Holidays good time to polish that resume

I vaguely remember posting something about this topic last year, but figure if I forgot, you did too. Wanted to give you an inside peek at recruiting during the holidays and how you can use that to your advantage (cue evil laughter).

It's no surprise that at this time of year, people are out of the office. And by people I mean hiring managers. This is a mixed blessing for recruiters, depending on who their hiring managers are (and their relationship to them), their total workload and how on top of their stuff they (the recruiters) are (and by stuff, I generally mean 'inbox'...aren't you glad I am here to translate all of this for you?). On the one hand, recruiters can use this time for catching up and planning. On the other, hiring managers aren't around to make decisions, but they'll be back soon and their recruiters can have resumes of their top candidates waiting for them when they get back. And there's plenty of catching up and planning to do.

Also, job seekers (active and otherwise) are out of the office. This means you, at home, spending a little too much time watching TV, eating and supervising children who have just shoved as many sugary snacks as possible into their mouths (OK, the first two are probably more about me and the third I hear about from some of my friends with kids). You also might be thinking about those clichéd new years resolutions. Well,  if not resolutions, the time outside of the office can really give you some perspective on work and personal goals.

And since the new year is about to begin, many companies (depending on their fiscal calendar) will be reviewing their head count and needs and will be looking into opening new positions come January.

I can't imagine a better time to update your resume...seriously!

**you have a higher likelihood of catching the attention of a recruiter (and if the recruiter is anything like me, they do spend time in the office during the holidays because they enjoy the relative peace and quiet)

**you are thinking about your career plans for the year and have the time to work on your resume

**you are getting a jump-start before the influx of newly opened 2006 positions

Go! Go! Go!

Comments

• Anonymous
  November 23, 2005
  Hi Heather,
  
  Your blog has helped me a lot to refine my resume. I am in the process of finishing my resume so that I can apply to Microsoft after Thanksgiving break.
  
  In my resume, I have quoted a few comments from my Manager and I would appreciate if you could advise me on putting such comments in the resume.
  
  Kamal
• Anonymous
  November 23, 2005
  The comment has been removed
• Anonymous
  November 24, 2005
  Holidays great time to start writing resumes - Superbowl time is best time to post it on the websites...
  
  I remember that from Pats win over the Eagles last yr Heather.
  
  Me: Successful endorsement to that juicy recommendation.