What’s the first thing you think about when you start preparing or updating your resume? A common misconception today is thinking you have to craft your resume to be more general since you don’t know exactly what an employer wants to see. The reality is hiring managers are looking specifically for people who understand their needs and have the skills and knowledge to solve their problems. The key to getting recognized is writing an effective resume geared toward acknowledging those specific needs and demonstrating why you have the skills they are looking for. Targeting your resume is critical today, and here’s why it’s so important.
Targeting Doesn’t Limit Your Job Search
Your first thought when the best executive resume writers tell you to target your resume may be that you’re limiting your job search options. There’s no such thing as a one-size-fits-all resume. Employers need to see specifically how you can help their current and future situation, so only including relevant information in your resume is critical. When writing an effective resume, your time is much better spent researching a potential employer and targeting the resume accordingly rather than trying to create a general resume to reach a wider audience.
What To Do Before Writing Your Resume
The top resume writing services always suggest thinking hard about exactly what you want to do at your next job. Once you have your goals and desires set, you can search for potential employers that can help you achieve those goals. Take a look at what attributes and skills the company needs and identify where you can help them out the most. When writing your resume, be sure to demonstrate your brand clearly so the hiring manager will know exactly who you are, what you stand for and how you can help the company achieve its goals.
Make Your Resume Stand Out
Hiring managers want to see you’ve done your research on them before sending in a resume. The best executive resume writers can help you with relevant keywords and phrases employers want to see. When you value the idea of working for an employer, the hiring manager will be able to see it and you’ll have a better chance of getting called in for an interview.
Professional Resume Services knows it can be difficult to wrap your mind around targeting a resume. While resume targeting has always been important, employers today take it much more seriously in their efforts to narrow down candidates to find the right fit. We take pride in being one of the top resume writing services and are here to help you with your job searching journey. Feel free to reach out to us at any time for assistance when writing your targeted resume.
Executives often have a similar skill set, background and education. So how can you set yourself apart from the rest? There are plenty of ways to do so, but there’s one overlooked skill you must possess: listening. In the world we live in today, too many people want to talk about themselves, which leads to one-sided conversations no one really listens to. Your executive resume biography is designed to talk about your achievements, but when you’re networking, let someone else do the talking while you listen attentively. Here’s why listening skills are so valuable for executives.
Build Your Personal Brand By Listening
The best resume writing service builds their reputation by listening to what their clients have to say and acting on what they’ve heard. On the same hand, you can build your personal brand by simply listening to others when they talk, asking questions in return and acting on anything you hear. Always be listening for things people say where you could fulfill their needs, or where they could fulfill your needs. In many situations, you will leave a conversation with people thinking highly of you even when you don’t say much.
Ask Insightful Questions
When writing resumes and cover letters, you have to ask yourself important questions about your past experiences in order to determine how well they fit with the company you’re interested in working for. When talking to someone, the only way to know whether your experiences are beneficial to them is by asking insightful questions. And the only way to know what questions to ask is by listening closely to what they are saying. When you ask the right questions, the other person will do most of the talking so all you have to do is listen.
Good Listeners Stand Out Among A Crowd
When you combine listening skills with asking insightful questions in return, people will take notice. You likely talk to many different people at networking events, but the ones who stand out most often are the ones who listen and respond accordingly. People are experts on themselves, so that’s usually what they talk about the most. Instead of returning the favor and talking about yourself, focus on the other person and you’ll earn a lot more respect in return.
Professional Resume Services has earned the reputation of being the best resume writing service, but we do much more than simply write resumes and cover letters. It’s easy to indicate on your resume that you’re a good listener, and it’s even better to put those skills into action. If you aren’t sure about what type of insightful questions you can ask or how to respond to people during networking events, feel free to contact us for tips and advice.
Doing your homework prior to going into a job interview can be the difference between being considered a viable candidate or having your resume pushed to the side. Companies want to hire someone who shows they are willing to do their due diligence in order to make a quality decision. Writing resumes that get you hired is great, but those resumes don’t guarantee you are a perfect fit for any given job. Here are important points to research about a company prior to going into a job interview.
