Sunday, December 11, 2011

How to Become a Chef Manager

1How to Become a Chef Manager First - some of the responsibilities that might come with chef manager jobs:Menu planning, making sure the chefs are ready for service, administration, health and safety, food ordering,staff management, stocktaking, and financial tasks.All these responsibilities for one person might look daunting, but have you ever, while working in a kitchen, looked at your Chef Manager thinking that it's a tough job and a great responsibility, but you could probably do the job yourself, and do it really well?Well, you might be right - to help you find out, we've compiled a few questions you should ask yourself:เธขเธ� Can you show a well-proven track record in the kitchen on your resume? Of course, excellent recommendations from well-reputable hospitality institutions should be a first priority for anyone hiring a chef manager. If you are not an excellent cook, your chances of landing the job are slim. You will be setting an example for every single person in the kitchen. So, not only should you be excellent in your field, you need to gain experience and be able to show high standards in a variety of specialized fields. Get as much experience as you can in all aspects of kitchen work, and you will be able to give advice and make the right decisions as the manager.เธขเธ� Am I good at organizing? Do you always make sure your work space, ingredients and schedule are well planned and organized? As a chef manager, you will be doing less cooking and a lot more organizational work. Apart from supervising the staff, you will have to do a lot of administrative work. You might be given a budget to work with and left with all the organizational work of planning the meals, ordering and even pricing the items on the menu. And this is only part of the many administrative tasks associated with the running of a large kitchen. So, if you have excellent organization skills, give yourself a เธฃเธ�.เธขเธ� How good are my 'people skills'? If you've worked in commercial kitchens, you know that kitchen work requires team work. And as the head chef you will be managing the team and setting the standards and the pace for the whole operation. Not only do you need to be highly motivated yourself, you need to be able to motivate others. In a workplace that requires hard work and is often stressful, this is not an easy task. So, having a positive attitude and understanding human relations and the needs of your staff will ensure that you will be able to manage the team well. Good interaction with your staff is essential for performing your job as team leader and will help you be effective when overseeing and training staff. Setting high standards and creating a pleasant work environment will make the job easier for everyone in the long run. Other tasks you might be expected to do that relate to 'people skills' are dealing with incidents or complaints in the kitchen in an appropriate and fair manner, and interacting with customers and clients.เธขเธ� How good is your knowledge of business and finance? Running a restaurant or any other commercial kitchen is a business. Not only sticking to your budget is essential, but being able to keep invoices and records of all the running expenses of the kitchen and passing it on to the accountant in an orderly fashion is necessary. Doing regular inventories and keeping track of orders and deliveries will probably be a regular part of your job, as well as reporting to management.เธขเธ� And last - but certainly not least, ask yourself: can I handle stress? Everyone working in a kitchen has experienced those stressful moments, when orders are piling and everyone is waiting for their food to be served on time and to the highest possible standard. With the added responsibility of the job, comes added stress. So be aware, and check yourself at work - how do you react at times of stress? Learn how to keep your wits about you and stay calm in a stressful situation. Your chances of succeeding on the job will be much greater if you can keep everything in your control.So how did you do? If you answered 'yes' to most of the questions above, or think that you can work towards that goal; if you think you can be the one responsible for setting high standards and creating a safe environment for the staff, then the chef manager jobs might be for you.

