Common Job Curses

Job Seeker's Story

Derrick had steeled himself for an intense job search after being laid off. With a 13-year background in Robotics Engineering in the automotive industry, Derrick knew he would have a difficult time finding new employment in a tight economy.

Prepared to move anywhere for a job in his field, Derrick had responded to online job postings for Robotics Engineering positions nationwide. He needed an income immediately, so he decided that replying to many job postings would maximize the number of interviews he could expect. After four months with no responses, Derrick decided to consult with a professional résumé writer.

When the résumé writer reviewed Derrick's résumé, it looked as though he had used his job description to fashion the bullet points on his résumé, which included entries such as:

• • Serviced and maintained paint production line.
• • Implemented quality procedures.
• • Troubleshot production-paint anomalies.
• • Communicated with customers to resolve complaints.

Derrick was surprised to learn that employers needed more information than what he had provided on his résumé. “After all,” he thought, “my references will attest to what a great worker I am.” The problem is that Derrick was not getting to the stage in the application process where references would be contacted. Consequently, he was not getting interviews or job offers.

Job Seeker's Stumble

By using a standard job description to characterize his potential value to a company, Derrick had relegated himself to the status of one among many other Robotics Engineers with similar job descriptions. Without any proof of accomplishments or value, why would any employer be interested in having a conversation with Derrick, when any Robotics Engineer would do? Over the years, Derrick had done a good job, worked diligently, and had a positive impact on his past company's bottom-line financial performance. Now he needed to prove that in his résumé so prospective employers would take notice of him and extend an offer for an interview.

Job Seeker's New Strategy

Although Derrick made it past the employment reviewer's first hurdle of credibility (Derrick had indeed worked in Robotics Engineering for 13 years), he did not make it past the hurdle of value. Value is a key criterion in the employment reviewer's decision-making process as he or she scans an applicant's résumé. It certainly plays a pivotal role in deciding who to interview and, ultimately, who to hire.

To strengthen Derrick's résumé and demonstrate value to the potential employer, the following changes were made in his bulleted points. Specifically:

• • Troubleshooting: Improved resolution of paint-defect rate up to 99% and saved $12,000 annually by proactively monitoring and troubleshooting six production lines.
• • Quality Control Leadership: Played key role in quality-control certification for just-in-time (JIT) manufacturing plant by establishing and managing QS9000 policies and procedures.
• • Process Improvements: Secured $4.8 million in annual cost savings through manufacturing process innovation and improvements which lowered scrap yields and decreased downtime by 160 hours per year.
• • New Business Development: Won $1.2 million in new business contracts over two years by outstripping competitors’ turnaround time for color-matching process. Collaborated with clients’ color teams to resolve complaints and institute new technologies to fine-tune color matches.

With these valuable accomplishments on his résumé, Derrick found that his success rate in landing interviews increased significantly. He also realized that by isolating and quantifying his specific accomplishments, he had regained a large measure of self-esteem he had lost when he was laid off. More important, Derrick could now talk convincingly in an interview about his value and answer the question, “Why should I hire you?” with cost-saving and revenue-generating results. When the return-on-investment for the employer to hire a particular candidate becomes apparent and compelling, it then becomes easy to make the hiring decision.