Your resume is an incredibly important “living documents” you will create, meaning it should change as your career grows. Your resume acts as your first impression to potential employers before you ever speak or meet face-to-face, so you’ll want to ensure it makes a positive impact. There are thousands of articles telling you what to include and hundreds of template sites, so it can be overwhelming to know how to write your resume. Here at EG, we’re sharing our industry expertise on the top three things you absolutely should include when writing your resume.
Identification Information
Hiring managers should know immediately how to get in contact with you should they see you as a potential fit for the position. Make sure your phone number and email address are up to date and are clear on your resume. A hiring manager should be able to find your contact information within seconds of reviewing your resume. We recommend listing your contact information at the top of your resume, ideally, under your name.
Clear and Accurate Contact Information
We can’t stress enough how important it is to keep your contact info accurate so hiring managers can find you. If your phone number changes, be sure to update that on your resume. You’ll also want to make sure your email looks professional as well, so stay away from any accounts you might have along the lines of “doglover2020@hotmail.com” and opt for something like johndoe@gmail.com.
Work Experience
This is your chance to show hiring managers how your skills and experience would make you a great fit for the position you’re applying for. You must include your position title and dates employed with that company in your work experience section.
Tell Your Career Story
Your work experience should tell your career story. Under each position listed, you’ll want to include a brief list of your duties and responsibilities. We recommend sharing a few details but keep it to an overview level so you can share more specifics with the hiring manager during the interview.
Data and Metrics
Backup your work history with data and metrics. Hiring managers will review your claims but, providing metrics and hard numbers to back up these career claims will help you stand out from other candidates. No position is excluded from metrics, and employers will want to review to get a better understanding of your true capabilities. Think about the tasks you do and think about how you might measure them. For example, instead of saying, “I was able to exceed the required Assembly output” and say, “I was able to exceed the required Assembly output by 10%.”
Of course, you’ll want to make sure these metrics are accurate – hiring managers will know soon enough if you’ve lied or embellished on your resume. If you’re not sure how to measure the work you do, don’t be afraid to ask your manager. Even if you’re not looking to change jobs, knowing how to backup your work with metrics can help you at your current position as when you have a performance review, you can share exactly how you’ve benefited the company.
Make Your Resume Stand Out
Your resume is what is going to make or break your chance at landing an interview, so be sure to put the time and work into making it accurate, informative, and error-free. While resumes will vary for different industries and positions, these three tips we’ve listed are crucial to include on your resume.
About EG Workforce Solutions
We’ve been in this business for decades and have developed a deep network of professional connections. Whether they’re companies looking for talent, job seekers looking for work, or an up-and-coming store in need of some temporary help, we know the right people to bridge the gap between the hiring and the hired.
But what’s more, we get to know people. From employers hiring to candidates looking, we take the time to listen and learn. We hear your likes, talents, and needs. We gain an understanding, and with it, we’re able to facilitate lasting relationships between businesses and people.
It’s no secret that hiring new talent is a huge undertaking for any company, both in time and resources. On average, it costs a company around $4,000 to hire a new employee, but what about the “hidden cost of hiring?” We’re using our over six decades of industry knowledge to break down the hidden cost of hiring to help you recruit better.
Onboarding Materials
Onboarding materials and administrative processes are a huge hidden cost of hiring employers may not always think about. Onboarding requires a lot of paperwork, including benefits paperwork, tax forms, background checks, employee handbooks, non-competes, etc. While these may seem like minimal costs and may not break the bank, it’s still affecting your hiring budget. Depending on your onboarding process, there are also costs in getting your new employee set up with specific tools, programs, or equipment, and some companies provide “welcome kits” for their new hires. These are all costs that are essential to keeping and retaining your new hire but can quickly add up when you consider them as part of the hiring cost.
Administrative Processes
Employers really should consider how much the administrative processes cost when it comes to actually processing the onboarding paperwork. One way you can try to minimize costs is to digitize your onboarding paperwork completely. There are plenty of options for HR software programs to fit most budgets that can help streamline the paperwork process and make it digital. The benefit of digital paperwork is that your new hires can “self-service” themself on their own time after the job offer has been made and before their start date. According to Aberdeen, “best-in-class” companies are 53% more likely to begin the onboarding process before day one. This “self-service” means there is less time your administrative and HR team have to spend going through the onboarding paperwork process and can spend more time helping the new hire get acquainted with the position and organization.
New Hire Turnover
According to a study done by SHRM, nearly 1 out of 4 new hires will quit their job within the first six months, and nearly 25% of new employee turnover happens in the first 180 days after hire. It takes an average of 42 days or almost four weeks to recruit and hire a new employee. Protect your investment by preventing new hire turnover. If this happens, not only can it be frustrating from a productivity standpoint, but also from a financial one. If you hire and lose multiple, or even one new employee a year, the financial kick-back can be devastating to your bottom line.
