed to know. Then, as HR got its feet wet, it got braver.

 

Companies started asking job applicants to open their Facebook accounts and show them the content. This made some people uneasy, but it could be justified. Your Social Networking profiles are publicly available information. It could be assumed that the average social networker (is that the correct term for us?) publishes their employment details online. It is important for a company to know how you are going to portray yourself as one of their employees. Look at some Twitter profiles if you want to see some examples. People put their employer’s name and position title…and then write “tweets are my own and do not represent my employer.” Your tweets do represent your employer though. Especially if you’re one of the people the client will need to interact with when receiving the company’s service. “Hey remember that douchebag who posted his unpopular opinion about the situation in the middle-east? I don’t want to buy a car from him.” Candidates even had the ability to make their profile employer friendly, and use it to their advantage in the interview. They could show pictures of travelling and engaging in activities that make them appear more well-rounded.

Now we’ve crossed a line into ridiculousness. Asking for someone’s Facebook password so you can peruse its content at your leisure is like asking for their personal cellphone so you can read their text messages. The ONLY reason companies have the ability to do this is due to a lack of legislation regarding online profiles of any kind. If you’re an employer and you’re debating whether this is a good idea or not…I’d play it safe and wait for some relevant case law. If you’re an employee, go back through your Facebook profile messages. Did you just realize that if you’ve never deleted them, they’re all still there? I did! What is an employer going to think of those messages…especially without the context of the relationship you have with that person?

For Example:

• If someone did not understand my sense of humour, they would think I was really mean to my Mom.

• Did you ever subscribe to a dating app for Facebook? Did you meet a lot of people? Is your status still set to single? They’re gonna think you’re either a big player or just a sad, sad man.

• Remember that time the obviously fake Facebook profile sent you a message asking for your banking information, and you responded in the most inappropriate manner you could think of to see if you could gross them out enough to stop messaging you? Facebook does! The employer isn’t gonna know that’s what you were doing. They’re gonna think you’re filthy…and double-jointed.

Technically, employers shouldn’t be allowed to ask for this information, and I’m confident they won’t be allowed to in the future. However, in the interim it might be a good idea to clean it up. You already know that anything you post online stays there forever. Well so do your emails and private messages. If an employer interviews one of your friends, they can access all of the messages you sent your friend as well. Just because you deleted the message, doesn’t mean they can’t find it. If you are talking to someone online, and you feel the urge to be inappropriate try not to use a site an employer would think to request access to. Telling someone off is much safer and more effective when done in person, or with a good old fashioned telephone call. 

Dude Where’s My Job? Panel 1 – Straight Talk on Resumes: Part 2

 

Hey everyone!  Remember last week when I got other people to write the content for my blog….I mean when I consulted professionals in the field to give you some well-rounded advice on resume-writing? Well go ahead and get excited, because this is part 2 of that panel.

We’ll start by re-introducing the panel:

Kathy Wishart, Recruiter and Job Search Consultant with Priority Personnel Inc. 

Priority Personnel Inc. is an independent and locally owned New Brunswick recruiting services company. Operating since 1993, our office is conveniently located in the downtown core of New Brunswick's capital city of Fredericton. Wendy Southworth, President, leads this dynamic, forward-thinking organization. Priority Personnel Inc. is driven by a commitment to meet and exceed the needs of our diverse customer base. 75% of our business comes from repeat clients and word-of-mouth referrals.

A wide range of job classifications and services are provided to all levels of Government; not-for profit organizations; and private business such as consulting, legal, insurance, financial, accounting, development projects and corporations, communication, and information technology.

Click here to follow them on Twitter

Dana Leavy is the founder of Aspyre Solutions, and a self-proclaimed "Entrepreneurial Wingwoman", helping aspiring entrepreneurs & creative freelancers start, build & grow sustainable small businesses, through career transition and business consulting. As a career advisor and small business entrepreneur, Dana has helped hundreds of professionals in advertising, marketing, design, multimedia and other industries in creating and executing effective career plans to find and DO the work they are passionate about.

Click here to follow her on Twitter

Mark Babbitt is CEO and Founder of YouTern, where emerging talent connects with entrepreneur-driven businesses and non-profits through high-impact, mentor-based internships. Mark has been quoted on internship, experiential education and career matters in Forbes, Mashable, Under30CEO.com and ReadWriteWeb. Mark also contributes to Business Insider, StudentBranding.com and Intern Advocate. A serial mentor, Mark was recently honored to be named to GenJuice’s “Top 100 Most Desired Mentors” list.

