Sometimes a prospective employer will ask a candidate how much they are currently making or how much you are expecting to make should you be offered the position. I recommend that you do not get in a discussion about salary until you have an offer in hand, although you should have an idea as to…
More and more frequently we are receiving resumes that exclude the year when one’s degree(s) were earned. I imagine that the primary reason candidates are omitting this key piece of information is that they do not want to bring attention to how old they are; however, omitting this information actually is bringing attention to this…
If you are applying for a financial analyst position and have prior analyst experience, make sure that your resume outlines your experience by stating lots of numbers. Here are a few examples of how to improve your resume: Before: Worked on a JV condominium project in the suburbs of Atlanta. After: Secured $12 million of…
One thing I absolutely despise is shaking somebody’s hand and feeling like I just grabbed a wet fish! A handshake is critically important to make a strong first impression. Don’t grab the person’s finger tips…it isn’t a thumb war. Make sure that you grab the entire hand and firmly squeeze (I recommend having your hand…
I received a resume this week from a candidate who was applying for an Associate Acquisition position. Although the candidate received an undergraduate degree from a top 20 school and had some excellent work experience, his resume was so poorly formatted that there is a greatly likelihood that he needs help getting dressed in the…
Although making a good first impression is always important, it is critical if you want to land a position in today’s soft job market. Generally common sense governs what you should or should not do; however, let me give you a few reminders: Don’t arrive late to an interview! We had one candidate who showed…
I received a cover letter last week that included three different fonts (sizes and types). It was quite evident that that candidate had cut and paste from several other cover letters to respond to my job posting. It was ridiculous that the candidate did not even bother reformatting the text. Additionally, the cover letter accidentally…
Here is a sample of some excerpts from cover letters that I have recently received: “I am very detailled oriented and my employers have been impressed with me.” Note to candidate…perhaps you should consider spell check the next time you are so “detailed” “I have had the advantage of knowing very early on what I…
Over the past two weeks we have received in excess of 200 resumes from the job postings we have listed on behalf of our clients. All of these job postings are for Analyst positions; yet, candidates who have no intention of doing analyst-level work are applying for these positions “just because” they want to have…