Don't Send Out Resumes!

Don't Send Out Resumes!

Don't Send Out Resumes!

Do you find yourself sending out scores of resumes without getting any answers? Don't think you are alone. One of the big innovations of the internet age has been the big job boards. Sure, there are a few folks who get jobs off of the boards, but most of those jobs are not what you would call a career position. And remember, the main job of the job boards is to make money for their owners through membership dues and/or advertising.

If you are looking for a good paying job, sending out resumes is not only time consuming, but sometimes even counterproductive. You see, all hiring managers value an applicant who comes from a recommendation over those who send in a resume in the blind.

The gurus tell you to spend time and money developing a killer resume and a velvet cover letter, and then distribute them far and wide. But what good are they if they never get read?

I was once sitting in our head office with the chief pilot, talking about filling a vacant pilot position. The boss literally had his elbow on a stack of resumes over two inches thick, but he leaned across his desk to me and asked, "Do you know anybody good?"

Managers are not going to spend their time thumbing through scores or hundreds of resumes being impressed with your cover letter or those stellar qualifications. They want to call someone NOW. Most of all they want some assurance that the person they call is going to be a great employee. They know through bitter experience that an applicant can put whatever they want on their resume. It takes time and money to check all those facts.

Only in those few times when there is a labor shortage will management go to all that trouble. In these tough times there are plenty of applicants, so the hirers want the best, that is, those they know or those with personal references.

So get off the job boards. Stop wasting all those hours. Instead focus on the company where you want to work. Find someone in your network who works there or who knows someone who works there. Use those connections to get a meeting with the hiring manager. Do NOT go through HR. I know it sounds hard, but it is really not that difficult. Be proactive.

There are lots of ways to meet the hiring manager. Find out if the manager is a volunteer in a group such as "Friends of the Library." Go to that meeting and introduce yourself. Or get an appointment to visit their office. You will be surprised at how easy it is to visit a manager. Just call their secretary and ask for an appointment for fifteen minutes. Have your contact in the company prepare the way. Or you might meet them in their favorite bar, at the tennis court, or the yacht club.

Remember, you do not want to appear needy. That is a turn off to a hirer. Have a job, even if it is just a filler. Let the manager know that you are interested in working for their company and show in your conversation that you've researched the operation.

Once you have warmed up to the managers, they will ask you for a resume. That is when you pull out a professional document that backs up management's emotional desire to hire you.

Target the company you want. Use your network to help you get in. Then get to know the person who can hire you. These steps will get you on the inside track to those high paying jobs.

D. Alan Johnson

www.dalanjohnson.com

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