"What Will Get My Resume Read?"

What will get your resume read?  What are some key things that it may be missing, or "missing the boat" on that are contributing to a lack of interest by hiring managers and few call backs from recruiters?

Here are some questions from active job seekers that may also be questions that are on your mind.  What they boil down to is this:  What will get your resume read?   Translated, this question really boils down to this one:  What makes a resume effective?

A resume should tell the reader
if the job seeker is a possible fit
without too much work on the reader’s part.

A resume is effective if it is relevant to the job applied for.  To do this, a resume needs to focus on the applied-for job’s requirements, and show instances of the job seeker utilizing the required skills and knowledge with results, i.e., AccomplishmentStatements.  If it gains enough attention from the recruiter or hiring manager to get them to want to learn more about you, and results in an e-mail or call, it’s done its job.

However, saying that and doing that are 2 entirely different things.  Here are some of the job seekers’ questions that drill down to revealing HOW to produce a resume that gets read.

Question: “How do I make my resume ‘pop’?”

This was the most FAQ at a recent Resume Review, so if you’ve been wondering the same thing, you have lots of company.  What job seekers were really asking was how to make their resumes stand out, get noticed, get read, and get call backs. 

The Answer:  Show results.

Showing the results of your efforts in the jobs you’ve held is a major differentiation between resumes that read like job descriptions and those that “pop.”  Showing outcomes of duties you performed and tasks you did in your previous [and current if you are employed] positions distinguishes your resume from the masses. 

Showing outcomes to your tasks becomes an attention grabber.  Showing outcomes of your efforts is a way to “put your money where your mouth is.”  In interviews, employers hear continuously from candidates who say that they have the skills, knowledge, abilities, aptitudes and attitudes that the employer is looking for.  Showing outcomes or results offers substantiation to your claims of competency.  It offers proof that (1) you are what you say you are, and (2)  that you can do what you claim because you have done it before, and . . . .”Here are my results.”

So, the answer is to make your resume more than a “laundry list” of duties you performed.  Offering proof via showing the results of those duties, called Accomplishment Statements, is a way to not only get your resume to “pop” but get it read.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Question:  “I’ve spoken with 10 different people and gotten 10 different answers about what my resume should look like.  Why is that?”

The Answer:  There’s no one way to write a resume.

Writing an effective, attention-getting resume is an art, not a science.  Just as there is no one way to perform any art, there is no singular way to write a resume. 

However, . . .  And it’s a BIG “however,” . . . there are “tried and true” techniques, or guidelines, for producing a resume, that tell the story of your career in a succinct, orderly, and persuasive-enough way to get recruiters to read it, pass it along to hiring managers, and gain interviews.  These techniques include:

- Using an easy-to-read format that includes the following standard components:  career summary, professional experience, education & training, and professional associations

- A Chronological approach that makes it easy for the recruiter to gauge if you meet the job requirements

- Career or Professional Summary that makes the reader want to know more.  If this doesn’t grab their attention, they won’t read on further down the page

- Using Accomplishment Statements that show not only what you did but what you achieved.  This also “subtly” shows cause and effect thinking - a desirable attribute.

- Giving the reader - your customer - what they want.  An example:  Education generally goes on the 2^nd page of an any experienced job seeker’s resume.  However, if an employer wants to see Education up front, put it up front on the front page. . . . . Remember, your  resume is nothing more than “your sales brochure,” designed to sell the prospect on the idea that you could be the one!  If you show enough of what they are looking for, they may be sufficiently interested to decide they want to learn more about you in an interview.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Question:  “Should my Career Summary be a paragraph or a list of bullet points?  What goes into it?”

The Answer: Either a paragraph or a bulleted list works - your choice.  The Career Summary is your “L”vator speech.

The Career Summary is that paragraph or bulletized list that appears on the top half of the front page of your resume - right underneath your header.  It provides the reader with an Overview of you as a candidate.  It should tell the reader:

- What you do, i.e. your title: “I am a _____________.”