Learn About Key Team Members
You can find out the names of key team members of a company by looking at the company’s LinkedIn profile. Take this a step further and learn a few interesting facts about those people as well. Discover what college they attended, how their degree led them to the role they have and anything else you deem to be relevant. When you research professionals at a prospective employer as much as they research you as a job candidate, you’ll be more likely to make a great first impression.
Understand Mission Statements And How To Apply Them
Knowing a company’s mission statement is important in a few ways. For one, you shouldn’t work for a company if you don’t agree with their mission and values. You also should demonstrate to an interviewer how your work ethic, personal ethics and daily actions fit what the company represents. Having this information in your LinkedIn profile is one thing, but it’s also important to be able to give examples during your interview.
Check The Latest Industry or Company News
When you’re able to talk about the latest news within the company or the industry they operate in, you’ll earn some solid points with the interviewers since it shows you’ve come prepared. The best executive resume writing service can help you relate your past experiences to the company you’re interested in on paper. It’s up to you to follow-up on those experiences with action by demonstrating you’re ready to get started working for them right away.
Know The Company Structure
A LinkedIn profile of an interviewer or a company doesn’t give you the total picture of a company’s structure. The title “executive” means different things to different companies, so if you aren’t able to figure out how the company is structured by searching online, then don’t hesitate to ask them in the interview. You need to make sure you fit within the structure so you know exactly what your role is if hired.
Professional Resume Services does much more than simply write resumes that get you hired. There’s no specific action you can take that will magically land you any job you want, and the work doesn’t stop once your resume is created. Doing your due diligence on a company will help you master the interview and put yourself in a great position to get the job. For more tips like these, feel free to contact us at any time and we would be happy to work with you.
When you get invited to interview for an executive position, you have one chance to make a great first impression. The challenging part about this is everyone has their own views on what impresses people most. Some people think using a big vocabulary will demonstrate their intelligence, but sometimes this won’t impress interviewers. Others may think working with a professional resume writing service is enough, and that the interview process is just a formality. The bottom line is you have to be careful with what you think is impressive versus what an employer thinks is. Here are some tips to help you make a great first impression in your executive interview.
Dress For Success
Some job interviews don’t merit wearing a suit and tie, so you don’t necessarily have to default to that look. Instead, dress for the position you’re applying for and make sure the clothes fit you well and you look sharp overall. You should have a professional headshot in your LinkedIn profile picture, so your attire for a job interview should be professional as well. What you wear to an interview shows how much you want the job, so dress for success and it will only help your chances of making a good first impression.
Rehearse Answers To Common Questions While Sounding Natural
Another way to impress your interviewers is to answer their questions fluidly and naturally. You can get some example questions from your executive resume writer and think about how you will formulate your answers. The only thing to beware of is sounding like a robot when answering them in the interview. The interviewers will likely be able to see right through you if you aren’t natural, so the practice questions should be used just to get you thinking about how you’ll respond, whether than preparing canned responses.
Don’t Be Afraid To Show Some Personality
Employers want to hire someone who fits their workplace culture as much as they want a person who meets all of the technical job requirements. While you need to present yourself as a professional, it’s also acceptable to have a sense of humor and show off a little bit of your personality. Your LinkedIn profile should be crafted in a way that hints at your personality type, so interviewers may be looking for it in the interview.
Avoid Desperation And Entitlement
Finally, two things you don’t want to do is show desperation or entitlement. Desperation isn’t attractive to anyone, and entitlement shows you may have some problems fitting in with other employees. So even if you do feel desperate or entitled to getting the job, be humble throughout the interview. Your chances of landing the job will decrease significantly if the interviewers sense either of these attributes.
Professional Resume Services is classified as a professional resume writing service, but we believe we are much more than that. We want to be involved in every aspect of your job search and assist you in any way we can. Making a good first impression in an interview is critical, so contact us at any time for additional tips on how to do it.
Getting involved in your community is much more than just helping others, even though that is the main benefit. Too many people think they are too busy to volunteer, or even think there are plenty of volunteers already so they aren’t needed. However, what if we told you volunteering in your community could help your job search, give you something else to put on your executive resume biography and boost your personal branding at the same time? The best professional resume writers preach this all the time for these reasons.
