Give yourself a competitive advantage – tailoring your resume to suit the job

Whether you are between jobs and looking for work or have a job that you are ready to move on from, having a solid resume is essential. Almost all jobs in the market still require a resume or CV as part of the application. As a result, your resume is the first impression an employer will have of you, so it is important to not make it their last impression of you. When you are applying for a job, tailoring your resume to the job description can make all the difference in setting you apart from others.

From a recruiter’s perspective, whilst it is great to read a list of diverse skills and qualities, if these skills don’t pair up with the advertised skill sets, it will do little to help you get your dream job. Generally speaking, employers spend less than 30 secs on each resume! Although a big fancy list of previous experiences and skills may look impressive to you, employers will most likely overlook any unnecessary and irrelevant information regarding the available position. Keeping your CV brief and relevant to the job will not only save time for both parties but is vital to help you stand out amongst your competitors. Always remember quality over quantity!

Here’s an example. You’ve just found an advertisement online for a full-time Lead Physiotherapist and this really sparks your interest. The advertisement stresses the importance of working in a multidisciplinary team and being an effective communicator. You send in a great resume filled with experiences and skills; however you forget to sell yourself as an effective team-player, with excellent communication skills. Instead, you choose to emphasise your abilities in working autonomously and managing your time effectively. Another applicant with the same level of experience as you mentions their teamwork and communication skills. Instantly, they have placed themselves higher on the hierarchy of ‘who is most qualified’ for the available role. And, just like that, you’ve minimised your chances to grab the opportunity!

It is even advisable for you to go one step further and conduct your own research into the company to find relevant information that is not written on the job advertisement which you can include in your resume or cover letter. For example, if the company has a client base in a rural area, you may mention any experience you have in regards to practicing in a rural location. The key is to include any skills or experiences that you think may add additional value to you as a potential candidate for an advertised position. 

Applying for jobs can be a challenging, time-consuming, and at times, almost futile exercise. However, by ensuring that you tailor your resume specifically to suit each job you are applying for, you can ultimately save yourself time and gain a competitive advantage over other applicants. That has to be worth your effort!

Career Comparison – Reasons why job hunting while employed is essential

Searching for potential job opportunities whilst working can seem like an unnecessary activity at times. It requires you to be thinking about many different factors - your current position, financial change and employment availability within your profession among other stressors. You need to use your personal time to be on the lookout for job opportunities. This is one of the reasons individuals become accustomed to their work lives as it begins to develop into an established routine. It is very easy to find yourself in the same position for many years without knowing what other opportunities are out there. However, being on the lookout puts you at an advantage over your colleagues, and indeed everyone within your industry as work trends show that we move jobs more often and several professions become more competitive than before. For these reasons and more it’s important to stay ahead of the game and keep hunting, and we will show you the best way to balance a work life and a keen job seeking eye!

1.    Being aware of your industry employment status 

Every industry differs in terms of job availability. If your industry is facing low job demand this could suggest that there are limited positions available for your current role. On the positive side your position may be more valuable to your current employer. Alternatively, that if something were to happen and you lost your position, it may be more difficult to obtain another role quickly.
 
It is always worthwhile to conduct a search on available roles in your current industry (or an industry you are hoping to make your way into). How frequently do roles come up? What is the general scope of remuneration against experience? Are most roles full time, part time or contract? By doing so, you can determine the job demand and job security within your desired industry giving you the benefit of planning your career ahead of time. Better yet, such scoping of emerging roles provides you with a competitive advantage over other employees as it allows you to assess the value and worth of your current position in the industry by comparing it to alternatives.

2.    Planning ahead for something better

Reality is that there may always be a position that is better than the one that you currently have. This is OK, however, as it gives you something to work towards. It can be hard to think of another job as you may be comfortable where you are now, but comfortable is not a term successful people use. Thinking ahead in terms of where you want to be and how you are going to get there puts you at an advantage over your colleagues. Scoping your potential next big move could be the best exercise you have undertaken.

