Know Your Buyer

At a start-up firm all of the processes, formalities, etc. simply don’t exist yet, so your sole focus is on finding and convincing clients to pay you something (also, you need the money!).

To do this, you identify the clients’s need, what gets them to act and where to tell them. You also must understand how the same product can be used by different types of clients.

Take the mobile phone: Adults talk. Teens text. Listen to the ads sometime, same device, very different messages about what the mobile phone does for each group.

Take the CFO position: No two companies define the role exactly the same (different boards, CEO, philosophy, etc.). This is true for all positions: Same skill set, just applied differently for each company.
That said most of us miss the opportunity to differentiate ourselves because of the resume submitted.

I used the same resume for every role until I realized that someone else was translating how my accomplishments and experiences would fit their company needs. It just was not happening, so I needed to.

The best person does not always get the job. It’s the person who can best tell their story who gets the job. This is not a parlor trick, but comes from someone taking the time to review the company needs and matching up their experience. This enables them to write and talk in depth about both sides.

GOOD IDEA #1: Create different resumes for different roles.

IMPLEMENTATION ROADBLOCK FOR GOOD IDEA #1: Too many edits. A common risk of continuous rewrites is that new ideas get edited in after application. So your resume loses clarity.

SOLUTION FOR ROADBLOCK FOR GOOD IDEA #1: Write a resume for each role you seek. Start by writing down the company needs each role fulfills. Then write down the duties of the role. Lastly, write down what skills needed to perform those duties.

I have four resumes: Mid-size private (CFO), Family-owned (CFO), Large public firm (Divisional VP) and start-up firm (CFO).

The benefit of having the four versions is that I’ve identified the majority of what’s important to each company. It is much easier to create a version that matches what the company is seeking.

You will get in a situation where you don’t know what the company is seeking, so pick the version you feel best matches.

Good luck this week.

Mark

www.candidateschair.com – Tools and Advice from a Candidate’s viewpoint to help get past job search roadblocks and keep your spirit strong. Please take a visit.

http://TwitJobs.net The Career Community

What I Believe, What I Need to Believe - After Reading Your Resume

As a CFO/Finance executive, I’ve looked at and/or produced a couple hundred business cases. To determine the validity of a business case, I’ve developed a simple system to figure out where to ask more questions. I ask myself “What do I believe and what do I need to believe”.

For example, if our company was expanding an existing product line. I would believe they can do that. If they are going to sell it to an entirely new customer set. I would say I need to believe it. So I would spend trying to determine if we understood the new customers’ needs, if the product fit, etc.

Now take your resume and ask the same questions of believe and need to believe, but from a prospective recruiter, HR, or hiring manager viewpoint (or chair).

Most people who read a resume can figure out by a title and company size if the bullet points generally fit the role a person had. They can establish the ‘what they believe’ based on your resume and knowledge of the industry, profession and role.

Generally, what they ‘need to believe’ are the results claimed (e.g. ‘Saved $5 million annually from ….), because unless they were at the same firm, it is tough to validate. But just imagine the power those statements would have if they were validated.

So whether through your referrals, non-confidential copies of past work, 3rd party references, awards, etc. try to line up as much of what needs to be believed as possible. Actions do speak louder than words, so help prove it!

A quick author aside, I have been tremendously humbled by the success of the Candidates Chair site – with over 20,000 visitors from 75 countries, as it has been fellow candidates sharing with one another that have been a major part of the success. So please know you have my thanks and keeping the sharing.

Good luck this week!

Mark Richards

www.candidateschair.com – Tools and Advice from a Candidate’s viewpoint to help get past job search roadblocks and keep your spirit strong. Please take a visit.


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Embracing the ‘dark’ side – A lesson in pitching one’s self

In 2007, BusinessWeek did a survey asking business people to rank their performance. The result: 90% believed they were in the 10% of performers. (Seems to makes the saying “there’s no room at the top” a load of hogwash.)

If you read 100 resumes, 100% are in the top 1%. The first rule of resume writing is present yourself in the best light. I did, you did, they did, etc.

In 2008, I met some investors from the San Francisco area, who got me to rethink my “top 1%” approach. In seeking advice on how to pitch better, they said “We don’t invest in people who have not been part of a failed company. They cannot recognize problems and fix them”.

My first reaction was “If you eat meat from a mad cow, won’t you get mad cow disease as well?”

Then I thought about some my career’s hard-earned experiences. Most were associated with a disaster of some sort. None were on my resume. Yet all made me a smarter and shaped how I approached business. But how does one go about pitching a disaster?

“Learned valuable lesson by being part of budget with significant cost overruns due to misidentifying client requirements”

Not much of a compelling bullet point. More like taking a bullet.

