Hey SEOmoz Blog readers! Please be advised - this is NOT an SEO tech-fiend blog. This evening, I want to draw your attention to another SEOmoz tool. If you have ever wondered just how we found all the great people that make SEOmoz so awesome, here is a blog on how to read a resume for the tech-world, which, as you know, is very popular these days. There are also some tips for those of you tech-savvy peeps applying for jobs and wondering how to make your resumes sparkle!
So, to set the mood, let's imagine it’s summer, graduates are graduating, selling their extra long sheet sets, and ironing their one good, clean, crisp white shirt. Hiring season has begun! The evidence is in the résumés we’re receiving for our open Software Engineering positions. With recruiting efforts in full-swing, the pool is deep as it is wide. As we begin to review and sift through the seemingly endless stacks, we find that the we are comparing new CS grads to seasoned engineers. Knowing who makes a better candidate with even this distinction is not as black and white as one might think. While one candidate might have everything you need, the other just seems cooler and capable of learning more than the other candidate already knows. What to do? Google?
Yes, you Google. And yes the web is rich with “how to write a successful résumé” forums, and even paid sites, but a search for “how to read a successful résumé” yields scrawny results, particularly in the tech world. I would send you to those sites, however pebbles are more interesting.
So here we are again, trying to make the web a better place with yet another resource! Luckily, I was able to sit down with Kate Matsudaira and pick her brain on recruiting techniques. Below are practices Kate uses to sift through résumés, and, tips for those that are in the process of writing their résumé.
For skimmers, the TIPS in blue are for those writing their résumé, and the numbered sections are for those who are reading them. Hawt Points and Red flags are in, well, red.
How do you know who is interview worthy?
1. Reading and Deciphering
The most important question to ask yourself when reading a resume is: is it easy to distill information about this candidate? Candidates can certainly brag about themselves, but knowing when you are looking at something that is actually good and not a messy mud puddle can be hard to discern. Here are some hawt points and the way in which to read into them:
Hawt Points
• Objective. Sometimes software engineers want to be project managers. Know who actually wants the job you’re offering.
• Experience. Where have they been and do you like where they have been? Have they included dates of employment? How many jobs have they held in the last year? Relevant experience?
• Skills, Languages & Technologies. Are they versed in the capacities listed in the requirement section of your job post? Are they too expert sounding in too many languages? Did they list MS Office Suite?
• Projects. Do they include the duration of the projects they have listed, as well as people they probably worked with on these projects?
• Education. Did they go to an exceptional school? Complete their degree? If they didn’t, what was their GPA? Honors, awards, scholarships? Achievements?
• Outside of Work. Do they list their interests and activities? Do they appear to exhibit a sense of passion for the work you are asking of them?
TIP: The simpler the better. The recruiter’s job is hard enough, how about making it easier on them? Spell checking shows that you pay at least a little attention to detail, as does pretty formatting. But remember to hit the main points: Jobs, Education, Skills, and if it seems applicable, projects (including the duration of the projects), and accomplishments (such as graduating with honors or that you won 1st place at the Google Code Jam.)
2. Record of Promotion
If the candidate has moved up the ladder, successfully filling multiple roles while at one company, that’s probably something worth noting. Here’s a an example:
TIP: If you are creating your résumé and want to know what to show off, let the world know that you have an interest in yourself, and are genuinely, well, awesome! Show you have been promoted. Recruiters like that stuff. It also shows that people like you and what you do. Even if it was merely a change in job title and not an increase in pay.
3. Know the Good Companies from the Bad
This might seem obvious, but successful companies usually have strong employees behind them. How did they get those strong employees? Well, they are all American Gladiators… or they have a rigorous hiring process.
Sexy 80's American Gladiators Photo Source
If a candidate has worked somewhere you know hires only REALLY good people, they are probably worth checking out.
Also, don’t forget about the little guys! They might be small and new – but they tried! Not sure? Sometimes their mission statements, or job postings showcase the type of employees they hire. We do, and so do lots of other people out there. Next time you are looking at a resume, check out the companies your candidates worked for and see what THEY looked for in a candidate. You can also look at their current employees in similar roles on LinkedIn to get a feel for the caliber of talent they were looking for.