Saturday, November 12, 2011

Good Resume Karma for Hospitality Workers_1

1Good Resume Karma for Hospitality Workers So, you've done your turn in the trenches. You've been a busperson, head waiter, bartender, host, and what-not. After ten to twenty years, many hospitality workers, feeling burned-out at the late shifts and long hours, yearn to break into the ranks of higher management. Yet they find themselves in a kind of 'glass ceiling' situation. They can't get a recruiter to look twice at their resume, even when the qualifications are more than a match for the job.The place where hospitality is at a disadvantage is the job titles. The hospitality industry being as pinched for profits as it is, someone hired as a waiter or bartender will find themselves performing management functions: balancing books, being in charge of the staff, purchasing, ordering, overseeing the operation of the establishment, and on and on. All of these skills are transferable to higher-salary jobs, but because they were done under the job title of "hostess" or some such, they mean zip as far as an interviewer is concerned.This is a shame, as the person who knows the business the best is the one who worked their way up through the ranks. The computer age has also sealed the fate of many poorly-considered resumes, as human resource departments search resumes in electronic form, including and excluding keywords and only pulling up those resumes that meet the search criteria.The recruiter's ultimate responsibility is to the restaurants, hotels, casinos, and clubs which they are hired to represent. This is not to say that they don't also have your best interests at heart; it just means that recruiters have to comply with the job description and qualifications set forth by their clients. So they are unable to present candidates that do not match those requirements - no matter how much a candidate calls back.So this should tell you something: there are good and bad keywords and phrases. Words like "restaurant, hotel, hostess, waitress, bartender, cook, chef" tend to get you stuck in a rotating cycle of those positions forever. What they fail to address is that you have done work far outside the scope of your job title, and are ready for a meatier career. A broad majority of hospitality job seekers have job titles unrelated to their current career goals. You are much better off using skill headings rather than job titles, if your goal is to land higher salaries and increase your interview rates. For example, if you were quite practiced in enhanced selling at your business, a handy leading line might be: "A versatile and skilled sales and marketing professional with excellent hands-on experience in developing and improving sales for wholesale and retail operations in the hospitality industry." You did it, why not flaunt it?Or if you were eventually saddled with overseeing the restaurant staff when all you started out as is a line cook, it's high time you boasted: "An assertive manager with outstanding interpersonal people management skills, experienced in communications, negotiations, operations, and scheduling." Again, your title may not have been manager, but that's still the job you did, and the one you're seeking now!Bartenders are another catch-all position. The head office sees a bartender as somebody who washes glasses and pours. But the best of all outcomes is when your bar business expands so that now you're booking entertainers, arranging bachelor parties, expanding to include a kitchen, purchasing and warehousing the stock, hiring and firing help, placing advertisements, and generally overseeing the day-to-day operations. You've been promoted in everything but title!How better to highlight some bullet points:- Recruited and trained X-number servers and kitchen employees in full service dining.- Assisted in the X-number% reduction of labor costs through better selection of staff.- Reduced labor and cost of goods sold by X-number%.- Carried out a demographic study that pin-pointed the establishment's market.- Developed and oversaw the new catering program.- Analyzed and upgraded kitchen equipment to achieve greater efficiency.- Improved cost control by eliminating waste.- Consistently ran low-overhead costs throughout seasonal highs and lows.- Prepared the annual budget for the branch location. - Directed the development of a new line of appetizers.To your ears, this may sound like "laying it on thick", and you may be right, but you have to understand that head-hunters think this way. To them, there is no "we switched to a cheaper brand of vodka in our martinis". There is only "efficiently oversaw a new product strategy that reduced price of goods sold".Chefs are another career category with a few roadblocks in advancement. The publicity of the Celebrity Chefs of the Food Network has helped the chef career gain new stamina in recent years, but maybe that casino manager with the hospitality manager position doesn't watch the Food Network. Many people think 'chef' and are unable to picture anything but a line cook in front of a grill, flipping steaks.If you engaged in anything involving creativity, such as pastry, planning a menu, designing a new side dish, experimenting with a new recipe, or coming up with a new line of beverages, there's room in marketing and design arts for you. After all, if your endeavors were successful, then that shows that you know your target market and what they like. If your restaurant started hosting banquets and providing catering services, then your responsibilities grew with the business.Whatever the situation, it's hard not to find examples where you expanded your job experience to fulfill higher duties. The trick, then, is to focus on your newly gained skills, which, after all, you undertook in the first place hoping for advancement, did you not? By phrasing things in a more general way, it makes it evident that your skills are easy to transfer to a new job category.

Friday, November 4, 2011

Good Resume Karma for Hospitality Workers

1Good Resume Karma for Hospitality Workers So, you've done your turn in the trenches. You've been a busperson, head waiter, bartender, host, and what-not. After ten to twenty years, many hospitality workers, feeling burned-out at the late shifts and long hours, yearn to break into the ranks of higher management. Yet they find themselves in a kind of 'glass ceiling' situation. They can't get a recruiter to look twice at their resume, even when the qualifications are more than a match for the job.The place where hospitality is at a disadvantage is the job titles. The hospitality industry being as pinched for profits as it is, someone hired as a waiter or bartender will find themselves performing management functions: balancing books, being in charge of the staff, purchasing, ordering, overseeing the operation of the establishment, and on and on. All of these skills are transferable to higher-salary jobs, but because they were done under the job title of "hostess" or some such, they mean zip as far as an interviewer is concerned.This is a shame, as the person who knows the business the best is the one who worked their way up through the ranks. The computer age has also sealed the fate of many poorly-considered resumes, as human resource departments search resumes in electronic form, including and excluding keywords and only pulling up those resumes that meet the search criteria.The recruiter's ultimate responsibility is to the restaurants, hotels, casinos, and clubs which they are hired to represent. This is not to say that they don't also have your best interests at heart; it just means that recruiters have to comply with the job description and qualifications set forth by their clients. So they are unable to present candidates that do not match those requirements - no matter how much a candidate calls back.So this should tell you something: there are good and bad keywords and phrases. Words like "restaurant, hotel, hostess, waitress, bartender, cook, chef" tend to get you stuck in a rotating cycle of those positions forever. What they fail to address is that you have done work far outside the scope of your job title, and are ready for a meatier career. A broad majority of hospitality job seekers have job titles unrelated to their current career goals.You are much better off using skill headings rather than job titles, if your goal is to land higher salaries and increase your interview rates. For example, if you were quite practiced in enhanced selling at your business, a handy leading line might be: "A versatile and skilled sales and marketing professional with excellent hands-on experience in developing and improving sales for wholesale and retail operations in the hospitality industry." You did it, why not flaunt it?Or if you were eventually saddled with overseeing the restaurant staff when all you started out as is a line cook, it's high time you boasted: "An assertive manager with outstanding interpersonal people management skills, experienced in communications, negotiations, operations, and scheduling." Again, your title may not have been manager, but that's still the job you did, and the one you're seeking now!Bartenders are another catch-all position. The head office sees a bartender as somebody who washes glasses and pours. But the best of all outcomes is when your bar business expands so that now you're booking entertainers, arranging bachelor parties, expanding to include a kitchen, purchasing and warehousing the stock, hiring and firing help, placing advertisements, and generally overseeing the day-to-day operations. You've been promoted in everything but title!How better to highlight some bullet points:- Recruited and trained X-number servers and kitchen employees in full service dining.- Assisted in the X-number% reduction of labor costs through better selection of staff.- Reduced labor and cost of goods sold by X-number%.- Carried out a demographic study that pin-pointed the establishment's market.- Developed and oversaw the new catering program.- Analyzed and upgraded kitchen equipment to achieve greater efficiency.- Improved cost control by eliminating waste.- Consistently ran low-overhead costs throughout seasonal highs and lows.- Prepared the annual budget for the branch location.- Directed the development of a new line of appetizers.To your ears, this may sound like "laying it on thick", and you may be right, but you have to understand that head-hunters think this way. To them, there is no "we switched to a cheaper brand of vodka in our martinis". There is only "efficiently oversaw a new product strategy that reduced price of goods sold".Chefs are another career category with a few roadblocks in advancement. The publicity of the Celebrity Chefs of the Food Network has helped the chef career gain new stamina in recent years, but maybe that casino manager with the hospitality manager position doesn't watch the Food Network. Many people think 'chef' and are unable to picture anything but a line cook in front of a grill, flipping steaks.If you engaged in anything involving creativity, such as pastry, planning a menu, designing a new side dish, experimenting with a new recipe, or coming up with a new line of beverages, there's room in marketing and design arts for you. After all, if your endeavors were successful, then that shows that you know your target market and what they like. If your restaurant started hosting banquets and providing catering services, then your responsibilities grew with the business.Whatever the situation, it's hard not to find examples where you expanded your job experience to fulfill higher duties. The trick, then, is to focus on your newly gained skills, which, after all, you undertook in the first place hoping for advancement, did you not? By phrasing things in a more general way, it makes it evident that your skills are easy to transfer to a new job category.

