It’s quite tricky writing a recruitment blog. I’m often
aware that I might sound like I’m whinging or that I sound grey and beyond my
years. The world of recruitment though
is one area where I think there are still ‘niceties’ to be observed and whilst
this world has evolved from the snail pace of the pre-email days (actually I
don’t remember those...), but equally, it’s important to know where some
element of formality and etiquette is required.
Obviously one size doesn’t fit all and recruitment is extremely
subjective. Whilst in professional
services, you’d need to be suited and booted for interview, there are some
advertising agencies who’d possibly reject you on that basis if you turned up
like that. So ultimately it’s about
knowing your audience, which as marketers we’re all meant to do anyway. Tailor your own personal message to who you
are targeting and you won’t go far wrong.
Anyway, the subject of today’s rant – sorry, blog post was
meant to be Covering Letters. Folk in
regular communication with me will already know that last week I had an
application from a candidate with a very lengthy covering letter. The main premise for their application was
entirely based on them being a Virgo.
And whilst I wasn’t intending to offend anyone with astrological
beliefs, it was a good example of a covering letter that did more harm than
good and both the letter and the CV were sent to the virtual shredder.
These days 100% of my own job applicants come to me
electronically. Either through online
job sites, email or recommendations.
Clearly, the requirement for a covering letter is dependent upon whether
it is actually an ‘application’. Most of
my recommendations are candidates dropping me an email because I’ve helped a
friend or colleague and they’ve passed on my details. In those situations, no
covering letter is required. A simple
email with a CV attachment will suffice.
It’s worth perhaps giving me a couple of lines as to your own personal
situation and I’ll then give the candidate a call for an initial chat and we’ll
run any/all suitable roles by that person.
Where a candidate is applying for a specific role via a
jobsite, I think generally you’ve either got to do all or nothing. I appreciate that candidates apply for a lot
of jobs but simply cutting and pasting a cover email just leads to errors. I’m frequently in receipt of an email
replying to a job advert for An Account Manager to find a covering email that
says; ‘Dear Jane, I’m writing to apply for the role of Marketing Manager....’
and so on. It has come to the point
where I will review the CV first. If the CV is one that I can work with, I’ll
call the candidate. Often, I won’t even look at the covering letter. I imagine that other recruiters work on this
basis too so it’s often pointless spending the time writing one.
If you are going to write a covering note. Keep it brief and
to the point. Perhaps get a few salient points in there to spark an
interest. Make it relevant to the
application. You need to try to catch the recruiter’s eye for the right
reasons. All CVs from online jobsites
come as an attachment and a few words with the attachment are fine but like I
say, brief, relevant and on message.
When I send CVs to my clients, I always write a synopsis of
the candidate – typically only after I’ve met or had a good chat with
them. So I think your time is better
spent on your CV.
Obviously, if you’re applying directly to a business from an
advertisement, I’d pay more attention to the covering letter but most of my
rules would still apply. In the world
of marketing, I can’t think of any client who would find your star sign
relevant to your application for a job.
Pick out the words and phrases from the advertisement which you think
are particularly relevant to you and respond to those points in your
letter. Don’t write war and peace –
after all, you’re just trying to engage with the employer and highlight your
skills but that can typically be done in a couple of short paragraphs. Your CV
will (should) sell you in. In my time as
a recruiter I’ve come up with plenty of wacky approaches, particular from
creative candidates, but ultimately, a strong CV will speak for itself and open
doors. I’m not saying wacky doesn’t
work, but you need to again know your audience as it could just as easily go
against you. A few candidates have done
video cover letters which, if done properly, can work well but it has to be
appropriate to the environment you are applying to. I can still remember one such video which
made the candidate look and sound like an axe murderer. However, the client loved it and he got the
job. He is still there 5 years on. Don’t automatically assume that an
Advertising agency will LOVE your totally unique and creative approach –
sending a single sock to a client is a bit of a clichéd one. However, if you’re certain you’ve got the
measure of the person you are sending it to – go for it.
It is unforgivable to have typos or obvious copying &
pasting in a covering letter and whilst the odd recruiter might overlook it, a
direct client recruiter won’t.
So in summary, if you want to avoid being the subject of the
Recruiter forum’s ‘highlight of the week’, stick to the basics and do it
well. Less is sometimes more and
ultimately your CV will do most of the work for you,
Other application pet hates:
The use of the word Passion/Passionate. Grr.
The use of the word Strategic, by new graduates.
Inappropriate photos on CVs.
(In fairness I don’t like any photos on CVs – see previous blogs).
Typos. Check your
name (really). Roll and Steakholder are
the two most common bloopers.
Extended hobbies and interests. Golf handicaps/marathon times/names of
children/animals.
This list is not exhaustive.