In the Business of You

Right now there are 32 NFL training camps in session across the country and they all have something in common. Head coaches and General Managers will soon begin cutting players to bring their team rosters to the league mandated maximums. Who stays and who goes is based mostly upon one thing – management’s perception regarding, “Will this player help our team win games?” Coaches use the training camps and pre-season games to determine which players put their team in the best position to win. Frankly, there is little difference – conceptually – between this process and that which is used by most hiring managers. If you believe that hiring decisions are made based mainly upon what is reflected in your cover letter and resume – you are mistaken. Hiring managers are ultimately concerned about themselves. Much of what a leader is judged upon has to do with the people they bring into the organization and how effectively they are able to develop that talent. Bottom line – will that “

One of the most common frustrations I hear about when speaking to job seekers groups is the lack of response to submitted resumes. I remember one individual telling me that he submitted “a hundred resumes online for different postings”. When asked by me if he had uploaded the same resume for each of the 100 positions, his answer was a definitive, “yes”. I then told him that he had answered his own question regarding why no one had responded to those online submissions. Unless you take the time to customize your resume for each desired position, the chance of being noticed in a stack (or e-mail Inbox) of possibly hundreds of submissions is likely to be pretty dismal. It is relatively simple to customize your resume for each job – the tough part is getting yourself to invest the time necessary to do it right. Here are some quick tips that should help you make your resume a lot more noticeable amongst the competition and open the door for an interview invitation: 1. Start by “d