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Tips for creating a Star Resume Interviewing Tips Sample Interview Questions you may be faced with Sample Questions to Ask Your Potential Employer Resume Building Tips A résumé should summarises who you are, what you’ve done in your career and how well you’ve done it. It’s one of the most important tools for any job seeker. It’s a chance to sell you, and get a foot in the door. ‘’Most employers or recruiters only spend two minutes casting their eye over your résumé, so make every point Horizon tips for creating a Star Resume: 1. Tailor your resume to the role you want: Just as you would tailor your cover letter to the job you are applying for, you need to do the same with your résumé. Make sure your resume content meets key selection criteria and clearly demonstrates why your skills/experience/qualifications fit the position description. Include a short summary about yourself (2-3 lines) highlighting some of your career achievements. This engages the reader and encourages them to continue reading about you 2. Don't sell yourself short: Treat your resume as an advertisement for you. Be sure to thoroughly "sell" yourself by focusing on all of your strengths. Describe these achievements in a simple, powerful, action statement that emphasizes how these actions benefited your employer. Quantify/Measure your experience wherever possible such as listing monetary budgets/targets met, time periods/efficiency improved etc that show proven success directly linked to your individual contribution. 3. Include as much detail as possible: Make a list of the main roles you've held, in chronological order, including volunteer/unpaid work that fills a gap or shows that you have the necessary skills for the role. With each role that is related to the position on offer, clearly list the dates of employment (month/year), your role and responsibilities. Make a list of your training and education that's related to the job that you want. 4. Get the format right: It’s best to have an easy to read format, steering clear of fancy fonts, borders and pictures. Stick to plain and simple fonts (approx 12 point) with bold use for headings (approx 14 point), bullet points where appropriate and numbered pages. 5. Tell the truth: If you lie about your employment history, dates of employment, education, or any other element of your work history, you will most likely regret it. You don’t want to embellish on something you consider a minor white lie to have it ruin your career in the long term. Credibility is almost impossible to regain. 6. Be concise: Try and keep the resume to as few pages as possible – owners/managers don’t have time to read lengthy resumes. Ideally 2-3 Pages is a good length. Omit needless items such as gender, marital status, health, age, nationality/religion, health, weight, height and photos. 7. Correct contact information: You would be surprised by the number of candidates who get their contact information wrong. As it’s one of the most important parts of the résumé make sure you double-check your contact details so employers/recruiters can get in touch with you. If is important to have a professional email address as well as a message bank service linked to your mobile number. If recruiters are unable to reach you or leave you a voicemail, they will more than likely try another candidate who is more accessible. 8. Proofread & Spell check! Be sure to amend all spelling errors, grammatical weaknesses, unusual punctuation, and inconsistent capitalizations. There’s no excuse for spelling mistakes on a résumé. Always run your document through the spell check and have it read over by someone else before sending. No matter how many interviews you may have had– everyone needs to prepare for job interviews! The interview is a crucial part of the recruitment process that can make or break your career. The following Horizon Interview Tips will ensure you make a great first impression and receive a job offer! 1. Research! Research information about the Recruitment Company and/or client before the interview – at the bare minimum, research their website. This will give you an idea about the organization, their key points of difference and the potential roles they recruit for. Pre-interview research is essential so you can prepare questions to ask the interviewer about the company. 2. Never be late! Make sure you arrive at your interview 5-10 minutes early. Arriving too early or late creates a bad first impression as it shows you are inconsiderate of the interviewer’s time. And first impressions last! Ask for directions when making arrangements for the interview, giving yourself enough time to allow for public transport delays, traffic and/or finding car parking. If you are running late, it is important to let your interviewer know ahead of time. 3. Dress for Success Always try to dress better than your interviewer – this will provide you with additional confidence as you will look more professional and well groomed. If ever in doubt of the correct dress code always adopt smart business attire. You can never go wrong with a smart business suit. 4. Come prepared! Carry a folder with you containing details of your interviewer’s name, questions you have prepared for the interviewer and a notepad and pen in case you wish to take notes. It is also helpful to bring extra copies of your resume and any qualifications or certificates that may interest prospective employers. Review your CV before the interview so you will be prepared to explain or elaborate on anything and everything in your resume. Make sure your mobile phone is switched off (rather than on silent/vibrate mode). 5. Non Verbal Communication Studies show that during interpersonal communication only 7% of the message is verbally communicated while 93% is non-verbally communicated! It is important to maintain eye contact, open positive posture and offering a firm handshake (not a crushing one!) when meeting and leaving your interviewer. It’s a good idea to wait to be seated, and avoid leaning or placing things on the table. 6. Relax and be yourself! It’s important to be professional and polite, but allowing your personality to shine through. Be yourself and try to remain calm and relaxed. Speak clearly and confidently with enthusiasm about your experiences and skills – and if you don’t know the answer to something, say so. 7. Sell your skills! Focus on marketing your skills, qualifications, personality and experience to match the job described. Your role is to make the interviewer feel you’re the best candidate for the role so you need to position yourself in their minds as their ideal employee who can meet their requirements. In regards to your career objectives, be clear on what you want/don’t want. Refer to the position description/requirements when elaborating on your skills/experience. 8. Question preparation ALWAYS prepare for behavioural questions. It’s advisable to practice these beforehand, keeping a few examples in mind. Behavioural questioning gives you a chance to really sell your abilities based on proven performance - don’t miss this great opportunity to share a past success and any skills or abilities you might have. It’s not enough to say you have great management skills – prepare an example where you have demonstrated these management skills, a situation you experienced, the steps you took and the resulted outcome. Also prepare questions to ask your interviewer. This demonstrates your interest in their company, your initiative to have undergone company research. 9. Remain Positive Employers do not want to hear excuses or negative experiences you may have had at previous places of employment. If you are asked about frequent job movements or a perceived weakness, don’t be defensive. Instead, briefly focus on the facts rather than the emotions, and explain what you have learned from the experience. Know your strengths and emphasize those that relate specifically to the position for which you're being considered. Refrain from using inappropriate slang or make references to race, age, politics, religion or sexual orientation. This will undoubtedly result in a very short interview and an unsuccessful response to your application. 10. Confidence VS Arrogance Attitude plays a key role in your interview success – there is a very fine line between confidence and arrogance. It’s imperative to remember that while displaying confidence, a successful interview remains modest, professional and eager to further develop their skills at all times. There is always room for improvement! Sample Interview Questions you may be faced with:
Sample Questions to Ask Your Potential Employer:
Good luck! For career consulting inquiries please contact Horizon Resourcing on 9882 8231.
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