This does not mean you have to stress out constantly looking for jobs, but rather look over advertisements within your desired field, and occasionally have a preliminary chat with a potential employer or recruiter, or send your resume out. Be very careful to explicitly state that you want your interest to remain completely confidential and not be placed into a database without your consent. Overall, consider planning ahead, networking, and spending time thinking of what your next job could potentially be.

3.    Networking

Networking is arguably the strongest factor that decides who gets the next available job. Knowing the right people could get you through doors that you would never have believed possible.

Aim at increasing your network. This could mean requesting that your contacts keep their eyes open for job opportunities as they arise. Or attending conferences, workshops and other professional events as well as buying a few coffees for people in order to build your network. Remember, people would rather hire those who they know rather than those they don’t know.

Hopefully these tips will allow you to move away from the comfortable ‘steady as you go’ space that you have fallen into and allow you to expand your network, look beyond your current position, and plan ahead for what job opportunities lie out there. Who knows, your dream job could be around the corner!

Wanting to look for other job opportunities...

Career Exchange is an online Allied Health Career Portal that has been developed to meet the needs of job seekers and advertisers within the Allied Health community. Career Exchange provides job seekers with a platform where they can connect with industry professionals and new employment opportunities. Career Exchange allows you to search for employment opportunities through cutting edge web design and usability. There is always relevant information pertaining to job seekers and you have the ability to upload a copy of your resume through your Applicant Account for free. 

Career Exchange: Active Job Seeking, networking and industry information all in the one place.  

Top Reasons Your Best Talent Is Leaving You

You've worked hard to claw your business into its current position and undoubtedly, your workforce has helped your business get to where it is. You and your employees have reached a point where you are all cogs in a machine, working in synergy with each other. But what would happen if one of your star players were to leave? This scary situation for employers is unfortunately a reality as more workers are quitting their jobs today than at any point since 2010.

While there are definitely forces that are out of your control to stop your best people leaving, if you create an environment (and build relationships) that makes them feel challenged, engaged, valued, and rewarded you can raise the chances of retaining your top talent.

Here are the top reasons as to why your top talent are leaving:

1. Dissatisfaction with job or responsibilities

Great workers want to be learning and growing on the job. There is always room for growth and skill development, even if they are a seasoned pro. Increasing an individual's autonomy in their role can be a great way of giving them more responsibility while still getting all the work done.  

2.  Being unchallenged and dis-engaged them

Smart workers don’t want to feel like they are working in a repetitive role full of boredom. They need to have their minds engaged and their creativity challenged. An example of how you may engage someone in the workplace might be to allow them to shadow someone else from another part of the business for a day. 

3. Lack of a sense of belonging 

On a human level, everybody wants to feel liked and cared about, or at the very least like they belong somewhere. As an employee, they want to feel like you care not only about their career but also on a personal level. An aspect of Transformational Leadership is treating employees like individuals and not just another member of the team. The old saying of "leave your emotions at the door" is no longer valid. Employees who have fun with their colleagues and look forward to being at work are more likely to stay in the long term. Letting them feel like you care about them gives them the confidence to have a voice which may lead to innovations within your business and increased productivity!

4. A misalignment between personal leadership styles and the leadership style that is required to lead effectively.

It's hard to find a balance between micro managing and being a ghost in the workplace. Your best talent want to be given enough rope to accomplish their duties and tasks themselves. Similarly, being an absent or avoidant leader by only checking in with your staff once every few months will drive them away. It is essential to find the right balance between the two ends of the spectrum and a good way to assess how you are going is to simply ask your employees "Are we meeting enough for you to be as effective as you can be?".

As the saying goes: “Employees don’t quit working for companies, they quit working for their bosses”. It is clear that these small changes that you can immediately implement will pay off and prevent your top talent from needing to look for another job. 



To find out who your top talent is, our partners, Psych Press are talent assessment and development Psychologists. Psych Press have a large selection of in-house and customisable assessment tools that link personality to performance prediction for a variety of companies. One such tool, Business Personality Reflections (BPR) has been used for a multitude of roles to ascertain a strong fit for recruiting decisions. Based on a wide field of research and multiple industry norms, this assessment provides a full report for your informed decision. To find out more visit the Psych Press Business Personality Reflections page or contact them on (03) 9670 0590.