It’s time for a Moxie Mo Show SPECIAL:
September 2008
We all know in this economy, the job market stinks and will only get worse. So it’s time I do people a favor and throw some bluntness your way in regards to what you should and should NOT do when looking for a job.
As most of you know, I’ve been recruiting professionally for ten years in almost every industry as well as temporary staffing, consulting and corporate/full time positions. Over these past few years, I’ve learned a lot of “secrets” that us recruiters have when it comes to the do’s and don’ts of applying for a job.
Well, it’s time for me share MY PERSPECTIVE of what I believe every candidate needs to know when it comes to applying for a job. In no way am I speaking for ALL recruiters nor am I speaking for any company I have worked with or work for… these are just my thoughts to you. These aren’t earth shattering secrets, but the goal of this special is to show you, the candidate, what it takes to get noticed.
There’s an absolute truth when you hear me say that I get up to 100 resumes per day per job. So what in the world can a candidate do to get noticed? Well, maybe these 5 secrets will tell you and help you find the job of your dreams.
What are your thoughts (after watching the show)? Where do you struggle in regards to looking for a job? Did any of these secrets open your eyes? I’d love to hear your thoughts… so leave a comment!
UPDATE: This was made in September 2008… for 2 more successful “Recession Proof Your Careers” podcasts that the Moxie Mo did for Mevio.com, please click here (made in 2009).
We’ve received over 400 views in just ONE hour thanks to Lifehacker’s readers. Please subscribe to the Moxie Mo Show(RSS) or Moxie Mo Show (iTunes) for the moxiest in technology, career advice, entertainment and politics! Only on Mevio, THE entertainment network for podcasters!
Moxie Mo Show Special: Five Secrets From A Recruiter from Jeff McCord on Vimeo
September 28th, 2008 at 3:14 pm
Great tips, Jeff, all good stuff to put into the mix when considering ways to stand out. I’ve been in the position of going through stacks of resumes and I know what you’re talking about in terms of looking for some initial indicator to make the first cut. One item I’d give you mild disagreement on is the two applications per company limit. I think that’s good advice for smaller companies, but has some room for stretching on bigger companies. I work for an absolutely huge company with over 100,000 people world wide. In a lot of ways, its more like a country than a company. With that many positions, I feel it’s not a bad thing to apply to several jobs across a period of weeks or months. I’ve done this with good results. There are usually multiple instances of nearly the same job across several projects or divisions. You get my point. I think the two apps per company rule needs to be scaled against the size of the company.
December 4th, 2008 at 8:29 am
Hi Jeff- Thanks for the tips. I am currently seeking a new sales position in Houston after the biotech startup I was working for restructured.
I have a question for you. One of your tips discussed researching the company prior to the screening call from the recruiter. In most cases , when I apply for an opening in medical sales I have no idea what company or product is represented in the ad. Any suggestions on how to handle this?
Thanks!
Courtney
December 4th, 2008 at 6:49 pm
Courtney -
Thank you so much for the comment. What a great question, as you’re right, in this day and age, especially on job boards, a lot of times the company name may not even be mentioned. That said, maybe I should do a clearer job in one of my 5 tips… what I MEANT to say was “prepare for the company in any which way you can, especially prior to the MAIN screen or interview.” In most cases, it’s absolutely fine to not know much in an initial phone screen, but one of recruiters’ biggest pet peeves is when someone applies to our job on our website and then when I call him or her, they’ll say “now what is this position? Who is your company?” It just, at least to me, shows this person was desperately applying left and right to jobs and has no real clue which job it is they really have applied to.
I hope that makes sense? Some other tips – research the company but as you do your initial phone screens with the recruiters, you need to be asking a lot of questions. How’s the manager and his managing style? How big is the group that this posted position is in? Ask about job expectations and dive into the qualifications needed (from the job posting) and show that you are interested in this job. I promise you that will help. Promise you.
On a positive note, I’m glad you’re looking in Houston. Did you know Houston got ranked #1 job opportunities in the US (as of last week)??? GO HOUSTON! Dallas was ranked second!
