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Learn What The Top Employers Are Looking For On Your Resume

Your resume is your first real point of contact with any potential employer, the document that will serve as their first impression of your background and suitability for a role. Everyone’s resumes vary depending on their personal experience and skills, but there are some common features that all employers look for in a resume when trying to determine if a candidate is a good fit.

Here are some tips for organizing your resume to increase your chances of having it catch the eye of a potential employer:

Include Industry and Role-Specific Keywords – Top employers typically receive huge numbers of resumes, which they need to have strategies for sifting through. One of the quickest ways for an employer to gauge how well-suited an applicant is for a role is to look for “keywords” on a resume. These are words describing skills, background experience, and knowledge that demonstrate an aptitude for the specific role and industry being applied to. Before you submit your resume, study the job description, company, and industry you’re applying to so that you can add keywords that will grab a hiring manager’s attention.

Watch Out For Embellishing – Most top employers who are trying to fill a role get inundated with resumes that are exaggerated. When a candidate’s resume includes, to the letter, every single required skill that was listed in the job post, that’s a pretty good indicator that that applicant does not possess those skills. When you’re building your resume, make sure not to include skills or expertise that don’t accurately reflect your professional background. When it comes to applying for a new role, it pays to be honest and to use your legitimate skills and background as your selling points.

Communicate the Progress You’ve Achieved in Your Career – When they’re looking at a resume, employers want to be able to tell that a candidate has accomplished some forward progress throughout their career. This will come across from your past job titles and the companies you’ve worked for, but there are other ways of communicating progress as well. When you’re outlining job descriptions for each position you’ve held, be sure to describe the specific responsibilities that you had and the skills that were required for you to be successful. That way, employers will get a much clearer sense of what you’ve learned, how and when you gained those skills, and how they were translated into you excelling throughout your career.

At RightStone, we’re working with IT candidates and top employers to find connections that last. If you’re ready to start looking for an exciting new role in IT, check out our jobs page.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


Top Ways to Identify Your Ideal IT Job

 

As revolutionary new technologies continue to arise in an increasingly dynamic industry, there are more specialized roles available to IT job candidates than ever before. While this leaves them with more options and thus more opportunities than ever before, job applicants are often faced with the difficulty of finding the position that is just right for their unique skill set, experience, and lifestyle.

Here are our top three ways to narrow down your job search and find the IT role that’s a perfect match for you:

Identify the Aspects of Your Last Job That You Won’t Miss:

In most cases, the search for a new job begins by acknowledging there are some aspects of your current job that were just not a good fit for you. Whether it was a toxic coworker, an overbearing boss or just not the sort of work you dream of doing, there are always concrete reasons why we finally decide to take the leap and look for a new role. Paying close attention to these factors and taking the time to write them out — so that you know to look for the opposite scenario in the future — can help you find the workplace and job opportunity that is right for you.

Don’t Judge a Role by its Job Title:

In order to maximize the number of applications submitted each day, it’s easy for candidates to simply search their most recent job title and submit applications to anything that matches. While this can be a useful exercise for getting a sense of the opportunities are available, it can often lead to applications getting submitted for positions that are not a good match. When you’re looking for a new role in IT, it’s always worthwhile to take your time and submit quality applications to positions with descriptions that you’re able to break down, detail by detail.

Use Your Peers as Resources:

The people we work closely with often have a better sense of — or at least provide secondary insights into — what our particular strengths are, and thus what an ideal job might be in terms of environment and responsibilities for us. If you’ve made the decision to seek out a new job, you don’t need to go it alone. If you have peers that you trust and who know your working style and skills, ask them for feedback about the sorts of jobs you’re looking into and if they have any recommendations for places to apply.

Additionally, networking with colleagues who are currently working in a position or company you realistically see yourself in is a great way to get a better sense of what it’s like to work in a particular role. If you decide to reach out to someone, be sure to ask them what they enjoy and are challenged by in their job and their workplace, and if they would recommend a similar position to someone with your background.

