By Suzanne Lucas
To find ideal employees, these key phrases can help inform your decision.
“I’m a real go-getter who always thinks outside the box, demonstrates thought leadership, and proactively motivates myself!” If this sentence made you cringe, you’re not alone. These phrases come from the new CareerBuilder survey on the best and worst résumé terms.
The company surveyed 2,201 hiring managers and HR people to come up with the best of the best and the worst of the worst.
The Worst Résumé Terms
- Best of breed: 38 percent
- Go-getter: 27 percent
- Think outside of the box: 26 percent
- Synergy: 22 percent
- Go-to person: 22 percent
- Thought leadership: 16 percent
- Value add: 16 percent
- Results-driven: 16 percent
- Team player: 15 percent
- Bottom-line: 14 percent
- Hard worker: 13 percent
- Strategic thinker: 12 percent
- Dynamic: 12 percent
- Self-motivated: 12 percent
- Detail-oriented: 11 percent
- Proactively: 11 percent
- Track record: 10 percent
The Best Résumé Terms
- Achieved: 52 percent
- Improved: 48 percent
- Trained/Mentored: 47 percent
- Managed: 44 percent
- Created: 43 percent
- Resolved: 40 percent
- Volunteered: 35 percent
- Influenced: 29 percent
- Increased/Decreased: 28 percent
- Ideas: 27 percent
- Negotiated: 25 percent
- Launched: 24 percent
- Revenue/Profits: 23 percent
- Under budget: 16 percent
- Won: 13 percent
Considering, according to this survey, the average hiring manager spends two minutes looking at a résumé (and other studies have shown the time to be 45 seconds), it may be worth your time to rewrite your résumé to reflect what hiring managers want to see.
But, if you’re the one doing the hiring, stop and realize your own biases and maybe vow to spend a bit more time looking at résumés. After all, it’s not about what the résumé says (unless you’re hiring professional résumé writers); it’s about what the person can do for you.
Though you may want to immediately reject someone because he or she threw a word like synergy around, that might not always be the best course. Take a closer look and see what the person has really accomplished. After all, your goal should be to hire the best people for your business, and that may mean people who aren’t the world’s best résumé writers.
The Importance of Having a Mentor
By Marlene Wallace Originally published by Birmingham Business Journal
One of the most difficult challenges entrepreneurs face is that they often work in isolation. Entrepreneurship cannot be effectively taught in school or easily learned from a book.
Whether you are a sole proprietor or have employees, you may not have anyone with whom to brainstorm new business strategies, explore marketing plans and pricing structures, solve employee issues and more.
Many budding entrepreneurs find that the answer is a business mentor.
Firstly, a good mentor will be able to direct entrepreneurs to experts in key fields and assist them in building a group of strategic business partners or Board of Directors.
These essential people include (1) A banker, or, in some cases, venture capitalist, (2) a CPA who will assist you in tax planning and P & L, (3) an attorney, (4) an insurance and benefits expert for yourself and employees, (5) Social Media, (6) in today’s world, an I.T. or computer “guru” to keep you technologically efficient and competitive.
Your mentor will also be able to identify resources in the community and professional organizations within your field to broaden your network and visibility.
Additionally, a good mentor will be certified to administer and interpret specific entrepreneurial profiles designed to uncover your potential strengths and weaknesses in starting and growing a business.
Perhaps, most importantly, your mentor will assist you in outlining and developing actions plans for success and keep you, the harried business owner, FOCUSED and ACCOUNTABLE for meeting the goals you have mutually established for your organization for continued growth.
Originally published by Birmingham Business Journal
Career Advancement: Important Behavioral Characteristics to Move Into and Be Successful in a Leadership Role – Part 1 – Part 2 next month
By Nancy Branton
1. Respectable Character: ethical with high integrity inside and outside of work; honors one’s verbal and written commitments; and, adheres to company values, code of conduct, and norms.
2. Authentic and Transparent: walks one’s talk, appropriately shares vulnerabilities and feelings, displays a consistent leadership brand, and doesn’t use people for one’s personal gain.
3. Continuous Learner: seeks opportunities to work on new projects, serves on interdisciplinary taskforces, volunteers for interim supervisor or manager roles, reads or listens to books on leadership, is active in professional associations, attends training to stay current with industry and technical area, and participates in leadership development training and opportunities.
4. Ongoing Feedback: asks colleagues, boss, and customers for feedback, thanks them for it, acts on it, and avoids punishing people for their feedback; and, participates in 360-degree feedback to identify and develop in important areas.
5. Relationships of Respect: appreciates and acknowledges others’ good work; has a good sense of “give and take;” addresses and resolves conflicts; respects authority; avoids going around the boss; avoids gossip and doesn’t speak negatively of others; appreciates and values people’s differences; and, seeks out and builds positive relationships with colleagues, managers, customers and stakeholders.
What’s Happening at Career Concepts, Inc.??
` We’ve been “networking fools” this month! Some events our clients have attended are the Birmingham Business Leaders’ Roundtable luncheon, Birmingham Recruiters’ Mixer, Environmental Professionals’ Breakfast, Project Management Institute luncheon, American Marketing Association luncheon, The Women’s Network Luncheon and the Venture Club luncheon!
` Our Hunstville contingent has bonded and have been sharing leads and attending networking events together! What great clients we have!
` Our LinkedIn guru, Keith conducted a highly lauded hands-on workshop for clients in early March and has added new job searching tools to maximize our client’s success!
COMING UP:
`Interactive TMAY Workshop on March 28th for clients! Get your story straight with fellow clients in a supportive setting! 3-5p.m. in our offices.
` Join Marlene on April 7th as she joins 39 other business experts from a variety of fields as they “speed mentor” attendees at the Birmingham Business Journal’s “MEET YOUR MENTOR” Bizwomen Mentoring Monday Event from 7am-9am at the Sheraton Birmingham Hotel.
….AND, FINALLY…our heartfelt congrats to Stephen, Charlie, Andrew, Amy, Michael and Cole for accepting offers! We’re still here for you, guys!!