Start Planning Now for International Update Your Resume Month

The ninth annual International Update Your Resume Month is this September. Career Directors International is posting 75 days of resume writing tips on the CDI Twitter page.

Resume writers (you do not have to be a member of CDI to participate) can download banners here to promote the idea that job seekers should keep their resume updated. You can use the banners to link to your own websites. (CDI members have access to promotional campaign materials.)

Now is a great time to send out your news releases on this topic to your local media.

Woman Sues Alma Mater for Not Finding Her a Job

Thanks to Barbara Safani for the heads-up about Trina Thompson, the recent college graduate who is suing her alma mater because they haven't "done enough to find her a job."

The story also lends a cautionary tale to professional resume writers: Manage your client's expectations as part of the career development process.

Ms. Thompson thought that paying $70,000 to Monroe College would guarantee her a job … and job seekers who pay anywhere from $49 to $4900+ for career services from you might think the same ... and, in fact, might expect you to do most of the the work for them. ("After all, that's what I'm paying for, right?")

I was reminded of this myself last week, when I received an e-mail from a client who wanted a customized cover letter for a position opening he had identified online. Following the link provided, I couldn't find the position listed online anymore. I e-mailed the client back, requesting that he contact the company and find out if the opening was still available.

The response I received back: "Can't you call them and find out?"

Ugh.

So be careful when you describe the services that you provide ... make sure that clients know that they are still ultimately responsible for the job search ... just as they're responsible for doing the job once they get it!

And be sure to read Barbara's commentary about the client's online brand profile ("digital dissing.") I just finished reading William Arruda and Kirsten Dixson's book, "Career Distinction: Stand Out by Building Your Brand" (highly recommend it, by the way),

and I have to agree -- it's doubtful that Ms. Thompson is going to win her lawsuit ... and in the meantime, she's created an online brand profile that is whiny and negative ... not exactly traits that companies are looking for in employees today.

One Recruiter's (Warped) Take on Resume Screening

I can't tell if this recruiter is serious ... bitter ... or just unhappy because he's now unemployed, but I'm a bit disturbed by his take on the resume screening process. Not to mention that he's disparaging the entire resume writing industry.

As an example of his "take" --

Perhaps the most common service offered is professional resume writing. These services promise that, for anywhere between 400 and 800 dollars, a professional resume writer will not only critique your resume, but also work with you to create a resume guaranteed to “break through the clutter” by using better verbs to craft the “story of your career.” Corporate recruiters, apparently, have very strict guidelines for formatting on a resume, and a secret code known only to them and somehow cracked by the Professional Resume Writer’s Association. I must have missed that workshop at ERE, but I suppose so too did a lot of my colleagues, who I have seen commit such violations to code as cut and pasting resumes off of Monster into Word or forwarding horrifically misformatted LinkedIn profiles to hiring managers.

Recruiters who have this attitude -- which is somewhere between being bitter that resume writers get involved with their clients at all (?) and just downright cynical that a professional resume writer might be able to "add value" to a candidate's positioning -- aren't likely to be as successful as those who partner with resume writers to identify top-performing candidates.

Perhaps it's no surprise that Mr. Charney is currently unemployed? I can suggest a professional resume writer to help him...

Typepad Free Webinar Series

I first learned about the Typepad free webinar series when Kirsten Dixson Tweeted a reminder about it. I missed getting in on it by an hour, but found out that they are recorded. Listening to her session is on my to-do list for this weekend... and it should be on yours as well.

The series also has a number of other interesting topics for resume writers (small business owners). You can sign up in advance for upcoming topics (free) or listen to the archived webinars (also free).

I'm reading Career Distinction: Stand Out by Building Your Brand at the moment and LOVING IT. I had purchased it a few years back at a resume writing conference and started it, but had set it aside and just picked it up again. Kirsten and her co-author, William Arruda offer fabulous advice for resume writers ... and their clients.