Good News The 1 Dream Job How to Guide Works

1Good News The 1 Dream Job How to Guide Works Here is a simple guide to making your dream job a reality in less time than you thought. First of all let's define it. What exactly is your dream job? Sam a recent resume client of mine just gave me the good news he was hired for his own dream come true job. Who would have thought I would be writing resumes and cover letters for cruise ship tour guides? Sam was a waiter in New York City for the last few years who stumbled across my free info articles titled: "Top Secret: How to Land Your Dream Job"; "Learning to Interview Right is Priceless" and my website last year. Here is what worked for him even in a recession.The first thing he did was make an outline. Think of it as a road map to your previously unknown destination. He brain stormed for a while just thinking of all the steps he would need to take to make his dream a reality. He had to do some research using Google and Yahoo now and then. Eventually he even joined a membership only job posting service specifically for cruise line jobs. He then just handled one or two steps at a time. Just focusing on what he could do while keeping his full time job waiting tables. Little by little things just seemed to fall into place. But when he had a few set backs his attention remained focused on his goal. Here is what his road map to success looked like:Goal: Tour Guide for Cruise Shipsโ�ข Skills needed: Be bilingual, Friendly, Be a great public speaker, become knowledgeable about the popular Caribbean destinations. (watch the travel channel & record Caribbean shows)โ�ข Real world experience: Tour Guide for Grey line tours in NYC & Casino Black Jack Dealer.โ�ข Need: get in good shape & get short term lease on apartmentโ�ข Research: Network, make an inside connection, research requirements.โ�ข Learn CPR & First aid this gives him an advantage over other applicantsโ�ข Plan: He could start as a waiter if need be, then move up to tour guide when spot available. Hopefully there will be no need to sacrifice.โ�ข Reconnect with work colleagues and employers asking for reference letter signatures and contact info.โ�ข Get a professional resume targeting a cruise line tour guide position as competition is stiffโ�ข Get a few great cover letters, thank you letters and reference letters written at the same timeโ�ข Scour the employment ads for cruise line openingsโ�ข Spread the word. He mentioned to his friends and associates exactly what he was planning. His own Chef had a connection for him that would help. He had formally worked for a major cruise line for a few years when he was single. Chef said: "Aim for work in the casino."โ�ข Visualize: He made a dream photo slide show in his PC so he could visualize his goals dailyโ�ข Be flexible and adaptable in order to get what you want. He improved upon his first career choice of being a Tour guide. After going to some effort researching the steps to his dream job he found out he had another built in advantage. He had previously been an Atlantic City Black Jack and Roulette dealer and many cruise ships have casinos on board. The only reason he quit after 5 years of fun every night was the cigarette smoke. His new employers assured him that would not be a concern with them. They are in the middle of the Ocean and merely need to exhaust the smoky air with fans. Another bonus: most cruise ship workers don't pay for room and board so the wages they earn do not have to go to rent or groceries. They also do not need to make an expensive car payment every month as they are living on board the ship. There is also a deluxe fitness center for all to use as well so the normal gym membership fees do not apply either. In exchange there are a few pitfalls the bars and casinos. He ended up with the most glamorous job working as a dealer in the casino. The Major advantage here was he absolutely loved travel of course, but he didn't want to be limited to working on the ship while the guests were off on excursions and tours at exotic locales. So he joined a cruise line where the casino closes when the ship is in port. This way he is free to live it up like a king.Mind you there is serious competition for these wonderful careers aboard cruise ships. Even with experience it took Sam 3 full months to get hired. Fortunately he had a little help from a friend as well as professionally written resumes and cover letters. He feels he made it through the vast competition due to being bilingual, knowing CPR/First Aid and his casino experience was exactly what they were looking for. In the end persistence will pay off so start with your own road map today.

