Want to Get Hired? Employers Give Their Best Tips

Send a thank you note. Banish that ‘objective’ line from the top of your resume. That’s some of the advice from a recent survey by CareerBuilder and Harris Interactive, which queried more than 2,800 employers between February 21 and March 10.

With the number of employers saying they plan to hire soon at a three-year high, the odds are finally shifting a bit in favor of job seekers. Here’s what you can do to make sure your resume gets to the top of the pile:

Send a cover letter. About one-third of hiring managers say they’d disqualify a job seeker if they didn’t bother to write and send a cover letter.

Begin your resume with a with a career summary. Seven in ten hiring managers say they’d prefer to see a career summary rather than an ‘objective’ at the top of your resume.

Include a bulleted list of accomplishments. Some 51 percent of hiring managers want that.

Include relevant key words. Even small companies are now using software to scan resumes, and 39 percent of hiring managers expect your resume to reflect that.

Tailor your resume to the particular job you want. More than one-third of employers expect you to do this.

Two pages is enough. Some 57 percent of employers say resumes should be two pages.

Send a thank you note. More than one in five hiring managers say they’re less likely to hire someone who doesn’t send a thank you note after an interview. Some 86 percent of those say it shows a lack of follow-through and 56 percent say it shows you don’t really care about the job. Managers in IT services are most likely to say they expect a thank you note, while those in finance are least likely to expect one.

Email is fine. Some 89 percent of hiring managers say it’s okay to send a thank you note via email, and about half say that’s actually the way they prefer to receive them.

What do you think of candidates who don’t send thank you notes? And do you agree that the job market is loosening up a bit?
By Kimberly Weisul :bnet.com