Articles about writing federal military resumes, federal hiring trends, and landing a federal job have proven to be the most popular among MilitarytoCivilian.com readers and military job seekers who read the leading military transition publication, CivilianJobNews. Because the federal government has thousands of openings, grants hiring preference to most veterans (for more on this see ”Federal Job Search Tips: Veteran’s Preference“), and offers many military-experienced job seekers the opportunity to directly transfer their military experience into the Department of Defense, Department of Veterans Affairs, intelligence agencies, and beyond, this comes as no surprise. So when an article entitled, “7 Federal Job Search Myths Dispelled” by federal job search trainer Dr. Daphne Houston found its way into my inbox via Careerealism.com, I couldn’t resist discussing its key points. In summary, here are the 7 federal job search myths according to Houston, plus one of my own:

1. Myth: All government jobs are in Washington, DC.

Fact: Only 15% of federal jobs are actually in DC…

2. Myth: Federal government salaries are low.

Fact: Actually, government salaries have risen faster and higher than private sector salaries. In most cases you will find they are very competitive. In fact, it’s been reported from 2000 to 2008, the pay for federal civilian employees skyrocketed 57%, while the pay for workers in the private sector grew by only 31%. And the White House recently proposed a 1.4% pay increase for federal employees.

3. Myth: To get into the federal government you have to be connected…

Fact: If that was the case, then the government wouldn’t currently have over 60,000 job openings worldwide. Don’t you think the people that know the current government workforce would have networked their way in if that was the case? Networking always helps…

4. Myth: The government is not hiring for what I do.

Fact: The OPM (Office of Personnel Management) uses a classification of 21 occupational groups and families for all GS (General Schedule) positions…. there are literally hundreds of job titles.

5. Myth: The federal government is one huge bureaucracy.

Fact: The Government is made up of several entities. Each of the over 300 departments and agencies operates as their own stand alone “corporation” within a network of agencies designed to serve the best interest of America. Some do operate more efficiently than others, and are more progressive than others. Based on your agency research, consider 3-5 agencies you would like to further explore.

6. Myth: All federal jobs are posted on usajobs.gov.

Fact: Only about 70% are on usajobs.gov. Many jobs are on each federal agency website. And some are not posted on the sites at all.

7. Myth: The federal hiring process is so long and complicated.

Fact: The federal hiring process differs from private sector hiring, and federal resume writing is different. But the process does not have to be long. There are programs, tips, and opportunities that drastically speed up the process…

To these 7 myths, I would like to add an 8th.

8. Myth: If I apply to enough federal jobs using my standard military resume, something will stick.

Fact: As Houston stated in myth #7, federal resume writing, especially federal military resume writing, is different. Federal military resumes must be carefully key-worded. Unfortunately, this is a little known fact among veterans seeking federal employment. As a federal job search trainer, I know this to be true. I hear the same story time and time again: “I’ve been applying for federal jobs for 6 months and haven’t received a response.” But there is good news; this doesn’t have to be your fate. Consider hiring the professionals at MilitaryResumes.com. Our professional military resume writers are experts are targeting federal military resumes using federal resume writing processes that produce results.

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Filed under: Federal Job (Steps to get a), Federal Resumes, Military Career Transition, Military Job Seeker Advice, Uncategorized

You may have heard that there are several resume styles from which to choose. Although technically this is true, there is one style that you should avoid at all costs, unless you want your military resume to end up in the circular file. So heed this warning before you put that pen to paper – no matter who has “sold” you on a functional format – do not listen!

In an article posted on www.fistfuloftalent.com entitled “In Memorium: Obituary of the (Dys)Functional Resume“, Dawn Hrdlica (PHR), an HR manager for MailSouth with over 10 years of HR experience, memorializes the death of the functional resume. According to Hrdlica, a functional format is only suitable for “experience too limiting to be forthright.”

