Whenever you apply for a job, there will be other people applying too. Sometimes an employer may receive over two hundred resumes in response to a single opening. Of those applicants, a typical employer might interview between three and ten people for that position. This means that on average, 95% or more of all job applicants lose the job before they get interviewed. And everybody but the new hire gets screened out because of what happens during and after the interview. So how do you become the one in one hundred who gets hired?  

Prepare for the process 

     Prepare a reference sheet to take with you to interviews. Ensure that previous managers are still working where they were and are still willing to give you favorable references. If they have left, use the name and phone number of the Human Resources contact at that company. 

Narrow your focus 

     Decide on the kind, or kinds, of jobs that you want. It will be harder to find a job if you try to target every kind of opening under the sun. Then, research possible employers. Locate a local library  that has the Reference USA/Reference Canada databases available. These online databases list every business in both countries and they are searchable by business type, size and location. 

     Choose the companies, businesses or organizations you want to work for. Then look for details about your chosen organization's service or product offerings, policies, philosophy, history and key players. Information sources include the Internet, newspapers, trade magazines, competitors, suppliers, and employees such as receptionists and phone operators. In all this information you can find something to include in your cover letter that explains why you want to work there. A cover letter or an interview comment that demonstrates that you have done this research marks you out from the crowd at once.   

     Begin to build a network of contacts who can inform you about your chosen employers. Make a point of asking your contacts to identify the person who would be your manager if you worked at the company you are discussing.

     Learn the current salary range that companies in your area are paying for your desired positions. This information which will be vital in your interviews. (Fast & Focused can point you to websites where this information is available.)

Construct your resume    

  Anticipate the questions employers will ask. Among other things, they want to know the answers to these questions:  

• Can you solve problems?
  
• What are the benefits of hiring you over someone else? 
  
• How will you fit into the organization of the company? 
  
• Will you have a strong commitment to your job? 
  
• How will you increase the company's benefits and profits?
  

     To answer these questions, fill your resume with relevant achievements. Employers need to know more than just what jobs you held; they need to know what you accomplished while you were doing the job. For example, a purchasing agent might say something like: "Cut inventory by 75% and negotiated a 15% annual  cost reduction on key items while the company was downsizing," which is exactly the kind of detail that an employer is looking for. Don’t be afraid of appearing to boast.

  Here is where a good resume writer can make all the difference between being hired or being passed over. A good resume writer not only draws out your achievements, experiences and strengths (many of which you may not remember when you put your resume together yourself), but puts them on paper in the best possible light.

Prepare your cover letter  

     A cover letter is a short, focused interview generator consisting of the several elements bulleted below. Each element must be present for the letter to do its work. They are: 

• Contact information–Copy the header block from your resume to create the letterhead for your cover letter. 

• Contact address block–You must have the name and position title of the manager of the open position, then the company name and address. Double and triple check this information–an error here is a great way to make a poor first impression. The only time you should address your resume to a Human Resources person is if the company specifies that individual as a contact point and you cannot get the operating manager’s name. If you have both the operating manager’s and the human resource persons name send a package to both (addressed to the operating manager and a copy cc.’d to the HR contact).

• Greeting–Use “Dear Mr. or Ms. (their first and last names) unless they have a PhD or MD degree. Then, use Dr. in the greeting.

• Opening–Your first paragraph must accomplish two goals. You need to make a connection with the interviewer and grab their attention. Tell them the opening you are applying for and where you learned about it. If their advertisement was your source leave the first paragraph of the cover letter template in place but if not, fill in the position name and where you learned of the opening. If one of your “networking” contacts told you of the opening and the manager knows your contact, try to get permission to use your contact as your source and, instead of the first paragraph, substitute something like: “Greg James recommended that I contact you regarding the graphic artist opening in your department.” Use a bit of flattery, for example a comment by the individual who referred you “He said your company is the best in town in the design business.” Or something you learned in your research, e.g. “I understand that you have pioneered several innovative design technologies.”       

• The body–If you have hired Fast & Focused to write your cover letter, we will have prepared this for you from the highlights of your resume. If not, take a couple of your best accomplishment statements from your resume and insert them here.       

• The close–Tell the employer what days and times you can be available for interviews by filling in the gaps in this paragraph. This not only makes it easy for the manager to schedule the phone call or interview, but subconsciously communicates to him that you are organized.  

     Check your letter–Use spell-check and grammar check, read the letter word by word aloud and BACKWORDS to catch mistakes that spelling and grammar checkers overlook. Don't forget to have somebody else review your letter, our friends see things that we often miss. When a single typo almost always sends your resume to the trash can instead of the “To be interviewed” file, a friend's eye can make a huge difference.  

Apply for jobs

   Submit your resume and cover letter to every possible job for which you are qualified.  Submit using the employers’ designated methods. If they want e-mailed attachments send the Word or .pdf file they've asked for. If they want you to cut and paste your resume into an online form box, convert your documents to plain text (.txt) files (since Word documents don't line up correctly when printed from these programs), and then cut and paste. If they want a printed resume package, print your resume and cover letter using black ink on 24 lb. letter size bond paper. Sign the cover letter in blue ink. And if they want your documents mailed-in, mail them in envelopes that are large enough to hold an unfolded resume. Use a computer to print the address. (Doing this demonstrates computer skills.)

  Keep on applying for positions until you have a signed employment agreement. Never put your job search on hold for anything less. Just because you felt good about a particular interview does not mean a job offer will follow. 

  Work out a list of potential interview questions, including ones that you don’t feel comfortable answering, and practice answering them out loud before the interview. You may think you don’t need to do this, but unless you are one of those folk who have gone to over 100 interviews and got a job offer every time this step is still for you. Practice pays off!  