Free Resume Tips - For The Food Industry Professional

1Free Resume Tips - For The Food Industry Professional Ask anyone involved in the food industry and they will tell you that running a restaurant takes hard work. The challenges of institutional food management are also enormous, yet both of these career paths offer great rewards to those who enjoy working in a fast-paced, sensory environment. To land your next great position as an Executive Chef, General Manager, or Assistant Manager, it's essential that your restaurant and food-service resume include the right elements: evidence of your past accomplishments, proof of your leadership ability, and a flair for creative problem solving. Passion of food goes a long way as well. But where can you find free resume tips to handle this daunting task?You may only need to consider what the essential qualities for the job are for you to create a great resume, and it's here that free resume tips come in handy.The Food-service professionals' days are filled with a dizzying array of tasks, from coordinating the kitchen and dining room to placing food orders and designing a successful menu. Well-designed restaurant and food-service resumes establish one's past success in a no-nonsense manner, providing the proof a hiring manager or restaurant owner is looking for when scheduling interviews. So this one important free resume tip that comes straight from the responsibilities that the job entails.Finding good nice free resume tips for your food-service resume will give you a competitive edge over what will be submitted by other well-qualified professionals. Whether you already have a draft that requires editing or need a newly created resume, you will need to work one-on-one with an editor experienced in crafting compelling, successful restaurant and food-service resumes. He/she should also give you helpful free resume tips and free resume samples.Land the professional restaurant and food-service position you're seeking with an expertly-crafted restaurant and food-service resume.Hiring managers want to know what you have already done for your prior employers. This is another essential free resume tip you can include in your resume, try to have figures and facts that you can quote and discuss. Are you an expert in some exotic cuisine? Were you the most creative in your position? Find things that you can give to the HR person in black and white and you'll find that you get better responses and is a plus to your resume.Talk about the positive things that you have done for your employers, and if there were negative situations, find the positive light in them in case you are asked.The dreaded cover letterDo you need a cover letter? Of course it's a plus in free resume tip to remember. In many cases, hiring managers like to see something that shows your individual personality. After so many resumes, they can begin to look the same. This isn't to say that you should start off with a joke or send a picture of yourself, but you should use a cover letter to give a little indication of the type of employee you are.You want to show that you know what kinds of responsibilities can be expected of you if hired and that you understand the goals of the company.Show them that you want this job and that you are more than ready for it.Editing mattersSimple errors in grammar and spelling go a long way to hurting your chances of getting hired in any higher position. Take the time to have a friend or family member read your resume and also provide some free resume resumes he may see lacking in your resume to make sure that you sound and look professional.Remember that hiring managers only have a little time to read all of the resumes that they receive. Get right to the point, and your resume will get right to the top of the pile.

Free Dream Job Tryouts With a Cover Letter

1Free Dream Job Tryouts With a Cover Letter Imagine on your next vacation you get to try out any dream job anywhere that you want. Charter fishing boat Captain, Surfing Instructor in Hawaii or Underwater Marine Photographer imagine the possibilities. Think about what a great idea this would be to give it a tryout before you leave your current secure employer. After all how will you really know the real truth about your dream job until you give it a go yourself? For a while when I was younger I had the itch to be a Chef in a fine dining restaurant. That was before I took on a job at a restaurant called Bell's Farm Steak House a local RI favorite while I was going to college at Bryant.As I worked my first month as a waiter I had a lot of contact with the kitchen. I could see the tremendous pressure the Chef was under to pump out the food. Dishes had to be perfect, hot and look great all at the same time. In addition all the diners would generally come in all at once, so the kitchen would get buried with orders shortly after. If that pressure wasn't enough, the banquet side of the house used the same kitchen and Chef. While working there I learned the real truth about the late night hours, extreme stress and the hot humid working environment you can't escape from. That one was crossed off my list fast.So how could you try out any dream job your heart desires? Simple really use a targeted resume with a professional introduction letter (cover letter) offering your services for free in exchange for a mentoring opportunity from your target. In case that first attempt does not work you can offer to exchange any other valuable services or products that might work. If you are an Artist, you might be able to exchange one of your oil paintings you would normally sell anyway. As a final resort you could always offer money too. You could try doing a little background research on your target and find a passion which might induce cooperation. If your would be mentor is a big golfing fan you could send him a weeks free membership certificate to a great golf course.Even at my former employer Bell's Farm Steak house in Smithfield, RI it was fairly routine for our Chef Dave to host future Chef candidates from Johnson & Wales University, a local culinary college.They simply exchanged their free labor for a two week mentoring opportunity from a superb Chef. It helped keep down labor costs, and the better performers in the program where actually hired on. Wouldn't it be the same with virtually any other profession? My advice is to take one small step towards living your dream right now and write up a great cover letter. Make an outline first with the ultimate goal in mind. If words are not your forte' you can always hire a writer. Remember researching your target helps increase your success rate.By the way, I happen to know this works well since this is exactly how I started my mortgage career way back when. Good Luck!