Functional resumes begin with a professional summary that lists primary functional skills, such as project management, maintenance, reorganization, etc. This is followed by skills and significant achievements for each of the primary functional skill sets. Next is a tabular summary of employment (depending on the military resume), followed by education and certifications. Hrdlica’s issues with functional resumes are outlined in the following excerpt:

“Why am I frustrated with functional resumes and professionals who recommend them?

a)    If I see a functional resume, I know you are trying to hide something.  Or someone has advised you to hide something.

b)   They are difficult to read-too much text, no CONTEXT.

c)    They give the recruiter too much power.  Why?  By eliminating important details such as chronological order to your accomplishments, candidates are letting recruiters fill in the blanks for your story.  Never a good idea.

d)   It makes me believe that you are not confident enough with your work history or skills to be confident enough to work for my organization.

e) If you don’t have any work experience-GET SOME.”

In my opinion, there are three problems with functional resumes. First, they do not provide hiring managers with enough information. As a hiring authority, how am I to know if you have three months or three years of “project management” experience? Second, they come across as suspicious. Functional resumes are popular among people with something to hide, such as habitual “job hoppers” and those with large gaps in their employment history. Third, they tend to be heavy on empty phrases like, “exceptional leadership skills.” To a seasoned resume reviewer, this means nothing. A great resume leads the reader, on his or her own, to come up with the very assertions you would like to make. Aim to show not tell – a hard order to fill with a functional resume.

The best format choice for military-experienced job seekers aiming to highlight progressive leadership experience is a reverse chronological resume. This is the format always used by the professional military resume writers at the nation’s leading military resume writing company, www.MilitaryResumes.com. A reverse chronological resume lists employment with the most recent position first. Each entry includes the company, job title, dates, and a job description with an emphasis on accomplishments, and includes an education or certifications section.

In summary, readers want your military resume in a certain format. List your work experiences in reverse chronological order rather than by function performed. If collateral duties and multiple, simultaneous jobs make your reverse chronological timeline somewhat difficult to follow, add a “collateral duties” or “additional experience” section and keep the focus on experience most relevant to your target. While a functional resume may make you feel better about representing your skills, it will not please the reader and you could miss opportunities because your resume ended up in the trash.

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Filed under: In the News, Military Resumes

Like it or not, 2010 is here. Whether you’ve been pounding the job search pavement for months or your military retirement looms on the distant horizon, there is no better time to rethink, or start thinking about, your job search strategy and military resume. Make it your New Year’s resolution to establish an up-to-date job search strategy (or refresh an existing one) to better reflect current trends in the job market and the latest career industry advice. Here are some thoughts to get you started:

Get with the times. Know where the jobs are. Network.

It’s time to face the facts. Nearly everyone is using social networking web sites these days. I recently read an article that stated at last count, LinkedIn had over 60 million users. In contrast, job boards only contain about 3.5% of available jobs. This is common knowledge in the career industry, but it seems to be a little known fact within the community of military job seekers. Military job seekers spend an inordinate amount of time on job boards relative to the likelihood of actually finding a job on them. Why is this? Because it feels safer and it’s what they know. LinkedIn and similar sites, which are all about networking and socializing in an unfamiliar environment, can be intimidating. Make it your New Year’s resolution to get with the times and push yourself outside of your comfort zone. And don’t overlook companies like Bradley-Morris, Inc. and CivilianJobs.com. These leaders in placing military-experienced job seekers into the Fortune 1000 and emerging company sectors have done and will continue to do a substantial amount of corporate networking on behalf of military talent.

Understand your audience. Develop your brand.

Gone are the days of the monotonous objective statement – hallelujah! Objective statements are out; personal branding is in. Looking for a job is a sales situation. You are your product. To effectively brand your product, you must know your audience. Got your eye on that dream job with a stable company? Resolve to do some research. What are their two biggest needs right now that you could potentially fill? At Military Resumes, a professional military resume writer can align the “who you are” with the “what they need” in your most important marketing tool – your military resume. Let’s say that you are a career military recruiter looking to join an exciting start-up company. Your brand might be: “Seasoned Recruiter and Marketing Guru… Offering to drive growth by generating qualified leads, penetrating territories, and closing the toughest sales, consistently!”. Now carry your brand forward in your social networking profiles.

Treat your job search like a game.

Treat your job search like a game and plan to win. Set a goal for 2010. Maybe your goal is to get a job before you retire in March. Set up a strategy where you must do X number of things per day. Keep running totals, complete with which actions scored better results than others. For example, if setting up a meeting over coffee with just one individual lands more contacts and job referrals than sending out 30 e-mails, adjust your strategy accordingly. Everyone has a game-playing style that works for them. Find out which job search actions work best for you and focus on using them to get you to the winner’s circle.

