Did you know that more than 100 million people in America make New Year’s resolutions each year? If one of your top resolutions is to find a job that fits your skills and abilities, then you need to take steps to improve your chances of being hired. Finding a job is no small feat, especially in the executive sector where the process to get hired is more cutthroat than ever before. While your initial thought may be to hire the best executive resume writing services, there are a few other tips that can help along the way, as well.
1. Clearly define the job you want
It isn’t good enough to just state you want a new job. The more specific you get, the better results you are going to see. If you know what company you want to work for, write that down, too. Make sure you are realistic. Not everyone can move into the top executive position at a Fortune 500 company straight from the job market. The more specific and realistic you are, the better chance you have of achieving your resolution.
2. Create actionable steps
There are many reasons why resolutions fail. A common theme, however, is you don’t take the necessary actions to accomplish the goals you have set. You have to make it happen. Do you want a position as a Vice President of Sales at a large retail chain? If so, outline the steps you can take to achieve this goal. For example:
List the business options you are interested in.
Use LinkedIn to post your resume after using executive resume services.
Attend networking events where these companies are present.
Learn who the decision makers are at the organizations.
Tailor your actionable skills to meet your specific job hunt goals.
3. Revamp your resume
A resume is the first impression an HR manager receives of a candidate. If yours isn’t up to the company’s standards, then it may be time to revamp it. If you don’t have the time or ability to do this yourself, consider using the services of the best executive resume writing services. Not only can these services help you update your resume, but they provide other services, as well. For example, many resume companies also offer a cover letter writing service.
4. Consider using a recruiter
Being noticed in a saturated job market is getting more and more difficult. Regardless of your degree, experience and ability, there is always someone else out there who may be a bit more impressive. With the help of a recruiter, you can find the jobs suiting the goals you outlined as part of your New Year’s resolution. Getting a job isn’t hard. Landing the job you really want, especially at the executive level, can be a challenge. With the tips here, you are on your way to getting a job that challenges you, while letting you show off your abilities and skills. If you would like more information about resume writing services, or getting the job you want this year, contact us today.
Some older people believe they should easily be able to get a new job because of their extensive experience. While that seems reasonable, there’s a lot more to take into consideration. A lot of companies today are looking for younger people out of college with a few years of experience and new ideas. The general perception is older people won’t come in with those new ideas and may be difficult to train. Here is a quick guide for older employees embarking on a new job search.
What to Put In a Cover Letter
The best resume writing services will suggest not bragging about your experience. Instead of indicating how many years of experience you have, simply state your “significant” experience. Also, avoid re-stating your job history in your cover letter. Even though your approximate age will be evident in an interview, you don’t want to show your age on paper. You should consider emphasizing your willingness to learn and adapt to new ideas and combine that with your proven experience and results.
Brushing Up Your Resume
There is some gray area when it comes to what information to put on your resume when you have 25+ years of experience. It’s easy to list out all the jobs you have and their corresponding dates, but it’s also easy for a recruiter to add up your age. While age shouldn’t play a big factor in the job search process, the unfortunate reality of “agism” is there. Many executive resume services will tell you to focus on results in your resume. Besides, if you have so much experience to talk about, potential employers want to know what you accomplished with that experience. You can also summarize your early experience into a paragraph that lets the reader know what you did without the redundancy of jobs going back 30+ years.
Be Honest, But Not Too Extensive
You shouldn’t lie about your age, but you also shouldn’t give it to a potential employer willingly unless they ask for it. If you aren’t sure how to portray your age on paper, the best resume writing services can help you out. Lying on your resume or cover letter is the worst thing you can do. Sometimes you just have to be creative in order to get your foot in the door for an interview. At that point, it’s up to you to nail the interview!
Your Online Presence
Older employees may or may not be on professional networking sites like LinkedIn. Having a complete LinkedIn profile is great for adding accomplishments you don’t want to put on your resume. However, you have to also be careful with your LinkedIn profile development and avoid putting too much information out there. The use of keywords is critical when creating a LinkedIn profile. Sometimes people will overlook your age if they see you have the exact amount of experience they are looking for.