Ready For Your Next Career Fit?

At RightStone, we’re working with IT candidates and top employers to find connections that last. If you’re ready to start looking for an exciting new role in IT, check out our jobs page.


The Top IT Industry Skills You Need to Get Noticed During Your Job Hunt

 

The modern IT industry is dynamic and multifaceted, drawing on many different areas of expertise in order to build technologies and incorporate ideas that are dramatically changing the world. In order to be successful in such an industry, modern IT professionals need to be equally adaptable and must be equipped with proper technical and interpersonal skills. In an industry which morphs as rapidly as ours, however, it can be difficult for job seekers to stay up to date on what the most highly valued industry skills are.

To give you a leg up in your search for a new role in IT, here are the five most important IT skills that are sure to get you noticed:

● Creativity

○ Rapid innovation brings with it novel problems, which in turn require out-of-the-box thinkers. IT professionals today tackle increasingly complex technical problems, which means employers value the ability to creatively and effectively devise solutions over virtually any other quality.

● Collaboration

○ IT companies increasingly need their employees to work closely with other teammates throughout the organization in order to complete projects in the fastest and most efficient way possible. The ability to communicate and cooperate with, as well as lead large groups of colleagues,  is invaluable to modern IT employers.

● Analytic Problem Solving

○ IT companies are always on the lookout for job candidates that can analyze complicated problems and be able to formulate strategies to solve them. As the IT industry sets its sights on tackling bigger and more complex technical problems, the ability to be decisive and to chart a course to success will be more valuable than ever before.

● Cloud Computing

○ The cloud is now everywhere, connecting and integrating every facet of the IT industry — from data analytics to product management, to cybersecurity. Job candidates that are able to demonstrate an aptitude for cloud computing will have a huge advantage in today’s IT industry. A good place to get started is to take one of several cloud computing training courses that are available online.

● Analytics and Data Management

○ IT companies today are racing to become more data-based and data-driven. As a result, more and more critical business decisions are being made on the basis of data analysis. IT professionals who have experience and understanding of data analytics and management are in huge demand for IT companies striving to make this transition to the new data model.

Looking For a New Job?

At RightStone, we’re working with IT candidates and top employers to find connections that last. If you’re ready to start looking for an exciting new role in IT, check out our jobs page.


How to Keep Your Small/Mid-Sized Business Competitive in a Challenging Job Market

You don’t have to have big brand name recognition to draw in top talent. There are plenty of ways that smaller businesses can differentiate themselves to employees and get candidates excited about coming on board. Here are some ideas to try to see more quality applicants.

  • Quality, Not Quantity: Your small business might not be able to offer a fully stocked kitchen, game room, and six-figure salary for everyone; instead focus on what you can offer. Most employees want a solid salary, retirement savings options, healthcare, and time to recharge. You might not be able to offer employees everything, but you can ensure that what you do offer in employee benefits are the highest quality your company can provide.  Focusing on a good 401k match, comprehensive health insurance, and enough PTO can secure you more hiring wins.
  • Be Flexible: More and more people are looking for flexibility in their working arrangement. One way for your company to stand out is to offer that from the get-go. Remote work and flexible start and end times of the day are preferred by many people and businesses are offering those options to get the attention of job seekers. Not only are companies who offer flexible working arrangements and remote work opportunities more likely to snag qualified candidates, but the overall flexibility can also save your business money.
  • Prioritize Culture: Company or corporate culture is about more than beer pong and standing desks. It’s about keeping employees engaged by making sure they know their value and the impact of their work. Growing a positive, healthy culture is something that money can’t buy but can make a huge difference in attracting and retaining talent.

The most important thing to remember in your recruitment efforts is to focus on what you can offer today, that meets the needs of the talent you are seeking.  Our team can help in your search to fill your staffing needs – we’re connected to some of the best talent and the best businesses in the industry. Contact us today to let us know how we can assist.