I have continued watching Kayla go through applicants. The part that she does most often is review the resumes that come in, picking potential fits from those. All of the applications are beginning to look basically the same and I think I’m learning about what to put on and how to format a resume.
We also finished putting the Job Descriptions into the new format and then into the binders. I’m doing a little bit of research for Mr. Sharma about recruiting/HR software which is helping me understand more about that side of the recruiting world too. Through everything, I’m just witnessing and observing some of a small office’s politics and ADB’s particular culture.
Another thing that I’ve learned is just that sometimes you can have an entire day planned out with what you are going to do, but then something else comes up, and then another thing and another, and suddenly the day is over. Kayla explained that’s what “real life” is sometimes and you’ve just got to roll with it.
What kinds of things do you find stand out?
There are key words in relation to the jobs that Kayla looks for like CDL A or B, backhoe, and fiber. That gives her an understanding of which type of job they might fit, if any. Additionally, length and type of experience is pretty important for certain types of jobs (such as an operator with a few years of experience in working with backhoes and other big machines, though not skid steers, by the way). Experience also has a pretty big factor in pay, but that doesn’t come into the picture until later in the application process.
Basically there are certain words and phrases that people use that show a certain familiarity with the field that they’re applying into. Kayla has to know those patterns too, as a recruiter, along with Mr. Sharma.
Another thing that stands out is not putting too much on an application. Of course, every company will be a little different, but I generally found that we didn’t look at the “attributes” such as leadership skills as much as we did someone’s experience (including how long people stayed at a company) and training. That can tell more about if the person will be a good fit for a job than adjectives they choose for themselves and put on their resume.