Liz Ryan's Page

Dear Liz,

I am an HR person on a job hunt. I have a resume but I don't love it. The Summary at the top of the resume says "Results-oriented HR professional with a bottom-line orientation, strong work ethic and superior communication skills. Experience in comp, employee relations, performance management, succession planning and HR compliance. Team player with strong attention to detail."

Any suggestions?

Thanks, Amanda


Dear Amanda,

Your resume Summary is written in the traditional style. Th… Continue

When I speak with job-seekers who've been out of the workforce for awhile or who are underemployed, I often hear similar themes. "I have a degree in English, and worked in publishing for six years," goes a typical recounting. "But since I came to Boulder I've just been volunteering."

A variation: "I've just been home with my kids since 2002."

I ask, "Why do you say you are just at home with your kids?"

"Oh, I don't know," they say. "It doesn't seem that employers value things like volunteerin… Continue

Dear Liz,

I have been in an endless selection process with a great firm (great reputation, anyway) in my city and it looks like it's coming to the offer stage. The managing partner asked me to have dinner with him and another exec this week and I'm expecting a brass-tacks conversation then.

When I was originally asked by the headhunter about my salary range, I gave a reasonable figure, but since then I've learned that the job has become much bigger than what I was originally told. It was an ac… Continue

Dear Liz,

Who gets an employment agreement, exactly? I am interviewing for a VP-BizDev position in a fast-growing firm that has had ups and downs. I inquired about an employment agreement and the employer became very indignant. Is it unreasonable to ask for some kind of guarantee in a high-risk environment?

Thanks,

JoEllen

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Dear JoEllen,

Employment agreements become common (but by no means automatic) at the VP level, and pretty much assured for C-level jobs. I'd advise you to run… Continue

Dear Liz,

I have been interviewing for administrative positions since mid-July,
have received one offer that was underwhelming (I didn't take it) and
believe I'm close to two other offers now.

On Thursday I got a Fex-Ex envelope at my house. Inside was a written
offer from a company I had interviewed with during the last week of July. The offer itself wasn't bad, but I was shocked, because I had not heard from these people since the day I met with them. I had left the usual follow-up vmails an… Continue