TIP: You will probably be Googled, so you might want to take that Facebook photo down. You know which one I am talking about. Oh, and set up a LinkedIn account and start networking! (If you build it, they will come.) Be sure to fill in as much information as possible, and start networking with people you meet in interviews, it lets the recruiter know you are interested (and helps them remember you (*wink*).
4. School is Cool
Obviously, if you are hiring for a tech position and the candidate went to a top computer science program and earned advanced degrees in Computer Science, Linguistics, Physics, Mathematics…. they are probably pretty dang smart. But don’t overlook those that have high GPAs from the lesser-known schools! A degree is still an accomplishment – especially if they graduated Cum Laude with a GPA higher than 3.7, honors, or additional degrees. Those folks are extremely interview-worthy and these are impressive achievements; it shows they worked hard and take pride in their work. Isn’t that what you want in a candidate?
TIP: Wondering if you should include your GPA on your résumé? If you received below a 3.5 GPA, then you may not want to showcase it on your résumé. But above a 3.5? Heck ya! Show your stuff and pump it up with activities, honors, awards, and personal achievements. That is an accomplishment and there are people who pay attention to these details.
At SEOmoz, we have interviewed candidates with otherwise unimpressive resumes because the candidate’s achievements at school or in their personal lives warranted a phone screen. Their dedication was simply too impressive to pass up!
As an aside, school is way cool, but it isn't necessarily everything a candidate has to offer. If you take all of those hawt points listed above, and they exceed your expectations without even looking at their education, bring them in! Did you know that SEOmoz's own CEO dropped out of college? Some people are just really smart, motivated and super dedicated, and that says a lot about character.
5. Trophies, Patents, Awards and Certificates
Not everyone receives a fancy award or honor, so those are good to look at, especially fellowships, grants and scholarships. If someone else is willing to pay them for something amazing they did, you might find them worthy of a few peanuts, too.
It also shows that the candidate is willing to go that extra mile to prove they have mad skills. And that’s what you should be looking for, right? Ask yourself, “What do they do outside of work?” Are they involved with Startup Incubator as a finalist or member, have they participated in industry events such as Google Summer of Code, Startup Weekend, or have they attended conferences, or presented at conferences. (pssst....hidden TIPS are in this paragraph!)
TIP: Get yourself awarded? No seriously, if you are amazing, then apply for a grant, or enter a contest! It’s not just for mom, it’s for your future (barf!) Show passion and achievement outside of what you get paid to do. “It’s more about the achieving nature of the person than the achievement.” Kate Matsudaira.
6. Projects and Mad Skills
Instead of being impressed by a long list of known technologies, an example of how the candidate has used them is way more impressive. Let's pretend we are looking for someone with experience in building a house using a hammer, screwdriver, nails and screws. A better resume would list how they used the tools (hammer, screwdriver, nails and screws), is a manner such as this: "My last project was building a house. For this project I used a hammer, a screwdriver, nails and screws." Savvy?
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Also, the cover letter is the best place to discover if a candidate is looking to work vs. looking to fulfill a passion. If the developer is truly passionate about being a developer, then he/she’s probably working on side projects or learning a new language. These are things to look for in an application. If an interviewee told us they created a webpage especially for their interview, it wouldn’t be the first time, and there hasn’t been a time we didn’t consider them for the position. What scientist doesn’t like proof?
TIP: Flaunt it if you got it! In a meeting with Andrew Maguire, founder of InternMatch, he referenced a really interesting write up on an innovative way to draw attention to your mad skills. The concept: Kill the Cover Letter. Although this relates to interns looking for internships, it’s really not a bad idea all across the board. You can always write up a traditional cover letter and refer them to your nifty digital “cover letter”. Then you would really be cool, especially if there are multiple Tweets and Likes proving it. It’s a socially driven world, get with it!
7. Lesser Known and Used Ideas and Strategies
If you don’t use a platform like Jobvite, take advantage of Survey Monkey. Have them answer all the generic make-it or break-it questions you have before contacting them. You can also ask them questions that are geared toward the kind of culture you are trying to maintain, or even create. You know, weed out the pen sniffers and the too secretive, secret Santas.
