Should You Optimize Your Resume for ATS - Sterling Career Concepts

Should You Optimize Your Resume for ATS Should You Optimize Your Resume for ATS? Much has been written and debated on the use of applicant tracking systems (ATS) lately.    I am often asked about it by prospective clients and approach this topic from two angles. In general, for every resume I write, I request 2-3 target job postings for several reasons, one of which is to ensure I am incorporating industry terminology into the document.   Not all companies and not all positions are screened by ATS, and unfortunately you will not always know when submitting your resume. Applying to smaller companies or positions for which you know you can submit your resume through an internal contact are effective ways to circumvent an ATS. If youre responding to online postings or submitting your resume in to a companys website, there is a greater chance they are utilizing an ATS to help with initial screenings. In those situations or whenever a client feels he/she may be encountering ATS-related roadblocks, I utilize PrepTels Resumeter service to optimize keywords in the resume for a particular position.  The frustrating and illogical part of this process (and why the Resumeter service adds value to the process) is that ATS software programs (of which there are several) determine keywords differently (via algorithms) than a human reading through the job posting. It should be noted though that optimizing for one posting will not ensure optimization for another posting so this can become a labor-intensive approach to submitting resumes and one that plays to the computer so whenever possible I recommend the first strategy of networking into a company and passing your resume on to a live person since (1) it helps you stand out as a candidate, and (2) at the end of the day, it’s still people (and not computers) who hire people. The good news is PrepTel’s Resumeter tool is free for job seekers’ own use or you can opt to work with me to optimize your resume for a particular posting. Email or call me today for a price quote and to get started right away!

Have You Considered the Power of Volunteering for Your Executive Job Search

Have You Considered the Power of Volunteering for Your Executive Job Search Getting involved in your community is much more than just helping others, even though that is the main benefit. Too many people think they are too busy to volunteer, or even think there are plenty of volunteers already so they aren’t needed. However, what if we told you volunteering in your community could help your job search, give you something else to put on your executive resume biography and boost your personal branding at the same time? The best professional resume writers preach this all the time for these reasons. Boost Your Credibility You may be a credible executive within your industry, but no one else outside of it knows that. Volunteering gives you the opportunity to get out in the community and show your talents as well. Offering your services for sale at your job is your career, but offering them for free through volunteering efforts can boost your credibility tremendously. Meet New People When talking to the best professional resume writers, they will always promote the importance of networking. The truth is many executives aren’t very fond of going out of their way to meet new people since it sometimes doesn’t feel organic. Volunteering is completely different. Your purpose for volunteering is to serve the community, and you’ll inevitably meet new people along the way. And if you happen to be searching for a job during your efforts, you never know if you could be connected to your next employer somehow. Fill In Employment Gaps With Volunteering Another way volunteering is beneficial is by filling in employment gaps in your executive resume biography. Employers typically don’t like to see gaps in employment for more than a few months. However, if you are able to fill in those gaps with volunteer projects, you’ll likely be forgiven and your chances of landing your next job won’t suffer. In many ways, volunteering can demonstrate your personal brand and your soft skills, while portraying you as a well-rounded person overall. Open Your Mind To New Options Finally, your volunteering efforts may open your mind to options you’ve never considered before. This may not apply to you if you’re happy with your current career, but it does if you’re unemployed or looking for a new job. Happiness with any job comes from being satisfied with the work you do, and being fulfilling and meaningful. The connections you make while volunteering, along with the volunteer work itself, can help you open your mind to new opportunities if you feel like you’re stuck. Professional Resume Services does much more than simply write resumes that get you hired. Our team focuses on the big picture with every executive in order to help them find the most satisfying career path for them. Every individual is different, and sometimes volunteering is a great way to learn more about yourself and your passions. Feel free to contact us at any time to learn more about the connection between volunteering and your executive job search.

