job assistance

Below is a guide to assist you in temping or compiling a resume.

Consultant Communication [−]

• Availability dates (whether or not you are currently available)
• Change of completion dates 
• Late arrival for your assignment
• If you are sick and cannot attend work, contact your consultant directly
• Permanent job offer whilst on assignment
• Any problems or concerns relating to the assignment
• Inform your consultant as you increase skill level

Developing a Cover Letter [−]

The most important principle of cover letter writing is to specify one or two key points that you want to convey. You should establish ahead of time exactly what you want the letter to accomplish. Your cover letter must look professional. It should follow a standard business format with proper headings, single space typing and block paragraphs. If you can print it on personalised stationery, all the better. If not, use high quality paper and try to use the same colour of paper that you're using for your resume.

The opening
The opening paragraph of a cover letter should accomplish two things.

• It should announce the purpose of the letter
• It should give the reader a compelling reason to read on


The body
This section of the letter should contain the following information:

• Explain briefly your current situation, whether you are presently working or not
• Tell the reader what you are looking for and why the position you are writing about interests you
• Expand on one or two points in your resume
• Explain aspects of your resume or background that are not obvious and that could possibly work against you.
• Tell the reader directly what specific qualities you can bring to the job.

It is important in this section of your cover letter to express what you can offer rather than focussing on what you want. You should highlight what skills and experience you can contribute to the company.

Closing
Any of the following are appropriate for closing.
Sincerely/ Sincerely yours/ Yours Truly/ Kind regards

How to Prepare for an Assignment [−]

• Ensure you have a timesheet prior to commencement.
• Check the timetables or parking facilities to guarantee you arrive on time.
• Provide banking details to your consultant to ensure you receive your payment on time.
• Provide your tax file number to avoid being overtaxed.
• Make sure you have a contact name to report to on arrival.

Interview Techniques [− ]

• Your objective is to create a favourable image. There is little time, so take every opportunity to project a positive image. Start with a smile and a firm handshake and go on from there.
• Note beforehand a list of your talents and think how they can best be projected. Note some questions you can ask at the interview.
• Preparation beforehand will pay off. Accumulate as much knowledge as you can about the company and their business (ie, what they do, where they do it and how they do it). Study any available literature (eg. in reception) issued by the company.
• Smile, relax, don't be thrown off balance…try to enjoy it. Make sure you look your interviewer in the eye (eye contact inspires confidence). Lighten their day with your sunny disposition! 
• Project your achievements, talents, views and aspirations; remember they will be looking at what you can GIVE to the company rather than what you want to TAKE from it. It is a good thing to show critical self appraisal in retrospect, showing you recognise and learn from your mistakes.
• Don't just answer questions, communicate. Expand points, talk person to person, feel what you are saying and put some expression into your responses.
• You're there to impress, so there's no place for modesty. The interview is the one time you can boast of your achievements, but try to make it clear that you don't do that at other times.
• Having prepared some questions to ask, make sure you ask them! Most interviewers will remember to ask if you have any questions, but if they forget, don't be afraid to ask if they would mind answering them for you.
• Look for both audible and visible signs in the form of reactions, lines of questioning, areas of apparent interest or lack of it. This requires concentration, judgement and quick thinking so that you can tailor your performance to what you perceive will impress your interviewer.
• Finally, if the job interests you, say so with conviction, at the end of the interview.

Organising a Resume [−]

Resumes are divided into sections that cover different aspects of your background and qualifications. The names of the sections can vary, but the sequence basically stays the same regardless of the names you use. Here's a brief look at the sections of a typical resume.

• Heading: Your name, address, telephone number etc.
• Objective: A statement that briefly spells out the type of position or opportunity you are looking for.
• Summary: Two or three sentences that sum up key elements of your background, skills and attributes.
• Experience: Can also be described as professional experience or work experience, a summary of the jobs you've held and the responsibilities and duties you performed in those jobs.
• Education: Your educational credentials, university degrees etc. If you are a recent graduate with limited work experience, the education section should come before the work experience section.

The heading
The heading is more than your name, address and appropriate phone number. The only issue involving the heading of your resume is whether you should include your work telephone number. You are better off omitting it unless you are not concerned about your current employer finding out that you're looking for a new job, or if you cannot be reached conveniently at any other number. If you must include it you should ask politely in the covering letter that the caller use discretion when calling you at work.

The objective
Beginning your resume with a statement that spells out your career objective is a good idea if it matches the job for which you are applying. However, it should be specific and define clearly your objective within a reasonably narrow frame.
You should consider using an objective only when you are certain that you want only one type of job and are not interested in even talking to anyone about anything different.

The summary
The summary explains who you are and what you can offer a prospective employer. It should come at the beginning of the resume just below the heading and objective. It can take the form of a sentence, a paragraph or a series of bullet points.
You can approach the summary section in one of two ways- a specific description of your professional background, or as a general statement that spells out what you do and how long you have been doing it.