Thursday, September 29, 2011

Discussing Chef Resume_1

1Discussing Chef Resume Introduction of the JobIt has been said by many that when one chooses to pursue the position of chef they are not simply choosing a career, they are choosing a lifestyle. The position of chef requires not only a love for food and commitment to creativity in the kitchen but dedication and passion as well. A chef is given the opportunity to work closely with others while developing their own signature style. The position of chef requires motivation and determination, as the hours can be long and the job fast-paced and stressful. Those who will be most satisfied with a career in the kitchen must have a passionate love and respect for food as an art form.Key ResponsibilitiesThe key responsibilities delegated to a chef can vary amongst employers but could include such tasks as deciding on a theme or motif for a restaurant and developing a menu that fits that theme, managing and overseeing other employees, actual food preparation in addition to some marketing responsibilities. Other managerial duties that a chef can be appointed to include overseeing customer relations as well as establishing and maintaining a positive relationship with vendors of products that the restaurant requires.Level of Education RequiredThe level of education required to be a chef varies greatly depending on the rank of the position sought. Some beginning jobs as cooks or chefs may not even require a high school diploma, while the requirements to become an executive chef can entail 8 to 15 years of experience working in the culinary business. Most candidates pursuing a culinary career will complete a 2-4 year college program at a professional culinary institute where they will be trained and can pursue apprenticeship opportunities to work under the guidance of an experienced chef working in the field. The more experience a chef has the more valuable they will be to an employer, as the position of chef requires practical and first hand knowledge of how to work successfully in a commercial kitchen.Career Path The demand for chefs in the workforce is consistently increasing due to the general increase in population and the demand for food as well as the increase in household incomes allowing people to eat in restaurants more frequently. The average salary of a chef falls within the range of $35,000 to $75,000 per year. The ability to move up the ladder in the culinary world is highly dependent on experience. While degrees from professional culinary institutes can help to give you a jump-start, most career paths require that chefs start at the bottom and work their way to the top positions of head and executive chefs through years of hard work and dedication. Summary When discussing the Chef resume the responsibilities required of a chef are demanding. The work can be highly stressful and the hours long, but if one is passionate about food and the art of cooking these hours can be enjoyable. In order to be successful as a chef, an individual must be incredibly dedicated to the position and committed to their career. The position of chef requires that one consign to the lifestyle the occupation calls for.

Monday, September 26, 2011

Discussing Chef Resume

1Discussing Chef Resume Introduction of the JobIt has been said by many that when one chooses to pursue the position of chef they are not simply choosing a career, they are choosing a lifestyle. The position of chef requires not only a love for food and commitment to creativity in the kitchen but dedication and passion as well. A chef is given the opportunity to work closely with others while developing their own signature style. The position of chef requires motivation and determination, as the hours can be long and the job fast-paced and stressful. Those who will be most satisfied with a career in the kitchen must have a passionate love and respect for food as an art form.Key ResponsibilitiesThe key responsibilities delegated to a chef can vary amongst employers but could include such tasks as deciding on a theme or motif for a restaurant and developing a menu that fits that theme, managing and overseeing other employees, actual food preparation in addition to some marketing responsibilities. Other managerial duties that a chef can be appointed to include overseeing customer relations as well as establishing and maintaining a positive relationship with vendors of products that the restaurant requires.Level of Education RequiredThe level of education required to be a chef varies greatly depending on the rank of the position sought. Some beginning jobs as cooks or chefs may not even require a high school diploma, while the requirements to become an executive chef can entail 8 to 15 years of experience working in the culinary business. Most candidates pursuing a culinary career will complete a 2-4 year college program at a professional culinary institute where they will be trained and can pursue apprenticeship opportunities to work under the guidance of an experienced chef working in the field. The more experience a chef has the more valuable they will be to an employer, as the position of chef requires practical and first hand knowledge of how to work successfully in a commercial kitchen.Career Path The demand for chefs in the workforce is consistently increasing due to the general increase in population and the demand for food as well as the increase in household incomes allowing people to eat in restaurants more frequently. The average salary of a chef falls within the range of $35,000 to $75,000 per year. The ability to move up the ladder in the culinary world is highly dependent on experience. While degrees from professional culinary institutes can help to give you a jump-start, most career paths require that chefs start at the bottom and work their way to the top positions of head and executive chefs through years of hard work and dedication. Summary When discussing the Chef resume the responsibilities required of a chef are demanding. The work can be highly stressful and the hours long, but if one is passionate about food and the art of cooking these hours can be enjoyable. In order to be successful as a chef, an individual must be incredibly dedicated to the position and committed to their career. The position of chef requires that one consign to the lifestyle the occupation calls for.

