Few Details on Your Headhunter’s or Recruiter’s Mode of Working

If your headhunter recipient does not have a computerized fax retrieval system, then he probably doesn't even have a computer. He is working from resumes that spit out of a fax machine, often faded, lacking in definition, and sometimes on slick, flimsy paper. No database resistance here- because there's no database! This type of recruiting operation still exists, and such outdated equipment suggests less opportunity for long-term success with a recruiter.

There is one saving grace to faxing: it can give a recruiter an immediate, nice-looking hardcopy for her files. She simply prints out what she sees on her screen. However, a faxed resume never looks as clean or presentable as a digital version (e.g., Word file)-it becomes a "third generation" (faxed twice) document when sent out by the recruiter to a client: doable, but not the best first impression for your resume.

1. To summarize, though faxed-in resume submissions are preferable to the last and worst alternative-mail-they nonetheless create significant database resistance. If faxing is your only option, you can make your faxed-in resume "OCR Friendly." What will determine whether or not this method will land you in the database quickly is the recruiter's computerized fax retrieval and OCR software- or lack thereof. quality, may mean the recruiter has to do much more correcting because the OCR software can't read it well.
   
   
   
   
2. Margins: top/bottom = 3A inch; side = 1 inch. Smaller margins create "word wrap" when transferring into a database. Left-Justify Everything! Large indentations following stacked headings (e.g., PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE:, ACCOMPLISHMENTS:, EDUCATION:, etc.), often used by those with light experience so as to fill the page, warp the OCR software's ability to comprehend-requiring more correction. Try to separate ideas horizontally rather than in vertical, widely- spaced columns.
   
   
3. Italics: best to just stay away from them unless e-mailing-OCR software doesn't like them and can't read them correctly.
   
   
4. All Caps: on the Internet, this is considered "shouting." No need for that in resumes. It's annoying, and OCR software doesn't dig it.

Finally, let's discuss the deadliest form of resume submission. If you want to ensure that your resume never gets into the recruiter's database or, if it does, probably weeks after submission, be sure to mail it. Why? People have mailed resumes throughout history-at least since the Pony Express, right? Right! But that's history and it simply doesn't work in today's computerized recruiting world. Remember, the primary files and folders used in offices today are comprised of bits and bytes in a computer, not steel or paper. Given that you want to be using a contemporary recruiter, don't send your resume in an archaic form. A mailed-in resume only gets into the database by being scanned-in, which takes 10- 15 minutes to process. So it shouldn't surprise you that they often get put to the side for a while... a long while. Of course, if your resume is exactly what the doctor ordered for that headhunter, he may call you to discuss it and ask you to resubmit by fax or e-mail, getting into the database and, therefore, stay away from this most resistant form of resume submission at all costs.

The point of all this is simply to give you an insider's perspective on how information flows best into today's recruiting offices. You lose nothing by focusing on the least-resistant forms of submission because, again, if a recruiter cannot be e-mailed, she may not be contemporary enough to advance.