Tag Archives: IT staffing agencies

Major Resume Mistakes to Avoid in IT

Creating perfect resumes in the information technology field isn’t hard.  IT professionals often have the benefit of IT recruiters and their praise accompanying their resumes to IT managers.  Even if IT consultants have this added benefit, though, they certainly won’t get anywhere in their job search (with hiring managers or IT staffing firms) if they make big mistakes in their job hunting materials.  These are some of the biggest mistakes IT contractors should avoid in their resumes:

1.   Not listing skills: In IT, skills are everything.  Giving a concise run-down of skills and certifications provides a distinct advantage in the job hunt because it makes it so much easier for technical recruiters to identify if you match a job’s requirements.

2. Listing an unprofessional email address for contact purposes:  This error is particularly egregious because your email address can be considered a reflection of your personality.  Either make it too bland to actually reflect anything about you, or make it reflect something positive.

3. Copying extensively from job postings on resumes: Not being able to reflect upon your own job experience and communicate it in your own words is a terrible sign for IT staffing agencies.  If you really got something out of a job, you’d be able to at least write about what you did in your own way.

4. Including photos: Information technology is different than acting.  Headshots are not required and it may puzzle people if you provide them.  Better to just save them for your grandma. 

 

Introverts in IT

Information technology is a field that draws an unprecedented number of introverted IT consultants and IT managers.  The long hours alone by a computer screen certainly appeal to a great number of IT professionals.  This high concentration of introverts makes Susan Cain’s research on how to utilize them in the workplace particularly relevant to the field and IT staffing firms and IT headhunters.

Cain’s research suggests a few tweaks to current corporate practice.  Firstly, instead of overlooking quiet, introverted types for leadership positions and jobs in general, it is best to delve deeper and look for the ideas and creativity they can provide.  Secondly, Cain considers the standard corporate practice of celebrating, and generally forcing, extroversion, to be counterproductive.  It makes working difficult for the 33 to 50% of the population that tends to be more introverted than extroverted.

These changes could certainly start with IT recruiting agencies, which might be more likely to overlook quiet IT job candidates. The IT headhunters who work directly with candidates can advocate for them as alternatives to the typical extroverts they might be drawn to.  Taking more time to consider the introverted candidate could make IT staffing agencies instrumental in Cain’s ‘Quiet Revolution.’ 

 

Leaving Your Email Away Message in IT

As the Labor Day weekend draws near, IT recruiters, technical recruiters, and IT managers are all preparing for one last office-sanctioned escape from IT jobs and into summer weather.  IT professionals are particularly vulnerable to pressure to be ‘on call’ even when they are on vacation.  However, with a good away message on email, IT contractors and IT headhunters can, at the very least, diminish office disruptions to their vacations.  Below are some suggestions for IT consultants and IT staffing agencies for creating their away messages.

Keep the message simple and short.  It’s better not to ramble on or give multiple alternative points of contact.

Do make sure to give that alternative point of contact.  It could be a co-worker (that you have not coerced into the role), or it could be to your personal phone or email.  If you choose the latter, be clear about how likely it is that you will be able to respond to business inquiries to that number or address.

Avoid bragging about your luxurious vacation.  Nobody working during that time appreciates it.

Be friendly and courteous in your message.  You may feel like leaving everyone in your dust and not looking back, but you will be back.  On Monday.  So make sure you come back to a warm welcome.

A little appropriate joking can’t hurt either.  Better to leave ‘em laughing– with you, not at you.

 

Your Next IT Meeting: Will it Be by the Pool?

Lately in information technology and other corporate fields, meetings have been moved from the boardroom into more unconventional settings.  IT recruiters, IT contractors, and IT managers are all finding themselves taking meetings poolside, in the gym, or outdoors.  The trend tends to be far more popular on the East and West coasts.  IT staffing agencies and other companies that tend to entertain clients and IT consultants are noting a preference for activities that fit the healthier lifestyles people aspire to.

The West coast has far more IT headhunters and IT professionals taking meetings in yoga classes, poolside, or in juice bars, as well as just taking walks outside.  Of course, these activities and places are far more popular anyways in that area of the US, so it’s not surprising people choose them as backdrops for business meetings.  The East coast, on the other hand, tends to make use of more indoor activities and settings for its unconventionally located business meetings.  Spin, boot camp, and UFX classes are all popular alternatives to the conventional steak dinner or sports game.  Spin in particular is an East coast specialty, so it has quite a bit of popularity.

No matter the coast or area of the country, one thing is certain: business meetings are rapidly changing with the health-oriented priorities of their attendees.

