Multiple resumes to fit the job.

Here is the advice from a professional recruiter. It should focus a job hunter on the purpose of the resume. Here is how the conversation went.
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Sherwood: Let’s shift over to the résumé for a second. How important do you think the résumé is?

Recruiter Guru: Well I think the résumé’s real important but it’s a single-dimensional piece of paper and you happen to be a three-dimensional person. So the résumé is geared to the job app … you can’t have one résumé that’s just geared toward everything. It’s got to be pretty much monitored or set up towards that particular job that you're interviewing for. And you got to say some things in the résumé that will specifically spark interest for the job order they're looking for. The only purpose of the résumé is to get you to a face-to-face.

Sherwood: To get the interview?

Recruiter Guru: That’s it.

Sherwood: Now are you suggesting also that a person tailor his résumé to fit the job description?

Recruiter Guru: Absolutely.
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Get it.

The most common interview mistake.

Ron, in the next 100 blogs we are going to examine all the details surrounding the job hunter's world.  However, to get our readers started, what is the most common interview mistake?

First off… at least 70% of the job candidates when the interviewer asks, “Tell me about yourself?,” the candidate  doesn't tell the interviewer a thing about the job that they're interviewing for. They talk about themselves; which is what the interviewer asked, but that’s not really what the interviewer is looking for. 

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The interviewer does not want to know about that 454 lb. marlin I caught off the coast of Cabo San Lucas, unless it is relevant to the job. The interviewer wants to know what skills and talents from your experience, you bring to the job. Tell your story, but make it relevant to the job you are interviewing for.

I explain this common question in my training sessions and I will be talking more about it in my future blogs. I have reviewed this question with two-star generals and welding foreman. It is basic, but important. You’ve only a short window to bring home your story; and your story, your response to interview questions,  must be focused on what value you bring to that company. 

You want to stay in control of the interview and be in a position where you can say yes or no to the offer.  Never eliminate yourself from the job. For example, if I would ask one of your sons if they want to relocate, they might reply no. Their family’s here, they don’t want to go anywhere, they like it here. With that answer, they may have taken themselves off the job short list. The company may want to relocate them to Colorado and pay them three times more than they're worth. It's an interview you can be agreeable to hypothetical questions. I will explain in later blogs several great responses to these type of "What if" questions.

Ron, so the first element of the … the first mistake that most candidates seem to make from your experience is that when asked the question, “Tell me about yourself,” they take the question literally instead of what’s behind the question which is “Tell me about yourself in terms that are relevant to what this company needs in the job.” 

Ron, how would you summarize the skills and things you’ve learned from all your interview experience? 

Well what I have found is that most people do not know how to interview. And that includes the hiring authority, the HR person, the interviewer.  The hiring authority doesn’t really know the questions to ask. And the candidate really doesn’t know how to interview. And so if you can train these people in the interviewing skills and show them some techniques, they have a much better job, much better shot of getting the job. 

Remember, Bob, the person that’s going to get the job is not necessarily the best person for the job. It’s the one that interviews the best. The resume gets you the interview. The interview gets you the job.

The Recruiting Guru

Ron Rutkowski is a retired professional recruiter. In the future editions of this blog, he is going to reveal the secrets of the job hunting and placement business.

He is also an expert in fishing, archery, hunting, slingshots and hatchet throwing. He has more than 30 years of experience working with more than 150 human relations departments, 250 company executives and 2,500 candidates seeking a better job. He has even placed a two star general as CEO of a major airline. 

Between fishing trips, I sat down with Ron and we began a series of conversations about the employment process from both a company’s and a job candidate’s point of view. Ron’s insights into this process are remarkable. He has the uncommon common sense of the heartland and has numerous recruiting experiences that are immensely valuable to a hiring professional or to a person seeking a new or better job.  This blog is a result of those conversations.

Ron Rutkowski, RIP, as his close friends call him has interviewed thousands of people. He has placed several thousand people in jobs across the United States.  He knows what it takes to get a job. He knows the tricks of the interview and the secrets that most HR people will never tell. He has trained two-star generals and taught warehouse managers the techniques of great interviewing skills. He knows what questions to ask, what questions you will be asked, and how to be successful in that all important interview cycle. 

Ron is a job hunting, career development guru. He should be. Remember that most of us look for a job every three to five years. Ron did it every day for more than 30 years. He talked with more candidates, more HR departments, more hiring managers, more presidents, more operation executives than most of us will talk to in four or five lifetimes. His skills enabled candidates to find a job quicker, find a better job, get more compensation, and develop bridges to companies for future job placement. 

        What Ron knows is valuable information to anyone looking for a new job, change careers, or get promoted in the one your are in now.

       Follow Ron on this blog as he reveals his secrets from 30 years of recruiting.  Stay tuned for more.