Q: I don't think companies want resumes that sell the person. They want to know what the person can specifically do to accomplish their goals. Even if it's only 10 percent of all they can do, that's what the candidate should be presenting to the interviewer. The rest is useless noise.
The entire concept of a resume forces the hiring manager to imagine how the candidate's experience directly relates to whatever is needed by the hiring company. Past experience works as a proof point, but it's not the way to lead a discussion.
Back when jobs were standardized, past and current job titles communicated what the candidates did, but titles don't mean much any more. What matters is what you can do.
Also, LinkedIn now fulfills the function of a resume, so I can't imagine managers fussing over paper resumes.
A: If recruiters and managers only rely on LinkedIn, they'd be missing out on some of the best candidates possible. All formats used for sharing information can be helpful, but none tell a person's full story. The mere structure of an information company restricts candidates in what they may want to share online. Many people have multiple talents, so if they live by your rules, they will not only limit their chances of focusing on several fields, they will not succeed in reaching out for the various jobs they may equally like.
If a person has a specific focus area in an even narrower specialty (we won't use examples so as to save people thinking negatively about their jobs), relying on one business-networking company may work. They can just list their skills and the companies they've worked at and hope that some recruiter sees it and says, "Hey, here's a guy who did exactly what we want someone to do." It may be, though, that the guy who performs a specific skill at his current company doesn't want to ever perform in that capacity again.
Multi-dimensional, multi-talented people may scare off employers if they list online all that they've done. It wouldn't be the first time a person hears that he or she was passed over because the company was afraid the person would be bored on the job. The truth is, no one knows how that person will feel once in the job, but most people would certainly like the option to choose.
That's why a person might want several resumes, which means LinkedIn isn't going to be useful. One resume emphasizing one or more related focus areas; another resume combining all their experiences (related and unrelated) to show their many talents and adaptability; and perhaps a third showing how their various abilities transfer to another new area.
Sending different resumes to different types of companies can offer a job hunter a broad range in careers and the greatest number of options. In short, when a multi-talented person is job hunting, a focused resume may be useful for certain companies, while a resume that shows the whole picture may be what the candidate prefers. A job search can be exhilarating to a person who has choices in jobs and in careers. Studies have shown people can change careers up to 10 times in one's life, and that kind of change won't happen if they leave their job search up to recruiters looking up their backgrounds online and making judgment calls on whether they will fit a particular company.
Studies also show that Millennials won't stay in narrow-performance jobs that have no meaning to them, so getting hired for a certain skill set may be the very work that entices them to quit. This freer spirited type of employee may be able to show companies that what they lack in rigid performance they gain in creativity, and ultimately, that could mean a better work product and a happier company culture.
Email your questions to workplace expert Lindsey Novak at [email protected] and follow her on Twitter @TheLindseyNovak and Facebook at Lindsey.Novak.12. To find out more about Lindsey Novak, visit the Creators Syndicate Website at www.creators.com.
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