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My recent job search lead me to the idea that the traditional resume is broken. Temporal view only gives recruiters and hiring managers the bullet points to q
by gamedna 10y ago
My recent job search lead me to the idea that the traditional resume is broken. Temporal view only gives recruiters and hiring managers the bullet points to qualify you in whatever bucket that they need.
Instead of a traditional CV/Resume, I went with a single page narrative approach with a link to the temporal view on my LinkedIn profile. Initially there was some pushback as the recruiters were bellyaching over the fact that they needed to actually read my essay, but as time progressed I discovered that this format became a tool.
By forcing the hiring manager/recruiter to actually read and understand your background, inbound leads were much higher quality and the initial phone screen was extremely easy. Out of 100+ job applications, i got 20 or so responses, and of those 20 responses, 10 offers.
Out of the 20 responses, 19 were good fits and had good hiring managers with a company that had a decent culture.
I am definitely using the narrative approach again for my next job hunt.
- gentleteblor 10y agoI'm always excited when alternatives to the resume work. Glad it did for you. Did you happen to post about this anywhere (on a blog maybe?). I'd love to see the narrative version and hopefully learn a thing or two.
- gamedna 10y agoMy email is listed in my profile, drop me an email and I am happy to shoot you a slightly redacted copy of what I wrote up.
- sotojuan 10y agoI haven't sent a resume in a while. Usually I just give a "cover letter" of sorts that says a) why I'm interested in the job b) what I can offer/why they "need" me, c) why I think so (usually just talk about experience). I have a website that lists my workplaces and my main projects and of course my GitHub, both of which I link. I guess that's my "resume".
- user5994461 10y agoDidn't send a cover letter in a while. I am surprised this practise still exists.
- sotojuan 10y agoMine's not a cover letter in the usual sense but that's the closest analogy I can think of... I just write an email saying those three things and links to my stuff.
- user5994461 10y agoRight. The separate full blown cover letter is dead. We just put a short text in the initial email to go along the resume. That's also what I do and recommend.
- mastazi 10y ago> The separate full blown cover letter is dead. Out of curiosity, in which country are you? AFAIK, here in Australia, not having a cover letter would pretty much prevent you from getting a job.
- user5994461 10y agoUK at the moment. We always have to fill a message when posting a resume. Write a short paragraph and that replaces the cover letter. I wouldnt call that having 'no cover letter at all'
- Dayshine 10y agoPlenty of public sector institutions have cover letters/supporting statements. They give you the criteria they recruit based on, you write about how you meet them. It's a cover letter +
- bduerst 10y agoI would take a step further and just make a 1-2 page project/product recommendation for their company based on the role that you're applying for. It takes more time, but the last time I was job hunting, I did it with several startups and got interviews with all of them (no referral). The resume + cover letter converted much worse for the other companies I applied to at the time.
- burger_moon 10y agoCould you expand on this? It sounds interesting but I'm not sure I follow what you mean.
- dilemma 10y agoLooks like you made your CV your cover letter and your LinkedIn your CV. The effect is that you used the mindspace otherwise occupied by the CV to tell your story - to brand yourself. There's only one you, but there's thousands of CVs indistinguishable from yours (and mine), so it makes sense that this worked better.