Writing Letters for Cold Canvassing (IT) Jobs? 60
jtan163 asks: "I'm trying to help a friend write job applications for cold canvassing jobs in the IT industry but we're quite stuck. His CV/Resume shows his skills and employment history and even to some extent, what he is looking for.
So, what do you put in the letter for cold canvassing IT (and probably any other field) job applications? With cold canvassing, is the letter really important or is it just 'fluff' so the CV/Resume doesn't get lonely in the envelope (electronic or otherwise)? We'd love to hear about what has worked or not for you. Or, if you happen to be a job application consumer, what you look for in, or at least what would make you consider (or at least not throw out), a cold canvassed application?"
Print them on the cheapest paper you can find (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Print them on the cheapest paper you can find (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:Print them on the cheapest paper you can find (Score:2)
Re:Print them on the cheapest paper you can find (Score:2)
Re:Print them on the cheapest paper you can find (Score:2)
Re:Print them on the cheapest paper you can find (Score:2)
Sysadmins are being automated out of existenance... we manage something like 50,000 desktops and 2,000 servers with a staff of 20.
If you're a skilled programmer or network specialist, you can write your ticket.
Re:Print them on the cheapest paper you can find (Score:2)
Heh, that's obviously not a MS environment!
Re:Print them on the cheapest paper you can find (Score:3, Insightful)
And the way you automate a sysadmin out of existence is by first hiring a sysadmin...
Re:Print them on the cheapest paper you can find (Score:2)
Re:Print them on the cheapest paper you can find (Score:2)
I fail to see a problem.
Re:Print them on the cheapest paper you can find (Score:2)
So it's more or less "one company, one sysadmin." :)
I fail to see a problem.
You must be new :). Once you automate everything, they fire you because everything runs itself, then they ignore the systems until they explode out of neglect. Depending on the company, they may threaten legal action or bring you back as a consultant.
Re:Print them on the cheapest paper you can find (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Print them on the cheapest paper you can find (Score:2)
This is not what we see here. We advertise for a position and there is an oversaturation of two-year college html writers who think they are programmers because they can put together twenty lines of php.
In particular, for each of the last five positions we had open the most we got was three resumes that truly met the required quali
Re:Print them on the cheapest paper you can find (Score:2)
Re:Print them on the cheapest paper you can find (Score:2)
(a) Search across the country. Focus particularly for jobs in smaller cities that traditionally have a hard time attracting IT personnel.
(b) Search abroad. Canada, Ireland, UK, and, if you can handle the language, Germany, which are places often short on IT personnel.
(c) Focus our search on fields where you can leverage your expertise. If you spent the last four years doing say, scientific measurement
Re:Print them on the cheapest paper you can find (Score:1)
Do you have any suggestions on how to search abroad? I will be graduating from college in December, and while our career services is pretty good for US positions, I would truely love to work in Ireland, the UK, or Germany (I speak German).
Re:Print them on the cheapest paper you can find (Score:1)
Re:Print them on the cheapest paper you can find (Score:2)
Re:Print them on the cheapest paper you can find (Score:1)
Out of which I went to 5 interviews and landed a great new job.
It's all about the job market it seems
Have you read... (Score:3, Informative)
That book has been the bible for job seekers for as long as I can remember...and it's a pretty good book on the subject. There is a section on how to look for jobs and techniques for each...I don't recall if there is a specific section on cover letter writing. However, if that's all you've got for a job search method now, then WCIYP will give you loads of other ideas and the reasons why they work.
Here's your content: (Score:3, Insightful)
Please allow me to waste ten seconds of your life.
Sincerely,
459 of 3021
Step One. (Score:4, Funny)
Learn the proper title.
If you're addressing your applications to "job application consumer", I can see why you're not having very good luck.
Re:Step One. (Score:3, Funny)
Sorry.
Dear Senior Job Application Consumer...
Re:Step One. (Score:2)
Networking (Score:4, Insightful)
Beyond that, I don't have much. But I would definately at least Include a cover letter. If you don't its going to look like you don't care, and thats the last thing you want.
*now I'll sit back and wait to be corrected*
Re:Networking (Score:2)
So he should write a pile of those letters, then get his friends to HAND DELIVER THEM to the right person.
