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Getting Hired - An Employer's View
Luc F Theriault, owner of Farfan.
The Internet is a very customer-service oriented field. But the customer service is
written rather than spoken. And I like to see an application reflect that. For example,
spelling mistakes in an application makes me wonder what the e-mails they would send, with
the business name at the top, would look like.
Sure, a typo in e-mail is to be expected. But correct spelling of words is very important.
And in an application, where more time is spent looking it over, typos should be avoided.
A good list of relevant skills is also useful. If we're looking for someone to do CGI
programming or Cold Fusion, and the applicant only has "Programming" on the
resume or cover letter, we won't have any idea of what programming skills they have. And
this applies to most companies. An idea of the specific programming languages is
important.
Highlighting the relevant experience first is also a good idea. If I were a retail manager
looking to hire someone, I would be more interested in their retail experience than their
office experience. Of course, listing all of these is important as there is often
bookkeeping work to do, and a job such as reception shows experience in dealing with the
public. But the retail and customer service experience should be listed first for a job
such as retail.
In an application to a computer company, the computer experience should be listed first.
My background was in broadcasting. Management personnel in radio are much less interested
in the general business experience than they are in knowing what the applicant has done
specifically in the field of radio.
Be professional. If you created a Hotmail account called
"ilovethebackstreetboys9903@hotmail.com", it might not be a good idea to use it
as your e-mail address on your application. Unless, of course, you're applying for a job
with the Backstreet Boys organization.
You can be creative, if it's that type of job. And keep it professional if you're applying
for a serious job. For example, if you're applying to be a balloon-o-gram delivery person,
you can be (and probably should be) a lot more creative in your application than you would
be if you're applying to be an office administrator or bookkeeper.
Oh, and always include an e-mail address on your application. You never know when the
employer will have a quick question and take the time to e-mail you to ask you about it.
Take the time to look over your application and imagine what the employer will think when
he or she sees it. It should save you a lot of time at sending applications that will
never be given serious thought. It will save you and the employer a lot of time.
Good luck in your job search. I'm sure The Job Bus will be a great help at moving on up...
I'm Ready to Start Searching!
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