Retention Solutions
To help mitigate new hire turnover, all the research points to having a structured onboarding process. This goes back to digitizing the paperwork and creating as much “self-service” for the new hires do complete before their start date as possible. A case study by Corning Glass Works, for example, found that employees who attended a structured orientation program were 69% more likely to stay with the company for three years. The sooner your new hires can learn the job and integrate into the team and company culture, the better for retaining your new hires. Employers should remember that proper onboarding sets clear expectations for your new hires and equips them for success.
Slowed Productivity of New Hires
Another hidden cost of hiring is the slowed productivity of new hires. A new employee needs time to be trained and has to learn the duties associated with their role. During this time of learning and training, their productivity will be slowed, and other employees will have to take time away from their respective roles to train the new hire. Employers should expect new hires to get less tangible work completed since they are taking time to learn their responsibilities, figuring out communication flows, and forming relationships with their new co-workers. For example, a new business development representative might have to spend more time studying an existing account before reaching out to them. Some research suggests it takes as long as eight months for a new employee to become fully productive in their role.
Strong Employee Onboarding is Crucial
Again, we want to point back to how crucial the onboarding process is to the success of retaining your new hires. During the onboarding process, simply covering the basic paperwork is not enough. Employers should include check-ins, mentoring, and training programs as part of their onboarding process to ensure their new hire is succeeding and has the means to succeed.
The next time it’s time for your company to recruit and hire a new employee, think beyond the general recruitment costs that come along with it. Employers need to remember that there are hidden costs associated with onboarding and retaining your new employees. While it may seem like your company is spending more money upfront, it will be far less than having to start the process over if your new hire doesn’t stay.
About EG Workforce Solutions
We’ve been in this business for decades and have developed a deep network of professional connections. Whether they’re companies looking for talent, job seekers looking for work, or an up-and-coming store in need of some temporary help, we know the right people to bridge the gap between the hiring and the hired.
But what’s more, we get to know people. From employers hiring to candidates looking, we take the time to listen and learn. We hear your likes, talents, and needs. We gain an understanding, and with it, we’re able to facilitate lasting relationships between businesses and people. Contact us today to see our consultative approach to hiring solutions.
Valentine’s Day is almost here, so love is in the air…loving your job that is! Here at EG Workforce Solutions, we’ve been in the business of Helping People Succeed for over 60 years, and we know that one major way people succeed is by loving their job. Not sure if you’re “in love” with your current positions, check out our tips. If these don’t apply to you, it may be time to give us a call and get you in a job that’s right for you!
You Don’t Dread Mondays or Watch the Clock
If we’re being honest, no one really likes Mondays, but one sign that you actually love your job is that you don’t dread when Monday comes around. You see Mondays as a fresh start to crush the rest of the week and achieve your goals. Not dreading Mondays means you’re also not getting caught up in the “Sunday Scaries.” These “scaries” are those feelings of dread and unease that creep in about the work week ahead and prevent you from enjoying your time off.
Along with not dreading Mondays, you also don’t spend your days watching the clock. When you don’t enjoy your job, or you feel disengaged from it, your days tend to drag, and you may often find yourself counting down the hours and minutes until you can go home. When you love your job, your days are productive and filled with tasks that help you move closer to succeeding in your goals.
You’re Proud of the Work You Do
If you can reflect on the work you do and feel proud, and like you’ve accomplished something with the time you’ve invested, you likely love your job. When your job is more than just a paycheck to you, know that you’re happy to be working in your role.
Whether you spend your days working directly with customers or you have more of an internal role, if you can look back on the work you’ve done and feel engaged and like you’re making a difference on behalf of the company, you’ll love your job.
You’d Recommend the Company to Family and Friends
Maybe the biggest factor that will show you if you love your job is if you’d recommend it to friends or family members. You most likely want the best for them, so if you can stand behind the work you do and the company culture strongly enough that you’d want your friends or family to experience it for themselves, you almost assuredly love your job.
Being “in love” with your job will set you up for success in the long run because you’re spending less time “just getting through your days” and more time being engaged. You’ll have an overall most positive attitude that will help not only yourself thrive and succeed, but tends to have a snowball effect throughout the organization. When you consider how much time you spend at work, it’s essential to find work that makes you feel engaged, proud, and positive. Loving your job can have a big impact on your levels of happiness, both in and out of the office.
About EG Workforce Solutions
We’ve been in this business for decades and have developed a deep network of professional connections. Whether they’re companies looking for talent, job seekers looking for work, or an up-and-coming store in need of some temporary help, we know the right people to bridge the gap between the hiring and the hired.
But what’s more, we get to know people. From employers hiring to candidates looking, we take the time to listen and learn. We hear your likes, talents, and needs. We gain an understanding, and with it, we’re able to facilitate lasting relationships between businesses and people.