Friday, September 23, 2011

Discussing a Chef Resume

1Discussing a Chef Resume Introduction of the JobIt has been said by many that when one chooses to pursue the position of chef they are not simply choosing a career, they are choosing a lifestyle. The position of chef requires not only a love for food and commitment to creativity in the kitchen but dedication and passion as well. A chef is given the opportunity to work closely with others while developing their own signature style. The position of chef requires motivation and determination, as the hours can be long and the job fast-paced and stressful. Those who will be most satisfied with a career in the kitchen must have a passionate love and respect for food as an art form.Key ResponsibilitiesThe key responsibilities delegated to a chef can vary amongst employers but could include such tasks as deciding on a theme or motif for a restaurant and developing a menu that fits that theme, managing and overseeing other employees, actual food preparation in addition to some marketing responsibilities. Other managerial duties that a chef can be appointed to include overseeing customer relations as well as establishing and maintaining a positive relationship with vendors of products that the restaurant requires.Level of Education RequiredThe level of education required to be a chef varies greatly depending on the rank of the position sought. Some beginning jobs as cooks or chefs may not even require a high school diploma, while the requirements to become an executive chef can entail 8 to 15 years of experience working in the culinary business. Most candidates pursuing a culinary career will complete a 2-4 year college program at a professional culinary institute where they will be trained and can pursue apprenticeship opportunities to work under the guidance of an experienced chef working in the field. The more experience a chef has the more valuable they will be to an employer, as the position of chef requires practical and first hand knowledge of how to work successfully in a commercial kitchen.Career PathThe demand for chefs in the workforce is consistently increasing due to the general increase in population and the demand for food as well as the increase in household incomes allowing people to eat in restaurants more frequently. The average salary of a chef falls within the range of $35,000 to $75,000 per year. The ability to move up the ladder in the culinary world is highly dependent on experience. While degrees from professional culinary institutes can help to give you a jump-start, most career paths require that chefs start at the bottom and work their way to the top positions of head and executive chefs through years of hard work and dedication.SummaryWhen discussing the Chef resume the responsibilities required of a chef are demanding. The work can be highly stressful and the hours long, but if one is passionate about food and the art of cooking these hours can be enjoyable. In order to be successful as a chef, an individual must be incredibly dedicated to the position and committed to their career. The position of chef requires that one consign to the lifestyle the occupation calls for.

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Culinary Schools - Turn out to be Part of The Greatest In Demand Occupation in The World

1Culinary Schools - Turn out to be Part of The Greatest In Demand Occupation in The World If you want to seek an important employment as a chef, having basic knowledge in nutrition won't be bounteous. Your friends and house members may be sentimental of your baking skills and you really have the fascination for creating a few dishes; though, these qualities will not be adequate to get hired in a prestigious outlet or caf?. When you present your chef resume in such establishments, you will be given more consideration if the manager could see that you had an approved coaching in one of the top culinary schools. That will make a big difference.Accepting into a prominent culinary arts school will give you cutting-edge training in cuisine. They have a few programs and you can choose which among them will entertain you best. Picking on what distinct culinary class to go to will rely on your future plans. If you want to come to be a gourmet chef, you can go to a gourmet nutrition class. Finding top culinary schools isn't that complicated. You can read top rated magazines that highlight food and drinks. They surely feature the best food businesses and institutions in their columns. They give common updates as well on the top restaurants and culinary schools. The internet also contains vast enlightenment on this subject. You can make a free forage of it to find the best culinary science schools in your country. There may be cheap culinary teaching institutes around; however, your search should not be based alone on how low their tuition fee is but on how the college can influence you to accomplish a promising culinary artist profession. A lot of things can follow after graduating from a prominent culinary school. You can achieve an employment in a well-known food company in your country. You can also work overseas and get paid with a bigger salary. This will all start from buying a good instruction in cuisine.

Sunday, September 18, 2011

Culinary Schools - End up Perhaps the The majority of In Demand Experience on the planet

1Culinary Schools - End up Perhaps the The majority of In Demand Experience on the planet If you want to chase a serious profession as a culinary artist, having basic enlightenment in cooking won't be ample. Your friends and family members may be fond of your cooking talents and you really have the adoration for finding assorted dishes; however, these qualities will not be sufficient to get contracted in an important eating house or caf?. When you propose your gourmet chef resume in such establishments, you will be given more notice if the head person could see that you had a formal instruction in one of the top culinary schools. That will make a big difference. Getting into an esteemed culinary arts school will give you exceptional coaching in cookery. They have several classes and you can choose which among them will tailor you best. Deciding on what specific culinary program to go to will rely on your outlook plans. If you want to become a gourmet chef, you can go to a gourmet cuisine class. Finding top culinary schools isn't that difficult. You can read top rated magazines that feature food and drinks. They surely highlight the unparalleled food corporations and universities in their columns. They give everyday updates as well on the top restaurants and culinary schools. The world wide web also contains vast advice on this subject. You can make a free quest of it to find the best cooking schools in your city. There may be cheap culinary education institutes around; though, your search should not be based alone on how low their tuition fee is but on how the culinary college can lead to believe you to finalize a promising cook employment. A lot of things can follow after graduating from an esteemed culinary school. You can obtain a profession in a well-known food establishment in your country. You can also work overseas and get paid with a higher salary. This will all start from getting a good teaching in cookery. culinary schools. Related Articles - culinary schools, culinary arts school, Email this Article to a Friend! Receive Articles like this one direct to your email box!Subscribe for free today!