Creepy Secret Santa Photo Source
When you find yourself completely stumped on a candidate, it’s better to err on the side of giving them a chance. In fact, at SEOmoz, we worry about missing good people while only depending on their resumes as a filter. This is when the survey comes in handy. You can format it to do the 1st interview for you, and control your interview process. Here are some of the questions from our survey:
- Where do you want to be in 5 years? How would working at SEOmoz help you meet those goals?
- What project do you consider your greatest success and why?
- Tell us about a mistake you made recently that you learned a lot from.
- What do you love best about being a software engineer?
- Why did you apply to SEOmoz? Is there a particular product/feature/technology you want to work on?
- Why do you think you'd be a great fit at SEOmoz?
- Please provide a link to a page you consider to be the funniest on the internet.
8. The moral of the story...
The suggestions listed above are derived from implemented practices here at SEOmoz. While we would like to say that our process is flawless, it is in fact organic. Depending on your recruiter, these tips could really scale down the otherwise arduous task of locating that awesome fit! An interesting outcome in utilizing these practices, especially the survey, is that you’re uncovering a personality that may or may not fit, or may not fit in the cover letter or resume format, and therefore on your team!
A Few Red Flags:
When reviewing resumes there are lots of things to look for in a resume, but there are also some things that may make you raise your eyebrows. Below are some of the things that can raise doubts in our mind (so if you are writing a resume be sure to avoid them). Of course, never let one or more of these prevent you from talking to a candidate, since good people do write bad resumes; however some of them may warrant additional questions and investigation.
The never - ending resume.
No one cares about your high school job unless you just graduated or are still in high school.
TIP: If you have a lot of work experience, only include the most relevant if not the most recent positions.
The Expert at everything.
What did Anonymous say? Oh yeah, “An expert is someone who knows more and more about less and less, until eventually he knows everything about nothing.”
TIP: If you suggest that you’re an expert at everything you do, you have nothing to learn. Often times, the experts are not who recruiters are looking for. They tend to be, well, know- it-all’s.
The job jumper
Unless you are a time bender like Hiro Nakamura, no one should have 20 jobs in 3 years.
TIP: Um, don’t be a job jumper. You’re not only wasting your employer’s time, but your time. Obviously you're not happy with what you are doing, so find something new.
The endless list of accomplishments (liars, freeloaders, scrubs):
Unless you actually saved a litter of puppies from certain death on your way to work while juggling 10 cups of coffee – don’t say you did. It’s lame, and if someone else helped you with that project, it’s good karma to extend those kudos.
TIP: Figure out what you have to offer. If you feel like you don’t have anything to show for yourself, express it as a goal in your cover letter. If you do have a ridiculous amount of accomplishments within a very limited time span, chances are we won’t consider you, because it's next to impossible.
Record of Promotion is an interesting one. I have worked agency side and as Ive learnt more about SEO I've realised the agencies Ive worked in are never going to accept or be interested in SEO.
Becoming a world dominating online presence is at odds with an agency's short term focus and billing as much as you can on a monthly basis. Clients are equally ignorant of what success actually looks like and stand in their own way of success as much as any market force
Being a happy SEO means working with people who have as much knowledge and understanding of the system as you but who also want the same successes as you. The agencies and clients Ive worked with have a different measure of success than I have, making it a tough place to be happy
So my resume looking like Ive been playing hopscotch :) but in the right environment you would be hard pressed to find someone to contribute more than me. Finding that environment is turning out to be quite a journey.
Very good points, I agree that agecnies really push the billings side of thing as that is what the Agency model is based on. I know that is why Agencys seem to love SEM as they can bill very large amount.
Yet I am sure they know the ROI on SEO is far better =)
But yeah learning and knowledge from others is deffiantly a great thing to work along side, I know that is what people work at great companies as great companies hire great people.
I just want to second simplicity (by the resume-writer). Back in the (first) dot-com boom, I'd routinely get 200 resumes, even for an entry level job at a company with less than 10 employees. I'd like to say I read them all in detail, but it just doesn't happen. I scanned, and any little thing could make me toss a resume on the "B" or "C" pile, because I needed to get to that "A" pile quickly. The more scannable your resume is (especially the good stuff), the better chance you have. It's not unlike copywriting for the web.
It's *Hiro* Nakamura! : DDD
Can't believe I said that.
Great work on this post Leah! There are lots of good tips here for both employers and job seekers.
