RE: Fitting a Job Ad (was Re: Misguided Love)

["Giordano, Connie" <Connie -dot- Giordano -at- FMR -dot- COM>]

Suzette,

Your right on the money.  Any recruiter worth his/her salt will be using a
database search engine to see if the tools come up in your resume.  They're
also looking for resumes with keywords that aren't tools-related.  Put tools
at the bottom, and focus The first 3/4 of your resume on the ability to
solve problems, research, write, produce on deadline and on budget, play
well with others, and learn quickly. My own experience is that if you go for
jobs with a tools emphasis, you get a job that focuses on tools at the
expense of good communication. It's a company that just doesn't get it.

Any good tech writer can learn the tools, but not every tech writer can work
in a team to understand and improve the product and the user's experience in
appalling short time frames.  Look for jobs that contain goals, not tools,
and you'll be happier.

MTC

Connie Giordano

-----Original Message-----
From: Suzette Seveny [mailto:sseveny -at- petvalu -dot- com]
Sent: Thursday, May 04, 2000 10:32 AM
To: TECHWR-L
Subject: RE: Fitting a Job Ad (was Re: Misguided Love)
[SNIP]

I look at this a different way.  My tool knowledge is close to the end of my

resume.  Maybe I'm deluding myself by thinking a recruiter will read through

all the other knowledge and strengths that I will have, in their quest to
find 
out what tools I know. I believe that I can learn any tool within a very
quick 
timeframe.  I base that belief on the fact that on a basis I am forced to 
quickly learn and understand how new software works - to the point that I am

able to write a user manual for it. If I can do that with such a wide
variety 
of software (from financial to point of sale and inventory systems) then I 
think I have demonstrated that I have the power to learn a new *tool*
quickly 
as well.  That just seems logical.