The Voice of Job Seekers

Mark Anthony Dyson ★ Career Writer ★ Speaker ★ Thinker ★ Award-winning Blog & Podcast! ★ "The Job Scam Report" on Substack! ★ I hack and reimagine the modern job search!

by

IT Resumes: Getting Past the HR Gatekeeper

Editor’s note: IvyExec.com is a content partner of this blog who offers a guest article each month. This article is reprinted with Ivy Exec’s permission as part of an ongoing partnership as a contributor on The Voice of Jobseekers.

Basic and IT resumes at least in writing guidelines do not apply to Information Technology professionals; you have an audience, not a single reader, to keep in mind. To top it off, this audience does not speak your language.

Since a member of the IT team probably won’t even see your resume until it’s passed through a few rounds with HR, focus should be on your soft skills, ability to impact the bottom line, and how well-rounded you are.

To emphasize your team leadership and people skills, broaden your thinking about your work experience and tell us about any management experience (people, projects, etc.) and about any client interactions you might have had. Doing so will really take IT resumes up a level from an individual contributor level to a team player and leader.

Limit the use of technical jargon and acronyms that might not be related to your career goals; the “alphabet soup” will be a huge barrier for the resume and will turn off the reader. Use a detailed but tailored ‘Technical Skills’ section, this way your resume won’t require listing the technology used on each project. Leave out any technologies no longer in use which would make you seem outdated.

Expanding your soft skills demonstrates how your technical abilities have improved business in a language that speaks both HR and IT.

About Mark Anthony Dyson

I am the "The Voice of Job Seekers!" I offer compassionate career and job search advice as I hack and re-imagine the job search process. You need to be "the prescription to an employer's job description." You must be solution-oriented and work in positions in companies where you are the remedy. Your job search must be a lifestyle, and your career must be in front of you constantly. You can no longer shed your aspirations at the change seasons. There are strengths you have that need constant use and development. Be sure you sign up to download my E-Book, "421 Modern Job Search Tips 2021!" You can find my career advice and work in media outlets such as Forbes, Inc., Fast Company, Harvard Business Review, Glassdoor, and many other outlets.

by

2 More Online Resources To Help Proofread Resumes

2 More Online Resources To Help Proofread Resumes

ID-10088266

I have reviewed a number of resources to help proofread resumes or any job search document such as cover letters or email. Since typos, grammar, and spelling can decide your chances of nabbing an interview and positively branding yourself, these tools will bring you closer to perfection.

I have found 2 other resources both online that offers more choices to help you proofread any document, including your resume. Although I recommend finding someone who proofreads well, both of these could be used in conjunction with two keen and knowledgeable eyes:

PaperRater.com

Paper Rater is a FREE resource for proofreading various types of writing such as research, article drafts, and casual. It is unique because of how you can set up the proofreading guidelines according to grade level from 1st to post doctoral. It allows you to set a plagiarism setting to determine originality. There is a box for citations but overall does not say what standard such as APA or MLA styles are used.

I gave it a go with a couple of blog posts that I completed for future additions. I have checked the box for 10th grade just  to see if there was a suggestion or a difference maker. The post was about 500 words long, no citations or links at the time, with and without checking the originality checker. Although the originality took longer, it was hardly noticeable.

Fortunately, I had very few errors, and in fact, picked up and highlighted the word “bodacious (shout out to Snuffy Smith).” Another interesting thing that may help some is how the grade level works for vocabulary. The checker states that my “vocabulary sophistication” was below my grade level (again this was the 10th grade measure), and that I should use more sophisticated words for clarity.

PaperRater is entirely free now and is entertaining adding a Premium service. This service could be improved by adding a résumé formatted checker that would embrace the unique Word formatting.

Previous Posts about editing and proofreading:

Five Resources to Help Correct Resume Grammar Errors

Three More Resources to Help Correct Resume Grammar Errors Part 2

3 More Resources to Help Proofread Your Resume

 

Intelligent Editing

Perfect It 2

PerfectIt 2 is allows you to test drive it for 30 days without giving your payment information. Like Grammarly (although not as expensive) charges for regular use ($49). Unlike Grammarly and many others, you can download the trial. I tested it on a client’s resume and was more detailed than I thought. As stated below, it will check the complete document first removing comments and Word corrections:

Image

Then it will note changes in 23 different places. Then it will list the suggestions and asks you permission for the suggested changes.

Image(1)

Image(2)

Once the changes take place a report is produced of corrections PerfectIt made as seen below:Image(3)

Overall, PerfectIt corrects in much detail. The cost of a year membership, I think its one of the great bargains you can find.