- The area of your expertise: Your track record

- Skills and strengths - And what you achieve because of them

- Unique attributes (degrees, certifications, experience, languages) relevant to the job you are pursuing


The key to producing a Career or Professional Summary that employers, recruiters, and network contacts will want to read is to make it:  (1) Relevant to the type of job you are seeking, as well as (2) Relevant to the employer’s interests and requirements

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Question:  “How do I show 20 (25, 30, 40 . . .) years of experience on 2 pages?”

The Answer:  You don’t.

I’m beginning to sound like a broken record here, I know, but . . . what you show is experience that is relevant to the type of job you are seeking, and the type of industry & employer you have targeted. 

(1) Select from your own comprehensive “laundry list” of duties those that are relevant to each position you apply for. 

(2) Be sure you have shown results for each of these duties, i.e., Accomplishment Statements.

(3) Tweak your Career Summary to overview those selected Accomplishment Statements.

A Bonus Question: What do you do with those early jobs that relate to the position you are applying for but go back more than 10 or 15 years? 

The Answer:  Include a category with these early and relevant jobs called “Other Relevant Experience.”  List jobs with title, and relevant Accomplishment Statements.  Leave off dates.

Remember, when you are looking for a job, you are in sales  – selling the most important product or service you will ever sell . . . .YOU!  You are selling your abilities as potential solutions to employers’ problems and needs.  By identifying what makes you desirable as a potential candidate, and showing this on your resume, you “up the odds” that your resume will be read and you’ll get a call back inviting you to tell the hiring prospect more about how you might be just who they are looking for.

Best of luck with your search,

Nancy

 ____________________________________________________________________________

nancy@ajcglobal.com              www.ajcglobal.com             AJC - for Your Career Path

  Linked In:  www.linkedin.com/pub/nancy-c-gober/6/14b/965       

Twitter:  @AfterJobClub

Nancy Gober

Your Resume = Your Sales Brochure

Way too often, we still see candidates for jobs submitting resumes that go on and on and on and . . . . . .  6 or 7 pages is not uncommon.

These lengthy resumes as often as not also contain big blocks of paragraphs, filled with technical jargon and acronyms, in 8 or 9 point type, that are daunting to get through.

The problem . . . .Even for the most skilled readers of resumes  --  recruiters and staffing specialists  --   these lengthy resumes are hard to read and even harder to figure out if the candidate is a possible fit for a position.

The problem for candidates is that these rambling, hard-to-read, unfocused, and irrelevant resumes rarely get read.  The candidate is out of the running before they even began to compete. 

The cause of the problem

Why do job seekers still produce these lengthy resumes that don’t get read?  Derived from talking with hundreds of job seekers, the answer to this question seems attributable to 2 factors: (1) Misunderstanding on the job seeker’s part of how hiring happens, and (2) Lack of knowledge about what makes a resume effective. 

(1) Misunderstanding of hiring:  They’re looking for you.  Actually they’re not.

Job seekers labor under the misunderstanding that the company is looking for them,  If they just put down everything they’ve ever done, a recruiter or manager will wade through and discover a sought-after skill or ability, and exclaim: “This is just the person we’ve been looking for!” 

In reality, few of these dissertations ever get read in their entirety.  Recruiters and managers just don’t have the time to plow through pages of paragraphs.  Such documents can even be seen as unresponsive to needs and requirements cited by the employer.  After a few seconds, the recruiter or manager put the document aside to be read at a later time - the problem for the job seeker is that later rarely comes. 

(2) What makes a resume effective?

A resume is effective if it is relevant to the job applied for, focused on the job’s requirements, and shows instances of the job seeker utilizing the required skills and knowledge with results, i.e., Accomplishment Statements.  A resume should tell the reader if the job seeker is a possible fit without too much work on the reader’s part.  If it gains enough attention from the recruiter or hiring manager to get them to want to learn more about you, and results in an e-mail or call, it’s done its job. 

The Solution

There’s a better way.  Learn to think differently about you and your resume.  Here’s how to produce a resume that sells you:

Step 1:  Realize that when you are on the job market, YOU are in sales.  You are selling your abilities as possible solutions to employers’ problems and needs.