Succeed at the interviews  

  Arrive 5-10 minutes early. Dress appropriately.  At this point, you are a serious candidate for the position. Act like it: don't chew gum or smoke before, during or after the interview. Be pleasant and professional to everyone you meet: smart companies will ask their receptionist what she thinks of you.

  Be warm, confident, and credible throughout the interview. A warm smile, firm and dry handshake when greeting the interviewer is the way to start. Be calm and relaxed in conversation and aim to develop rapport with the interviewer. Your goal in the interview is to demonstrate that you have the combination of qualifications, skills, expertise and attitudes that the employer is looking for.  

     Besides specific job related skills, employers are also looking for: clear communicators with planning and scheduling ability,delegation skills, teamwork mentality,dependability,honesty,creativity,ambition, assertiveness and enthusiasm. 

  Everything you say throughout the interview should be designed to highlight your achievements and demonstrate that you have the qualities and attitudes they are looking for. If you can’t demonstrate by your behaviour that you have the skills and attitudes already mentioned (arriving on time indicates dependability), prepare at least one specific example that shows how you applied that quality in your work and be ready to mention it in the interview. 

     For instance, talk about how you turned a challenge into an opportunity for growth (creativity) or how you built and guided a team (teamwork mentality) to deal with another issue. Keep this part factual and don’t use boastful adjectives. Your achievements will speak for themselves without turning interviewers off. 

  If you are asked a difficult question that you haven’t anticipated, ask for a few seconds to think about it. Think through the very best possible answer and calmly give it.

     Don't be negative about a previous employer: that suggests you may have a bad attitude. 

  Do not ask about compensation details until a job offer is on the table. If the employer insists that you reveal your desired salary or preferred benefits, say something like: “I've researched what other companies are paying for this position around here. According to my sources the range is . . . and I'm fine with that.” If you want the job badly enough you can say instead “According to my sources the range is . . . and I’m fine starting a little below that if a performance review happens in 3 months or so.”

  Your research should have given you some knowledge of the company and the position. Ask knowledgeable questions about the position. Focus on the goals the manager expects you to meet and the challenges you will face in meeting them. 

     Try to get detailed knowledge of these challenges; knowledge so detailed that you can think about how to improve at least one of these situations. Do not omit this extremely important step; the information you glean here is vital to your follow-up letter.

     Most important. Ask for the job.  

Promote your value after each interview 

  Consider the challenges and goals of your desired job. Develop a few ideas about how to meet at least one of them.

The Follow-up letter–your secret weapon

  Sending a thank-you note is forgotten by at least 90% of all job candidates, and if you remember to send one, you will make another favourable impression. But instead of a thank-you note, write a follow-up letter. The profound difference between a thank you-note and a follow-up letter is that the former merely thanks the manager for the interview, while the follow-up letter not only thanks the manager for the interview, it goes on to mention (without giving details) that you have given thought to solving one or more problems discussed in the interview and you would like to discuss your ideas with the manager. Such a letter shows continued interest and enthusiasm for the position. Such a letter will make yet another all important connection with the employer and it will grab his or her attention like nothing else.  

     There are two other benefits to a follow up letter. First, it re-markets your skills and re-emphasizes your fit with their needs. Second it gives you an opportunity to emphasize any points not fully brought out in the interview. Finally you are going to urge the employer to act. 

     Preparing follow-up letters is not difficult since most of the letter can be prepared beforehand. Send it within 2 days of the interview. Adjust the elements of following template to fit your situation.  Address the letter to the manager who will be your boss. 

• Contact information–Copy the header block from your resume to create a letterhead for your letter. 

• Contact address block–Copy and paste from the cover letter. 
  

• Opening–Make the connection by thanking the manager for the interview.  Say something like “I just wanted to thank you for the opportunity to meet with you <today, yesterday, the other day>.”

• Get the manager’s attention–Mention any valuable insights learned in the interview such as: “I am glad to know of the new design capabilities you have added to your software.” Or, if you were referred by a networking contact mention that person as complimenting the company and second the compliment. Consider something like “Greg James was right that you folks know the design business better than anyone in town”   

• Body–Smoothly allude to how your experience (cite a couple of your key experience and abilities) will help the employer achieve his goals. For example; “The interview confirmed my impression that your organization is growing in a direction parallel to my career goals. My experience in running an Institutional Trading department single-handed over the last three years will contribute to the success of your firm.”  

• The hook–A call to action. During the interview you will have initiated a discussion of the goals the manager expects you to meet and the challenges that the new employee will encounter. Since the interview, you have identified some ideas to meet one of the challenges you discussed. If possible, try to anticipate objections and discard any ideas that won’t work while retaining only those ideas that will have a chance of being effective. But don’t tell the manager your ideas in the letter, just continue the previous paragraph with something like: “I have been thinking about (issue x) that you mentioned in our talk and I have an idea that may help improve the situation. Please call me at <phone number> to discuss it.” Since you are offering him help, the manager now has a real reason to contact you again. Doing this gives you yet another competitive edge over other candidates.  

• Sign off–End your letter with either “Sincerely yours,” or “Yours truly,”. Make sure that you choose the same font, ink colour, and type size as your resume and cover letter. Print the letter on the same paper that you used for your resume and sign in blue ink.  Mail the letter in a printed envelope, once again reinforcing your computer skills.

Finally, whatever the outcome of the interview, maintain a positive attitude. If you don’t get the first job you interviewed for, think of the experience as valuable preparation for the job-winning interview to come. Keep on sending resume packages, going to interviews and sending follow up letters until you do receive offers. A Fast & Focused resume will make the process as short as possible.

To your success!