Saturday, September 17, 2011

Cover Letter Starters and Endings

1Cover Letter Starters and Endings Do you get stuck on how to start or end your cover letter - so much so that you decide to send your resume without it? Well, there is no more need to fret. Below are sample cover-letter starters and endings for you to use when writing your letter.SAMPLE COVER LETTER STARTERSSample #1: I am a dependable, quality-focused professional with a consistent record of meeting and exceeding employer requirements. As I am currently seeking new employment opportunities, I would like to present my resume for your review and consideration.Sample #2: I am writing to express my interest in your current opening for a ; therefore, please allow me to submit my resume for your review. Having served in sales and operational leadership roles for the past 10 years, with continued success in meeting business/operational goals, I am confident that I can make a valuable contribution to your organization's future projects and initiatives.Sample #3: I noted your advertisement for a with a great deal of interest, as your candidate description appears to be an excellent match for my background and skills. Therefore, I have enclosed my resume for your review and consideration.Sample #4: I am a highly motivated employee with a consistent record of going the extra mile to meet corporate objectives. As I am currently seeking new employment opportunities, I would like to present my resume for your review and consideration.Sample #5: I am a conscientious, organized professional with a 15+ year career and a consistent record of meeting employers' requirements and goals. As I am currently seeking new employment opportunities, I would like to present my resume for your review and consideration.SAMPLE COVER LETTER ENDINGSSample #1: I will contact you within the week to follow up on this letter of inquiry. In the meantime, please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions or if I need to furnish you with additional documentation. Thank you for your time and consideration.Sample #2: My resume is enclosed to provide you with additional details regarding my technical/supervisory skills and achievements. I would welcome the opportunity for an interview with your organization. Thank you for your time and consideration.Sample #3: My resume contains additional details regarding my career accomplishments. I would welcome an opportunity for a personal interview to discuss your organization's needs and the results you can expect from me in addressing those needs. And I thank you in advance for your time and review of my qualifications.Sample #4: To provide you with details concerning my qualifications and accomplishments, my resume is enclosed. I will contact you next week to follow up on this letter of inquiry; perhaps we could arrange a meeting to discuss our mutual interests. Thank you for your time and consideration.Sample #5: Thank you for taking the time to review my credentials. I hope you feel a personal meeting would be beneficial; I am available at your convenience. If you have any questions or when you are ready to schedule an interview - please give me a call.

Sunday, September 11, 2011

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1cheap oakley sunglasses sale gucci sunglasses ray-ban sunglasses on cheap oakley sunglasses sale gucci sunglasses ray-ban sunglasses on sale My chef has given me several simple recipes that I can prepare for my wife.Rachel Evans has an interest in Autism topics. Finally, the third sentence tries to model an appropriate response. If I liked the food at a wedding, I would take a minute to talk to the chef. It is really important to make these activities as much fun as possible so the student will stay motivated.In this case, the man lost. The person who sold the most got to keep his or her treasured item. The problem is most men do not care about many of the decisions that are needed when planning a wedding. Fundraising coordinators will have experience with many different chefs. To most of us, these situations are normal, everyday occurrences, but to children with autism they can sometimes be terrifying moments that they do not have the skills to deal with. Have the chef bring samples. If he or she is a food geek that is a good sign. If you want to find the best restaurants in the Washington, DC area, go to the restaurants he lists on his resume. If you like the food, talk to the chef. The second is a perspective sentence that illuminates how others react to the situation being discussed. Bring someone who knows food. Many of the games available involve storylines, plots, and realistic human behaviors.Anyway, the last show I saw featured a couple with the usual collection of knick-knacks and keepsakes and old clothes and broken what-nots. If the food was not good, I would not waste my time. I guess its because the houses are so beyond messy and cluttered and disorganized that my own closets look pretty good in comparison. If you were going to cook the perfect meal, what would you make? We talked for a few minutes and before he was called back to his duties, most of the women at the party were standing around us. How do I know? Once you get my caterer talking about food he cannot stop. Looking on the web is not a good method to find one either. Decorating Should Not Come First by LaJoyce Kerns - ArticleCity Organizer shows are popular on television right now. It is not easy for an autistic child to change his or her response to various situations, so it is imperative that the activities be non-threatening and highly interesting. The man had tears in his eyes as the organizer yanked the toy away from him. Check out the caterer. If the chef impresses any of the other cooks in the room that is a good sign. A good decorating plan almost always starts with clearing the clutter and cutting down on items that take up storage space.Do not rely upon these recommendations alone. By modeling situations familiar to an autistic child, they can be better prepared to react in a socially appropriate to those same situations in the future. My caterer supplied a menu that was so far above the usual wedding menu of boiled chicken and baked fish, it was like eating at a four star restaurant. Autism education pioneer Carol Gray developed this approach in . I did not choose the menu ?C the caterer did. For instance, food and extended leisure activities can be used as rewards that will encourage the child to want to learn. Finally, you are paying for the food; why not ask for a recipe. That was two years ago. For further information on Autism please visit essential-guide-to-autism/autism.Copyright Andrew HoranAndrew Horan is getting married so you can read about his wedding at myhoranwedding . He talks about food the way a Ferrari mechanic talks about cars. Actually, fun and learning work well for all types of children, but autistic children are special and require more tailored methods. In this case it might be worthwhile to try different educational programs via a computer. Social stories usually

