| ResumeStandards.com - Careers, Jobs & Employment Information |
|
|
Why Well Produced Career Portfolios Are Replacing CVsArticle Category : Resume Presentation What is a Career Portfolio?The original portfolio used by artists looking for work was simply a collection of works demonstrative of the artists style and ability. Because their works varied in size and shape, portfolios came in all sizes and shapes. Fashion designers would lug a box of their clothing and accessory designs from interview to interview hoping for the big break. Potential employers or commission agents could view the art or garments and decide if applicants were likely to be able to paint or design what they had in mind. In more recent days, people such as architects, whose work has a personal dimension, carried rolls of drawings and photographs to interviews. Now others have realised the potential of portfolios and jumped onto the bandwagon, but with electronic and physical portfolios. A portfolio is, according to a dictionary, “A portable case for holding material, such as loose papers, photographs, or drawings. The materials collected in such a case, especially when representative of a person’s work: a photographer’s portfolio; an artist’s portfolio of drawings.” A reworked definition could perhaps refer to a portfolio as, “a collection of evidence, nicely presented, that job applicants show prospective employers to help present their case.” It might also be an online or electronic portfolio. But whatever we call it, it differs from a Curriculum Vitae or Resume. Differences between a Portfolio and a Resume While a resume presents a summary of a job seekers qualifications, experience and special attainments etc, it doesn’t necessarily contain verifiable evidence. This verifiability of evidence has become a challenge for HR professionals as the number of false claims to teriary qualifications and experience increase. A portfolio contains original documentation and certification from appropriate authorities and is therefore less likely to be fraudulent. This is a great benefit both to the recruiting people and job applicants. How is a Career Portfolio presented? If you load a search engine and type “career portfolio” into the search field and press enter, you’ll find dozens of online portfolios. These are excellent tools for such people as photographers, graphic designers and others whose work is highly visual and capable of being displayed cost effectively and efficiently. I tell my clients to place their original documentation in a binder containing plastic envelopes with heading pages dividing each topic eg, Send the copy with your job application and advise the recruiting authority that you will bring originals with you to the interview for examination. Wherever practicable, get your original documents verified by a suitable authority eg, Notary Public. Do I include my Resume? It’s purely a matter of personal choice. I’d prefer to attach the resume to my letter of application, but to keep it separate from the portfolio. If you’d prefer to include it, perhaps consider using it instead of a table of contents That way, it can point to the other items presented in the portfolio. Conclusion When you apply for a job you need as much in your favour as possible. A portfolio can add weight to the credibility of your application, especially if it contains things like copies of reports you have written, projects you managed, letters of congratulations for doing a good job etc. But be careful. Don’t make it a contest to see how much padding you can cram into your portfolio. Maintain a healthy balance between proving your superior worth for a job and boasting about the dozens of wonderful, but largely irrelevent things you have done. Good luck with your proftolio. Copyright Robin Henry 2005 Robin Henry is an educator, human resources specialist and Internet marketer. He helps small to middle-sized businesses and individuals improve performance by accessing smart technology and processes and personal development. He runs his business Desert Wave Enterprises from Alice Springs, Central Australia and can be found at http://www.dwave.com.au.