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Filed under: Military Career Transition, Military Job Seeker Advice, Military Resumes, Networking

A Military Resumes client (who happens to be a very savvy senior enlisted Intelligence Analyst), recently shared her frustration regarding the arbitrary barriers companies impose in their job openings. Nearly every military job seeker who has been around the block has encountered the “too-perfect-fit” job opening. This opening has so many specific requirements, only the incumbent or the candidate they have already decided to recruit could possibly fill the position. So should seemingly insurmountable obstacles prevent you from applying for your ideal position? I say no.

Many well-intentioned requisites, such as minimum years of experience and/or educational requirements, actually end-up working against hiring managers… and it is only a matter of time before this truth reveals itself. Who would you rather hire? A person who has 10 years of experience with marginal accomplishments and little ambition or an individual who outperforms all of their peers, no matter their length of experience, even though they’ve only been in the industry for seven years? At the end of the day, hiring managers are really looking for a return on their hiring investment and not a piece of paper or an arbitrary number.

The fact that some companies focus too narrowly on their industries often scares off military job seekers as well. But while an HR representative may be the one to point out that an otherwise impressive military-experienced candidate lacks specific experience with widget X, the CEO might not be willing to pass up a candidate with a documented track record of success improving efficiencies in their military unit and performing under challenging circumstances.

The success of the nation’s leading military-focused recruiting firm, Bradley-Morris, Inc. (BMI), in matching military job seekers with careers in the Fortune 1000 is evidence that military experience is valuable within a variety of industries. BMI markets the value of military experience and works with companies who need perpetual sources of talent, diverse candidates and team-oriented individuals – all of which are found in the military talent pool. Since 1991, BMI has helped companies understand which military occupational specialties have proven successful in their industry previously – no widget X experience necessary.

So now that we’ve revealed these “obstacles” for what they really are – arbitrary requests unlikely to be exactly matched – how should a military job seeker surmount them? I suggest starting with your military resume. With so many resumes circulating today, if military job seekers do not communicate their transferability in 15-20 seconds, they will not get a second look. So during this difficult economic time where military job seekers might opt to skimp on their military resumes, understand that by doing so, they may also be skimping on their futures. I highly suggest investing your time in communicating your value more effectively and convincingly. Your job search will be the better for it.

Or, if you don’t have the time to do it yourself, trust your experience and military resume to professional military resume writers (the writers at Military Resumes are experts in demonstrating transferability in their clients’ military resumes), ones who will represent you as the next best fit… next to the one that doesn’t exist!

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Filed under: Federal Resumes, Military Job Seeker Advice, Military Resumes

On November 9th, the White House announced the launch of a new initiative to transform the federal government into the top employer of America’s veterans. A press release from the Office of the Press Secretary cited “repaying our debt for [veterans'] courageous service and selfless sacrifice” and filling the ranks of the federal government with men and women who possess an unparalleled sense of duty as reasons for President Obama’s Executive Order. The Executive Order establishes the Veterans Hiring Initiative for the Executive Branch and creates an interagency Council on Veterans Employment that will advise the President and the Director of the Office of Personnel Management on the veterans employment initiative.

The Order also establishes a Veterans Employment Program office within most federal agencies. These offices will be responsible for helping veterans identify employment opportunities within those federal agencies, providing feedback to veterans about their employment application and military resume status, and helping veterans recently employed by these agencies adjust to a civilian workplace culture. Also of note, the Office of Personnel Management will issue a government-wide strategic plan that will focus on creating leadership commitment and an infrastructure in each agency to promote employment success for veterans. The strategic plan will also include marketing strategies aimed at agency hiring managers as well as veterans and transitioning service members.

The initiative’s timeline was not made clear in the press release. But there has never been a better time to explore federal employment opportunities and build your military federal resume. At the end of the fiscal year 2008, there were approximately 480,000 veterans employed by the federal government. It has been and will continue to be the largest employer of veterans. Find your ideal federal career at www.usajobs.gov. For reputable, professional federal military resume writing services, please visit www.MilitaryResumes.com.

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Filed under: Federal Job (Steps to get a), Federal Resumes, In the News, Military Career Transition