Five Ways to Make the Most of Your Next Executive Job Fair
Job fairs used to be designed for entry-level positions and students looking for their first job. However, executive job fairs have become more popular in recent years because they help executives get their name out to companies and recruiters. Whether you’re actively looking for a job or just want to learn more about different options, attending an executive job fair can be beneficial. Follow these five tips to make your experience a success.
Target Recruiters or Companies
Look at the schedule beforehand and find the specific companies and recruiters you want to talk to. Prepare yourexecutive resume cover letter by tailoring it toward those companies. This will help make an immediate impact. When a recruiter knows you have a special interest in them, they will likely return the favor and give you more attention.
Do Your Research
Research the companies you’re interested in fully, but also do a little research on other companies as well. Know the names of people you want to talk to in each company and learn about the companies’ histories. If you’re able to demonstrate to a recruiter you know about their company, you can skip that step in the discussion and move into why you would be a great fit. This will stand out much more than general discussion!
Bring Resumes and Yes, Even Business Cards
You need to be a good writer to get the attention of recruiters. They will likely receive hundreds of resumes and business cards during executive job fairs so it’s important yours stands out. Yes, people still give out business cards. If you have some, bring them. If you need to hireexecutive resume services prior to the job fair, do it.
Prepare Like You Would For a Job Interview
The biggest mistake people make is treating executive job fairs like a social event rather than a job interview. If you go into a job interview with the perfect executive resume cover letter, why wouldn’t you do the same at a job fair? This is where researching companies is critical so you can customize several cover letters for specific companies. Most people won’t take the time to make each cover letter distinct so it gives you a great chance to stand out among the group.
Be Social
Don’t just limit your conversations to recruiters. Talk to other job seekers as well to get a sense of the competition out there. You may be surprised how many ideas and tips you can receive from fellow job seekers. Socializing with people with similar interests as you will only help your development for your next executive job fair.
Interested in Hiring an Executive Resume Writer? Here’s What You Should Look For!
Most people don’t think they need an executive resume writer when they’re searching for a job. It’s easy to blindly throw your resume out to employers and see which one bites. However, you aren’t doing yourself a lot of good, and you definitely aren’t saving time that way. An executive resume writer does more than just put words on a piece of paper for you. They will help you think deeply about your current career path and your goals. In order to find someone like this, you have to look for some particular characteristics.
Have Your Best Interest in Mind
When you’re looking forexecutive resume writing services, it’s easy to tell who has your best interest in mind versus someone who is only interested in their paycheck. It’s a good sign if they’ve been in the profession for many years. They probably won’t be able to talk about specific clients, but ask them about some of their best success stories. Their answer will go a long way in determining how much they will care about helping you. Make sure they have advanced credentials, awards and even some samples on the website so you can see their work. Talk to them. Make sure they talk strategy and focus as well.
They Explain the Process to You
If you’re going to pay good money for executive resume services, you deserve to learn more than just how to write a resume better. A good service will provide you with information and resources about how their process works, what they’ll need from you and what to expect once it’s done. Not knowing what an employer in your industry looks for on a resume won’t help you in the long run.
They Connect on a Personal Level
Some of the bestexecutive resume writers have been in your shoes before. You will have a complete sense of trust when you realize your professional writer went through the same struggles as you. Any professional can learn how to write a resume, but actually living through the difficult times of looking for a job and trying to craft the perfect resume goes a long way in credibility. Once you develop a personal understanding with your executive resume writer, you’ll most likely be able to open up and work together to create a great resume. If you’re planning on seeking the help of executive resume writing services, these tips should help you find the perfect writer. The important thing to remember is the first person you interact with may not always be the best choice. Just like finding a job, finding the perfect executive resume writer is a process. These tips should help you narrow down your choices a little easier.
Navigating today’s demanding and ever-changing job market is tough—no matter what age you are. If you’re 50 or over, however, learning the ropes can be even more of a challenge. It’s highly likely that it’s been years upon years since you last searched for a job, and the market has changed tenfold since you were in this position.How do you navigate this strange new territory?How do you reach out to the people you want to hire you?Just what is the key to writing resumes that get you hired in today’s world?We have a few tips on things to avoid to help make your search easier.