February 18th, 2009 at 7:56 pm
Jeff,
Thank you so much for this video blog. I just have a question — it seems that there is a lot of contradicting advice out there in the career world. For example, you said that cover letters are not that important. I’ve read a lot that cover letters are more important than the resume. Now, personally, I’ve read cover letters when recruiting for positions and I think they are pretty… “fluffy.” I tend to agree with you.
However, how do job seekers (like myself) know which advice to take as it applies to each company? I don’t want to lose out on a chance for a position because of contradictory advice.
Any thoughts on this?
-Jamie
PS – Loving this blog! Thank you so much for sharing… I’m now going to click around on your archive and find more valuable insight.
February 18th, 2009 at 11:12 pm
Jeff, great tips! I saw your link to this video on Lifehacker. As a hiring manager myself, I agree 100% with your tips. I am ordinarily hiring from within my own company, and it amazes me how many candidates don’t take the time or trouble to learn the first thing about my organization or what they can do for me. I coach my own subordinates thus: “It’s all about the hiring manager. Sell him or her on what you are going to do to make him successful, what you are bringing to her her table. You are not a guest waiting to be served!”
As for the social networking tip — I just put that on my to-do list. I’m about to retire and move on to the next chapter in my life’s adventure. Not sure yet if that will include another corporate job, but either way, social networking seems to be key to moving ahead in the 2010s.
Again, thanks!
Dorothy
February 19th, 2009 at 12:03 am
Jeff, can you expand on what you mean by, “I recruit on Twitter AND Facebook”? I’m job seeking but do not have a Facebook page or a Twitter account. Should I? What kinds of things do you look for in regards to those?
February 19th, 2009 at 12:47 am
Hey Jeff, great tips. I, too, am perplexed by the idea of using Twitter and Facebook to job hunt. The few people I know who use these services do so only for personal reasons and … how to put this nicely … for the most part, the content on there is not professional unless you’re a comedian trying out for Jackass or in one of the world’s older professions. Even on LinkedIn, all but ONE (he’s in online marketing) of the people I know – professionals every one – are blogging about stuff that really should be on MySpace. I mean, what does getting tickets to some concert or who you voted for have to do with your career if you are a computer programmer?. For this reason, I keep my online persona, the one I’m using to write this message, strictly separate from my professional persona.
My current field of technical writing/documentation project management bores the pants off of most people, and those that want to chat about it tend to obsess and rant about obscure origins of some element of style in a most antisocial way (no one likes the grammar police). I never figured out how to spice it up enough to make a good blog, or how to write about things that aren’t likely to stir up an OCD war. My personal blog features great content, but is in an area that is traditionally unpaid and may be controversial depending on a recruiter’s religious views. I also have started a blog for a book I’m writing, but again, I’m writing in an area that may be religiously sensitive (it’s what I know that isn’t boring). I use Twitter to capture interesting things I come across as I browse the Internet; I’m not trying to coordinate a social group through that and I have very wide-ranging interests, so it would be impossible to tell what I’m about from my Twitters.
This may be a generation gap thing, but honestly, I’m starting to see some of the “young folks” pulling back from some of social networking they did when they were in school or their early careers; experiences have proved that it is just too easy to post the wrong thing at the wrong moment or have someone misinterpret something and have it cost a promotion or even a job. So… how does one go about effectively social networking for job hunting purposes, particularly if your job is kinda dull?
February 19th, 2009 at 3:04 am
Hey Jeff,
I’m talking from the far Europe.
I do believe in your tips and I’ve been surprised by the cover letter one….actually it was one of my biggest doubts….but somehow it is in contraddiction with what most of the companies/jobsite require…in most of them you have been asked to fill a fucking cover letter…and for sure you can’t really have different cover letters for each job you look at….my strategy in those cases is to build a cover letter for each of my CV (one for the technical one and one for the “managerial” one)….what do you think???
on top of this I’ve just two questions:
1. I live in EU and I want to move working in US….how can I really do it???? Any good job website?? Any suggestion???
2. I want to change sector (I’ve been working in the aerospace for 6 years and I’m really bored) and at the same time I aspire to a more managerial job, but it seems almost impossibile….I’ve got skills and education to do it (I’ve even have an MBA)….but I’ve been contacted only for what I do now….How can I have success in this double change???
You’re great!
cheers
Marco!
BTW….I’m looking in Houston!!!
