No matter what field or position a candidate is applying for, they have to supply a resume that covers their background and expertise, however all recruiters know that intuition plays a key factor in selecting the right person for a role. When it comes to filling design jobs and other traditionally creative ones, there’s even more importance placed on identifying the right person to fit the role and within the existing team. They will often offer a portfolio of their work with their application, however that can only go so far to tell you how they think, and how they work.
Number one on my list when I’m applying for a job is to go in with tremendous amounts of enthusiasm. I’ve found that to be the greatest asset I can bring to the time I’m visiting with recruiters and hiring managers. With rare exception, they will choose to work with friendly and pleasant people. Enthusiasm and energy can be a game changer, especially when you might be an underqualified or fringe candidate and you’re looking to separate yourself from the pack. I recall several times being faced with questions during interviews I couldn’t quite answer, but rather than duck and evade them or highlight other positive qualities unrelated to the inquiry at hand, I turned them into chances to talk about how much I’ve learned and how quickly I can get up to speed.
Nobody will get hired on enthusiasm alone, of course, but it can be a characteristic that helps you leave an impression on someone. Here are three other things to look for in a candidate during the interview that will demonstrate whether they will be a good fit within the creative department at your organization:
1. Collaborative:
Freelancers and consultants can work well alone, but the majority of us feel relief in being a part of a bigger company. There’s no end to the benefits that come with participating in conversations with colleagues that will ultimately highlight everyone’s strengths and make your final product better. During the interview, you can get a sense of how the candidate will function within the team they are looking to join. Give them a chance to show how they problem-solve with a situation that requires multiple people and lots of attention. How they envision their role in getting everything in order will illustrate what they might be like to work with on a day-to-day basis. It’s not just a role they’re filling; it’s a spot within a cohesive unit.
2. Assertive:
They’ll need to get along with others, but also know when to hold their own and to speak for themselves. It’s important that workers take ownership over their projects whenever possible, and having someone who is meek or standoffish could jeopardize your enterprise. Find someone who will make sure that the assignment not only gets done but also in its best form. They should take pride in what they do, and also in the brand they represent with their work. Make it clear to them from the start that your company will reward them however possible as they show their prowess for motivating others and keeping up the positivity. Be sure to bring up incentives and what they see as top motivating factors.
3. Humble:
Even if they are masters at their particular field, they should know how to keep any unflattering arrogance in check. They should be able to seamlessly join a team and find their place. During the interview, especially on a follow-up one, you can learn more about them by asking them to describe times they failed and what they learned from the experiences. How they respond will reveal a lot. Listen carefully to what they choose, but also pay heed to how they say they grew from it. Even at high-levels of a company, errors take place, many of them unexpected. Overcoming adversity is key to a successful group. If you have the right people in place, when those issues arise, they’ll be able to navigate around them together.
A word of advice: sometimes it’s the job descriptions that get things off on the wrong foot – if the list of responsibilities and qualifications reads flat, you’re likely going to get a set of candidates to match. When it comes to recruiting creative professionals, you’ll want to give them a glimpse up front of what you and your culture are like. Find ways to spice up the job listing to help yourself get in front of the right candidates. Don’t forget that interviews and application processes are two-way streets and you should make sure you are also at your best. Some of the techniques that go into hiring tech or business people might not work for creatives. You, too, will have to do your homework and adapt to the clientele and audience whom you wish to reach.
Author: Danny Groner is the manager of blogger partnerships and outreach for Shutterstock.
If you're a creative professional — e.g. a designer, photographer, writer or advertising exec — you'll likely need to show an online portfolio as part of the application process for any job.
But no matter what field you're in, having a permanent link where people can access your work has other benefits, too. It's standard practice these days for recruiters to Google candidates' names to see what they can dig up. And when they do, having a website that shows off the articles you've written, campaigns you've been a part of or other past work you're particularly proud of can be a huge asset.
In addition, an online portfolio allows you to easily collect all of your clips or work samples in one spot. When you need to pull together materials to showcase in an interview, you'll be happy that everything is available and up-to-date. I've found my collection of clips that I keep on Tumblr to be a great way for others to see my latest articles all in one place and for me to assess the trends and topics that I cover best.
Of course, before you start throwing things up on a website, you'll want to make sure that this micro-homepage is visually attractive and dynamic. There are plenty of platforms you can use (Carbo, DripBook, Krop and Carbonmade are some of the best), but regardless of which one you choose, these tips will help you convey the right message in your portfolio.