How do you sell YOU?  By

(A. ) Identifying what makes you desirable, and therefore employable, as a potential candidate, and

(B.) Enlisting the aid of your sales tools.  For the job seeker, a core sales tool (although not their only sales tool) is their resume. 

Step 2:  Think of YOUR RESUME as a sales tool -- your Sales Brochure.  Just as salespeople use their product sales brochures to assist their sales by highlighting the benefits their products provide, use your resume to accomplish the same thing.  Think of it as your sales brochure!  It won’t get you the job, but it can open the door to opportunity.                         

Think about a salesperson of a familiar product such as a vacuum cleaner.  The vacuum cleaner salesperson is going to talk to the customer (1) about the customer’s needs, (2) the tasks the vacuum cleaner can perform (features) that satisfies these needs, and (3) how it can make the customer’s life easier (benefits). 

Job seekers should focus on the same things!  Learn to think, talk, and write about your work experience in a way that focuses on:

(1) The needs and requirements of your customer - the prospective employer,

(2) Tasks or duties you perform that satisfy the employer's needs and requirements, and

(3) How your performance of these duties made the life of previous employers easier, i.e, better and/or less problematic.  

Step 3:  Now, capture this information on your resume. 

(1) Put down on paper the skills, strengths, abilities, knowledge, education, and expertise you possess that relate to and satisfy the needs/requirements of your potential customer – the employer. 

(2) List tasks or duties you have performed that illustrate your experience in

 Satisfying these requirements. (These become bullet points under each job title.)

(3) Show results.  (Also in your bullet points)

Voilà! You have a resumes that sells You.  In fact, your resume has become your “sales brochure.”  Your sales-oriented resume shows that you meet the needs and requirements that are stated by a potential employer, provides evidence of you doing so in previous jobs, and sells them on the possibility that you may be a candidate worth talking to.  Its job is help you sell YOU and it does.

Benefits of a sales approach

There are several benefits to learning to think like a salesperson and taking a sales-oriented approach when producing your resume.

1.  Takes the sting out of rejection

“Thanks but no thanks!”  Job seekers talk about dreading the rejection that comes with being passed over, coming in second, or not getting considered at all.  A sales-approach can mitigate the sting of rejection by taking the “personal” out of it when you begin to look at yourself as a product that simply did not meet the current needs of this particular customer.  It’s a rejection of the product you are selling  –  not a personal rejection of you as a person.

2.  Get real

Taking the myth and misunderstanding out of how hiring happens helps you get real or realistic; forewarned is forearmed.  A sales-oriented approach keeps you focused on submitting resumes that are grounded in reality, showing the potential employer that you have what they need.  They’re not looking for and are not willing to plow through pages upon pages to find you.  But if you make it easy for them to find you, they just may.

3.  Focused resumes get read

Recruiters today say that initial scans of resumes last seconds - 30 seconds or less, and some admit to 7-second-scans of resume.  A sales-oriented resume uses the top half of the front page to feature relevant information, enticing the reader to read on and learn more about you.

4.  Prepares you to interview relevantly

Resumes don’t get you jobs, but they can assist you in gaining enough attention to get an interview.  A sales-oriented resume provides the interviewer with items to ask you about and even some direction for the flow of the interview.  You are already prepared to provide relevant and succinct answers to their questions by having prepared a focused, sales-oriented resume.

5.  Ups the odds that you will be contacted

The Big Benefit is that producing a focused and relevant resume - your sales brochure - increases the possibility that you will be contacted by the future employer. 

Sell employers on the idea that you have what they want

So sell employers on the idea that you have what they want, and are worth learning more about in an initial phone screen and subsequent interview.  Build your resume – your sales brochure –  around ways you have used your abilities to help your previous employers.  Showing what you have done, and citing evidence of your accomplishments to back up your claim, sells employers on the idea that you may be a candidate worth talking to.