Click here to follow him on Twitter

Participants were asked to answer the following questions:

6. If you are over-qualified for the position, should you leave out some of your qualifications?

Kathy Wishart - If you are over-qualified, please reconsider your application.  It’s not likely to go well if you do get the job.  If you need the job, however, be honest.  Omitting items on your resume is treading dangerous ground since most are likely to regard intentional omissions as on par with lies and misrepresentations.  You might try using the cover letter to leverage your reasons for wanting the job.

Dana Leavy - There's no one right answer here.  Generally speaking the last 10-12 years are going to be the most relevant information, and you want to be aware of dating yourself if you're a senior level candidate, or you're breaking into an industry and vying for a more entry-level role.  Do your best to only include the information that's going to be most relevant to the role and the organization.  If you're breaking into the creative industry and going for an entry level designer role, they're not going to care that you have 12 years of professional work experience, especially if it's in a completely different field.  You're not misrepresenting yourself.

Mark Babbitt - No. You want to get the interview – and to do that you have to confidently display your abilities. Once your foot is on the right side of the door, you’re in a much better position to counter the “over-qualified” objection.

7. Chronological, Competency Based or Other? How do we organize our resumes to screen in and catch your attention?

Kathy Wishart - A combined format is probably the most informative type of resume since it links skills and experiences to actual jobs in a chronological order.  In terms of catching my attention, I’m old school.  Make it visually appealing and don’t give me too much to read or wade through.

Dana Leavy - I prefer and often recommend using a hybrid-style resume that includes the summary, a skills or core competencies section, and work experience & education.  I like this formatting because again, it's really effective for presenting the resume as a branding tool, really communicating who you are and what you're bringing to the table.  But it also flows really well in terms of each section - the summary is a general overview of your top skills, followed by additional skills and core competencies you have, and then the experience section goes into more context about where you've used those skills and expertise to be successful and contribute to the organization.

Mark Babbitt - Again, depends on the career and industry. For old-school medical, legal, and engineering firms, for management positions and academia a chronological resume is standard – and expected. For other industries – including digital media, advertising, public relations and more – a hybrid resume (summary statement and then chronological) tends to work best.

8. Is there a better font, font-size, length etc.? When the employer doesn’t specify these things, what do we do?

Kathy Wishart - I’m personally flexible on font type.  It needs to look professional.  Most fonts are fine at a size 11 or 12.  Some people recommend a page of resume for every ten years of work experience.  I certainly wouldn’t go more than 3 pages EVER for a resume; a two page resume with a cover letter is ideal.

Dana Leavy - It's an antiquated myth that the resume HAS to be on one page, but do keep it under two if possible.  Really it's about what is the most effective format for presenting the information, keeping readability, aesthetic and communication in mind.  As far as fonts and sizing, stay with the standard fonts that work on both Mac and PC (Ariel, Helvetica, Georgia, Palatino, etc.).  If you use a Microsoft-based font that doesn't translate to Mac platform, and it's in a Word document, you risk throwing off the formatting of your entire document, and it can look sloppy.  With that in mind, I always suggest presenting your resume in a PDF format, so as avoid any issues with margins when your reader opens it up.

Mark Babbitt - Same criteria as above. Old-school industries and positions stick to Times New Roman 12 or maybe a non-serif Arial 11. For other industries use a Cailbri 11 or similar visually appealing font. Just please don’t use more than two fonts on the resume; if the resume comes across as loud or obnoxious – it gets discarded.

9. Are graphics and other media helpful in getting through the screening process? If yes, do you have any tips on this for applicants?

Dana Leavy - I don't suggest getting overly creative or putting graphics on the resume, outside of maybe a sidebar as a formatting tool for listing additional information.  Besides taking up space, graphics on resumes don't really serve a purpose, impress anyone, and in my opinion they're cheesy.  If you're a designer, your portfolio should speak for itself.  Video resumes are kind of cool, but they're still up and coming, and most companies prefer the standard resume that they can scan really quick instead of watching a several minute multimedia presentation - they don't have time for that.  The only time I would say it's okay to get creative with your branding package is if it's something that's really going to appeal to the type of company to whom you're applying.  If that's what they do, they might enjoy knowing that you're knowledgeable in that area.  But I would still have a standard resume, and then maybe redirect them to your blog, or website, if you want to give them more of an in-depth creative branding presentation on who you are.

Mark Babbitt - Links to social media sites, as well as an online portfolio or blog, is more than welcome. Graphics can be a distraction for most industries (design and digital media are exceptions). Infographic resumes – when well done – can be a great way to get noticed in new media companies and positions.

10. Is there any advice you would give to job applicants regarding their resume that you have not already addressed?

Kathy Wishart - You wouldn’t walk onto a construction site without a hard hat and steel-toed boots.  Why, then, would you approach your job search without the adequate tools to get the job done?  I’m talking about your resume. Unless you’ve been formally trained on resume writing and are an accomplished resume writer, don’t go it alone.  Consult a resume writing service.  It’s an investment in your career.