Personal Stagnation
Regardless of age, it never hurts to learn new things—information, viewpoints and especially skills. Think about the skill set you have now. How well does it sync up with the job listings you’ve seen this decade? Are there any skills you’ve seen that have stumped you, or that you know you have no idea how to perform? Don’t let this become a detriment to you and hurt your chances of getting hired!While you’re searching for a new career, it would serve you well to start looking into expanding your skill set by taking some adult educational classes. If you aren’t good with computers and other electronic devices, now is the time to learn. If you need to be familiar with a certain kind of software to qualify for the positions you’re seeking out, consider seeing if your nearest learning center has classes for it. A Lacking LinkedIn
You’ve very likely heard of LinkedIn at some point during your professional career. It’s a business-oriented social networking site and has become increasingly important in recent years. Most professionals today use it to network with other people in their industry, meaning if you don’t have a LinkedIn account of your own, you’ll want to invest some good old time and effort into putting one together and keeping it active and updated.You never know who might notice you on LinkedIn, especially since so many of today’s hiring managers use the site to find potential candidates. If you can’t make heads or tails of LinkedIn, you can even hire a professional LinkedIn profile writer to lend you a hand. Ego Trouble
Because you’ve been in the workforce for so long, especially as a senior-level professional, you’ve racked up a lot of accomplishments. While this is certainly commendable and even worth acknowledgment, you should keep in mind that by looking for new work, you’re much closer to square one than it may seem. Be humble about your skills, and don’t limit yourself as far as the positions you can acquire. Similarly, you don’t want to be too meek and cheat yourself out of a great position. Simply communicate, connect with every fellow professional you meet and don’t let your personal opinions get in the way of your search.
And don’t forget you can always rely on a professional resume writing service for help with your job search and to help you maneuver through today’s job market!
As a senior level professional, you’ve almost certainly heard of personal branding. Implementing it into your professional life, however, is a very different story. The idea of establishing and maintaining a personal brand is very new after all, having arrived on the coat tails of the Internet and the rest of today’s technology. If you’ve spent a considerable amount of time assuming c-level personal branding isn’t worth your time, you may want to reconsider! This is a very important aspect of your professional career, for a few significant reasons.
Personal Branding Sets You Apart
While this line sounds cliché, it is very much the truth. Consider these questions:
How do you stack up against your competitors?
Would your degree(s) be enough to convince companies to hire you instead of someone else?
Thousands of other people hold the exact same academic achievements as you. Plus, the longer you’ve been out of school, the less your academic career matters. It’s the sad reality that many people face.
Rather than focusing on this, look back on the other accomplishments you’ve earned within your field. Think about who you are as a executive and a person. Personal branding for senior level managers involves getting to the meat of these two concepts. It involves presenting your positive qualities and expertise in a way that appeals much more readily to those in charge of hiring you.
You’ll Experience a Quality Jump with Your Job Search
Naturally, focusing on your skills and personal talents boosts your own self image. This means you will become far less likely to settle for just any position that matches your skill set. You will gradually start to approach your job search in a different way as your personal brand gains more and more attention. Once this happens, it will enable you to think about what you really want from a company and what conditions you are not willing to deal with.
As a result, you will start to push forward with your professional life and only accept those who meet your newfound standards. If the idea of constant professional growth appeals to you, then you’ll want to put together your personal brand as soon as possible.
Your Personal Brand Gains You More Benefits and Professional Success
Simply put, a personal brand boosts your chances of being hired. It creates a clear picture of your strengths and what you can offer a company, which will appeal quickly to employers. If you’re currently struggling with your job search, a personal brand may help you finally find the position you’ve been so diligently seeking in ways you could never have anticipated!
You never thought this would happen to you, but it has. You’re 50+ in age and find yourself suddenly out of work, struggling to keep your head above water in a job market you no longer recognize, which bears no resemblance to the Greensheets and wanted ads you pored over during your youth. What should be a time for planning for your retirement is now filled with uncertainty, stress and scrambling to recover from your loss.
We understand what a shock this can be. The job market has indeed changed tremendously and will take some adaptation if you want to find success. If you are 50 or over and trying to find work, we dedicate this article for you. Follow these tips to help the process of getting back on your feet go a little more smoothly.