Writing an American Resume

Writing an American ResumeIf you are the employer who is looking for a writer to write your American resume, there are several things that you will want to take into consideration before choosing the person. You will need to think about your own situation, and know what your interests are in this business. Here are some questions that you might want to ask yourself before beginning this process.What area of expertise do you have in writing American resumes? Do you know enough about this industry to start out right? Or are you just taking it on as a hobby? Before you start out, make sure that you know enough about what is expected in the resume to show that you are knowledgeable about the industry.You will want to find out what employers are looking for in American resumes. When you are choosing the company to write the resume for, you will want to know what they are looking for in the resume. Perhaps they will want something that is attractive, that the employer will like and even ag ree with. Whatever the case may be, you will want to know what the employer is looking for before starting out.Next, you will want to know what your job requirements are. Since you are trying to find the company that will give you work, you will want to find out what your job requirements are. Are you looking for a specific skill set? Are you looking for an entry level position?How many pages are you looking for in your entire resume? Will it be one page long or two? This is especially important because it can make a big difference when it comes to the amount of work you need to put into the entire resume.Who do you want to meet with at the interview? Are you trying to get into a company that is new, orone that is more established? If you are looking for an entry level position, it may be better to meet with a company that is a few years older. You will want to make sure that they are reputable, and not known for being unethical.These are just a few things that you will want to thin k about when choosing a writer to write your American resume. Once you decide who you want to hire, you will be able to proceed to hiring the company to write your resume.