February 19th, 2009 at 7:38 am
I’m with you on all of them, most of the time I don’t submit a cover letter unless I feel that the recruiter may need to know a little more about me than my resume will show. A job I recently applied for was just such a situation and I did a cover letter, I don’t know how much that played in to the interview that I have today, but it’s a field I’ve never worked “professionally” in but have several years experience doing it as a hobby.
Having conducted screening before, I am with you on #5, there’s nothing worse than calling applicant and having to tell them what they applied for, I wanted to hang up on every one of the applicants that did that, if they don’t have time to care, I don’t either.
February 19th, 2009 at 8:02 am
Jeff,
Nice tips. We appreciate you sharing. However, I must say you are wrong about the cover letters. Cover letters are, in fact, the first point of contact a candidate has with a recruiter. It is just as important as the resume, if not MORE important. A poorly written cover letter will not motivate a recruiter to even look at the resume. Cover letters are the entry point to resume views.
TorturtedGenus
February 19th, 2009 at 8:10 am
Tortured Genius,
Lets agree to disagree then. I am a recruiter. And before I made this video, I talked to the 4 other recruiters I work with plus I talked to my recruiting network here in Dallas/Ft. Worth – NONE of us read a cover letter. We all go straight to the resume.
I will add more about why I said what I said about cover letters shortly. I’m not saying to NOT do one but I AM saying that recruiters do not read them.
-Jeff
February 19th, 2009 at 8:57 am
@Frank Rumpy – I recruit for a large retailer and when I was hired on as the Sr. Recruiter, I explained to them the importance of creating the company’s “brand” on social networks: facebook, myspace, twitter, linked in, etc. Whenever I have a position in IT that is either high level or very specific (i.e., not a lot of candidates out there on the job boards) I will then Twitter the position and ask my Twitter followers to “apply here: company’swebsite.com”) – I also network within Facebook and Twitter and follow people that are IT-related (or Marketing or Accounting or whatever I recruit) and within a few months of ACTIVELY using Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc I have built a big network of potentially seeking candidates.
So that’s what I mean when I say I use Facebook and Twitter. It’s not the ONLY avenue in which I recruit – but it’s one that companies are doing more and more.
Hope that helps!
-Moxie Mo
February 19th, 2009 at 9:03 am
@Keter – We could talk for days about professionalism vs personalism on blogs, Twitter, Facebook, etc in regards to recruiting and hiring. You’re right – there needs to be a difference between professional networking versus adding 100 friends on Facebook because you send some silly application to forward to everyone. And you’re absolutely right, there is HUGE discussion going on with HR and recruiters about what you can or can’t do (legally and ethically) in regards to making judgements PRE-HIRE about candidates’ online lives. It’s a very tight line to walk, I assure you. And I’ve seen too many college grads with really ignorant pictures on their profiles and although we’d all like to think that doesn’t get judged, I’d be lying to you if I said that.
So – how do you effectively use social networking? By what I wrote to Frank. You can create a “professional profile” or a professional website/blog to put on your resume. I look at people’s portfolios online all the time. It adds a much better picture of what this person’s achievements are, what they are interested in and who they are as a person than when I just read a 2 paged resume.
The fact you are on Twitter and Linked In is exactly where you need to be. You don’t necessarily have to put yourself out there, but make sure you search for recruiters or HR types on Twitter (go to http://www.summize.com and use a keyword like “recruiter” or “jobs”) and follow those people. You will be amazed at what you may find from their tweets – they may post a job that’s exactly what you’re looking for OR BETTER YET they will befriend you online and who knows what type of networks you will build.
I hope that makes sense – feel free to email me more at jeff@jeffmccord.org
February 19th, 2009 at 9:12 am
@Marco – greetings my friend! I’ve had several Europeans on the Moxie Mo Show website from last night to today and I think it’s great.
First, I am no expert overseas. So please know that. My experience (10 yrs) as a recruiter has all been recruiting in the US and a few positions within Canada. So that said, I am not an expert in your area per se – but I have hired people who are not US citizens. It really depends on the company in which you apply that will hire you or not – in this day in age, H1-B and Visas are very hard to get, post 9/11 and now even more so with the US economy being in shambles. BUT, companies still do hire H1-B and non-US citizens IF they’re the right fit for the job.
