A colleague asked today “What keywords should I look for on a resume?” I wish there was a list and you could just scan resumes looking for keywords. (Yes, there are software packages that do that. I’m not talking about tools and technology keywords. Don’t get me started on ruling out people because they’re missing a language or something else learnable.) Here’s what I look for in a resume:
The summary and objective. Not everyone has a summary or objective, but if the resume has one, I look to see how similar it is to the open position.
Some description of the value the person provided at each previous position. I love it when candidates quantify their value (”saved $10 in every meeting”), but I’ll take something like “improved build process.” (Candidates, if you did, talk about how much time you saved. Remember, senior managers care about time, money and customer experience. Any time you can relate your work to saving time or money, or improving customer experience, you’ve described useful value.
The context in which the candidate has worked. Small or big projects, which kind of industry, long projects, cancelled projects, releases every 10 minutes, whatever. You want to look to see how well the context the candidate has worked in translates to your context.
Action verbs. Savvy candidates know that the best resumes have action verbs to describe work. “Worked on” is weak. Any of: led, designed, developed, improved are great, the more action-y the better.
Here’s what I don’t look for, unless it’s somehow relevant to the job: classes, education, hobbies, any personal things at all. There’s no guarantee the person learned anything applicable in those classes or in that degree. Hobbies might satisfy my personal curiosity, but aren’t relevant, and personal things aren’t relevant. (If a candidate writes down anything, it’s always something like “excellent general health” — why would someone say otherwise??)So, I can’t offer you keywords, but if you read with some discernment, you’ll be able to read resumes quickly.
In It’s the People, Stupid!” David Hornick quotes an unnamed friend discussing hiring (it looks as if it’s a startup):
[T]he best advice I have for you is this: UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES make any one of your first ten hires anything less than an outstanding, 10’s from all judges, blow your head off superstar. Then tell them to hold the same standard for their first ten hires. And so on. In every case where I’ve filled a seat under time pressure instead of waiting for the right person, that seat-filler has done far more damage than waiting another few weeks to hire ever would. It’s just *never* been worth it.
I agree. I wrote a little about the people factor here.
Via Fast Company’s blog, read Practical Networking: Make Your Own Luck.As Kevin Laws says, “networking is about serendipity not persistence.” You meet someone who knows someone who’s looking for someone and bang - you’ve got a new job. Read his six suggestions and then act on them.For you hiring managers, remember that every person you meet is a potential employee or knows a potential employee. If you’re money-constrained in your candidate sourcing, read these tips and use them too!
Shawn Taylor, in his article Mismatching workers, jobs a costly mistake, (free registration required) has an astounding US statistic: employers lose a total of $105 billion a year by failing to recognize the talent that’s in front of their face. That’s a lot of money. Taylor’s article goes on to discuss the usage of tests to match candidates with jobs. I asked about the tests, and he said the tests identify core competencies and assess soft skills, such as personality tests.I don’t recommend personality testing. Personality testing provides an indication of preference for a particular kind of behavior, not the only behaviors a person can choose to use. And, based on personal experience, not the behaviors people necessarily exhibit at work. And, I think you can use behavior-description questions to determine cultural fit better than a test does.I’m not aware of standardized tests that adequately test technical competencies. But I know just what will test technical fit: auditions. See these links about auditions:
Candidates, if you’re faced with a test, offer to also perform an audition. You can even say something like this: “I’m glad to see that you think cultural fit is so important that I’m taking this test (or assessment). Can I also showcase my technical skills for you by performing an audition?” (See the previous discussion.)Matching candidates to jobs is important. As a hiring manager, it’s your most important decision. Even if you find test useful, don’t solely rely on them. Also consider which kinds of auditions and which kinds of questions you’ll use when phone-screening and interviewing.