Here Is What Happens When You Lie About Your GPA on a Resume

Here Is What Happens When You Lie About Your GPA on a Resume Spread the loveLying about a GPA is one of the most common lies made on a resume. Many job seekers are tempted to inflate their GPA in order to stand out from the crowd. Well talk about what happens when you lie about your GPA on a resume.Lying about your GPA on a resumeLying is bad. We know this. Moving on.Keep in mind that you dont actually have to include your GPA on your resume. This is really surprising for some recent graduates. Unless the job application specifically asks for your GPA, you can leave it off. In fact, there are a few reasons you want to leave education information off your resume.You also dont need to include your GPA if you have adequate work experience and arent fresh out of school. We wrote a good post on whether or not you should include your GPA on a resume. Your GPA doesnt say much about you as an applicant, though. Try to quantify your value for a job in other ways.If you still feel like you need to include an inaccurate GPA on your resume, here are some common questions with answers from our experts.What are the chances of getting caught lying about a GPA?This is impossible to measure.Do people get caught? Yes.Is it likely? No.Is it worth it? Also no.Not only do you risk losing your job if you do get caught lying, but you also risk some serious damage to your future. There have been numerous cases of well-known executives getting fired because they lied about their GPA or degree.One famous case involved the CEO of Yahoo who got caught years later lying on his resume about a degree which he never had. The results were not good. While youre probably not applying for a CEO role out of school, you never know where youll end up. Getting caught in a lie years later can have lasting repercussions for the rest of your career.Do employers do a background check to verify your GPA?A background check doesnt typically involve your academic transcripts, but an employer may ask you to provide that information. This happens in some exceptionally c ompetitive entry-level positions.If a company has hundreds of graduates applying for the same position, then a GPA may be important to the employer. In this case, there is a good chance they could ask you for a copy of your transcript to verify your GPA. This leads us to our next question.Do employers care about your GPA?This is a tough topic weve devoted a separate blog post to: Does Your GPA Really Matter?Here is an excerpt from that post:For larger and well-known companies like Ford and General Motors, GPA can be a very important factor for establishing baseline criteria for employment. Other large firms use similar hiring criteria, and for similar reasons. Many of these firms actively recruit on college campuses across the United States, and need a way to quickly differentiate between different groups of applicants. Your grade point average offers a useful metric to accomplish that goal.So, some employers care about your GPA and may reject candidates below a certain threshold. T hese tend to be large companies with steep competition for entry-level jobs. This brings us right back to the initial question.Should you lie about your GPA?No, lying about your GPA on your resume can have some serious consequences. You may think that the worst-case scenario is that you dont get the job. In fact, the worst-case scenarios are if you DO get the job.Here is what can happen if you do get the job.Scenario 1: You get hired and the company later decides to verify your GPA. Not only will you get fired, but you may also have ruined future opportunities. What happens if your next employer asks why you left your last job? Or if they can contact a reference at your previous job?Scenario 2: You get hired and after some time, the company decides to promote you to a higher-level position. They may look to verify your education and GPA. When they catch you in the lie, youre now jobless with a longer work history. It will look even worse for you if your next employer cant contact an yone from your last company.SummaryYour GPA only matters to a small selection of companies for a short period of time. Its not worth lying over, when the consequences can be sudden and public. Either include your actual GPA or skip it altogether.Good luck with your job search! Here Is What Happens When You Lie About Your GPA on a Resume Spread the loveLying about a GPA is one of the most common lies made on a resume. Many job seekers are tempted to inflate their GPA in order to stand out from the crowd. Well talk about what happens when you lie about your GPA on a resume.Lying about your GPA on a resumeLying is bad. We know this. Moving on.Keep in mind that you dont actually have to include your GPA on your resume. This is really surprising for some recent graduates. Unless the job application specifically asks for your GPA, you can leave it off. In fact, there are a few reasons you want to leave education information off your resume.You also dont need to include your GPA if you have adequate work experience and arent fresh out of school. We wrote a good post on whether or not you should include your GPA on a resume. Your GPA doesnt say much about you as an applicant, though. Try to quantify your value for a job in other ways.If you still feel like you need to include an inaccurate GPA on your resume, here are some common questions with answers from our experts.What are the chances of getting caught lying about a GPA?This is impossible to measure.Do people get caught? Yes.Is it likely? No.Is it worth it? Also no.Not only do you risk losing your job if you do get caught lying, but you also risk some serious damage to your future. There have been numerous cases of well-known executives getting fired because they lied about their GPA or degree.One famous case involved the CEO of Yahoo who got caught years later lying on his resume about a degree which he never had. The results were not good. While youre probably not applying for a CEO role out of school, you never know where youll end up. Getting caught in a lie years later can have lasting repercussions for the rest of your career.Do employers do a background check to verify your GPA?A background check doesnt typically involve your academic transcripts, but an employer may ask you to provide that information. This happens in some exceptionally c ompetitive entry-level positions.If a company has hundreds of graduates applying