Readers - definitely let us know if you have one to add since we are always looking for ways to make our process better and love hearing new ideas!
Interesting post!
Hey! Kate i have a question for you…
If a person is applying who have the background of a country like mine… Awesome companies and Universities all will more likely be unknown to you right? so how will you going to consider that candidate? I mean is it by Project s/he have worked on or the way he write a killer cover letter or what?
Hey mossahemani!
When it comes to education, we do consider international schools. We actually keep a list of some of the top international universities (in computer science specifically - like National University of Singapore, University of Toronto, ETH Zurich, IIT, etc) - and will consider those positivee signs.
However, education is only one signal in a corpus of information. We would never dismiss a candidate because they didn't go to a top school - in fact we have made great hires without degrees or formal education - but they had a dearth of personal projects or relevant experience that really impressed us.
Cover letters definitely help too - your goal should be to highlight why you are really special - so if you don't have a fancy degree or have worked at the most impressive company- highlight your successes, and what you have done outside of your day job to become really great at what you do.
Hope that helps! Let me know if you have more questions.
Kate
I enjoyed reading this post, and I think that a section on digital/web resumes and portfolios would be a helpful addition. - Jenni
Great article.
In addition to what you've written I like to ask what side work the applicant has on the go. I like hiring SEO's who have worked on their own business projects on the side. It tells me that they understand a greater set of problems beyond the ranking of sites that will help them be empathetic towards their clients business needs/objectives
Wholeheartedly agree. It also shows the candidate has an element of entrepreneurship with a hunger for success, money and has an imagination... all of which are important qualities for a good SEO.
Thanks for all the great feedback! Kate and I are working on our next post, so stay tuned!
This post is Good! There are lot of young graduate out there having problem showcase them to their potential employer, this post will be very help full, it does not matter you are out their looking for your first job or thinking a career upgradation.
Thanks Again.
A couple of good tips shared with me recently by a recruiter, specific to resume formatting. Take the time to edit a resume to the specifics of each position you are applying for, as very seldom will all roles you seek require the exact same skills. It's about understanding the hiring organizations needs, and then preparing your resume in a fashion that addresses those needs and connects your skill set to them.
Secondly, and this is a good tie in with SEO-read the job description thoroughly, understand what the "keywords" are, and then put them at the foot of the document in small, white font. Harkens back to the days of keyword stuffing a bit, but it is a good opportunity to make sure all the keywords are there for a resume scanning software, if used, to hit on. At the same time, they are not visible to the human eye and uyou can write your visual resume for the recruiter without being tied to them as much if doing so detracts from your "voice". Just my .02. Thanks!
Custom formatting and tweaking the resume specific for each interview is a GREAT tip. I did this over a year ago to land my current position as the Director of SEO and PPC for a local agency. Making a resume around an avaible position slotted me in for an interview when I was able to ace the face to face interview. Really an AWESOME TIP!
Definitely a change of pace from the SEO world… lol, Really a stand up job on this article! Chock full of great tips here for both employers looking to hire and job seekers preparing for interviews!
Best info I've seen on writing resumes and preparing for interviews.
All candidates should see this.
Good work!
I'm a big fan of using pre-screen questions when hiring. TheResumator.com (my lightweight ATS of choice) lets me ask questions during the application or any time later.
It really helps weed people out -- for instance, when I ask what they do for professional development and a candidate leaves that blank.
When I asked about Mac and Google Doc proficiency, my favorite was the candidate who said, "Not much experience with Mac OSX or Google Spreadsheets. I mainly use Word Spreadsheets." https://karlsakas.com/what-not-to-say-when-you-apply-for-a-job/
I think the best pitch would be - Look I would love this position and think I would be a great fit, in fact I would happily work for the first couple weeks for free just so you could get a chance to see my work ethic and creativity.
I would like to see if anyone has tried a personal guarentee before.
Thats a tough call from the job seeker perspective, which regrettably is currently mine! You do document enthusiasm, but at the same time you are devaluing your work somewhat and macro level (since I read too much Paul Krugman) contributing to the downward pressure on wages which is currently a issue for a lot of workers, both employed and unemployed. IMHO I would only pull this idea out of the bag in extraordinary circumstances, otherwise I should be selling my skill set enough to the employer that they want me as bad as I want to be there!