Are there suggestions that I didn’t think of. What are yours? Please comment below.

image credit: FreeDigitalPhotos.net

About Mark Anthony Dyson

I am the "The Voice of Job Seekers!" I offer compassionate career and job search advice as I hack and re-imagine the job search process. You need to be "the prescription to an employer's job description." You must be solution-oriented and work in positions in companies where you are the remedy. Your job search must be a lifestyle, and your career must be in front of you constantly. You can no longer shed your aspirations at the change seasons. There are strengths you have that need constant use and development. Be sure you sign up to download my E-Book, "421 Modern Job Search Tips 2021!" You can find my career advice and work in media outlets such as Forbes, Inc., Fast Company, Harvard Business Review, Glassdoor, and many other outlets.

by

The Resume Objective Question: Useless or Use Less

The Resume Objective Question: Useless or Use Less

 

The resume objective section is useless unless your practicing to write one for a grade in your freshman year in college. A reader recently pointed to me an article that they read on NBC Universal Life Goes Strong blog on how we should blow up the objective statement on résumés. When you read the article, it aligns closely with what I believe:

Leslie Ayres (@JobSearchGuru), The Real Job Guru, wrote the article, “The Resume Objective is Dead, So Why Are You Still Using It?” makes 3 points that are very true:

1) Objective statements are completely about the candidate

2) Companies also ditched the candidate because of it was all about the candidate

3) The competitiveness of candidates who say much more than, “… hire me and I’ll be more focused!”

Three more articles Several more articles on résumé from respectable and knowledgeable career pros:

Resume Objective Statements That Kill Your Hiring Prospects by Jacob Share (@JacobShare)
Why Your Resume’s Objective Statement Doesn’t Work by Phil Rosenberg (@philreCareered)

Is Your Résumé Telling Your Story? by Daisy Wright (@CareerTips2Go)

IS YOUR RÉSUMÉ A CLUNKER? by Melissa Cooley (@TheJobQuest)

Simply, objective statements don’t compete anymore. They don’t say enough about the candidate, nor doesn’t grab the reviewer’s attention. So what should we do?

One suggestion is using the position headline:

(SEEKING PROFESSIONAL POSITION) SOFTWARE ENGINEER

A discussion that I had recently with another career pro is that the head is not appropriate when uploading to a site that the résumé will not scan. The headlines that are suggested:

PROFESSIONAL SUMMARY

SUMMARY

These are two different approaches contingent on whether if the first set of eyes will be human or not. Mind you, that there are college career centers that are still advising their students to write an objective statement.

Traditionally, an objective statement stated,

Objective: To use my excellent organization and discipline to advance my career in finance.

Yes, at one time it was OK to impress an employer with this statement. Now, a career summary or branding statement will compete against the vague “Objective” statement. My current client who gets it and although we are working on the length, she understands the gist:

Enthused developmental Math Subject Matter Expert actively engaged in instructional design programs geared towards diverse student learners. Offer and assert skills and experience as an instructor and a project manager obtained from seven years of teaching, and more than 12 years in Fortune 500 companies. Implement strategies for evaluation and assessment results of classroom instruction to address the needs of learners with a diversity of learning styles resulting in 100% participation and 80-90% passing compliance. Thrive and excel as a project manager who understands the breadth of challenges that require strategic tasking between planning, change management, coaching, mentoring, tutoring, and teaching.

Yes, it is too long, but once a vague summary is now a contribution statement. Once we edit, this branding statement will be lean and mean. Notice how the results are integrated into the statement. Numbers always catches the eye of a potential employer. The lesson here as well is to overwrite at first, then it is easier to truncate as a whole.

By now, the objective statement on your résumé is USELESS. Whether it’s called an “Objective” or “Summary,” think contribution when you write this statement. Even a little attitude would help in writing this statement when based on FACT.

Do you have an objective statement that says nothing? Are you guiltyof a vagueness on your résumé? Please, confess your crime below?

About Mark Anthony Dyson

I am the "The Voice of Job Seekers!" I offer compassionate career and job search advice as I hack and re-imagine the job search process. You need to be "the prescription to an employer's job description." You must be solution-oriented and work in positions in companies where you are the remedy. Your job search must be a lifestyle, and your career must be in front of you constantly. You can no longer shed your aspirations at the change seasons. There are strengths you have that need constant use and development. Be sure you sign up to download my E-Book, "421 Modern Job Search Tips 2021!" You can find my career advice and work in media outlets such as Forbes, Inc., Fast Company, Harvard Business Review, Glassdoor, and many other outlets.