1. Get to the Point
Recruiters will usually make their hiring decision within the first minute of meeting you, and that same rule should apply when a potential employer views your online portfolio. From the second someone arrives on your page, you have to make sure he or she gets the best, most effective impression of you.
Besides having a clean and professional design, one of the easiest ways to do this is to have a single, compelling image to greet visitors at the top of your page. Even if you're not adept at shooting a camera yourself, you can use a stock photo that will represent you well. Just make sure that your selection matches the industry in which you're competing. For instance, if you're a PR professional, you'll want an image that shows activity and connectivity; if you're a writer, something that uses words, letters or writing tools.
No matter the industry, check out Curalate's infographic for guidelines on which types of images work best: Images that are reddish-orange, for example, perform better than images that are blue, and photos without people in them are shown to be more compelling.
2. Keep it Simple
During the interview process, you will have plenty of time to talk about your best projects and greatest achievements. On your online portfolio, though, you just want to whet people's appetites. Think of it like an auction — you get to see the item in a catalog and fall in love with it beforehand. Then, during the live portion of the event, the auctioneer will give you more info about the object up for sale.
Sell yourself in this same way by telling the story with less on your portfolio. For example, include the front page of the brochure that you designed and created — -not all 16 pages — or links to your top 10 articles, not top 100. Wait for a prospective employer to request the rest. It's a good sign. And once someone is interested in your work, you will have plenty of time to give him or her more information.
3. Give Your Interviewers What They Want to See
Found the perfect job to apply to? Great. Don't be afraid to adapt and adjust your portfolio from time to time, especially if you're interviewing for a specific position.
Pay particular attention to the skills advertised in the job description, then use that information to help guide you on what to put front and center on your portfolio. For instance, if you're interviewing with a healthcare company, make sure the work you've done for other healthcare clients is easily accessible — more so than say, your fashion, sports, and media work. It'll be comforting for the interviewers to see your relevant experience in action, and it could even help them carve out their vision for what they want for theirs.
Like your resume, your cover letter or anything else a potential employer might see, your online portfolio should showcase what you have to offer in a concise, compelling and interesting way. Keep these rules in mind, and you'll already be one step ahead of the competition.
Image by glassdoor.com
This article originally published at The Daily Muse here
Here they are!The Top 5 Reasons Why Top Talent Leave Their Jobs:
Unfortunately, many of these concerns are management or avoidable with intentional care to employees and workplace culture. What are you doing to protect your top talent from these disappointing factors?
By Ashley Freedman, Trinity Western University
TWU and Hutchinson Group have a shared common goal: raising leaders for the marketplaces of the world. The Alumni Office is proud to have Hutchinson Group as the title sponsor of the Alumni Weekend 2013’s community stage.
We connected with David Hutchinson, President and CEO of Hutchinson Group, to discuss a hot topic in today’s non-profit sector: succession.
Succession is anticipated to be one of the greatest challenges faced by charities in the next ten years as the majority of Canada’s 86,600 charitable organizations struggle to find new capable leaders.
TWU business alumnus David Hutchinson (’88), is ready to take on this challenge. He has a vision for helping build strong non-profits in Canada that are led by capable and passionate leaders.
David’s executive search firm has a strong understanding of the needs and challenges faced by non-profits. They specialize in finding skilled professionals who can lead and build non-profit organizations.
David sees succession as the biggest, most important issue facing the charitable sector. In Canada, there is a need for more qualified candidates to fill the leadership positions at non-profits, particularly in fundraising. The reason for this is a generational gap in talent. The charitable sector has not always been considered a desirable career choice.
Current leadership is made up of baby boomers who didn’t study non-profit business, but are qualified through years of experience. Non-profit leadership specialization in higher education is a growing area of study.
As a result, though the next generation desires a profession in the charitable sphere and seeks formal training, it lacks any practical experience. Therein lies the gap between the two generational groups—one is ready to retire, the next isn’t prepared to take over, or is waiting for the opportunity.
While succession is a major issue, David recognizes that there is a solution. “The key to succession,” he says, “is succession planning—identifying and developing leadership potential internally. Organizations need to ask themselves who will be their next leader. Recognizing potential internal talent and nurturing it is essential for the longevity of a non-profit.” Proactively developing a talent pool of both internal and external candidates is key in order to identify the most qualified individual.