Re:Networking (Score:1)
Re:Networking (Score:2)
Re:Networking (Score:1)
go contracting (Score:2)
I haven't tried it in the real world yet, but.. (Score:3, Informative)
You could have it professionally done (Score:5, Informative)
Re:You could have it professionally done (Score:3, Interesting)
You would not believe the difference that a nice looking, well written resume and cover letter can make. This is one area where hiring a professional is the best financial decision you can make, unless you have an eye for layout and tasteful yet distinctive color and fonts, well-honed grammar and the ability to objectively focus on your selling points without drowning the reader in detail. A professional resume consultant is usually worth every penny they charge.
Re:You could have it professionally done (Score:2, Interesting)
But companies started falling over themselves to give her interviews, and she was able to choose where to go rather than taking what was offered.
Re:You could have it professionally done (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:You could have it professionally done (Score:5, Interesting)
First, someone above mentioned "What color is your parachute". Absolutely 100% required reading.
Second, someone also suggested calling rather than mailing an unsolicited resume. Absolutely 100% correct.
We're technical folks, you're looking for a technical job, why aren't you taking a technical approach?
If I told you to write a program, what the first question you would ask? Ok, after, how much am I paying? You'd ask what the program is supposed to do. You need to know the desired features, the target audience, etc. before you can get started.
You friend should do the same with a job search. Okay, What is the purpose of the cover letter/resume? The purpose of the resume is to get the interview. Period. That's it. So sure, send "fluff" if you like wasting your time, paper, postage, time of the person you're sending it to, etc. Otherwise, the cover letter and resume should peak the target's interest. The goal is to get that person to invite you in to their office.
A call is better than an unsolicited resume fore several reasons.
First, a personal call has more weight. There are jag-offs out there spamming 1400 recruiters at a shot. For all I know, the resume you sent me is one of 1400. You call me, I know you're not on the phone with 1399 other people at the same time.
Second, a personal call demands attention. I may give you brush off, but at least I have to do it when you call. A resume comes in the mail, I put it in a 'to do' pile, I shuffle it around, maybe I read it, maybe I don't.
Third, a personal call gets you to do a little more of your homework. An unsolicited resume to the 'HR Department' or 'IT Hiring Manager' gets filed away. Odds are, it is never even read. You find the person you want to work for and call that person by name, A)you've done a little research into the company and judged it as a potential target. No sense in wasting my time by sending me a resume, having me call you in, only for you to decide my company isn't right for you. B)You've got my attention. Mail to 'Generic Title' ends up in the stack of papers I really should go over but don't have time for. Mail to 'Mr. Smith' at least gets opened. A phone call to 'Mr. Smith' at least gets my voice mail, if not me in person. And if I don't return vm, you don't want to work for me anyway. C)If I'm paying attention when you call, I realize you've done your research to find my name and phone number for your targeted search. You've shown you're willing to work towards your goal. You're up on 75% of the competition already. (And you're blowing the unsolicited resume crowd out of the water.)
Forth, you may get out of writing a cover letter all together (or at least have an easier time of it). The call may end with a request for your resume. You'll need to include a cover letter, but you'll mostly just need to refresh my memory of our phone conversation. (Dear Mr. Smith...resume as we discussed...my experience as I mentioned...also bring these skills to the table...hugs and kisses, and so on. It practically writes itself.) If all goes well, and this is the goal of the conversation, we end by arranging the face-to-face interview. No cover letter needed!
And there ya go! You've done a little work targeting me as a potential boss, and in doing so, set yourself ahead of the unsolicited resume crowd and created the impression of a focused, not-looking-for-the-easy-way-out, go-getter that would make an excellent addition to my team. Congratulations, when can you start?