Boost Your Credibility
You may be a credible executive within your industry, but no one else outside of it knows that. Volunteering gives you the opportunity to get out in the community and show your talents as well. Offering your services for sale at your job is your career, but offering them for free through volunteering efforts can boost your credibility tremendously.
Meet New People
When talking to the best professional resume writers, they will always promote the importance of networking. The truth is many executives aren’t very fond of going out of their way to meet new people since it sometimes doesn’t feel organic. Volunteering is completely different. Your purpose for volunteering is to serve the community, and you’ll inevitably meet new people along the way. And if you happen to be searching for a job during your efforts, you never know if you could be connected to your next employer somehow.
Fill In Employment Gaps With Volunteering
Another way volunteering is beneficial is by filling in employment gaps in your executive resume biography. Employers typically don’t like to see gaps in employment for more than a few months. However, if you are able to fill in those gaps with volunteer projects, you’ll likely be forgiven and your chances of landing your next job won’t suffer. In many ways, volunteering can demonstrate your personal brand and your soft skills, while portraying you as a well-rounded person overall.
Open Your Mind To New Options
Finally, your volunteering efforts may open your mind to options you’ve never considered before. This may not apply to you if you’re happy with your current career, but it does if you’re unemployed or looking for a new job. Happiness with any job comes from being satisfied with the work you do, and being fulfilling and meaningful. The connections you make while volunteering, along with the volunteer work itself, can help you open your mind to new opportunities if you feel like you’re stuck.
Professional Resume Services does much more than simply write resumes that get you hired. Our team focuses on the big picture with every executive in order to help them find the most satisfying career path for them. Every individual is different, and sometimes volunteering is a great way to learn more about yourself and your passions. Feel free to contact us at any time to learn more about the connection between volunteering and your executive job search.
Many executives don’t have to look for a new job very often. So if it’s been several years since you last conducted a job search, things could have changed drastically. Visiting a professional resume writing service should be your first step, just to make sure your resume is formatted properly and doesn’t have any mistakes. Some job seekers are still surprised it takes them so long to find a job. Here are some of common reasons why job searches take longer than expected and how you can expedite the process.
Not Targeting Effectively
Before even writing an effective resume, you have to target the industry or specific employer you want to send a resume to. Your resume has to demonstrate a certain amount of value you bring to the table, so if you don’t know what a company needs, you won’t be able to show your value clearly. Target a handful of companies and research them thoroughly, including each job description, so you know exactly what they need. The hiring manager will be able to identify how serious you are about the position based on the information in your resume.
Exhausting Efforts On Job Boards
Too many professionals make the mistake of spending a significant amount of time applying for jobs through job boards. While jobs are plentiful on there, the chances of you getting hired through one are slim. Instead, spend your time networking with other professionals through networking events or even LinkedIn. The majority of senior-level positions aren’t going to be posted online, so networking is your best option for tapping into the hidden job market and landing a job quicker.
Not Focusing On Your Personal Brand
Any executive resume writer will tell you a quality resume will only get you so far. Your personal brand is an essential component when it comes to getting hired. You have to assume hiring managers are going to Google search your name, so it’s highly recommended for you to do the same and see what the results show. Clean up anything you don’t want to be visible to ensure your online presence reflects who you are as a person.
Making Mistakes In Your Resume
Spending a lot of time writing an effective resume is valuable, but even minor mistakes can hurt your chances of landing an interview. Have an executive resume writer tweak your resume and proofread it thoroughly to ensure there are no mistakes damaging your efforts. It’s easier than you think to omit information or overlook a critical typographical error, so make sure your resume is spotless before distributing it to potential employers.
At Professional Resume Services, we see ourselves as more than just a professional resume writing service. We also believe we are a resource for executives to come to when they need to tweak their job searching efforts or even just need advice at any stage of their job search. A resume is only one part of landing a job, so contact us today if you feel like your searching efforts are taking longer than expected.
