Info From Hiring Managers

[Resume Writer]

Hi Everyone,

I wanted to share some information with everyone that has been passed along by HR Managers that I know. The information deals with contact information, email addresses and things to NOT do on your resume.

It is imperative that your complete contact info be easy to read and at the top of the page. This includes your full name, phone number, home and email addresses. At least 1 out of 7 resumes that are submitted do not have an email address on them. In this day and age, it is like not including a phone number. A recruiter recently had a candidate not include any contact info on his resume. When asked about such, his response was that it was on his cover letter. Who is to say that the cover letter will make it from Contact A to Contact B and all the way to the hiring manager?"

Speaking of email addresses, your address should be professional. HR Managers shared that they do receive the occasional resume with an email address such as hot-sexy-kitten, son of satan and beerguzzler, etc. Remember, a resume will be the first impression an employer will have of you, so make it a good one!

Do not use the headers and footers feature in Word to include your contact info. This requires hiring managers to manually put this information into their database. In addition, many job seekers use the standard Word template format. Not only do most candidates often pick a very small font size for their contact info, which requires the reader to set his/her screen display to the 150% setting, but also your contact info will most likely be lost when it is entered into a HR recruiting system. Furthermore, do not shade your contact info in gray, use fancy hard to read fonts or graphical lines around such. If your resume is more than one page, it is often a good idea to include your name, phone number and email address on page 2.

In closing, whenever your contact info changes, make sure you update your information with the Hiring Managers. This gives you an excellent opportunity to put your name in front of them again. You never know what new requisition just came across their desk. Being on the top of their mind can never hurt.

With the many ISP's changing hands everyday or going out of business, create a permanent email address. There are plenty of free services out there such as Yahoo or Hotmail. Many candidates opt to use a work email address. It is often not a good idea to do so, for two major reasons. One, what if you leave that position? How will a recruiter be able to email you a new posting? Two, many employers monitor their employee's email boxes. This could compromise your current position.

Kathy

 

[porra]

Thanks for the info Kathy.
You mention about email address ( I do use on my resume), but from being in aviation now for a few years now and having made a few applications to diff. airlines, I still have yet to get any response via e-mail. It has always been via the phone.

 

[Resume Writer]

Thanks for the info Kathy.
You mention about email address ( I do use on my resume), but from being in aviation now for a few years now and having made a few applications to diff. airlines, I still have yet to get any response via e-mail. It has always been via the phone.

Porra,

Keep in mind that I work with many types of clientele - aviation is just my specialty. This is a compilation of information from various HR friends of mine that I contact on a regular basis to see what problems they have been experiencing.

It never hurts to have an email address on the resume. I have had pilot clients contacted via email.

The only thing I believe should not be on the resume, with one exception, is a cell phone number. With that being said, I am sure that some people disagree with me. However, I teach my clients to be in control of the interview. If you receive a cell phone call for an initial telephone screen and you cannot talk, (i.e., current boss around, in meeting, in bad traffic) you immediately put yourself at a disadvantage. I teach my clients to always be in a situation to talk - that being on your terms. The HR people will leave a message. (if no one believes me, look at the SWA hiring threads on the majors boards ) When you contact them back, it will be on your terms, with no distractions - even if you have to go somewhere other than your home to contact the initial phone screen - just be sure to have your resume and all your information handy.

The only exception I believe to the cell phone rule is if it is your only phone number OR if you cannot get reliable messages on your home phone. Make sure you have a professional voice mail message on your phone and do not allow children to answer the telephone.

Understand, some people will disagree with me on the cell phone rule, however, I work for my clients. Part of that responsibility is to ensure they have all the information they need. If you look closely at my phrase at the bottom of my posts, you will see that I say the interview is between two people, but controlled by one. Do not let yourself be the one who is controlled!

 

[porra]

Kathy,
I like it, and it does make sense not to put your cell phone number on the resume.

 

[vclean]

Kathy,

What is the currently recommended breakdown of flight experience (TT, PIC, Inst, Multi, PIC Turbine, Night, etc)?

I will add my email to the resume now.

Thanks,

 

[Resume Writer]

Kathy,

What is the currently recommended breakdown of flight experience (TT, PIC, Inst, Multi, PIC Turbine, Night, etc)?

I will add my email to the resume now.

Thanks,

It depends on the level you are at in your career. Low time people will break out their flight times in a lot more detail than someone who has several thousand hours of flight time. It also depends on the type of operation as to what is important. I have used just about every breakdown, including TT, PIC, PIC turbine, multi engine, turbojet, turbo prop, instrument actual, instrument simulated, night, and cross country.

Kathy

 

[WhiteCloud]

Kathy,
I like it, and it does make sense not to put your cell phone number on the resume.

I have to respectfully disagree with this one. A lot of us who travel for a living for several days at a time rely on cell phones as our primary contact number. I recently had a succesfull pre-interview screening interview while parked in a school parking lot. The interviewer didn't expect to conduct the interview immediately and was initially concerned with setting up a time where we could talk uninterrupted for about 10 minutes. I pulled over and ten minutes later had a personal interview scheduled. It would have been several hours later before I would have checked my home phone. I just label the phone number first as "Cell" followed by "Home". They can call me wherever they choose.

 

[Resume Writer]

I have to respectfully disagree with this one. A lot of us who travel for a living for several days at a time rely on cell phones as our primary contact number. I recently had a succesfull pre-interview screening interview while parked in a school parking lot. The interviewer didn't expect to conduct the interview immediately and was initially concerned with setting up a time where we could talk uninterrupted for about 10 minutes. I pulled over and ten minutes later had a personal interview scheduled. It would have been several hours later before I would have checked my home phone. I just label the phone number first as "Cell" followed by "Home". They can call me wherever they choose.

Whitecloud,

Like I said, there are exceptions to the rule. But let me ask this - what would have been the result of checking your home phone hours later? The interviewer had already told you that they did not expect to conduct the interview immediately and was initially concerned with setting up a time where you could spend about 10 minutes of uninterrupted time. The outcome would have been the same had you listed only your home phone on the resume. Most employers in aviation expect that pilots are on the road and are more than willing to leave a message. I suggest that people get voicemail if they do not have it and check it on the road.

You had a good interviewer. Most times they would have not said anything and watched how you worked under pressure, which for some people would not be the same as how they would perform in the cockpit in a pressure situation. If the interview goes the wrong way, you leave an impression that you do not handle pressure well. As I said before, I want my clients to be at their best when that phone call comes in.

Kathy