I have offered SEO skills (which I am developing now, not a seasoned pro), to a organization that was not technically fluent and hence was having trouble getting exec buy in on a site redesign, and while I am pretty confident that my suggestions were on point and justifiable, primarily code tweaks, it certainly didn't seem to build the value, either of what I could do for them or for the proposed project as a whole. Oh well, I'll get 'em next time!
Rather than "I'll work for free", I've offered a 100% money back guaranty. Though I did once have a week long interview were I taught along side the company's instructors.
As a former recruiter, the point I'd have to agree with most is keeping the resume short and sweet. There's nothing worse than 5 pages that could've been condensed to 1-2. Thanks for the post!
You mentioned essential points, is right, there is no doubt that every day we learn something new .. and be more prepared ..
Enjoyed alot reading your post .Now i have got some thing new Resume Pattern
Enjoyed a lot while reading your post. Now I have got some thing new and interesting which makes me think different.
Please include one topic in your next post i.e how to manage a team. Thanks
Having hired 100's of people, I have found the resume is not a very effective tool in hiring. It is important to get the attention of the company of course.
With that said, I think these are excellent points if you have to dig through resumes.
I liked to ask job seekers to add a specific mention of in a recume or cover letter, to see who really was reading the job posting.
Great tip re running a online survey - that is going to save me heaps of time.
In the UK, there is a general concensus that your resume/cv should be no more than 2 pages long, however whenever I'm recruiting here in Australia all of the CV's are invariably 5-7 pages long. Any Aussies here find the same thing?
My tip for anybody in an SEO job hunt would be to include a list of your best results - target keywords, ranking acheived & URL. I'm astonished at the number of candidates I see who don't include this basic seo information. I agree with Jakedavidow - having projects on the side shows you have a real passion for either SEO or making money..both of which are attractive attributes!
A more general tip would be to keep your resume short, use bullet points, don't write paragraphs and please pleeeeasse write something interesting in your personal 'about me' section. Reading, listening to music and watching films are not something that sets the interviewer's world alight!
Good tips. I would also say that writting skills and showing that you're a good communicator is important. Also good typesetting is a bonus if you have some design ability.
Thanks for the post. I have been hearing your seomoz ads on KEXP a ton lately.
I have been reading lots of resumes lately and conducting interviews (got one in a couple hours) so this is quite relevant for me! Some insight (at least from my POV as a non-HR but basically in charge of hiring at our office) show real accomplishments in your resume (e.g. Grew revenues by 23% blah blah blah). Also for entry level positions its just been helpful when the resume is geared towards the industry - even small mentions of SEO experience can go a long way for entry-level or even relevant classes taken in college.
Also remember for you resume writers - chances are the people reading them are scanning them quickly! I will look at your resume for about 20 seconds so you better catch my attention and no I dont like reading paragraph descriptions of your past jobs.
Hi Brandon!
Skimming certainly saves time, and is often necessary, especially from an SEO standpoint. Hit on the keywords! And I tend agree that the too wordy resumes and cover letters don't quite hold my attention - especially after resume number 20 :)
Clear and concise is better!
Great stuff. I'm re-entering the job market so this post and the interview questions post from a few weeks ago are especially helpful.
Nice post, beside SEO advice on seoMoz!
Resumes, and how employers enterpret them has always been something that intriques me. While some of your points seem 'obvious' its funny to see what some people write in their resumes these days. I'm also glad that you touched on the GPA situation. I personally graduated college with a below 3.0 GPA and getting my foot into doors was extremely difficult for this reason alone. HOWEVER, once I got myself in very rarely did I not offer value in one way or another. While GPA can be important its really just one of many parts of a resume.
To be honest, I have never had anyone outside of my interviews directly out of school ask me about my GPA. I like to let my work speek for itself ;)
Totally agree - and if you had a bad GPA I definitely wouldn't add it on there :) Your work will speak on its own - as you said (and most people change SOOOOO much from who they were in college).
If you did graduate with honors though, it does at least show that you can work hard and achieve something at some point in your life :)
I liked this post a lot! Do you feel that it is necessary for applicants to tailor their resume to the different companies that they are applying for?
Hi webpagefxseo -
It really depends on the candidate and the company. If it is a position that you have never held before, or working with tools/technologies you haven't used, then yes - that is a smart move.
