Submitted a resume? Its not enough to get the interview!
Posted on May 19, 2024 by Martin Hahn, One of Thousands of Career Coaches on Noomii.
Submitting your resume onlie is not enough. Resumes need to be submitted to aliving person.
Are you submitting your resume online?
or are you sending it to a human
Candidates who solely submit their resume online
rarely hear from companies.
Ironically submitting your resume online should only be
your backup plan. You should always send it to a human person.
Submitting your resume online’ to represent when you are following instructions for an
impersonal procedural submission of your resume rather than sending it
directly to a known individual.
The problem with submitting your resume online is that it is highly
unlikely it will be reviewed by an actual human. And it is highly likely it will
be reviewed by a computer programmed to simply identify certain
keywords. And what happens if you don’t have the right keywords on your
resume? You’ll be passed right on by even if you are the perfect candidate.
Rather than submit your resume online, you do the
following three things:
1. Send your resume to a person within the company.
Find someone in the company, anyone in the company, you can forward
your resume to. The best person, of course, is the hiring manager. Next best
is someone in recruiting, HR, or the department for which you are
applying. If you strike out with these options, then send it to anyone in the
company you have a remote connection with and ask them if they would
please forward your resume to the hiring manager. Don’t be shy to reach out to
friends, connections, and family to let them know you are a perfect for a
role at a certain Company and ask if they have a contact there you can send
your resume to.
2. Send your resume to a contact of the hiring manager.
Using your personal network, and someone who knows
the hiring manager or an employee within the department for which you
are applying. Ask that person to forward your resume to the hiring manager
of the company you are interested in. You do not need to ask the person to
put in a good word for you. Simply act of submitting your resume is
already a bit of a recommendation, as most people won’t risk their
reputation with a friend/contact for someone they believe cannot perform
the job. And if they believe you are potentially a good candidate, they may
add some words of praise in their message when they forward your
information without you having to ask.
3. Always include a cover letter.
Never ask a person to forward your information with just your resume
attached. Always position your request within a well-crafted cover letter.
Take the time to write a good cover letter that includes your qualications
for the role (based upon the job description), your accomplishments in
other positions that align with the role you are applying for and why you
believe you are the perfect candidate. Add an opening paragraph to the
cover letter mentioning to the recipient how much you would appreciate
them forwarding your information to the person they know. Include your
cover letter in the body of the email to your contact, not as a stand-alone
document or extra page in your resume.
The person can then easily hit
“forward” and send your cover letter with your resume attached to their
contact and add a little personal note if they would like. Never ask them to add a
recommendation, the less you ask and easier you make it for people to fulfill
your request, the more likely they will do it.
If you follow steps 1–3, then there is no harm in also submitting your
resume online. However, you are
not solely relying on the online resume submission process to successfully book
you a lot of interviews. Instead, work on getting your resume to a
human who will take a little more time to review your qualifications to
determine you are someone they simply must be interviewed!