Article Category : Resume Presentation Resume Writing doesn’t have to be a solo gigResume writing can be the bottleneck to advancements in your career. If you find yourself getting writer’s block consider getting help. You can find experts who have written hundreds of resumes; they can help you, too. A good first place to look for help is online job search sites such as career builder or monster.com. Get help writing resumes that will get you hired There you’ll find a number of expert writers who can provide you critiques as well as do-overs for resumes. There are some services that specialize in niche markets for executive resumes. You can also find help distributing resumes. Even if you’re a professional writer, you’ll recognize that these people know their stuff. They’ll help build resumes into effective marketing brochures that people can use to interviews. People often put too much or too little information in their resumes. They may not have the distance to critique their own resumes to decide what should stay in and what should be taken out. Online job search sites have a number of sources that you can use for your career search. Getting help writing resumes is just one of them. You can also pick up interview tips, learn about career fairs, and get the low down on continuing education. Not only can you learn how to improve your interview skills, you can also learn more about hot careers. Resume writing tips for the Internet You need resume writing tips for the Internet because not all resumes are created equally. Sometimes employers will want their resumes in ASCII format only. That means you produce something in Notepad, not Word. You can write your resume in Word but then you make sure you save it in Text format. You’ll lose a lot of formatting when you do this so keep the resume simple and check what it looks like in Notepad. Getting interviews depends on submitting the right kind of resume The usual reason why an employer wants the resume in ASCII format is that they scan the resume into their resume bank. This way you might get a call for an interview when you’re not actively looking because your resume was scanned in to the employer’s database of resumes. Here are some tips to help improve how scannable your résumé is: ? Employ ample use of keywords in your resume when you write it. The recruiter uses keywords to search through the database to find resumes. ? Use a simple font, one that doesn’t have curly shapes to it. Look for sans serif fonts; Arial is a good one to try. This is so that the letter shapes don’t confuse the OCR software. ? Avoid bold or italic font. It’s harder for the OCR software to read the text that way. ? If you are using snail mail to get your resume to the company, don’t fold it. Folds in the paper can obscure the writing on your resume. ? Don’t use columns for your resume. It doesn’t get picked up that well by the OCR scanner. Use a single column table format instead. Consider safeguarding your identity when posting resumes on to the Internet. Minimize personal identifying information on your resume. Create a job search e-mail that you shut down when you don’t need it anymore. If you enjoyed this article, visit my website Get-A-New-Job A site devoted to all the things you need to get a new job…education, resume writing tips, interviews, and career strategies.
Article Category : Career Management Man is a social animal and survival is his major need. There are needs that he needs be fulfill. The needs can be physical, mental, emotional and spiritual. A common thread that connects all the above need is a means to sustain physically. He can barter his skills to sustain himself.If the urge to contribute physically arises then he can do physical labor, like bringing about movement on the physical level. If there is an urge to contribute mentally, he can choose to be an organizer, one who can overlap events and schedule activities. An emotional urge will be satisfied if he chooses to be a mentor. Spiritual urge can be addressed by spreading the word of the infinite. The choice of his work mainly depends on his current frame of mind. Normally, a person chooses his profession depending on the market feasibility and the highest financial benefits. Though this seems to be the most obvious choice of choosing a profession but surely will lead him to be utterly frustrated and mentally unstable as time passes by if this is not in alignment with his life’s purpose. Time waits for nobody and later on in life there is the time for retrospection the most obvious question that would come up are: “How did I spend my time? Was I of any help to anybody? Will I every be remembered when I’m bygone?” These are very common questions anybody would have encountered. These questions arise at different phases in our life. A student towards the end of his vocation will be encountered with these questions. A lawyer at the conclusion of a case would be questioned by his conscience. And almost all of us on the last day of our professional life. The question now one would ask is, “I have now realized that this is not a profession of my choice and I have taken it up just to sustain my physical and social needs, but this is not the profession that I would give my life for. What do I do now? I possibly can’t abandon my present commitments? The only alternative I see now is abandon the profession of my life and make my self believe that there is more to life than your job.” Its very comfortable to be part of the rut and postpone the most dreaded questions till you retires. One can’t afford to abandon one’s current profession and create an internal civil war. One would prefer to look at his job differently. Suppose you realize there is an inert pull towards writing. You would want to hang around with people who have a similar bend. If there is an urge to teach then you would want to volunteer your time at a night school. One common thing that would stand out is your commitment to have a fulfilling life. The initial infatuation will always wither out and you would yet again be stranded with the same dreadful questions. But one’s commitment towards finding a job one loves will help one see through this turbulence. One can look at an alternative approach to discover