We spend a great deal of time talking
to recruiters, employers and human resource staff every week. I recently sent
an email asking some of them what they would list as their top 3 peeves when it
came to receivingresumes and short-listing candidates. You should have
seen my inbox fill up with responses! Many were repeated, so I thought I would
share a list of the top 20.
Straight
from the mouths of the people reading your resumes:
1. Rambling! I wish people would get to the point. I
haven’t got time to read a novel.
2. Resumes that are a straight list of duties. Tell us
what you did differently, what you did well.
3. I want people to tell me how they meet my need. If
not, I move on to the next resume. Simple.
4. People who don’t meet the criteria for the role. If
you don’t have the essential skills required, then don’t apply. Essential and
desirable criteria are listed for a reason.
5. Career Objectives. OMG, these are so annoying. I
don’t want to know what you want. I want to know what you can do for me!
6. Incorrect contact details. If an email bounces or
the wrong phone number has been given, I won’t search for them, I’ll just move
on to the next application.
7. Poor grammar and spelling mistakes. It amazes me
how many people apply for a role where written business communication is a
major component of the role and send me a resume riddled with errors. These
people usually claim they pay attention to detail as well!
8. An application addressed to someone else. Its
obvious they use the same application for every job and haven’t changed the
salutation. These usually hit the shredder.
9. Clutter. Personally, I can’t stand looking at resumes that are jammed so tight and written using
the smallest font to get as much information on the page as possible. They are
too hard to read and very unappealing.
10. A cover letter that repeats, verbatim, what is in the
resume. Why bother? You’ve wasted my time and yours.
12. When you call a candidate about a job application
and they say something along the lines of “ Sorry, what job is this about
again?” Keep track of your applications.
13. Resumes without dates for each position. My first
thought is “What are you trying to hide?”
14. I’m sick of reading that everyone is a team player,
has attention to detail and can see the big picture. Really? Prove it.
15. When I ask about salary expectations and get the
“What is this role offering?” question in return. You should have an
expectation and be prepared to discuss it.
16. Candidates who can’t make the time for an
interview. I spent close to 20mins on the phone the other day with a woman who
couldn’t seem to lock in a time to meet. It interfered with soccer practice,
music practice, a monthly ‘girls’ movie night, and of course, her current role.
If you’re serious about job hunting – make the time to be available for the
interview.
17. Template driven resumes. One day recently I saw 4 resumes, the exact same format, and in some sections, the
exact same wording! Write it yourself or get a reputable writer to do it for
you.
18. Resumes that are not in chronological order. It is
too hard to followresumes that jump all over the place.
19. Trying to figure out locations of positions. People
who have worked internationally or nationally need to include this information
– I am not an atlas!
20. Gaps in employment that haven’t been explained. I
know you will have a reason for it, but try telling me, I’m not a psychic.
So there you have it …. 20 ways in
which to kill your application and lose an opportunity. I hope by sharing
these, you will be able to avoid some of these pitfalls in your job search.
