Tag Archives: IT professionals

Keeping it Simple on a Resume

It may be that time again when you as an high-tech professional are thinking about whether this IT job you currently have is worth it or you may just want to update your resume.  Regardless of your reasons, you need to always think about keeping your qualifications to 1-2 pages maximum.  The simpler the better.

Hiring managers and IT recruiters want to find the best candidate possible for the IT job as quickly as possible.  This means they are going to be looking at dozens, sometimes hundreds, of resumes.  Eventually they will begin to blur with so much text on a sheet of paper.  So how do you keep them from skimming your resume?

Make sure everything is easily readable.  Don’t make the font too small or have long paragraphs explaining everything you did at a company.  Utilize bullets.  You want to make write your skills and responsibilities as straight to the point as possible.  In addition, you want to make sure that the skills made an impact on your project initiatives.

Another aspect is putting in keywords and technologies.  In the IT staffing industry, IT recruiters rely heavily on searching resume databases by key words.  IT managers want to know that you have the right skills for the IT job.  So why not make it easier for them and list them out using the appropriate names for them.  This will allow hiring managers and IT recruiters to easily ctrl+ f your resume document online to find the appropriate skills for the IT job.

Remember to keep these tips in mind when updating your resume.  As an IT professional, you can always get a second opinion on your resume from local IT staffing companies like AVID Technical Resources. 

IT Contractor Rates in a Weak Economy

Since the economy has weakened, there have been many efforts to give aid to all the high-tech candidates who were laid off from IT jobs.  Numerous IT professionals have either been living off of aid provided by the government or have resorted to lower wage IT jobs.

In addition to smaller budgets, due to the abundance of candidates on the IT job market, a supply versus demand affect was created thus lowering IT contract and full-time pay rates and salaries.

The average high-tech professional is making $5-10/hr less than he or she was making a couple of years ago.  On a full-time scale, this equates to $10,000 – $20,000.  Obviously a significant decrease for anyone.

For those IT professionals who work with IT staffing firms, the rates are down as well.  The reason is due to the fact that the client ultimately dictates the bill rates to the IT recruiting firms (based on that number, the IT recruiting company then calculates the pay rate to the IT job seeker).

The good news is the fact that companies are still utilizing IT staffing agencies to fill these needs (although the client pays a premium, they save money in the long run as they’re not responsible for paying overhead costs such as health insurance and unemployment).  Therefore, IT professionals have a solid resource to utilize when looking for their next IT job.

However, ever better news will come with an improved economy because as the market increases so do IT contractor pay rates and full-time salaries.

Managing Client Expectations

IT recruiting companies uncover IT jobs of all different levels and skill sets.  IT Recruiters, then have to look for a candidate that best matches the requirements.  In today’s economy, many hiring managers are looking for a wish list of technologies and experience.  Because of the high unemployment rate, clients tend to think there are highly qualified candidates available at a discounted price.  Some of this it true.  However, even in the recent recession, highly skilled IT professionals have found new jobs, or their companies find a way to keep them.  Therefore, it’s important for IT staffing agencies to manager their client’s expectations with every new requirement.

By managing a client’s expectations, the IT recruiter is providing honest and accurate information so the hiring manager can plan accordingly.  For example, if the hiring manager is looking for a niche skill set, yet needs the person to start immediately, he or she needs to know that it might take days or even more than a week for the IT recruiting firm to identify the right candidate.  Another example: if the client is looking for someone with a hot technology, yet their budgeted rate is low, the IT recruiter needs to educate them as to what skill-level they will realistically will get for their money.  For one final example, if the hiring manager has an immediate need, and the IT recruiter identifies a candidate with multiple irons in the fire, then they need to know that time is of the essence.

These are just a few examples of managing a client’s expectations.  Regardless of the situation, an open, honest, relationship makes for a strong business partnership between the IT recruiter and the hiring manager.

Getting The Experience You Need To Get Hired

With so many IT professionals out of work in recent times, clients typically have countless candidates to choose from if they post an IT job.  IT recruiting companies also have an abundant number of candidates at their disposal.  With so many qualified people on the market, how do you find a job if you’re just starting out in the IT industry or changing careers?

Here are some suggestions our IT recruiters had to get the experience you need:

  1. Volunteer for a nonprofit.  Nonprofits are always looking for extra help and during your spare time you can take on tasks that other companies might not let you try.
  2. Call up IT staffing agencies. Sometimes small agencies have not even thought about hiring interns and your initiative will show motivation.
  3. Go on LinkedIn. See whom you’re connected with and whether any of them have any small projects that they may need help on.  Follow an IT staffing firm’s page.  Find AVID: http://tinyurl.com/avidtrlinkedin.
  4. Follow IT recruiting companies’ websites for updated job postings
  5. Follow IT staffing agencies’ Facebook and/or Twitter pages for updated job postings.  Find AVID: http://tinyurl.com/avidtrfacebook
  6. Utilize Indeed.com.
  7. Reconnect with past Professors.  Professors are always in contact with various friends and companies so they are the perfect resource for finding a job or just working on a small project.
  8. Find someone who inspires you. Call that person and let them know your interested in their daily tasks. Most of the time they’ll be glad to have you shadow them or do an informational interview. This not only gives them an opportunity to show off what they do, but they’ll keep you as a contact and maybe down the line help you out.
  9. Join clubs or organizations.  Depending on what you are looking for in experience, clubs allow you to work on various skills without the pressure of work.
  10. If you already have a job, try suggesting ideas for departments you are interested in.  This will not only get you on the good side of your manager, but when you go apply for another job you can show initiative as well as experience in different areas of a business.

Have other ways of getting experience?  Help our readers and leave us a comment.