The work history section
This is the most important section of your resume and the section you need to focus on more than any other. Each position you list in this section should contain the following information.

• The job title
• The company
• Specific dates of employment.
• General responsibilities and important duties
• Your accomplishments


The education section
The amount of detail that should go into the education section of your resume depends on two factors: how many years you have been out of school and how relevant your educational background is to the position for which you are applying. The general rule of thumb is that the further along you are in your career, the fewer details and emphasis you should put on your education.
Degree: Mention the degree you earned before you mention the college or university you attended.
Major field of study: Include it only if it is relevant to the position you're applying for if you are a recent graduate.
Honours: Mention grade point average only if it is unusually high. Include other honours only if they are highly regarded in your field or if you are a recent graduate.

Professional Temping [−]

• Always ensure your consultant knows your availability.
• Make sure you leave home early enough to arrive at work on time.
• Be committed and flexible.
• While on assignment ask your supervisor if there is anything else you could do for them.
• Always ensure correct business attire is worn.
• Communicate effectively, in a courteous, happy and confident manner.
• Ask questions if you are in doubt.
• Inform your consultant as you learn new skills.
• Introduce yourself to colleagues as a temporary from Alliance Recruitment.
• Call your consultant immediately should you have any concerns.
• Upon completion of your assignment, leave a note which explains procedures you have followed and where you have left important documents.
• Confirm break times with your supervisor.
• Don't discuss your pay rates with other temporary staff.
• Turn your mobile phone off during business hours.

Things to Avoid in Resume Preparation [−]

• Unprofessionalism
  It should be printed on standard sized white paper and typed in a commonly recognised format. The typeface should be simple and easy to read. There should be no pen or pencil additions and definitely no liquid paper!

• Carelessness
  As a rule, employers are neither patient nor forgiving about these things. A single typo in an otherwise well organised and professional resume may not necessarily rule you out, but if the resume is riddled with misspellings and grammatical errors, you send the message to potential employers that you do not pay attention to detail. In a competitive job market, this is not a good message to send.
• Cute and Clever
  Play it straight. Forget puns and clever plays on words, they do not belong on a resume or a cover letter. People who read resumes are not looking to be entertained and what you consider clever may not be considered appropriate by other people.
• Irrelevance and fluff
  The people who read your resume are basically interested in one thing. They want to know whether, based on what they read, you deserve serious consideration as a candidate. Given this priority, any information in your resume that does not contribute an answer to this basic question is probably irrelevant. Keep hobbies and interests to a minimum.
• Vagueness
  Vagueness occurs when you mention a job title or set of abbreviations that nobody can recognise. It also arises when you fail to mention specifically what you were responsible for in your last job. Don't assume that the people who read your resume will figure out for themselves what duties you performed.
• Misinterpretation
  Don't lie. It's that simple. And don't be tempted to embellish the truth. You would be foolish to include anything unflattering, however the risks of exaggerating the truth in your resume far outweigh the benefits, particularly when it comes to credentials or titles.
• Underwhelming
  You need to do more in your resume than simply list the specific functions you held in your previous jobs. What you did is obviously important, however it is the impact of what you did and your accomplishments that are more important to an employer.
• Longwindedness
  The extent to which the resume is longwinded is mostly dependent on the language you use when describing your past experience. A mundane task will not appear more important if you dress it up with complicated language.
• Editorialising
  Your opinions on matters do not belong in a resume. Keep your views and sentiments to yourself, as valid as they might be.
• Overpersonalising
  Apart from the basic details - your name, address and phone number - do not include any information that relates to your personal life. Don't mention your age, your height, your weight, the colour of your eyes, the kind of dog you own, your marital status. Don't talk about your hobbies unless they are career related.

Writing a Resume [−]

Follow these basic rules to ensure your resume reads well.


• Avoid using the first person pronoun
  The pronoun "I" is not relevant in a resume because it is obvious you are talking about yourself.
  Instead of:
  I demonstrated professionalism, tact, and diplomacy while I worked with our customers in high pressure situations.  Write this:
  Demonstrated professionalism, tact and diplomacy while working with customers in high pressure situations.
• Keep sentences short
  Resumes call for short succinct statements. These statements do not necessarily have to be complete sentences; you can frequently leave out 'a', 'an', and 'the'.
  Instead of:
  I was involved in the creation and implementation of statistical reports for a large metropolitan hospital, which required the use of spreadsheet software for cost analysis and, in addition, the creation of a database to track patient visits. Write this:
  Created and implemented statistical reports for large metropolitan hospital. Analysed costs with spreadsheet software. Created database to track patient visits.
• Use Plain English
  Don't assume that the bigger the word you use, the more impressed the reader will be with your intelligence. Keep things simple and go easy on the adjectives.
• Use bullet statements
  Bulleted information is more readable and tends to stand out more than the same information contained within a paragraph. Keep the items brief and try to ensure all the points are written in the same grammatical pattern.