Edelman HR Rep., Heather Crowley, speaks at DePaul's PRSSA chapter meeting (Photo: A. Porter 04/23/09)
For those of you who weren’t able to make Thursday’s meeting, we had a guest speaker come talk to the group about resumes, cover letters and interviewing. Heather Crowley, an HR Representitive and Recruiter from Edelman, provided us with many great tips.
When discussing resumes, Heather emphasized the importance of neatness and conciseness. In many cases, your resume will be reviewed for about 10 to 20 seconds…so make it solid. Include information about your education first, followed by any experience and lastly, and tranferable skills. Provide accurate information, but leave room for “conversation starters.” In other words, don’t give too much info. in a resume, just highlight the important things. Lastly, unless you have 10+ years of experience, your resume should not exceed one page.
Concerning follow-ups, Heather said that there is a fine line between appropriately following-up and over doing it. DON’T call recruiters everyday or bombard them with e-mails. DO find tasteful ways to stay in touch, and have a reason to contact them (i.e. –> If you noticed that their company recently won an award or took on a new account, use this as a conversation starter). While you definitely need to keep in touch with the recruiter, or whomever else you’re contacting, do so in a respectful way.
Lastly, Heather talked about the importance of social media. She recommended that if you don’t already have a Twitter account, you should start one! Also, read blogs and if you’re feeling up to it, start one of your own! Having the ability to utilize social media makes you much more marketable.
Overall, we couldn’t have been happier with Thursday’s meeting! Thank you to all of you who attended, and please feel free to leave any questions or comments!
- Liz L. (PR Dir.)