“At Hutchinson Group, we want to identify the best talent for our clients’ needs while being realistic and embracing the charitable sector’s evolving nature, compared to the corporate and private sectors,” says David. “We look for people with a heart for the cause.”
David encourages current students and new alumni of TWU’s School of Business to not underestimate the potential within the charitable sector. There is a growing convergence within business practice: money is no longer the bottom line—some investors value social impact as well as they do financial return. This is seen through organizations giving, creating, and partnering with charities. Consequently, there is room in all areas of business for strong Christian-value-based leadership and an understanding of charitable business practices. “An understanding of how to make an impact with hearts and souls is invaluable in today’s marketplace,” says David, “and that is not limited to charities.”
Currently, Hutchinson Group has partnered with the University to assist in the search for TWU’s next president—a big job, but one that it is very qualified to take on.
As a professional resume writer, HR manager and career coach for over 10 years, I have come across this controversial issue more times than I can count. Let’s say you have been actively pursuing employment for over a year and keep being told you’re over qualified by recruiters, so you start thinking to yourself, “maybe I should remove some of my older jobs or change the job titles to something less managerial.” For example, if you wanted to effectively lie on your resume, you’d want to remove the job title of your previous employer from District Sales Manager to Sales Representative and remove any verbiage related to leading teams or managing daily operations. Obviously this might make you appear less “over qualified” and in return prompt the reader of your resume to consider you for the job. While this may actually happen, you must use caution and think about the long-term repercussions of such an action.
Can a job seeker be jailed for lying on their resume? The short answer is no, but there may be other serious consequences which I will explain below:
Scenario #1 – Lying on Your Resume:
You have been unemployed for quite some time and decide to lie on the resume by exaggerating your experiences, altering your actual job titles to read differently, removing dates from older jobs, leaving the dates of your most recent employer as (still presently working) even though you were laid off, eliminating jobs altogether, or even worse – including degrees from colleges that you never earned. Keep in mind that employers try to verify EVERYTHING before hiring you and it is very likely they will find out one way or the other. Not only are some of these tactics unethical and could get you fired down the road, but it is considered fraudulent and could hold some legal ramifications in certain situations. While it is unlikely someone could get jail time for lying on a resume, civil damages could arise if something happens at the job that causes harm to the business or a client of the business and they later find out you lied about your credentials on the resume. To put this into a more simple perspective, just don’t do it!
Scenario #2 – Being Truthful on Your Resume:
You are still unemployed after several months of hiring-manger rejection and job turndowns, but not selling your soul to the Devil is more important than deceiving your way into a new career. While this might subject yourself to some hard times ahead in the short term, the long-term benefits will be far greater because when you do get the job, you won’t get fired for lying! Yes, recruiters may be telling you over and over again that you are over qualified. However, this should not deter you from your better moral judgment. Instead, their discouraging words should motivate you to start targeting jobs where your qualifications balance with the level of requirements and set your sights a little hire. Doing this will not only help you find a more stable career path, but it will increase your chances at gaining a higher salary.
In today’s economy, we see many job seekers selling themselves short by applying for jobs they are over qualified for out of pure desperation. This is understandable if you were laid off unexpectedly, but if you are still employed and looking for a new career, plan ahead and keep your resume fresh. Effective career management strategies such as making sure you have at least a three month stash of funds to hold you over can greatly benefit the outcome of your job search. Anxiety during a job search is never good, and one should never succumb to lying on their resume to get a job. Prepare yourself ahead of time and I can almost assure you the process will go much smoother than expected.
Conclusion:
Is there any benefit at all to lying on my resume? The only benefit to lying on your resume would be getting a job that you are not really 100% qualified for. You are not only putting a business in a bad position by doing this, but you are harming career as well. While you may find employment much quicker by doing this, more than likely your boss will eventually find out and fire you. If you get into the habit of doing this and end up “job-hopping”, your resume will become even less effective in the future. How are you going to explain why you only lasted a few weeks at your last three jobs? Don’t even think about hiding these jobs from your resume because employers can always see who you worked for by using your social security number. If you’ve ever had a credit check done, you should know that the reports sometimes show the name of your prior employers. There are many ways for them to find out.
In summary, it is just best not to lie on your resume at all if you want a rewarding, long-lasting career.
Source: The UndercoverRecruiter.com