Research Your Prospects
Unfortunately, not all companies are receptive to older workers and seek out only those of younger generations. You don’t want to accidentally wind up in an office culture that’s unwelcoming to you. Look for companies currently experiencing turnover, as they and you will have similar goals—maintaining a long-term position in your field.
Work on Your Resume
This is especially true if it’s been a very long time since you’ve pounded the pavement, so to speak. If you haven’t already been keeping your resume up-to-date, you’ll want to modernize it as soon as possible to help boost your appeal to employers. You’ve racked up all sorts of great experience over the years, after all. Now it’s time to put it to use and show it off! Of course, you’ll have to adapt your resume to suit what today’s employers are looking for.
Focus on your strengths and tailor your resume to the types of positions you’re seeking out. Nailing your resume can be a tough job, even for those who have been immersed in today’s job market more recently. If you find you need a little extra help, you can always turn to a team of the best professional resume writers!
Improve Yourself
If your industry or former company is particularly stagnant, you may not have had to learn or deal with many of the technological requirements you’ll need to know for today’s jobs. Try enrolling in an adult learning course to brush up on your skills if you find yourself being hit with the same skill you lack over and over. This will look great to your prospective employers, as they will know you’re willing to embrace change and can bring this can-do attitude with you into their office.
Simultaneously, you may want to learn more about LinkedIn profile development and how you can utilize LinkedIn to network efficiently with other people in your field (and your shoes)!
Make no mistake about it: job boards are a thing of the past. In the past, you may have posted your resume on a job board and had a reasonable shot at getting a new job opportunity; however, the way skilled workers find jobs has changed. The vast majority of these boards have become black holes for your executive bio and resume.
Social media sites like Facebook, Twitter and, most notably, LinkedIn are beginning to make traditional job boards obsolete. Recently, around 2-4% of people posting resumes on a traditional job board found employment. Individuals employing networking tactics on various social media sites found a career 40-50% of the time.
We’re not mathematicians, but it seems like networking is just a little bit more successful for most seeking employment. If you look at things from a recruiter’s or hiring manager’s standpoint, we can see why. Would you rather hire someone you only know from a piece of paper or an individual who has been personally recommended to you by someone you know and respect?
Your job search doesn’t have to be rocket science. Here are a few more reasons why traditional job boards don’t work:
The Black Hole
Companies get hundreds, if not, thousands, of responses to online job board postings. Then they send every resume to a system that reviews and ranks their skills, experience and more. The hiring manager only looks through the top 10-20% of resumes sent in. The vast majority of resumes never even see human eyes when you submit via a job board.
Not the Best Gigs
Most of the best jobs never even hit the jobs boards. Many hiring managers have stopped posting on these boards altogether. Companies have started using recruiters and networking to find the right type of talent without having to spend days under hundreds of resumes.
The Wrong People
When you submit your executive profile to a job board, you’re not putting your information in front of any decision makers whatsoever. Your resume ends up in front of a lackey whose job is to reject you for any reason. If you want to get in touch with someone who can make a decision, you’re much better off using social media sites and developing your networking skills.
LinkedIn is King
If you get a hiring manager to speak honestly, they prefer to find candidates through LinkedIn more than any other way. LinkedIn is up-to-date and current. Successful employees use LinkedIn to further their career. People with decision-making power know this. That’s why they use the site to find the people they really want to hire before aggressively pursuing the candidate. Getting Back in the Game?
Are you looking for employment? Ready to dust off the ole’ executive bio and profile? If so, you’ll want to be on the top of your game. It’s a competitive job marketplace out there, it’s important to give yourself an edge whenever you can. Successful job seekers know how to work their network and find the best job.
Navigating today’s demanding and ever-changing job market is tough—no matter what age you are. If you’re 50 or over, however, learning the ropes can be even more of a challenge. It’s highly likely that it’s been years upon years since you last searched for a job, and the market has changed tenfold since you were in this position.How do you navigate this strange new territory?How do you reach out to the people you want to hire you?Just what is the key to writing 
You never thought this would happen to you, but it has. You’re 50+ in age and find yourself suddenly out of work, struggling to keep your head above water in a job market you no longer recognize, which bears no resemblance to the Greensheets and wanted ads you pored over during your youth. What should be a time for planning for your retirement is now filled with uncertainty, stress and scrambling to recover from your loss.