the job of his life. Start with the end result in mind. For example you would want to be of some help to the people around you. How would you possibly contribute? You would have a wealth of experience that you would have accumulated in your professional life. You would want to mentor the new comers with your experience. You would never have someone come to you and say “Hey I want you to mentor so many people” Though not impossible this may seem a remote possibility. You need to reach out and let people know that you are willing to contribute. You need to take the first step. This is what most people fret. They fret to ask. First and foremost one needs to be more social and approachable. Secondly, one needs to be focussed on the reality that this is an opportunity that one is working towards. It is very important that one reads and listens a lot during this phase. You would have accumulated a wealth of experience during your career but there is a difference between knowing and the ability to articulate one’s thoughts. Reading and listening helps one to have a uniform stream of thoughts. Let then the knowledge flow through you. An element of doership normally creeps in when one thinks that one is doing something noble. Your experience is a gift of nature. It was an opportunity that was given to you at that point in time. This knowledge will just flow through you where it is needed the most. In most instances you would be surprised by yourself at the impact that your experience has created on people around you. Altaf Merchant is a software engineer by profession. He lives in Bangalore, India. You can get in touch with him on merchant_altaf@yahoo.com
Article Category : Career Management Getting along with your co-workers is critical to your You may think an individual with a different race or If you have an attitude of discrimination against a The real difficulty in relating to fellow employees comes Other symptoms of emotional immaturity are the inability It’s also difficult to deal with co-workers who don’t have, Your job may provide your life with meaning and purpose. Your happiness and success at work requires you to accept You must impress upon them that you are not a threat. You ———————————————————- Copyright(C)2004 Bucaro TecHelp. To learn how to maintain
Article Category : Career Management 1. Develop excellent work habits ? for example, meet deadlines and don’t procrastinate.2. Read extensively about your primary career area. “Own” your profession by developing a disciplined reading program, so you’ll be aware of trends and developments. 3. Practice team playing ? learning from colleagues and sharing your knowledge. 4. Know both your job and your organization’s expectations, and be sure they’re on the same track. 5. Set goals, write them down and evaluate your progress. 6. Focus on understanding your client/customers. Come up with strategies that add value from them. 7. Don’t dodge administrative tasks ? it upsets most supervisors. 8. Volunteer for outside activities: Accept assignments to speak to outside groups, lead professional panels and write articles for professional journals. 9. Build executive communication skills and cultivate an executive persona by reading books on the subject and attending seminars. 10. Take risks with personal development, acknowledging both strengths and weaknesses; build on strengths and correct weaknesses. 11. Seek out notables both inside and outside your profession, and watch and learn from winners. 12. Always seek opportunities. Success is not a sweepstakes waiting for the knock at the door. 13. If your employer does not emphasize learning and achievement, move on. 14. Think big ? but always manage the details. 15. Take manageable risks. Remember, without occasional failures, success is unlikely. At Goozu.com, we offer an on-line shopping experience like no other. Not only are we an industry leader in providing name-brand products at outlet prices, we pride ourselves in a user-friendly internet site and superb customer service to cater to your shopping needs. At Goozu.com, you will find the highest quality merchandise at closeout prices. There are many aspects that set us apart from our competition?low prices, great products, years of experience, etc. Ultimately, however, we offer exactly what today’s retail customer wants most: the best products at the best prices. We’re committed to bringing you the products you want at the lowest prices every day, and to providing you with the convenient, secure shopping experience you deserve.
Article Category : Resume Presentation It is rumored that the only word William Shakespeare wrote on his resume was “Available.” We’ll probably never know if that is true. But it raises an interesting question. How much information is too much and how much is too little when dealing with resume copy?The resume is a vital piece to any job search. As companies scramble to find the ideal candidate, they use the resume to screen candidates. Done right, a resume builds an instant connection with the reader and helps steer the course of the interview in your favor. If you submit a resume that piques the curiosity of the reader, he or she most likely will ask questions based on the information you provided on the resume as opposed to relying on a pre-packaged questionnaire. That’s how you know you have an “interviewable” resume, when it assists in shaping the course of the interview. The challenge is, How does one create an “interviewable” resume, one that isn’t boring or sterile? How does one write a resume that motivates the reader to give you a call? Write with the employer in mind Cast aside the belief that the resume is about you ? because it isn’t. Though the resume is your “story”, the heart of it should focus on the needs of the employer. When developing your resume give thought to the person who will be reading it. What are his or her immediate concerns? How will you be able to solve that person’s problems? Though it may be difficult to pin down a company’s immediate concerns before an interview, the reality is that organizations recruit candidates for one of the following reasons: they need to replace an unproductive employee, a peak performer was promoted or left, or a new position has been