for the same position, then a GPA may be important to the employer. In this case, there is a good chance they could ask you for a copy of your transcript to verify your GPA. This leads us to our next question.Do employers care about your GPA?This is a tough topic weve devoted a separate blog post to: Does Your GPA Really Matter?Here is an excerpt from that post:For larger and well-known companies like Ford and General Motors, GPA can be a very important factor for establishing baseline criteria for employment. Other large firms use similar hiring criteria, and for similar reasons. Many of these firms actively recruit on college campuses across the United States, and need a way to quickly differentiate between different groups of applicants. Your grade point average offers a useful metric to accomplish that goal.So, some employers care about your GPA and may reject candidates below a certain threshold. T hese tend to be large companies with steep competition for entry-level jobs. This brings us right back to the initial question.Should you lie about your GPA?No, lying about your GPA on your resume can have some serious consequences. You may think that the worst-case scenario is that you dont get the job. In fact, the worst-case scenarios are if you DO get the job.Here is what can happen if you do get the job.Scenario 1: You get hired and the company later decides to verify your GPA. Not only will you get fired, but you may also have ruined future opportunities. What happens if your next employer asks why you left your last job? Or if they can contact a reference at your previous job?Scenario 2: You get hired and after some time, the company decides to promote you to a higher-level position. They may look to verify your education and GPA. When they catch you in the lie, youre now jobless with a longer work history. It will look even worse for you if your next employer cant contact an yone from your last company.SummaryYour GPA only matters to a small selection of companies for a short period of time. Its not worth lying over, when the consequences can be sudden and public. Either include your actual GPA or skip it altogether.Good luck with your job search! Here Is What Happens When You Lie About Your GPA on a Resume Spread the loveLying about a GPA is one of the most common lies made on a resume. Many job seekers are tempted to inflate their GPA in order to stand out from the crowd. Well talk about what happens when you lie about your GPA on a resume.Lying about your GPA on a resumeLying is bad. We know this. Moving on.Keep in mind that you dont actually have to include your GPA on your resume. This is really surprising for some recent graduates. Unless the job application specifically asks for your GPA, you can leave it off. In fact, there are a few reasons you want to leave education information off your resume.You also dont need to include your GPA if you have adequate work experience and arent fresh out of school. We wrote a good post on whether or not you should include your GPA on a resume. Your GPA doesnt say much about you as an applicant, though. Try to quantify your value for a job in other ways.If you still feel like you need to include an inaccurate GPA on your resume, here are some common questions with answers from our experts.What are the chances of getting caught lying about a GPA?This is impossible to measure.Do people get caught? Yes.Is it likely? No.Is it worth it? Also no.Not only do you risk losing your job if you do get caught lying, but you also risk some serious damage to your future. There have been numerous cases of well-known executives getting fired because they lied about their GPA or degree.One famous case involved the CEO of Yahoo who got caught years later lying on his resume about a degree which he never had. The results were not good. While youre probably not applying for a CEO role out of school, you never know where youll end up. Getting caught in a lie years later can have lasting repercussions for the rest of your career.Do employers do a background check to verify your GPA?A background check doesnt typically involve your academic transcripts, but an employer may ask you to provide that information. This happens in some exceptionally c ompetitive entry-level positions.If a company has hundreds of graduates applying for the same position, then a GPA may be important to the employer. In this case, there is a good chance they could ask you for a copy of your transcript to verify your GPA. This leads us to our next question.Do employers care about your GPA?This is a tough topic weve devoted a separate blog post to: Does Your GPA Really Matter?Here is an excerpt from that post:For larger and well-known companies like Ford and General Motors, GPA can be a very important factor for establishing baseline criteria for employment. Other large firms use similar hiring criteria, and for similar reasons. Many of these firms actively recruit on college campuses across the United States, and need a way to quickly differentiate between different groups of applicants. Your grade point average offers a useful metric to accomplish that goal.So, some employers care about your GPA and may reject candidates below a certain threshold. T hese tend to be large companies with steep competition for entry-level jobs. This brings us right back to the initial question.Should you lie about your GPA?No, lying about your GPA on your resume can have some serious consequences. You may think that the worst-case scenario is that you dont get the job. In fact, the worst-case scenarios are if you DO get the job.Here is what can happen if you do get the job.Scenario 1: You get hired and the company later decides to verify your GPA. Not only will you get fired, but you may also have ruined future opportunities. What happens if your next employer asks why you left your last job? Or if they can contact a reference at your previous job?Scenario 2: You get hired and after some time, the company decides to promote you to a higher-level position. They may look to verify your education and GPA. When they catch you in the lie, youre now jobless with a longer work history. It will look even worse for you if your next employer cant contact an yone from your last company.SummaryYour GPA only matters to a small selection of companies for a short period of time. Its not worth lying over, when the consequences can be sudden and public. Either include your actual GPA or skip it altogether.Good luck with your job search!