You’re #1 challenge, Marco, will be the fact you not only live out of town and out of state, but also out of the country. If I have a SAP Config position open here in Dallas, I’m going to bring in those who live here much more quickly than those who do not. So I just want you to know you’re #1 challenge and there are ways to overcome it.
To answer your questions:
on top of this I’ve just two questions:
1. I live in EU and I want to move working in US….how can I really do it???? Any good job website?? Any suggestion???
- Your typical job boards will have positions listed – some may say “local candidates only” and these positions typically will not look at people out of the local area. But again, I’ve hired out-of-state and out-of-country many times (when the economy was good). Check out Monster, Careerbuilder, Linked In, and google Houston,TX job boards.
2. I want to change sector (I’ve been working in the aerospace for 6 years and I’m really bored) and at the same time I aspire to a more managerial job, but it seems almost impossibile….I’ve got skills and education to do it (I’ve even have an MBA)….but I’ve been contacted only for what I do now….How can I have success in this double change???
This is the hardest part because right now, it’s definitely an employer’s market – there are TONS of candidates out there due to layoffs and the US economy sucking… so this will be a challenge. If I get a position open within my company in this economy, I have to find THE BEST qualified person – education matters but experience matters most. That’s just the facts. That said, keep your faith, my friend because you NEVER know – a company may want you because you “wow’ed” them in your interview and you just never know. But it will be difficult.
-Moxie Mo
February 19th, 2009 at 12:27 pm
Great video podcast! ‘Preciate the info.
February 19th, 2009 at 2:51 pm
Atta boy, Jeff! It’s during troubled times such as these that people like us, with the knowledge and ability to help people, step up to the plate and get people working!
Keep it up, and I’ll definitely be keeping track of your success!
David.
February 19th, 2009 at 4:52 pm
Good info. I’ve been a tech recruiter since I got out of college 5 years ago (saw you on Lifehacker) and I definitely believe that to work with the best of best as far as companies go, the candidates these days have to be pulled from new inventive sources like social networking sites. It’s a slippery slope, because sometimes, like you mentioned, there can be less than desirable content that surfaces that one might not even know is out there. I had a candidate get passed on once because his friends had videotaped him drunk and posted it with his name in the title. Putting out a professional persona is key. Any social networking you do with friends is much better kept personal. I don’t want my candidates and clients looking at pictures of my birthday party, for instance.
I’m at a point where I think I’m ready to get away from sales in this capacity and would love to hear your thoughts on a good direction for a web-savvy recruiter with an ear for tech.
Also, I completely agree with you about the cover letters. Not a waste of time, but not useful most of the time.
February 20th, 2009 at 10:35 am
Im on Linkedin & Facebook and to be honest its not helped me in the slightest in my job hunting efforts since I got laid off, because NO ONE’S HIRING. At least for the positions Im after, people at my friends companys are hunkerin down, no ones leaving or changing companys these days so there are no openings to even network over. Its a stalemate.
February 23rd, 2009 at 2:46 am
Dear Jeff:
I was directed to this video by a friend of mine. Thank you for putting this together. It’s sparked some new ideas on how to put myself out there.
Here’s my question: what advice would you give a client who has outstanding skills (Administrative Assistant and Executive Assistant-level skills–70 wpm, knows Windows and Mac, expert level in Word, Excel, intermediate in Access, and a whole alphabet load of other skills) but has a resume full of temp work? Mind you, a lot of the work was done through the temp agency for the same company (local county government), but it’s still about 4-5 years of temp work. I’ve tried a billion times to apply for this company and at other jobs, and I’ve gotten the “You’re Overqualified” curse.
I would appreciate any advice you can offer, because I’m almost at the end of my rope trying to figure out what my next move is.
Yours sincerely,
“MissNisha”
March 22nd, 2009 at 9:53 am
Excellent video, thank you very much. The 5 tips are good and solid, and when coming from a seasoned recruiter, they are that much more valued.
Thank you, and I will let you know if it actually helps me
January 9th, 2010 at 7:32 pm
[...] Five Secrets From A Recruiter That You Need To Know! [...]
September 15th, 2010 at 11:40 am
that’s incredible.
November 15th, 2010 at 3:50 am
marketing jobs can really earn you lots of dollars but most of the time, it is a difficult job -*;