For additional information on marketing yourself and your capabilities, please refer to the many articles found under the Articles tabs of the AJC–Career Strategy website.
 ____________________________________________________________________________

nancy@ajcglobal.com              www.ajcglobal.com             AJC - for Your Career Path

  Linked In:  www.linkedin.com/pub/nancy-c-gober/6/14b/965        

Twitter:  @AfterJobClub

Build Your Resume While You Search

Build your resume while you search!  It makes good Sen$e.

After searching for a while, most job seekers come to understand that the more you tailor your resume for a position, the higher the chance that you will be seen as a possible candidate and contacted for an interview. 

• This DOES NOT MEAN fudging experience or embellishing accomplishments.  We never do that! 
• It DOES MEAN selecting and highlighting content in your resume (from your Master Resume) that reflects your experiences that match the employer's key requirements.

But did you know . . . . .
But did you know that you can and should continue to build your resume during your job search?

An active job search can yield some real benefits: You meet new and interesting people, develop network contacts that can become colleagues and even friends for life, see some interesting places, and learn a lot about yourself and your profession.  An added benefit  is that you can actually build or strengthen your resume while you search. 

As you apply for positions, network, target companies and study the work they do, interview, read ads for jobs, most job seekers learn a couple things:

1. Fill the gaps:  They learn that they possess gaps in their ability to satisfy some requirements of the types of jobs they are seeking.  It could become apparent that they lack a key certification, are not current in a technology, are unfamiliar with a computer language, don’t have enough project management experience, could use another example of leadership experience, etc.  You get the point!
2. Strengthen strengths:  Conversely, they come across opportunities to amplify a strength or capability.  For example, a network contact who chairs a professional association tells you he could use a volunteer with leadership and team building experience (that would be you) to pull together a project team and conduct a study of the competencies of the membership.  Or, you join a job search work team that focuses on the latest technology used in marketing analysis - your field.  Or, a friend at a consulting firm asks if you would take on a short-term contract for work she needs done.  You get the point here too!

Building your resume by gaining new experiences and adding new information about your professional growth during your search enhances your ability to be seen as a viable and desirable candidate and potential employee.

As you network, apply for positions, talk with employers, attend job fairs, participate in your professional association, interview, and attend conferences, you will learn the state-of-the art of your profession, i.e., what is current and trending in your profession?  As your learn about what makes you more marketable, and acquire new skills, experience, and competencies that relate to your profession, add these to the front page of your resume.  It illustrates to prospective employers that you are:
        1.    Keeping current in your field
        2.    Keeping your skills honed
        3.    Gaining new useful knowledge
        4.    Developing new skills and knowledge, that will benefit your employer

Here are some examples of activities that can be added to your resume as you progress through your job search. 
        ●    In addition to the obvious -- taking courses and classes  --   you can:
        ●    Write a white paper
        ●    Perform consulting services
        ●    Do short-term contracting
        ●    Volunteer using your skill set
        ●    Assist in a professional conference
        ●    Chair a committee in your professional association
        ●    Make a speech or presentation
        ●    Write an article
        ●    Offer a workshop
        ●      
        ●

The list goes on as far as your creativity extends.

The key to building your resume while you search is to look for opportunities where you can gain skills,

information, and knowledge to fill a gap or strengthen a strength, and then turn these opportunities into services you can deliver or activities in which you can contribute to your profession and to your professional growth.

In other words . . . . .   Build your resume while you search!  It makes good $en$e!

For additional information on marketing yourself and your capabilities, please refer to the many articles found the Articles tabs of the AJC--Career Strategy website, including:

-  Guidelines for Preparing an Effective Resume . . . A Step by Step Tutorial, Oct 4, 2012 
-  What is a Resume, August 28, 2012
-  Refer to A Resume Template in the Tools You Can Use section  of the AJC--Career Strategy website. ____________________________________________________________________________

nancy@ajcglobal.com              www.ajcglobal.com             AJC - for Your Career Path

  Linked In:  www.linkedin.com/pub/nancy-c-gober/6/14b/965        

Twitter:  @AfterJobClub

 
 

Follow-up Your Networking With a Thank You -- Here's How

Follow-up any networking meeting you have had with a heartfelt Thank You.  Whether you are following up a phone call, an in-person meeting, or a really informative e-mail exchange, take the time to thank your

contact.