How To Throw An Amazing Office Holiday Party - Work It Daily

How To Throw An Amazing Office Holiday Party - Work It Daily Company holiday parties give the employees an opportunity to relax and have fun with the other co-workers - without having to face the regular pressure that they feel at the office. Even if it doesn’t compare to the relaxation you feel when taking a vacation, it’s still a great way to bond with each other and have a good time without forgetting it’s still an office activity. Throwing a great company holiday party doesn’t really take much - as long as you know what kind of theme or idea you want to go with. In the following article, we discuss a few seasonal office holiday party ideas... Summer Party Before you plan the party, have a word with your boss so that you can confirm the budget, how big the summer party will be and if families will be able to attend. A great way to have a summer office party is to have a picnic in the park. Talk to your boss and suggest him/her to announce Friday as a “half day” and have all the workers meet at a park that is nearest to the office. People are more likely to bring some good food for this picnic when they know they’re going to get an afternoon off. If there’s no office near the park then you can have a nice rooftop party, having fun in the summer breeze. As far as the entertainment is concerned, you can book a DJ or a live band if it fits in the budget. Halloween Party While everybody is getting ready to party during the Halloween night, why don’t you throw one during the day at the office? It’s one of the most fun things you can do! Start by sending an invite to everybody and coming up with a nice, spooky theme that’s associated with your company. Inform your co-workers that they should all come dressed in an Halloween costume! There are too many costume vendors to count, especially online ones like HalloweenExpress.com, Spirit Haloween, or Party City! Next, head over to the grocery store and get lots of candy, chips and dip, snack trays, drinks and foods. On Halloween, make sure you decorate the room where the party will take place. Decorate it with fake spiders, cobwebs and other Halloween decorations. Finally, set up the food/drinks table and put on a CD with popular Halloween hits. Christmas Party First off, go ahead and choose the location/date of the Christmas party you’re going to throw in the office. It’s a good idea to have the employees take a small survey to know who all are available. Once you’re done with that, create your invitations that you should send out at least one month before the scheduled party. Keeping your office’s budget in mind, buy some creative decorations and plan for some nice music by hiring DJ or booking a musical act in advance. As far as the food and drinks are concerned, choose between a sit down dinner and a buffet style, which again depends on your office budget. And don’t forget to include some fun games. Plan to have at least 3-4 activities for the party such as having some type of contest (Best Christmas Costume for example). This year, don't let the opportunity for some great employee-company bonding pass you by - take advantage of some great holiday parties this year for the office and give the people some fun experiences to talk about. Photo Credit: Shutterstock Have you joined our career growth club?Join For Free!

7 Women On Why They Wont Wear Makeup To Work

7 Women On Why They Wont Wear Makeup To Work For me, makeup means Im ready for my day. Its parte of my ritualistic daily routine. If I dont have makeup on, it means that I am notlage leaving the house. And even if I am planning to stay home all day, I dont feel put together or on my game without makeup on. For me, its a given.Over the years, Ive learned that many women dont wear makeup on the daily. Many dont even wear makeup to work. I spoke to seven women about why they dont wear makeup to work. Here are some of the most common reasons they shared1. Sleep is more important.Many women mentioned that with kids at home to get ready, fed and off to school in the morning, applying a full face of makeup means less precious time to do what they need to do most sleep. Nancy, one mom I spoke to, said that if doing her makeup means losing an extra 30, 20 or even 5 minutes of sleep, she will gladly skip the concealer and hit thesnooze button.2. When you work at home, you dont see anyone anyw ay.Many women mentioned it welches pointless to spend time applying their face because working from home meant they dont encounter the public. For women like Ashley, one professional I spoke to, doing their makeup was more for the people looking at them than for their own self-esteem.3. For some, makeup does the opposite of its purpose and makes you feel LESS confident.One woman I spoke to, Beth, said that learning how to apply makeup wasnt one of her life lessons growing up. She shared that her mom never gave her the tips and tricks on eye shadow or mascara because her mom didnt wear makeup either. For Beth, applying cosmetics makes her more self-conscious throughout the day. She chooses to stay au-natural in the personenname of personal comfort.4. Hard labor gets in the way of having products on your face.Laura, who works in construction, mentioned that having a job that involves labor, dust, and getting overheated means that makeup doesnt last long. Shed rather skip the step than waste the time on something that isnt going to stay on throughout the day.5. Some will only wear it if they are going to be around clients.Similar to those working from home, many women said the only time they worry about applying a stroke of blush or swipe of eyeshadow is if they plan to see clients that day. If they know they will be spending the day in the office, they forgo the extra work in the morning and opt for extra minutes of sleep instead.6. Some say they choose not to wear makeup to break through societys gender norms.Dee McCord from The Shapiro Ballroom in Chicago says that being in an industry where societys beauty standards are important means that choosing not to wear makeup brings no shortage of comments throughout the day. Shes consistently asked about why she chooses to abstain from the posh beauty norms of her high-profile clientele. For her, non-conforming proves a point.7. It brings them too much attention.A handful of women mentioned that they didnt appreciat e theextra attention they received from others when they wear makeup mainly unwanted advances from men. One woman, Kelly, shared that working in a restaurant/bar means that patrons are frequently drinking and for her, the sexual comments have made her decide to opt out of any beauty rituals before heading in to work. This is a shame. Women shouldnt feel they have to change their routine to tailor to others, especially in their place of work.As a woman who wears makeup on more days that not, it came as a surprise to me how many women feel empowered enough to not titel up their blemishes and aging with cosmetics and concealers before they head out the door every day. It got me thinking that maybe I have been using makeup as a way to prove something to others, when I should be considering if its really helping me. Because, lets be honest, makeup isnt cheap and I could use the extra sleep myself most mornings.--Nicole is a realtor, divorced mom of three, and ally to the transgender co mmunity. As a mom who achieved her graduate degree alongside growing her family, she understands the importance of finding a work/life balance. Follow her onher blogwhere she focuses on family, parenting, divorce, and experiences of raising a young transgender child.

