I know this content may seem daft, perhaps even condescending and I’m sorry for that, however, my colleagues and I have seen so many of the same mistakes made by senior level job seekers from across the HR profession, so many times.  So if you’re a current or soon to be job seeker PLEASE check the following:

1. Does your LinkedIn profile have your current email and phone contact details listed?   If you’ve taken the trouble to extend or accept a connection request from a recruiter or potential hiring leader, it’s an advantage if they can quickly and easily contact you.

2. Continuing from the above, have you rechecked your email and phone numbers showing on your resume AND your LinkedIn profile?   (if I had just a penny for every time a job seeker provides incorrect contact details).  And if you’re applying for roles with companies whose recruiters may not be in the same country as you, have you included your international country dialling code?

3. Is the email address you’ve provided, appropriately professional?   sexylady@, bigdog@, partymonster@, etc will generate laughter from hiring leader, but likely no invitations to discuss work.  Well meaning variations of worldsbestHR@, awesomeHR@, godlovesHR@, etc, risk perceptions that result in no invitations to discuss work either.

4. Does your resume list generic interests such as reading, dining, travelling?  Anything so “stock standard” that is unlikely to generate interest and conversation, means you’d be better off using the space for something else that might attract an employers attention. 

5. Religion and political affiliations.   Yes, I know that hiring leaders and recruiters are not supposed to discriminate.  But the fact is, they are humans, so they probably do.  Consider removing anything that might cause umbrage or conflict in the mind of a stranger reading your resume.  The aim at this point is simply to get through the initial cull for the chance of a conversation. 

6. Spelling and grammar – check these, check them again with online software designed for this, and have someone else check these for you.

7. Employment dates, role title, role content – check these, again and again.  The number of CV’s and resumes we receive, from senior executives, who’ve clearly done a “cut and paste” compilation that results in a confusing mish-mash of nonsense, is extraordinary. 

Yes, there’s a host of additional actions you need to pay attention to as part of your job seeking efforts.  You’ll find additional advice and ideas here.   But until the hiring world agrees that CV’s and Resumes, and LinkedIn profiles are obsolete, these tools will be the very first impression that a stranger will have of you.  Don’t make it the last.