You may be following up with a member of your own network.  Or, you may be following up a conversation you had with a person to whom you were referred, who, incidentally, now becomes a member of your network.  Either way, follow up with a meaningful thank you that moves the action forward. 

Follow up your networking meeting with a heartfelt Thank You note 
Thanking your networking contact at the end of the phone or in-person meeting is essential but not enough.  Follow-up with a Thank Your note, an e-mail or a mailed, written note, should:

• Express your appreciation not only for their time but for the valuable information they shared.
• Be specific.  State specific items and topics he/she discussed that you found valuable, insightful, and beneficial.
• If your contact noted people in their network that they would put you in touch with, mention your intent to contact these people, i.e., referrals, your contact suggested.  Or, if he/she is contacting them for you by way of introduction, reiterate that both (1) to be sure you’ve got it right and (2) as a reminder.
• Conclude by saying that you will keep them posted about your progress.

Staying visible
You goal is to stay visible with your network contact(s).  Do that by updating your contact on your search progress every 3 weeks or so.

• Send an e-mail, a note, or make a phone call.
• You can also be helpful in follow-ups.  Alert your contact to information you've come across - a meeting, article, research study, contact of yours . . . .  that could be helpful to them in their work. 
• Caution: To contact your networking contact every week is too often - you're in danger of being seen as a pest.  To contact them after 5 or 6 weeks is too long; they may assume you have found a job.

By continuing to update your contact(s), you ensure that he or she knows you are still on the market and that he or she will make an effort to continue to assist you.  If too much time elapses after your last contact, he or she will assume the obvious . . . . . you must have landed a new job and no longer need their assistance.

Remember, your ultimate purpose in your job search networking is to learn what the other person knows about potential employers, helpful people, beneficial professional associations, and other good sources of information that could lead to employment for you.  Following up keeps you in the loop and leads to leads that can lead to the just the opportunity your are seeking.

For additional information on marketing yourself and your capabilities, please refer to the many articles found under the Articles tabs of the AJC–Career Strategy website, including:
-  Thank You Letters - Why Send Them and to Whom? Sept 5, 2013
-  Template for a Thank You Letter Following an Interview, Sept 29,2013   
-  Networking in Small 1-to-1 Conversations:  How do I do it?, Feb 17, 2013 _________________________________________________________________________

nancy@ajcglobal.com              www.ajcglobal.com             AJC - for Your Career Path

  Linked In:  www.linkedin.com/pub/nancy-c-gober/6/14b/965        

Twitter:  @AfterJobClub

Thank You for the Referral

Referrals open doors . . . . . that might not open any other way.  Treat them with care. 

People who would not take your call, respond to your e-mail, or agree to meet with you, generally do, IF you are referred.  So . . .  treat referrals with care and . . . the referrer with utmost care!

Why do they take your call?
Professional courtesy!  It's as simple as that.  Think of it from your own point of view.
 Scenario 1:  A stranger contacts you and ask for assistance.
     - Do you get back to them?  Maybe.
     - Do you respond very quickly?  If you do get around to responding, it will not be before other priority items on your "To Do" list. 

Scenario 2:  The same stranger contacts you, mentions the name of a trusted colleague of yours, states that the colleague suggested they contact you, and then asks for assistance.
     - Do you get back to them?  Certainly.  You owe it to your colleague, who may have done some good things for you.  It's called professional courtesy.
     - Do you respond very quickly?  Whether you respond immediately, or in a while, chances are the stranger's request moves higher in priority on your "To Do" list.  Why?  You owe it to your colleague or friend.  Professional courtesy.

Referrals do open doors.  Due to professional courtesy, people who would not take your call, meet with you, or respond to your e-mail do so because they know the name of the person who referred you.  So treat any referrals you receive with care.

