By Cheryl Lickfeld, Chief Financial/Administrative Officer
We recently hired an Administrative Assistant at TC&C. Of course, when I posted the position on the traverscollins.com website and The Buffalo News job finder website, I anticipated that we would have an overwhelming response, not only because of the job market, but because TC&C has a great reputation. What I didn’t expect was over 200 resumes. And believe me, it wasn’t hard to narrow down the resumes to a few for consideration of an interview. For all you job seekers out there, a few words of wisdom on the fundamentals of submitting a resume and cover letter.
1. Follow directions. If I ask for a resume and cover letter to be submitted by email, then send a cover letter and resume by email. Take the time to write a cover letter, especially because I asked for one.
2. Spell my name correctly. It isn’t Lickfield, or, as someone wrote, Lickens. My name isn’t “To Whom it May Concern”. My name is Lickfeld, which was spelled in the job posting.
3. Proofread, proofread, proofread. Spell checkers are not your best friend. A candidate sent a resume that said “administrative cuties include…” It’s a shame because if it wasn’t for that one typo I would have scheduled an interview.
4. Email doesn’t mean informal. When you are responding to a job posting via email, it doesn’t mean that we are Facebook friends. Dear Cheryl and Hi Cheryl should only be used once we have a relationship.
5. Don’t be cutesy. Remember that you are applying for a position at a well respected agency. A candidate’s cover letter had a sentence with salary requirements. The very next sentence was this - “However, it would not be a problem for me if the salary amount was increased (smile).” I kid you not.
It is a really competitive job market. No detail is too small to knock you out of the running. If you haven’t already, email your resume and cover letter to a few people whose judgment you value. Ask them to look for any mistakes or missteps. I hope the person whose resume stated “administrative cuties” reads this blog and follows that advice.
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