Constructing an effective Resume

Luke Carolan*
Tuesday, 11 September 2007 10:02

IT People - People

Introduction to Resumes

As an introduction believe it important to discuss the reasons behind your resume and the viability of cover notes.

Two questions I'm commonly asked are: what is the real purpose of my resume? And what should I be looking to achieve from it?

A resume is a tool to get you to the point of an interview or an informal meeting where you can better display, qualify and represent your skills, experiences and attributes. Your resume is the first stage in a process that can influence your life and the lives of those around you. This is not something to be taken lightly.

Under the current system of recruitment in the corporate environment it is likely you will lodge an application through a recruitment consultant (whether an internal recruitment consultant or an external agent). Most recruitment agents will be retaining your information on a database which has specific search functions including 'Key Word', 'Skills Summary', 'Availability', 'Location' etc.  What this means is your resume should contain this information in-order for the database to find you effectively and display required information to your recruitment consultant. Most people's preferences for the perfect resume will vary considerably.

However, the objective will always remain the same.

 

Introduction to Cover notes

Many recruitment consultants are asked: Do you actually read cover notes? And are they really worth it?

Your cover note is likely to be used in the recruitment process. A cover note is information that a recruitment consultants to uses measure your suitability to the advertised position. A cover note should always be personalized to the position you're applying for, by doing so you have shown your recruitment consultant you are putting in an effort to give your application the best chance it can have, and if it is good many recruiters will use this information when representing you to their clients.

*Luke Carolan is a senior recruitment consultant with RSP Recruitment www.rsprecruitment.com.au/

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*Luke Carolan is an industry professional working for CXC Global with over seven years of experience in consultation of best business practice, resource hiring with in depth knowledge of Tax Minimization Services.