I know for SEOmoz engineering, we definitely are more inclined to give people a shot when it is clear they have put in a lot of effort to apply for our role. We want to work with people that really want to work here, and a creative cover letter is a fantastic way to set yourself apart and demonstrate that desire. However, we have also interviewed people with exciting resumes that clearly had sent the same resume to 10 jobs. Applying for jobs is a lot of work, and as employers we realize that so it isn't an expectation - but it can certainly give you an edge.
If you really want the job, I would suggest tailoring your resume and cover letter to that company - it can only help you stand out from the large stack of resumes and that will hopefully get your foot in the door.
-Kate
PS: For big companies where you have to fill out the forms as part of the application process, they have search engines that match people's experience to the job posting (kind of like resume SEO) - so you should make sure some of the keywords from the job description are in your application.
Thanks for the change of pace. Definately needed! Interviewing someone tomorrow. Great timing.
Awesome blog post Leah!
Great post! However, I wouldn't advise incorporating an "Objective" section into your resume. It's a waste of ink or 1's and 0's. I just might suggest it to an entry-level candidate, but never a seasoned professional. Use a profile or summary section instead. That'll pop with an employer a lot more than.... "I'm seeking a great job with an employer who who pays well and will best utilize my skills as a XXX..." or here's one I received last week... "To find a position that allows me to use my past skills." His current skills must not be very good.
Yeah those are lame objectives for sure! However, people who want to change roles (say move from being an individual contributor to a manager) can really use the objectives to their advantage - it also provides context if the cover letter is missing.
But like every line in your resume, you should make sure it adds value and helps your application.
The worst is "Objective: To join your amazing company and work with your talented staff at [Insert Company]" - Ok, I've never actually seen "[Insert Company]", but that's how it reads. If you want to kiss my ass, at least be subtle about it and buy me dinner first.
I don't really think it's even necessary to include an Objective line in your resume. In my mind, if you're applying to a job, obviously your objectives are to a) get a new job, and b) get a job at the company you are applying to. Including a generic "this is my objective" line can be really harmful, I think.
I just can't think of a great way to phrase an Objective line. "To move up in a challenging company and become a manager" makes you seem like you are just looking for promotions.
Any thoughts from those more experienced than I?
dohertyjf:
I can see your point. Although, it also depends on what kind of candidate you are looking to hire, and how their objective line reads. I have recruited for positions where we specifically looked for an entry level person whose objective was to learn more technologies and work alongside the dev team. Which suggests they are looking to get promoted, but we were looking for a candidate who showed dev interest. So it certainly depends on what you are looking for :)
Certainly makes sense! Thanks for the feedback :-)
A comprehensive post. Also useful for those of us looking for work - fortunately I've avoided most of these pitfalls!
Good post thank you!
We get loads of CV's from graduates and experienced SEO's looking for a job but I think this post would be useful for them to 'polish' up their applications.
I always get involved with the recruitment process - mainly because I like asking my secret weapon question: "What's your favourite vegetable?" that's a sink or swim moment in any interview.
Before we get to that point though we have to go through a load of CVs, my top tip is to include next to your name at the top what your specialism is and to clearly set out the dates, job titles and companies you've worked for really clearly so they can be seen at a glance.
Although not in a CV format I keep a running history of my working career online for people to check out if they want to - because everyone does check things out. I've been into a few meetings with people lately only to find my LinkedIn profile staring back at my from the big screen in the meeting room.
Finally i got the right resume patteren to inspire the world ;)
A lot of people lie about every thing in their resumes, I have seen it time and time aggain.
It is funny when you get a resume where a person has like 2007-2009 = Head of SEO at Random Ran consulting then they have 2010-2011 - SEO Analyst at a known company.
You think wow the candidate has gone from Head of SEO to an analyst do they really think we are this stupid.
I personally think Linkedin is way better then a physical resume becuase you can link up the dots, sure people bull shit on linkedin to but it much harder to bs.
I also agree with the job jumper thing you see some guys who just want to go and work at like 10 companies in 3 years it does not look good at all.
