Today I spent a lot of time sourcing, which is recruiter-speak for looking at a lot of resumes and profiles. I have different search criteria I use to narrow down the number of resumes or LinkedIn profiles to the ones that are most likely to be the best match for a particular job. Even so, there are more than I can really review. Through my search criteria, I have only increased the percentage of interesting candidates in the results.
Will you make this first cut?
You have a pretty good chance, if your resume or profile…
- is rich with keywords, from “sales” to “awards” to “medical device” or lists ideal degrees
- you work for or have worked for a larger company that is well-known for great sales training
- your LinkedIn profile indicates you are open to new “career opportunities”
- you belong to LinkedIn groups that indicate an interest in medical device sales, even if you are not yet in the industry
The second cut is when I start reviewing the “headlines.” The more keywords you have in your resume or profile, the higher you rank in the results, and the more likely I am to look at your resume. The second cut is also where a much more subjective process comes into effect.
I scan the information available to me in the brief profile visible in the mass of search results. If it looks intriguing enough, I click on your resume or profile to read the whole thing. Just like you would not read every article in the newspaper, I will not read every resume. I choose based on how interesting or relevant the headline or summary is.
Which would you rather read?
A – Jamie Johnston
B – Chris Cardoba, Top Performing Sales Hunter Seeking Medical Device Sales!
It’s so obvious, the question is hardly worth answering. It should also now be obvious that you should put some thought into how you can express your goals, interests and strengths in whatever headline or summary available to you, not to mention your resume or profile overall.
Whether or not you believe in the “Law of Attraction,” this could be a a pretty concrete instance of how it might work in the universe! Set aside your modesty, though not honesty. Recruiters actually want to present the right opportunity to someone who will be interested and excited about it- so make it easy on us by declaring your aspirations.
On LinkedIn, the more complete your profile is, the more likely I am to look at it. If you have only your most recent job listed, with no description or accomplishments… it gets the equivalent of the wastepaper basket. Someone with a rich profile, who lists their education, their complete work history and includes their awards and quota performance will get my attention. It is an indication that they take their career seriously, and that they pay enough attention to LinkedIn that I am more likely to get a response back.
Take the time to create and update a great resume and great profile, and it will work in your favor many times over.