Now, about the parent post. Get some help with cover letters and resumes. Can be professional, can be an experienced friend or family who's been through the job hunt/hiring process a few times. BUT! remember, you have to back up every single word of that resume. You can dress it up, you can spin it, but it better be true. And you had best be able to discuss it. If you put it to paper and send it in, it is fair game. If I ask you about something on you
suggest drinking on the first interview. (Score:4, Funny)
25 Reasons Alcohol Should be Served at Work
1. It's an incentive to show up.
2. It reduces stress.
3. It leads to more honest communications.
4. It reduces complaints about low pay.
5. It cuts down on time off because you can work with a hangover.
6. Employees tell management what they think, not what managers want to hear.
7. It helps save on heating costs in the winter.
8. It encourages carpooling.
9. Increase job satisfaction because if you have a bad job, you don't care.
10. It eliminates vacations because people would rather come to work.
11. It makes fellow employees look better.
12. It makes the cafeteria food taste better.
13. Bosses are more likely to hand out raises when they are wasted.
14. Salary negotiations are a lot more profitable.
15. Suddenly, burping during a meeting isn't so embarrassing.
16. Employees work later since there's no longer a need to relax at the bar.
17. It makes everyone more open with their ideas.
18. Everyone agrees they work better after they've had a couple of drinks.
19. Eliminates the need for employees to get drunk on their lunch break.
20. Increases the chance of seeing your boss naked.-SCARY!!!!
21. It promotes foreign relations with the former Soviet Union.
22. The janitor's closet will finally have a use.
23. Employees no longer need coffee to sober up.
24. Sitting on the copy machine will no longer be seen as "gross."
25. Babbling and mumbling incoherently will be common.
http://www.realestatehumor.com/index.php?inl_them
Don't write, call (Score:4, Insightful)
People are overly sensitive to junk mail these days, especially managers, so unless you are willing to take the time to research it properly you're going to go nowhere.
Damien
Introduction (Score:3, Informative)
You might want to also include a "business card" with your name, primary skills and contact details - while the CV might get binned, the business card might just make it to the card file.
my experience (Score:3, Funny)
The best part about this job is, they pay you not to show up!
You could write a letter to my company... (Score:2)
Haha. I hate the place.
Cover Letters (Score:3, Interesting)
Cover letters can seem hard, but I've noticed that if I have a lot of trouble thinking up a cover letter for a job it means that probably isn't the right job for me. A resume can be only so long, so a person with strong experience has to leave stuff out. This leaves the cover letter as a prime location for adding additional details and making them relevant to the company you are applying to.
That is, if companies even bother reading the thousands of cover letters they get...sigh.
Re:Cover Letters (Score:2)
Bingo!
When I got downsized in February, my former employers paid for me to attend an outplacement consultants for 3 months. There were some very helpful seminars, CV (resume) reviews, "self-marketing" guidance and the like.
It sounded really pointy-haired, but it helped a great deal in landing me my new job.
I wanted to apply for a job as a
Online Resumes (Score:1)
As a consultant, from a hiring perspective, I'd certainly be impressed with anyone who submitted a resume in this format.
To the contrary, if applicants could *not* email, then there was no way I was going to hire them into a tech position.
The great thing about an online web resume, is that you can comb the logs to determine what companies are showing interest and what information they are viewing.
http://kevindawson.ca/ [kevindawson.ca] for my example.
Here's a great resource (Score:2)
Among other things, he describes a "job creation" strategy, which will beat the heck out of any cold-calling plan you can come up with.
Highly recommended.
How to ensure that YOUR cover letter will be read: (Score:2)
Barring such subterfuge, you might as well forget about it. That whole "job" thing? Yeah, it's gone.
Good luck, though.
P.S. When you've completely given up, try civil service. It's a good living
Re:How to ensure that YOUR cover letter will be re (Score:2)
They are all so surprised and upset when they realize they really don't have any job security. Unemployment is just a budget cut or Administration change away.
Re:How to ensure that YOUR cover letter will be re (Score:2)
a good free resource (Score:2)
Not the right approach (Score:2)
Try dice.com
I did this once (Score:2, Interesting)
I printed up a bunch of resumes, got out the phone book (yellow pages) and just started going down companies who I thought would hire tech people.
I just started with the A's and spend afternoons driving to the address and leaving my (single page) resume.
WHen I got to the C's, and I was leaving my resume with a particular company, the receptionist said "hold on" and she walked away.
She came back
What is Cold Canvassing? (Score:2)
Even Google doesn't know [google.com]!
Re:What is Cold Canvassing? (Score:2)