created. A recruiter usually searches for a candidate who will produce certain results, one that is a skilled communicator and has a strong work ethic. If you are able to target your resume toward these key areas, you will, without a doubt, tap into the organization’s concerns. Choose your phrases carefully Sentence starters and appropriate use of action words all determine whether the resume is “interviewable.” Instead of using predictable phrases, think of ways to add punch to your resume. For example, instead of using increased sales by 250%?write delivered a 250% increase in sales?; instead of using ability to effectively?write demonstrated ability to effectively?; and instead of using reduced costs?write slashed costs. When your resume doesn’t “sound” like all the others on the recruiter’s desk, he or she will take notice. You will be remembered when your resume breaks the monotony of the recruiter’s day. Guaranteed. Have a consistent message Don’t try to become all things to all people. If you are a CEO, don’t add a statement that indicates that you are willing to be a Business Manager. If you are a Sales Manager, don’t indicate that you are willing to take on a position as a Customer Service Representative. Get the picture? Determine what you are selling (and looking for) before you put one word to paper. Determine your major selling points Though you may share the same job title with many other people, your accomplishments and how you carry out your responsibilities are what distinguishes you from all the other qualified candidates. Focus your resume on not only what you did but also how well you did it. By design, what makes you “interviewable” is how you market your strengths on paper. About The Author Recognized as a career expert, Linda Matias brings a wealth of experience to the career services field. She has been sought out for her knowledge of the employment market, outplacement, job search strategies, interview preparation, and resume writing, quoted a number of times in The Wall Street Journal, New York Newsday, Newsweek, and HR-esource.com. She is President of CareerStrides and the National Resume Writers’ Association. Visit her website at www.careerstrides.com or email her at linda@careerstrides.com
Article Category : Others Seminars dealing with “special topics” have actually been around for decades, and are an older form of marketing and information exchanges, that have seen quite a resurgence of interest in the past ten years.Seminars are simply a group of people coming together for the discussion and learning of specific techniques and topics. Usually there are several keynote speakers within each seminar, and these speakers are usually experts in their own fields, or topics. Several topic reviews are scheduled each day throughout the seminar, and attendees can usually make their choice of topics from among these scheduled events. Many individuals attend seminars each year, some attending several times a year. The topics of seminars can be as varied as the groups attending them, but in particular, there has been a rise of Internet Marketing Seminars over the past five years, due to the increased interest in this field. What then are the advantages and disadvantages of seminars if you choose to attend or if you’re thinking of attending? Advantages: 1. A wealth of knowledge usually, presented by many speakers at one time in one place. A lot of “learning” at one clip, with most material compressed into two or three days’ worth of time. 2. A sense of camaraderie, where individuals can meet others with the same interests/problems/concerns that they may have in their chosen field. 3. A sense of renewed hope and inspiration (this is especially true for Internet marketing seminars), as sometimes business concerns are lessened by sharing experiences with others. Being with others that “understand” individual’s problems or concerns, is usually a great morale booster! 4. A great way for those that don’t like to read, or attend classes, to improve their knowledge of a specific subject. 5. A nice vacation, in usually, a good hotel. Most seminars take place in quality hotels, as this is part of the incentive to attracting attendees. Disadvantages: 1. Cost, of course, as all attendees must absorb their own costs. The seminars themselves sometimes also have an entry fee that can be quite high. All travel costs, food costs, hotel costs, and other miscellaneous costs must be absorbed by the attendees. 2. The chance that the speakers may be sharing incorrect knowledge, or not at all knowledgeable themselves (it pays to make your own assessments of presented topics, not just blindly “follow the pack”). Tips, tricks, and strategies need to be weighed as to “worth” and “accuracy” before using these. Careful thought rules here. 3. The time spent away from your actual business, or life, to attend. Time is always a concern when scheduling activities and some individuals simply can’t spare the time away from their lives for activities such as this. 4. The chance that the topics may not actively help your business or your concerns, and that the seminar will be a waste of time, where nothing you learn is of any use to you. 5. The chance that attendees will expect too much from a seminar and thus be disappointed. Realism must rule here. These are not “instant answers” to anything. Overall, seminars, if chosen carefully, can be a good experience. They are not miracle cures to business problems or other problems, however, and this must be kept in mind when deciding to attend a seminar. These are, after all, optional events, and success or failure in business or life will probably not hinge on attendance at seminars! Many different methods of learning business strategies and life strategies exist for those that don’t have the time flexibility or money flexibility to attend. Just visit your local library or local community college, and you’ll find a wealth of knowledge on all subjects. Read a book concerning your issues, or take a class, and you’ll find these can be great alternatives to seminars. After all, education exists in many forms, not just at seminars! Vishal P. Rao is the owner of: http://www.work-at-home-forum.com/ An online community of people who work at home.
