Career Help and Advice

I just had to review loads of cover letters and resumes for a position in my organization. I appreciated letters that were customized for the position. Generic letters were a major turn off. I also appreciate letters that were concise. I wanted them to tell me something I couldn't see in the resume, but I wanted them to tell me quickly.

I also wanted the cover letters to tell me things that I specifically asked for, like salary requirements. I asked for that in the position announcement, and didn't appreciate it when people didn't follow instructions.

Also, summery or objective lines in resumes were not very meaningful to me and worked against the candidate when they were too generic - or if it was headed as an objective, but was actually a summary.

I appreciated resumes that detailed achievements rather than skills and responsibilities.

Also, if people left out months when stating how long they were with each organization, 2001 - 2003 for example, I assumed the worst. I assumed that meant December 2001 - January 2003 and they were trying to make what was just over a year look like two years.

One more thing - if you report on your resume achievements related to revenue - percentages are meaningless, as in I increased revenue by 20%. I need to know how much.

Good luck.