Biggest mistake made with referrals
The biggest mistake job seekers make when receiving a referral is delaying acting on them, or worse yet, not acting on them at all!   When you do nothing, it reflects poorly on both of you:  you, the recipient of the referral who didn't do anything, and on the referrer who made the referral.  Here's why.

Let's say you are meeting with a network contact.  Your contact, Sue, gives you a referral to Stan.  Here's what happens behind the scenes.
(1) Sue will give Stan a call, stating that she met with you, was impressed enough by you to refer you to him, and to expect your call.  .
(2) So Stan waits.  When he receives no contact from you, he may come to question Sue's judgement in gauging people, and he's not too impressed by you either!
(3) When Sue learns that you did nothing to follow-up the referral, chances are high that she will not refer you again.  And she winds up apologizing to Stan for wasting his time with a "non-performing referral."

When you do not act upon a referral, you do damage to yourself, your opportunity for securing additional referrals and leads, and to your network contact.  So, treat referrals with care.  Here's how . . . . .

How to act on a referral
When you are meeting with or talking to a network contact who makes a referral, suggests that it would be good for you to meet with a colleague of theirs, do the following:
1.  Thank your contact for the referral.
2.  Ascertain how the referral will be alerted that you will be contacting them:
     - Will your contact introduce you (via e-mail, a phone call, or in person)?
     - Will you make the contact yourself by mentioning your network contact's name?
3.  Define specifically when you will get in touch with the referral - a week, 2 weeks, immediately, etc.
     -  If you are not ready to act on the referral, don't accept it.  Explain your reason -  you will be away, or you are just beginning your job search and are not yet ready to meet with a referral, etc.  State when you will be ready and agree on a time to alert your network contact when he/she can refer you to their colleague(s).  This is really important for maintaining your credibility and your network's confidence.
4.  Contact the referral as you and your network contact agreed. For advice on preparing for, conducting, and following up a networking meeting, please refer to my article:  Networking in Small 1-to-1 Conversations:  How do I do it?", Feb 17, 2013.  http://www.ajcglobal.com/Articles/Articles.php?id=1564346511137774750

Follow-up
With the referral - Following any interaction with a referral:
(1)  Send an e-mail thanking them for the time they spent with you, or are going to spend with you, and
(2) Clarify next steps.  Include your understanding of when, where, and what your next interaction will be:
     - a phone call in 3 weeks when the referral will have time to talk with you to to discuss your search,
     - an in-person meeting
With your network contact who made the referral:
(1)  Thank them for making the referral
(2)  Inform them when you have acted upon the referral
(3)  Update them on the outcome of your interaction with their referral
(4)  Keep them posted on the progress of your search, generally with an update every 3 or 4 weeks.

Keep track
Job seekers find it helpful when managing their activity with network contacts to keep track in a formalized way.  Otherwise, as activity increases, things can fall through the cracks!

Track activity, promises to follow-up, and times to stay in touch with a table, spreadsheet, calendar, or a more sophisticated contact management system.  It doesn't matter whether it is a computerized or paper and pencil system.  What is important is that you consistently use and check your system of tracking your job search activity to ensure that nothing falls through the cracks!  That missed meeting, or forgotten follow-up phone call, could have provided just the lead you need to your next opportunity.

For additional information on marketing yourself and your capabilities, please refer to the many articles found under the Articles tabs of the AJC–Career Strategy website, including:
-  Thank You Letters - Why Send Them and to Whom? Sept 5, 2013
-  Template for a Thank You Letter Following an Interview, Sept 29,2013   
-  Networking in Small 1-to-1 Conversations:  How do I do it?, Feb 17, 2013 _________________________________________________________________________

nancy@ajcglobal.com              www.ajcglobal.com             AJC - for Your Career Path

  Linked In:  www.linkedin.com/pub/nancy-c-gober/6/14b/965        

Twitter:  @AfterJobClub

A "Thanks for Rejecting Me" Letter - Are You Kidding Me?