Article Category : Interview Tips Generally, when you present yourself as a prospective candidate for a new employment opportunity, your information will filter through the Human Resources department. Since every company has their own hiring process, understand that you cannot always control when HR will call you. Our philosophy is that a prepared candidate will have a higher chance of success than an unprepared candidate.Here are a few things to keep in mind if HR does call: 1. Remain calm: Very few HR departments will take the time or effort to call candidates they are not interested in. Regardless of the tone or tenor of their voice, a call from HR should be seen as a step forward in the process. Even if it is only telephone contact, you do have a chance to make an excellent impression. Be confident, sound interested, and engage the person on the other end. You only get one chance to make a first impression. Make it count. 2. Always be prepared: Yes, it could turn out that the HR representative knows nothing about your skill set or area of expertise. Actually, that is the case more often than not. Take this in stride and make certain you answer all their questions as appropriately as possible. We generally recommend staying away from questions concerning your salary history or desired compensation. Rather, keep this item open for discussion at a future time, preferably the face to face interview. Always keep a copy of your resume handy, preferably next to the telephone. 3. Collect contact information and topics of discussion: If not during the call, do this immediately afterwards. Write down all pertinent information including questions or topics covered. Be certain to get the name and other contact information from the person you spoke with. Finally, if they did not specify what the next step was, make certain you do. Ask directly what the next step in the process will be and when it will occur. 4. Offer additional information: For candidates that normally maintain additional career information such as coding samples or art portfolios, make certain you offer to supply these as further evidence of your skills and interest. Do not assume that the HR person knows to ask for this. Offer it. It will generally benefit you in the end. HR departments, and their representatives, are generally the first chance a candidate has to make a great impression. Knowing how to handle calls from HR will assist you in the process from start to finish. Executive recruiter William Werksman is a frequent columnist to job boards including http://www.NevadaJobBoard.com addressing both the candidate’s and employer’s perspective. Werksman’s expertise has been featured in business magazines, national newspapers and television news segments. His firm, Resource Partners, is recognized as the leading source of specialized and executive talent in the Casino and Gaming industry. He manages a staff of recruiters out of his firm’s Las Vegas, Nevada headquarters. He may be reached at: Bill@CareerInsider.com
Article Category : Others Mystery shopping is an excellent way to make extra money. In fact, some people make a full time living doing it.There are many mystery shopping companies that will pay you to shop, eat at restaurants and take part in focus groups. A mystery shop consists of getting paid to go into a business without the employee’s knowledge and reporting back to the mystery shopping company. A focus group is when you get paid to sit down with other people who are also getting paid and discuss new products or services. Mystery shopping jobs and focus groups are easier to find if you live in or near a large metropolitan area. After you do a mystery shop you answer some questions and file your report with the mystery shopping company. These reports are usually set up as a series of questions and often can be completed quickly. The reason they have mystery shops and focus groups is so that companies can get feedback on their employees, products and services. That way they can see where there might be problems and make the necessary changes to improve things. A few years ago I had some free time and I wanted to make some extra money. I took a course, How to Become a Mystery Shopper, at a local community college. After completing the course I registered with a few mystery shopping companies online. You can do a search on Google for “mystery shopping.” Bypass the mystery shopping websites that are trying to sell something. You want to find the mystery shopping websites for the actual mystery shopping companies. These mystery shopping companies will never charge you any type of fee to register or to do mystery shops or focus groups. Be sure to read all the free mystery shopping information you come across. There is an art to being a good mystery shopper. Basically you are like a reporter. You will never add your feelings or what you think to a mystery shopping report. Your job is to just answer the questions, report the facts and describe what actually happened during your shop. You never want to give your own recommendations. That is not why you are hired. If the mystery shopping company wants a consultant, they will hire one. All they want you to do is to answer questions with just the facts of your mystery shopping assignment. Once you find a few mystery shopping companies