“Reexamined client requirements to bring project costs in line with budget, saving $10 million in development costs”

I find that during my interviews that if I discuss my key lessons and poke a bit of fun at my mistakes, virtually everyone does the same.

When it comes to making mistakes: I do, you do, they do, etc. – now we are in the 100%!

Good luck today!

Mark Richards
www.candidateschair.com
Job Search from a Candidate's Perspective - Advice and tools for search organization and networking

Candidates Chair LinkedIn Group:
http://www.linkedin.com/groupRegistration?gid=2328268





http://TwitJobs.co.uk - Jobs Fed Into Your Life

Answering the question - Before someone else does

There is one last test before you send a resume, e-mail, and other correspondence.

If you were the reader do you see any sentences that leave an open question or thought?

Obviously, there is always loads of detail behind any bullet point or sentence when cramming in your work history into two pages. So don't worry about that.

You are looking for any inconsistencies, unfinished thoughts, conflicting points or anything gives the reader a reason to pause.

The goal is to answer the question before they do. Because they will not likely answer the question the same way you would.

After someone told me what they read in my resume was the eye-opener for me. It helped me look at what I wrote in a new way. Simply put, there is more than just fitting as much experience in those two pages.

Good luck today!

Mark Richards
http://www.candidateschair.com/
Job Search from a Candidate's Perspective









http://TwitJobs.co.uk - Jobs Fed Into Your Life

Winston Churchill and My Resume – A Lesson in Differentiation

I have run a job transition group since April 2007, in that time I’ve probably read 200 resumes or marketing plans. More often than not the point of differences between these documents is very little. Even across professions, they tend to read the same.

I wondered about my own resume. So I read it. Damn, not much different. It was easy to see the cause of the problem – I read the same blogs, websites, and books as everyone else.

Plan B: I decided to find a new source of inspiration that could help me think differently in how I described myself and my experience. To use language that would interest the reader. So after browsing in the book store, I bought a book of speeches by Winston Churchill. (So I guess it was Plan C).

Besides being a fascinating read, Mr. Churchill’s speeches took my resume in a new direction. I kept all of the required points of interest for a potential employer, but how I put it together was completely different from before. It was fun re-writing my resume, which I know is a bit like saying it’s fun getting dental work, but it’s true.

For my own blog, I found loads of inspiration from the writing style of author Jeffrey Fox and Guy Kawasaki’s, which write to the point and tongue in cheek, respectively. So look around and find what inspires you – and then set yourself apart.

Good luck today!

Mark Richards
www.candidateschair.com

Job Search from a Candidate's Perspective - Advice and tools for search organization and networking
Candidates Chair LinkedIn Group: http://www.linkedin.com/groupRegistration?gid=2328268

http://TwitJobs.co.uk - Jobs Fed Into Your Life

CV Writing Tips SIX Tips!

CV Writing Tips Part 1


There are literally hundreds, if not thousands of sites online that are offering tips and advice on how to write your CV or Resume - this is part of a 3 part programme to give you the basics to get started and feel comfortable and confident about your CV.

1) Use clear formating on your CV - There is no point in having great content if it is layed out horribly. Try to keep things in standard sized paragraphs and keep it clear and easy to read. Remember, your CV has just a few seconds to make a first great impression. You only get one chance for this!

2) Don't make your CV too long - your Curriculum Vitae isn't an essay, but more of a straighforward easy to read summary of your skills and work experience. Remember this at all times when adding content.

3) Only certain kinds of positions will ask for a recent photo (creative/models etc) don't include one unless asked. Save the space for compelling, articulate and accurate content.

4) Your CV is about tomorrow, not yesterday. Concentrate on experiences that you have learnt from and developed you to a more rounded and useful future employee. Think about it, employers and recruiters will probably see several (at least) applications and CV's per job. Yours can stand out from the rest by sticking to these rules.

5) Put yourself in the mind of the reader and ask what will make get excited about you and want to call you now. Think about what the job description has asked for and tailor every CV you send out for each job specifically. If someone is asking for specific tasks that might not be included in your CV now, don't just add them in your cover letter make the CV tailored for the job.

6) Speling...SPELLING SPELLING SPELLING.. check it once, do a spell check then check it again. If you can, have others read it. If you have friends on twitter/facebook don't be afraid to ask them to check it (you might want to edit personal information before sending it to people you don't know so well).


So theres the first 6 big tips for CV writing and getting the IMPACT CV that you need today to get the call back TODAY!

More to follow...


Jason.


http://TwitJobs.co.uk - Jobs Fed Into Your Life