Didn't get the job?  Came in second choice?  What do you do?
     Write a thank you to the employer who rejected you.
"Are you kidding me?" you ask.  "Why would I write a letter to an employer who just rejected me?" 
     Because you might just end up with the job anyway - that's why!

Over the years of coaching job seekers, I have had this exact conversation with numerous clients.  And, I have offered this same advice to all of them who came in 2nd or 3rd in the interview process.  They did quite well in the competition, as evidenced by placing that high in today's highly competitive market.  Another candidate simply possessed a little more of "something" that made them the employer's first choice.

So, what can you do?
Chances are you committed extensive time to the interview process which may have gone for weeks or even months?  You may have written letters, updated your resume, participated in multiple interviews, prepared and delivered a presentation, and even written a great "sales" thank you letter at the conclusion of your final interview.

To say you are disappointed is understatement - especially if the position seemed like your dream job.  You may be feeling deflated, defeated, and discouraged, and even a little angry.  There might be a lot of things you'd like to say or do when you experience such a disappointing outcome, but don't!  Instead, step back, take a breath, and when you are calm and ready, write a "Thanks for Rejecting Me" Letter to the firm that just rejected you.

Question:  Why on earth would you thank someone who did this to you?

Answer:  Because you may just end up with the job anyway.  So, go the final, final step and send a Thank You letter for the opportunity to have interviewed for the position.

It's a phenomenon!
2nd and 3rd choice candidates frequently end up with the job anyway.  Why does this happen?
Because first choice candidates often do not accept the job, or they accept but don't stay stay for long.  The employer then has 2 options:
Option 1:  Start all over again, initiating a new search, generating 100s more resumes, more interviews, etc.
Option 2:  Get back in touch with their 2nd choice, invite them to come on board, and eliminate the co$tly and time-consuming initiation of a new search.  Should the 2nd choice candidate have, by this time, accepted another position, they'll contact their 3rd choice.

Option 2 just makes good $ense!

Why does this phenomenon occur?  It's really not all that big of a mystery.
If a job seeker has been conducting an pro-active job search, and following our sales model, a job seeker spends several weeks initially marketing him or herself.  That means applying for positions, sending out resumes, identifying target companies and sending out sales cover letters with resumes, connecting with and conducting networking meetings.  It's what we call feeding the pipeline

It takes a while, generally several weeks, from the time a job seeker begins feeding the pipeline until he or she sees opportunities coming back to them.  A resume entering a firm, or a referral from a network member, takes time to flow through the firm from initial contact, to HR, to the hiring manager/team, to interviews.  A job seeker, working multiple leads, would have several of these leads in process.  The higher the level of the position, the longer these leads take, but generally it takes a month or two of initiating activity before the job seeker begins to get responses, and it can take until months three or four when interviews begin in earnest. 

So, in our example, the first choice candidate might be seriously interviewing for 2 or 3 positions concurrently.  He or she has identified their top choice.  But, Murphy's law being what it is, their second choice firm often makes an offer before their first choice firm does.  So, they accept choice #2's offer.  Then, their first choice firm comes through with an offer.  If they accept, the hiring firm now has 2 options:
Option 1:  Start all over again, initiating a new search, generating 100s more resumes, more interviews, etc.
Option 2:  Get back in touch with you, their 2nd choice, and invite you to come on board.

Faced with a costly initiation of a new search, it is in the firm's best interest to reach out to recently interviewed candidates.  You can make it easy for them to reach out to you, if you have stayed gracious, understanding, and visible.  Here's how:

Write a "Thanks for Rejecting Me Letter" following the conclusion of any interview process.  In your letter, follow these 7 steps:
1.  Thank the firm for the opportunity to have interviewed for the position.
2.  Say that you understand their situation and decision, indicating you understand how difficult it can be to choose between top notch candidates.
3.  Re-iterate your interest in the firm and the position, and your desire to join such a great team and firm which you hold in high regard.
4.  Re-state the benefits of hiring you, noting (a.k.a., selling) your experience, competencies, and accomplishments.
5.  ASK to be considered for additional opportunities when they arise.
6.  ASK if you may stay in touch and contact them from time to time.