Dana Leavy - Once again, just remember that the resume is a branding tool that's meant to tell the story of your career, and the biggest aspects of that to keep in mind are professionalism, formatting/readability, and messaging.  Is your brand consistent throughout?  What do you want the employer to know about you as a candidate, and are you communicating that?  Are you using words and phrases that describe what is unique about YOU, and not just presenting you as someone with the basic qualifications?  If you look at it as a branding tool and build it in that way,  instead of a standard required document, it's going to work much better for you.

Mark Babbitt - Your resume must be positioned to compete. That does not mean the resume has to be perfect; it just needs to be a little bit better than your competition. To do that, the resume must be:

1.            Free of grammar and spelling errors

2.            Tailored to each position/application

3.            Peppered with keywords directly from the job description

4.            MUST contain a statement summarizing your soft skills

5.            MUST contain quantified substantiation of your performance (i.e., “exceeded quota by 132%)

Proper execution of these five issues alone places you ahead of at least 90% of your competition, and should be considered mandatory elements of a good resume.

Thanks again to all of the participants. If you have any questions or comments feel free to add them below, or follow the panel members on twitter and ask them yourselves. I hope this unraveled some of the mystery behind what the "rules" on resume writing are. 

Happy job-hunting

Social Networking for Nubes

I was recently asked by someone who managed a twitter account for a small organization what they were supposed to tweet if they don’t have anything to say. My response was “why do you have Twitter?” Apparently in person I’m slightly less eloquent than if I have time to think about it and write it down. I thought I’d go ahead and respond to this person’s question in a less arrogant manor.

Think of the internet like a giant convention. You are in a room full of people and information. Your goal is to connect and interact with as many potential clients as possible to promote your business (P.S. if you’re looking for work, your organization is you, and your clients are companies and recruiters).  You have a booth. The booth is your company’s website. It has all kinds of information about your organization including contact information for head office and the contact information of your employees attending the convention. You brought several employees to this event.

Employee 1: Facebook

Facebook is the most well-known of all your employees. He is connected to the most people, is the life of the party and everyone’s best friend. They all interact with this guy. He’s great to have around, but sadly he suffers from ADHD. When he seeks someone out directly he’s able to focus and get your message across to that person. In a crowd of people his message gets lost. He often stops to play games with people or show them pictures of his kids doing idiotic things like learning to crawl or enjoying their first few moments of life. Sometimes amongst all of the things he’s trying to do, your message doesn’t really reach anyone.   He’s probably the first point of contact for a lot of your audience, but he’s definitely not the most effective.

Employee 2: LinkedIn

This guy is all business. He wore a three-piece suit to a business casual event, and is shaking the hands of all your employees, potential job applicants, representatives of affiliate companies, and everyone who is looking to make business connections. However, these are the only people who will talk to him. Because of his “all work and no play” attitude, he is not able to effectively engage people who are just there to mingle and have a good time. Those girls in the back who could probably benefit from your product or service are shying away from him, opting to hang out with Facebook, who is showing them how to play Bejeweled.

Employee 3: Twitter

This is your most efficient employee. In 140 characters or less, he spits out data in a way that lets everyone in range hear and understand exactly what your message is. There is no long drawn out conversation. He generates interest and steers traffic to your booth, where people can learn more about you. His message is also the easiest for others to share with their entire network, and he politely reciprocates by sharing their message as well. He does often get off topic, but your message is there. He lets people know he has pictures of his dog, but lets them decide whether to view them or not. Though not as much fun as Facebook, he’s a healthy balance between business and fun. Just don’t ask him to organize your contact list, it seems so easy, but he just doesn’t do it (I feel like he could if he tried though). 

Employee 4: Google+

Your newest employee is a little less distracted than Facebook. Of all of your employees he is certainly the best at organizing your contacts, but he doesn’t have the network of Facebook or the efficiency of Twitter. Don’t count this guy out because he’s new. His affiliation with Google means he has a lot of potential. At some point he will be the main hub for all interaction with Google, giving him the potential to surpass Facebook’s network, and his Android affiliation could make him a more mobile friendly app than Twitter someday.

You would not expect employees to run around and hand out business cards and not engage with anyone. You should be using this same logic with your social networking tools. They are in fact, “networking” tools and not just promotional tools. When you’re asking the question “what do I tweet.” ask the question, what would I tell my employees to say if they ran into someone who knew/didn’t know what my organization does and how it can help them? Treat it like a conversation. It evolves as your interact with your clients.