Top Administrative Assistant Resume Objective Choices

Top Administrative Assistant Resume Objective Choices Want to Know More About Administrative Assistant Resume Objective? Drafting an objective statement is quite easy. Writing a board coverletter could possibly be an arduous undertaking. The Career Objective is intended to provide the hiring manager a reason to keep on reading your resume. Writing objectives for resumes can be hard. The Appeal of Administrative Assistant Resume Objective Fill the info in Administrative assistant resume skills sample document as it is not hard to understand and covers all facets of the skilled and individual data. Dont neglect to have a look at the subsequent Administrative Assistant resume sample for mora information about how to make yours perfect Administrative assistants are employed in nearly every sort of large and established companies where the administration function is too large to control. Senior administrative assistant resume has professional experience category to offer thorou gh information regarding the job profiles before. The Unexpected Truth About Administrative Assistant Resume Objective Only you must send a great administrative assistant resume to recruiters. Last, the volunteer work indicates a service mindset. The Fundamentals of Administrative Assistant Resume Objective Revealed In terms of skills, you need to have an extensive array of skills for an administrative assistant. An effective career objective shouldnt be generic. Its recommended that you develop your very own objective statement based on your abilities and goals, instead of merely copying the above. Relevant interpersonal skills would be convenient. The 5-Minute Rule for Administrative Assistant Resume Objective In addition, you can learn more on the topic of administrative careers on Monster. Revamping your resume prior to a work search is almost always a good idea. What Does Administrative Assistant Resume Objective Mean? Medical assistant is a significant portion o f the medical fraternity. Not certain how to compose your dental assistant resume. 9 steps to compose the ideal medical assistant resume. Technician and fulfilling lage objective is quite critical for career path. Use the objective to inform the employer why youre the ideal person for the position. My aim is to get a position within the medical. Your career objective should clearly describe the position you are looking for in the organization and explain to them your abilities and exceptional traits which make you suitable for the position. The language you are using in your objective makes a big difference. You should understand exactly everything youve mentioned in the objective and utilize it using a proper resume format. The very first thing you ought to do in order to create the Resume Objective resume is selecting a paper. Employed as an administrative assistant will be able to help you earn a decent amount of money and is regarded as a strong career path for anyb ody that has a passion of working with many files and secretarial work. An objective statement persuades the prospective employer give a favorable appearance to the remainder of your resume which is the reason why it holds plenty of weight. Your resume should note your particular work experience in managing scheduling problems, preparing travel arrangements, and preparing reports. Resume writing can be challenging.