you can then register with them. They’ll contact you by email whenever they have a mystery shopping job in your area. You’ll only respond to the emails when you want to do the shop. Otherwise you can just delete the email. You get to pick and choose the shops you want to do. A couple of years ago I did some apartment shops for the Jancyn Evaluation Company that took me about half an hour to complete. Since they paid $25, I was basically being paid $50 an hour. You can register with the Jancyn Evaluation Shops Company. They may pay more than $25 today for apartment shops since it has been about two years since I’ve done an apartment shop for them. Jancyn also does a lot of shops and surveys for the Ross Dress for Less retail stores. I’m not sure if Jancyn still has a business relationship with Ross, but I once handed out survey forms in one of the local Ross stores here in the Seattle area and made $500 for about 30 hours of work. Here’s the URL for Jancyn if you’d like to register with them to do some shops. http://www.jancyn.com/ Another mystery shopping company that I get a lot of email requests for shops for is the Secret Shopper Company. They seem to specialize in shops for Veterinary Clinics. They pay $15 plus up to $100 payment NOT including tip + $10. The only catch is that you have to own a cat or dog, which I don’t, but maybe you do. Here’s their URL http://www.secretshopper.com OK, I’ve saved the best for last. Fieldwork specializes in setting up focus groups for some of the biggest companies in the US. They pay $50 to $75 for a focus group meeting that usually lasts about an hour. The last one I did with them was for some research for eBay. They were trying to come up with a name for a new category on their website. Fieldwork is located throughout the US in major metropolitan areas. You’ll have to visit their website to see if they are located near where you live. It’s great if you have children since Fieldwork does a lot of focus groups involving children. Perhaps you can talk your kids into splitting the fee with you. Again, the pay usually works out to be about $50 to $75 an hour. Unfortunately I have no children, but the next time I get an email for a focus group for children I’ll borrow a couple of my neighbor’s children. Here’s the link for Fieldwork. http://www.fieldwork.com/ Now you have a basic idea of how the mystery shopping and focus groups work. Start searching for more mystery shopping websites and get paid to shop, eat and taking part in focus groups. It’s easy money! Barry Stein is the owner of aWebBiz.com where he offers cutting-edge tips on all aspects of business. To find more advice, tools and resources to help you succeed in your business, visit: http://www.aWebBiz.com Barry’s Internet Marketing Blog: http://awebbiz.com/blog ————————————————————- You have permission to publish this article electronically, in print, in your e-book or on your web site, free of charge, as long as the author bylines are included with an active hyperlink to the aWebBiz.com website.
Article Category : Career Management Once you have accomplished your task of getting in the door and getting the job the real job of career advancement begins!You will soon learn (if you haven’t already elsewhere) that corporate politics are ALWAYS surrounding you. If it is not your boss who is fearful of you taking his job it is your co-worker who wants to ensure that they are seen “better” than you when promotion time comes calling. If it’s neither, you still have to be prepared to not be in position of being scape-goated. In essence avoid being in the wrong place at the wrong time or saying the wrong thing! But how does one demonstrate their great qualities and viewed as a team player without causing strife with your “competitors” (bosses and colleagues)? Building strategic alliances in the work place is how! What is building strategic alliances? Well it is the constant communication and trust building you have to do on a daily basis with certain bosses and colleagues and even employees that you may actually be managing. Strategic relationships through a company are very important when it comes time for promotion (they support you) and for times you might be on the “pink slip” list. Having friends in high places is the ideal solution. But having friends spread out not only in your immediate area but in other areas/departments as well is just as important. There will be a time when bad information might be circulating about you and you may never know it! having your network squash these harmful rumors is ideal. Therefore you never will have to be in a position to defend your character because your “network” already did it for you. So how do develop you strategic alliances in the company? Follow these steps:
The goal is to be perceived as a fair and balanced person whom people can trust. Trust, again, is one of the more important issues to succeeding and rising rapidly in a corporation! From the E-Book ©“The Perfect Candidate! How To Win The Job Game Every Time!” Paul Woodley is the Author of “The Perfect Candidate! - How To Win the Job Game Every Time! (By Unfairly Beating the Competition).” Visit “The Perfect Candidate!” Website at http://getrichnow.com
|
Submit ResumesArticles
USEFUL LINKS
Pages
Mobile users save 90% or more on international calls with Pingo!
|