7.  Wish the firm, and the person you are writing to, continued success.

Stay visible
When you think of it, both you and the prospective employer invested a lot via the interview process.  By staying visible, and remaining professional and gracious, you can make the investment pay a return, albeit not immediately but a little down the road, when you follow-up every rejection with a  Thanks for Rejecting Me Letter.  It's a good strategy and a smart thing to do!
For additional information on marketing yourself and your capabilities, please refer to the many articles found under the Articles tabs of the AJC–Career Strategy website, including:
-  Thank You Letters - Why Send Them and to Whom? Sept 5, 2013
-  Template for a Thank You Letter Following an Interview, Sept 29,2013    _________________________________________________________________________

nancy@ajcglobal.com              www.ajcglobal.com             AJC - for Your Career Path

  Linked In:  www.linkedin.com/pub/nancy-c-gober/6/14b/965        

Twitter:  @AfterJobClub

TIPS for Writing Meaningful Thank You Letters

Thanks for the interview.  
     Thanks for the great tip on who's hiring!  
Thank you for the helpful article.
     Thank you for taking the time to meet with me.
Thanks for the referral.  
     Thank you for the useful information.
Thank you for inviting me to attend the _____ Association meeting as your guest.

Make a habit of sending Thank You Letters to anyone and everyone who helps you along the way to finding your next job.  It should become a part of completing every interaction.  Why?  Because Thank You letters move the action - in this case, your job search  --   forward.  Thank You letters accomplish three purposes:
(1)  Express appreciation
(2)  Maintain and increase your visibility
(3)  Allow you to "sell" yourself - your capabilities and potential benefit to a future employer

Here are some tips!
●  Formats - Thank you letters can be written as:
  -  Formal letters with formal formats (see Template for a Thank You letter Following an Interview, Sept 29, 2013)
  -  e-mails using a formal format, or a less formal format just starting out with a "Dear ___" and ending with a "Best regards, . . . ."
  -  Hand written notes, generally on a note card.

● Timing - Send Thank You letters or thank you notes within 48 hours of the interaction. While many guidelines say send them within 24 hours, it may just take a little time to compose a meaningful letter or note.

●  Make it meaningful - Don't just say "Thanks."  Instead, state why the interaction was meaningful to you, and how it may have helped.  Recall something personal or memorable.  Mention or note how you bring value, i.e. sell yourself.

●  Length - Thank you letters should be fairly short, rarely over one page.
(1)  Thank you letters to interviewers will generally be longer, and use a formal format, as it may be your last opportunity to state --  and sell  --  your capabilities as the reason why you should get the job.
(2)  Thank you letters to network contacts, probably shorter, should still remind the person of what you bring to the table.  Use your letter to succinctly but convincingly illustrate your value.  

●  Fill an information gap.  There may be something you forgot to talk about in your interview or meeting.  Use your letter to fill the gap by mentioning this additional qualification or experience you possess.

●  Fill the time gap between meetings.  A significant amount of time can elapse between your interview and the time the firm makes a hiring decision, particularly if you were the first candidate interviewed in a long line of candidates.  Time a thank you letter to arrive around decision making time.  Use your letter to remind the interviewer of just how well you meet the job requirements.

●  Send more than one.  There is no limit on the number of thank you letters you can send.  Send them throughout the interview process as you progress through the stages from initial phone screen to in-person meetings.  Send them to your network contacts every time they help.

For additional information on marketing yourself and your capabilities, please refer to the many articles found under the Articles tabs of the AJC–Career Strategy website, including:
-  Thank You Letters - Why Send Them and to Whom? Sept 5, 2013
-  Template for a Thank You Letter Following an Interview, Sept 29,2013    _________________________________________________________________________

nancy@ajcglobal.com              www.ajcglobal.com             AJC - for Your Career Path

  Linked In:  www.linkedin.com/pub/nancy-c-gober/6/14b/965        

Twitter:  @AfterJobClub