"It is funny when you get a resume where a person has like 2007-2009 = Head of SEO at Random Ran consulting then they have 2010-2011 - SEO Analyst at a known company. You think wow the candidate has gone from Head of SEO to an analyst do they really think we are this stupid"
Have to disagree here. Smart people chase dream jobs and not job titles (unless all they want is ego boost). I can start my company and become CEO, CMO, CTO, Head of Global Search, SEO of all SEOs, SEOzilla or anything i want to become. But this wont necessarly make be better (in terms of skills and expertise) than a CEO of a public traded company who earned that title through decades of hard work and experience. So there is generally a big difference in skill sets between Head of SEO in a ABC company and Head of SEO in a company like Amazon.
Hi Good points I see the view point your guys are looking at it from, if they are moving to a bigger company yet in my example this was two very small companies in a small market with a shortage of tallent.
I know how team structures in larger companies hence promotion takes longer, you can be Analyst > Senior Analyst> Specialist > Senior Specliast > Manager > Senior Manager > Director > Head of SEO.
If you see some one has gone from head of SEO at one company to an Analyst at a similar company they must have taken a serious pay cut.
I mean from Managing teams, working on strategy/ new business to then working on Reporting/crunching numbers.
SURE if it would have to be a fantastic company and some where you have dreamed of working at and you would love it on your resume aka Facebook/Google/Groupon for example. Yet in my comparison these were LESSER KNOW COMPANIES!!!
I agree we are in a time of layoffs for other industries yet we are not in a time of layoffs for SEO and SEM, last time I heard their was a 10% industry shortage in the USA for our industry for "skilled" workers.
Every one is looking for good SEO tallent!!!
Every one has their own opinion and I agree every one has a right to a fair interview process and fair reading of resumes.
"You think wow the candidate has gone from Head of SEO to an analyst do they really think we are this stupid."
I'm going to disagree with this from another standpoint:
We're in a time of economic woes and layoffs. Lots of people lose jobs through no fault of their own and are happy to take whatever they can get so they can pay their bills, keep their houses, feed their families, etc. (And those "lower level" jobs aren't even easy to get because hiring managers tend to write these people off as "overqualified.")
May warrant further investigation, but consider the whole picture!
Hi whilst I agree we are in a time of economic woes, I feel that the SEM/SEO space is in a very good position, I have seen a few reports saying that our industry has a 10% shortage in skilled workers who have experience.
I find it funny that any one would take such a drastic drop in roles, yet I agree if can happen.
Yet I agree 100% if this was with a DREAM company and a DREAM position such as Facebook, Google, or any other big well known company then yes go for it.
Agree With Himanshu here, because most of the times, link builder call themselves as a SEO Consultant, and they never know the meaning of SEO except "Search Engine Optimization" lOl
All the link builders I have dealt with do not refer to them selves as SEO Consultants, Usually seen SEO Assistant, SEO Link Builder, Link Building Specialist ECT...
But really what is a title any one can make it up.
Im not money motivated, there are some places Id be an intern at, just to have the opportunity to work with and learn from the people there
You'd be suprised how tough it can be to get your foot in the door at some good places ;) Ive offered free copywriting services with no obligation to a number of places I admire and its a fight to get even that relationship going
Very true, if it is a dream company I agree 100%.
Yet really any big company you can get in if you know your stuff, have good qualifications, have experience in the industry and network with senior people in the company to proove yourself.
Yet even companies like Google, I use to work with a guy who is now a manager at Google, sure enough after the 8 rounds of interviews, and his experience/qualifications they took him on and industry knowledge.
I mean when he came to my country he didnt even know english yet he stuck at his studies, went to a good uni, had 6 years experience in the field and now he is living the dream at Google.
This is great advice really - working with great people will help you so much in your future career - because they will go on to do great things. So you will learn a lot but you will also build a valuable network of people that can help you a lot later on done the road :)
Hi Kate,
I agree, it was an experience working with some one who has grown so much and had such a wealth of expeirence in various markets around the world.
I know my comments early on in this thread make me look like a bit of a prick yet in the resume in question for that prior company I worked in it was evident it was riddled with lies and faulse claims. I have been taught to give every one an equal chance with resumes no matter what experience/level they are as a resume is only a smoke screen the candidation could be amazing in real life.
But that is one of the benefits of working at a global agency you work with great people, like the guy in my above example, of you may be doing SEO with a guy who was head of SEO for a large listed poker company, their is soo much to learn.