ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, January 28, 1996 TAG: 9601260005
SECTION: ECONOMY PAGE: 22 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: MAG POFF STAFF WRITER
Many job applications and resumes, especially if they are unsolicited, stand only a minimal chance of helping an applicant land a job through a human resources department.
Resumes must be carefully prepared and targeted toward the job you are seeking, human resources people say.
Amy Fulton, human resources manager at ETS International Inc. of Roanoke, said the first screening of a resume is critical.
"I like to see a good appearance," Fulton said. Any resume that is either machine copied or hand-written is "pitched pretty quickly."
Her pet peeve is a resume that goes on for page after page. "I don't have time to go through pages of job history," Fulton said.
A resume, she said, should be "short and to the point." She likes to see one that focuses specifically on the job opening, rather than a one-fits-all document. Fulton said she sees resumes in which the stated job objectives don't jibe with the job opening.
" I like to see one personalized for the position," she said.
Although ETS has a Roanoke work force of 90 people and another 60 at its operations in Richmond, Fulton said the company receives an average of two job applications every day, even when it doesn't advertise for a specific opening.
Fulton keeps these unsolicited applications on file for six months, after which they are discarded. But she does look at them, and she says she reviews the appropriate ones if a job opens up.
When an opening does appear, Fulton selects five people for interviews. The interview, she said, is critical in choosing the right person for the job.
Technological and scientific qualifications are prerequisites for hiring at ETS, an environmental technology company, Fulton said. Beyond that, she looks for people who are "professional and dependable and fit in with the company."
Mary Karey, vice president for human resources for First Union National Bank of Virginia in Roanoke, looks for evidence of community service from an older applicant, or extracurricular activities from a student. First Union, she said, wants employees who are "willing to get involved."
That, of course, is in addition to work experience and education.
Karey said she sees a lot of resumes that use identical outlines and cover letters. She said people simply copy them from books and self-help guides about resume writing.
That doesn't impress her. Nor does a resume showing that the applicant has jumped around from job to job. That tells Karey that the applicant "will leave us."
The best resume, she said, shows that the person has spent at least a couple of years with each employer, leaving for a better job. That is a sign of a person with a plan for career growth.
Most people send resumes to the human resources department, but she said some people try sending their letters to the bank chairman instead. The chairman simply forwards it on to her. "We end up with all of them," she said.
Karey receives 20 to 30 applications a week for jobs throughout Virginia, and she keeps most of them for the time that a job opens up. The team of six recruiters interviews about 10 applicants a week. First Union employs 2,200 people in the Roanoke Valley and 5,000 throughout the state.
Sometimes an applicant seems like a promising candidate for First Union's associate program of career training in bank management. If the person is interested in that program, the application is forwarded to the banking company's headquarters in Charlotte, N.C., for consideration.
When it comes to advertising for specific jobs, the response varies. Karey recalled receiving more than 100 responses from all over Virginia for a single job as a financial analyst. Of those, 20 reached the interview stage.
Bob Lockery, manager of employment and evaluation for Norfolk Southern Corp. at Norfolk, said the company receives 20 to 30 unsolicited applications every week.
He looks for work experience that is relevant to a specific job with the company and for a pattern of work experience that shows increasing job responsibility over time.
Norfolk Southern files these resumes according to field of expertise. Lockery said an application from an accountant, for instance, will go into the accountant prospect file. If a job opens up, the file is reviewed.
In the case of students seeking entry-level jobs, applications are divided by field of study. Even in the case of students, Lockery likes to see evidence of some work experience.
All applications are discarded after a year.
Lockery said Norfolk Southern does some recruiting at colleges. If the interview is promising, he said, the applicant's resume is considered to be solicited, giving the applicant an edge in future consideration.
"We don't do speculative interviews," Lockery said.
Lockery advised people preparing resumes to keep them to a single page. If that's not possible for some reason, he said, supplemental pages should contain only backup information to the main page. "Get up front what you do," Lockery said.
The cover letter also is important, he said - it should highlight the person's strengths and career aspirations.
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