Networking is difficult for people for many different reasons. One of those reasons may be because the person doesn’t want anyone else to go out of their way for their benefit. This is especially true if your main purpose for networking is to makes sales or build your business in different ways. However, one of the major breakthroughs people have when they feel uncomfortable networking is offering something beneficial to others without expecting anything in return. This takes a lot of pressure off of the interaction and will boost your c-level personal branding more than you’d think. Networking while helping others is entirely possible, and here are some ways to do it.
Be A Resource On LinkedIn
You should already have a LinkedIn profile, so utilize the platform to help others when you can. Many times people in your network will ask questions you may know the answer to. Alternatively, you can join LinkedIn groups relevant to your career and participate in discussions. Simply offering your expertise and being a valuable resource to others will increase your c-level personal branding and you never know what it will lead to.
Offer Your Expertise For Free
Not every person you network with will be able to help you. But that doesn’t mean you can’t help them. If you connect with someone who could use your expertise, don’t be afraid to help them out for free a time or two. While you may not get a direct return on it, they will always remember you and you may end up getting some referrals from them down the road.
Pass Along Referrals
Speaking of referrals, if you know of an expert who could solve a problem for someone you’re networking with, feel free to pass along their information. Again, you may never see a direct benefit in your own profession by doing this, but the expert whom you referred will be appreciative and will likely jump at the opportunity to help you out in return when they have the chance. Nothing benefits c-level personal branding more than being selfless, and passing along referrals is one way to do it.
Be Active Online
Finally, you never know what networking opportunities you’ll run into online if you aren’t active. Brush up your LinkedIn profile and start interacting with your connections or members of a group. You could also look for relevant blogs or forums and engage in professional discussions. Your expertise could be invaluable to someone and it won’t even feel like you’re making an effort to network, which makes the process much easier and less stressful.
Professional Resume Services is a team of professional executive resume writers who pride themselves on being engaged with their clients’ job search. Networking is a big part of any career, but many people still don’t completely understand the importance of it. We are here to make networking an easy and fun process by providing you tips on how to do so effectively. If there’s any way we can help you advance or take your career to the next level, feel free to reach out to us at any time.
An executive resume cover letter shouldn’t simply restate your resume in paragraph form. If you’ve been crafting your resume like this, then it’s time to revisit some of the basics of cover letter writing. The purpose of a cover letter is to sell yourself to the potential employer you are interested in working for. This may mean adding some details or specifics to things already present on your resume, but simply restating the information is a great way for yours to get overlooked. Here are some of the basics of writing an executive resume cover letter.
Grab The Reader’s Attention
The first sentence of your cover letter should grab the reader’s attention enough to where they want to continue reading. You could even start it off with a question. Read the job description thoroughly to see exactly what the employer is looking for to fill their open position. And when you ask the question, be sure the answer to it is “yes”. Not only will this immediately get the reader’s attention, but it will also suggest you are the answer to the problem they need to solve.
Demonstrate Past Success
The most effective resumes and cover letters will give specific examples of your past accomplishments and success. If you helped increase sales numbers by a certain percentage, explain those numbers briefly. Just remember there’s a fine line between giving success stories and coming across as arrogant, so it could be valuable to visit a cover letter writing service to make sure you aren’t crossing the line in your writing inadvertently.
Provide Statistics
Statistics are always going to grab the attention of a reader. Many times a hiring manager will scan resumes and cover letters quickly and look for bold, italics, numbers and percentages and start reading from that point. The main thing to remember is to make sure the statistics you provide from your past jobs are relevant to the role you’re applying for now. Potential employers are only interested in your past success if it can easily translate to help them.
Invite Interaction
Putting in some sort of call-to-action shows a genuine interest on your part. Every cover letter writing service will suggest either telling the reader how they can contact you or saying you will follow-up in a certain amount of time. If you choose to include the latter, be sure to follow through with your commitment since you never know if they are anxiously awaiting your call.
Professional Resume Services can help you with all aspects of your executive resume cover letter. Whether you have a blank piece of paper and don’t know where to start or if you’ve got a first draft and need a skilled proofreader and editor, we are here for you. Your cover letter is important and should take some time to craft perfectly, so contact us at any time for assistance or advice.