Progress Emails in IT: Powerful Tools for Remote Employees

Because information technology allows for it, IT recruiters Boston to IT recruiters CA are seeing more and more IT jobs that require IT contractors to work remotely.  This means that IT headhunters are placing IT consultants in jobs where they must figure out how to communicate in very efficient, cheap ways with their IT managers despite the distance between them.  Technical recruiters tend to suggest that progress emails are the best tools IT professionals can use to prove they’re living up to the potential of their resumes.  If an IT contractor sends an email at the end of every week briefly listing what they’ve accomplished, they will quickly ingratiate themselves with their bosses and their IT staffing agencies.  Performing well and making sure their bosses know about it makes any IT professional very desirable to IT recruiters.

 

Waking Up Early: The Key to Success in IT

What’s one easy change that IT recruiters, IT managers, and IT consultants can make to boost their success in their IT jobs?  IT professionals can simply wake up earlier in the morning to achieve more.  Amongst high earning people in the information technology field, including IT headhunters and IT contractors, waking up early in the morning is a common success factor.  Why would IT recruiters Boston to IT recruiters CA see this factor so often among successful people?  It’s because the practice goes beyond the skills simply listed on resumes.  IT staffing agencies notice that those who wake up early are getting to work earlier and getting a head start on the competition.  Being a go-getter is the best way to ingratiate oneself with a boss and IT recruiting companies, no matter what your area of IT or your skill-set.

 

Summer Fridays in IT are Dead?

IT staffing firms, IT contractors, and IT managers may be basking in the glow of Summer Fridays, but all things considered, they are merely a mirage these days (and not just in information technology, but in most fields).  IT recruiting companies can testify to the fact that IT consultants are no longer just reachable on the clock.  They’re also generally available on cell phones and email, no matter the day or hour.  (IT headhunters themselves are also often expected by IT staffing companies to be available 24-7 via various methods of contact.)  A willingness to be constantly available at work is so common IT recruiting agencies often see it on resumes.

Obviously this trend alone tends to make the Summer Friday more of an idea than a practice in various IT jobs.  Perhaps the upside of this death of actual Summer Fridays means the birth of a kind of ‘Summer Everydays’.  When technology allows for work to be done outside of work, technical recruiters are seeing flexible work arrangements on a stunningly regular basis.  Even if constant availability is a necessity of ‘Summer Everydays,’ IT staffing agencies should remember all the benefits of an equally constantly flexible schedule.

 

Leadership in IT– In Every Tier

Information technology is often a team-oriented field, requiring strong leadership skills.  Technical recruiters are particularly attracted to IT contractors with not only stellar resumes, but the ability to emulate leadership qualities, even if they are not being submitted as IT managers.  IT professionals in all ranks of a team can contribute much if they can emulate the qualities that make a great leader.  This is because IT recruiting companies find that the most successful teams are comprised of IT consultants that not only perform their IT jobs, but also possess the key qualities that make a great leader: warmth of personality and confidence.  IT staffing agencies obviously prefer candidates who possess some combination of these two qualities, but leadership studies show that having even just one of these qualities is particularly helpful.  IT recruiters Boston to IT recruiters CA can testify to the fact that a confident or a personable employee can bring a great deal to their company and team.

 

Productivity in IT

IT recruiters Boston to IT recruiters CA are all aware of the evergreen issue of keeping IT consultants as productive as possible.  There are two general reasons why IT staffing agencies might find that their IT contractors are not as productive as they could be.

The first reason IT staffing firms might hear that IT professionals are not meeting the expectations of their IT jobs is actually related to IT managers and other co-workers.  Constant interruptions—including personal, email, phone calls, text messages, etc all take time away from productivity.  IT recruiting companies have noticed that these interruptions take time away from productivity in two ways: in the moment of the interruption and response, time is lost.  However, IT staffing companies also point to the adjustment time in getting back into work after the interruption.

The second major reason IT recruiting firms hear that IT contractors might not be living up to the potential of their resumes is their own ability to focus in work.  Information technology positions, like most others tend to be affected by the availability of the internet, smartphones, or other office distractions.  Thankfully, some of the same technology that distracts us can also provide solutions for maintaining focus.  IT recruiting firms can point to plenty of apps that help workers stay focused, rather than checking irrelevant websites or various phone messages.

Communication Techniques Are Becoming Imperative in IT

IT professionals, despite their reputation for being kept behind closed doors in the information technology department, are becoming integrated into the office more and more. This change means that communication skills are becoming far more imperative for IT contractors and IT managers.  IT recruiters are finding that they aren’t just looking for perfect resumes any more, but IT consultants who work well within larger team and company environments.

In particular, IT contractors can make themselves more attractive to IT staffing agencies trying to fill IT jobs by working on both their verbal and nonverbal communication skills.  Verbal skills that technical recruiters look for would include things like knowing how to actively listen, encouraging the speaker to elaborate and suppressing the urge to contribute to a conversation.  IT staffing companies notice when somebody is good at making a speaker feel like the only person in the room and that everything they have to say is valid.  IT staffing companies like nonverbal skills like mirroring body language or giving ample personal space.  If IT job candidates can sharpen both nonverbal and verbal communication skills, they will make themselves irresistible to IT headhunters.