It’s no surprise that employers have been searching for talent in increasingly smaller and more competitive candidate pools, and traditional ways of recruiting may no longer be relevant for finding, hiring, and retaining top talent. In December 2019, the national unemployment rate was 3.5%, which is the lowest since the late 1960s and early 1970s. EG Workforce is checking the pulse on what’s predicted for what staffing will look like in the year ahead with the five trends we’re predicting will face both candidates and companies hiring.
Non-traditional Recruiting Channels
Recruiting through traditional means such as online job boards such as Indeed, ZipRecruiter, or Glassdoor are still major players when it comes to finding and hiring top talent, even, social media has become a new norm for finding candidates. A study by Jobvite found that 77% of hires came from LinkedIn, and 63% came through Facebook. Even this isn’t a significant shift in utilizing non-traditional recruiting channels – more and more; recruiters are turning towards Instagram and peer to peer social sites like Snapchat to stand out amongst Millennials and Gen Zers.
With Millennials and Gen Zers continuing to make up an increasing percentage of the workforce, employers must adapt to the recruiting needs Millennials and Gen Z are expecting. Unlike previous generations before them, Millennials are much more likely to leave or change a job if they feel unsatisfied with the work. In fact, yearly Millennial turnover costs the US economy $30.5 per year. This translates over to the recruiting and hiring process as well. Millennials want the process to be simple and hassle-free. They are not interested in spending an hour filling out an application on your website; they’d rather upload a resume. They also expect to be “delighted” by the recruitment process. This includes attracting them through and communicating with them through the process on non-traditional platforms such as Instagram, Slack, or Reddit.
Summary: recruiters and HR professionals need to start innovating by taking advantage of both traditional and non-traditional recruiting channels to find, hire, and retain candidates in 2020.
Candidate Engagement as a Priority
Gone are the days where it’s been “acceptable” to gather resumes and let the ones who aren’t a fit fall into the “black hole of unread resumes.” Candidates are expecting to receive some type of communication either way on if they will be moving forward in the hiring process or not. With the rise of technology, it’s become even easier for employers to have the ability to communicate with candidates, and we predict a 2020 trend will be to place a high priority on candidate engagement.
Phone calls and emails have been the traditional way of communicating with candidates, but in the age of instant communication, texting has become a more mainstream method. Jobvite found that 43% of Millennials used it as their preferred method of communication, and even that 46% of Gen Xers were open to texting as the primary means of communication. It’s essential for recruiters or HR professionals to get permission to text their candidates, but if/when you do, you have an added way of communicating and engaging with your top talent during the hiring process.
Summary: phone calls and emails are still accepted methods of communication and means of candidate engagement; however, texting has entered the scene and is promising a new way to engage with your candidates instantly, so you don’t lose them during the hiring process.
Showcasing Company Culture
In today’s labor market, recruiting has become just as much an “interview” for the company as it has for the candidates. This is especially true for Millennials, who will make up 75% of the workforce by 2025. Candidates are looking into a company’s culture, mission, values, and what current/past employees are saying about them. In fact, 64% of candidates reported they would not accept a job if the company did not align with their own values.
If a company culture is negative or undefined, that can hurt recruitment efforts. Companies must work on their employer branding; you can learn more about that from our previous blog to stand out to candidates. A company should focus on hiring candidates with the characteristics that complement the culture, and this culture needs to be highly visible. Companies should take advantage of social media and their website to showcase their culture. When done well, this can even act as a way to recruit top talent without having to spend money on advertising jobs through traditional recruiting means.
Summary: your company culture matters beyond being just another “buzzword.” Candidates are looking for and paying attention to if your company practices what you preach. Establish what you want your company culture to be and then hire the candidates whose characteristics match.
Broader Talent Management
Plan for more companies to be open to hiring remote workers, contractors, and temps in addition to full-time positions. Recruiters will have to increasingly expand their services to hire for a multitude of types of roles, too. With the continued rise of the gig economy, hiring for a single type of position will no longer be the norm going into 2020. With 57 million people working as part of the gig economy, companies should consider the candidate they’re hiring may be working at least one additional freelance/contract position and may not be willing to take on a traditional full-time role.
Depending on the position, companies will need to shift their mindset and be able and willing to allow for remote working and flexed schedules if their top candidate is working outside “gigs.”
Summary: 2020 will see a continued increase in the “gig economy” and will push even harder for companies to allow for remote work and flex schedules, and businesses will have to adapt to attract, hire, and retain top candidates.
2020 brings a new decade and a new set of challenges to recruiters and HR professionals while providing more opportunities for candidates. EG has over 60 years of industry experience that have helped us predict the five biggest trends for staffing in the coming year.
About EG Workforce Solutions
We’ve been in this business for decades and have developed a deep network of professional connections. Whether they’re companies looking for talent, job seekers looking for work, or an up-and-coming store in need of some temporary help, we know the right people to bridge the gap between the hiring and the hired.
But what’s more, we get to know people. From employers hiring to candidates looking, we take the time to listen and learn. We hear your likes, talents, and needs. We gain an understanding, and with it, we’re able to facilitate lasting relationships between businesses and people.