Friday, September 9, 2011

Cheap and Best Courses for Online Chef Classes

1Cheap and Best Courses for Online Chef Classes The numerous culinary arts chef schools offer different programs and training methods as well. These schools teach would-be chefs the basics of cooking. The internships and hands-on experience that the gastronomic arts chef schools provide though are the ones that will open the students' eyes to the "harsh" realities of the profession. Here, they will have more than just a peek on what goes on in the kitchen. They are made to look beyond the usual things in focus: the list of food on the menu, the prices, and front room service. Students in the cookery arts chef schools are made to experience what it is like to be the one get ready the food on the menu and standing for long hours just to get all of them done.There are various online cooking schools available. There are some that gives the option to enroll in a basic course or one with a Continuing Education Units and a culinary arts online courses certification for a higher price. Programs like these offer online correspondence with an instructor who is an expert in this field of study. The instructor does not only take care of your culinary arts online courses certification which student can add to the resume but also gives out personalized assistance and does documentation of all the progress online.Most of the culinary arts programs that deal specifically to culinary certificates. In these programs, it takes about one year of study for you to complete them. The most commonly involved areas of study in this kind of programs are professional cuisine, professional baking and pastry, culinary arts, professional personal chef, professional catering, and professional marketing. Culinary arts programs involve the basics of culinary arts, convention and meeting planning, culinary management, food and beverage operations, hotel management, and international hospitality management. Cooking was once seen as either a hobby or a chore. Up till now, it is regarded as a highly skilled line of work within a multi-billion industry. Cooking is not just preparing good food, at culinary art school; you will learn the science and art behind it. You will learn how to detect flavors and develop your own sense of taste.Basically, the goal of these culinary arts schools is to develop the cooking techniques of a student - starting from the basics of food preparation to the complexities of preparing and plating mouth-watering meals. Most schools offer certificates, associate degrees, and bachelor degrees. Along with that many school offer certain specialties where you can learn more about a particular area of interest. All in all every school is different; some are small while others are in major metropolitan areas. Careers through cookery Program also encompass other services like teacher trainings, jobs and internships, volunteer industry professionals, college and career advising, after-school programs, product and equipment donations, and scholarships to post-secondary culinary programs.

Tuesday, September 6, 2011

Changing Careers Within Hospitality Industry Areas

1Changing Careers Within Hospitality Industry Areas So if you want to change jobs what choices do people have when it comes to transferring their skills within the hospitality marketplace? For example, for this exercise, let's take someone working as a Pastry Chef de Partie in a hotel, wishing to move to a different area to gain experience and build on their career to date.So what are the options?Hospitality is a huge area if you think about it, everywhere from London Zoo to Buckingham Palace, care homes to restaurants & hotels have a kitchen preparing food to people but not all kitchens are the same obviously and for our candidate looking for a pastry chef role, not all kitchens will produce fresh pastry or patisserie. So this is why it is so important when applying for a vacancy within the hospitality industry that you do your homework and research the areas that will be right for you/our next career step on the ladder.Also it should give you a good chance of enjoying your job so you'll be in a good position to stay in the position for a decent length of time as changing too often can go against you as potential new employers may think you are just a 'Job Hopper'!   So how do you go about researching your specialist area in hospitality?   Jobs can still be found in the local newspaper, obviously, but there is so much more available on the web by using internet job sites such as hospitality-people.co.uk and the internet is an amazing tool making research material so much easier and faster to access.So for our pastry chef de Partie, where could a person with such skills move to from a hotel environment?There are various options such as Cruise Ships with the larger ones having large teams of chefs and they usually produce food to a very high standard, and this will also give our chef the chance to travel experiencing different cultures & countries.    Some larger or fine dining A La Carte restaurants will have one or two pastry chefs responsible for producing fresh desserts and pastry products. Other areas may include catering companies, who can employ thousands of staff working in different areas, such as private & corporate events through to directors dining events for banks/financial institutions.   Good pastry chefs are always very much needed in all these areas due to a very high demand for freshly produced products. Working for a catering company that does contracts for large events may also give our chef opportunities to work in areas that might otherwise not have been possible, given the contacts that a catering company has with many high profile and influential organisations with excellent reputations. This can be a great plus when it comes to producing a CV to apply for jobs in the future. Some other areas a pastry chef could use their skills could be Conference & Banqueting companies, quality Member Clubs and also larger Gastro Pubs and bars.   A final word on career progression - when an employer looks at a CV/resume for a certain job position almost all of them like to see a certain amount of stability in a candidates work history, and as previously mentioned, moving on from a job too quickly or having lots of jobs within a short period of time isn't really going to be looked upon favourably. So this is why researching your next job move is vitally important and why there should be a degree of fluidity and to some extent, common ground between the jobs on your CV.

Sunday, September 4, 2011

Best Cover Letters For Getting Job Interviews

1Best Cover Letters For Getting Job Interviews There's no doubt about it. People who write the best cover letters get the best job interviews. Research shows that the most effective, cover letters have a number of common characteristics. They follow a 3-part format that consistently garners positive results and earns the job applicants who wrote them highly sought after job interviews.Even if you're not a great writer, you can write great cover letters by following the format listed below. Use this format to write the best cover letters for getting job interviews. If you write your cover letter and still aren't comfortable with the result, have no fear. The link at the end of the article offers cover letter writing services and software that may assist you.But first things first...1. Grab Attention in Your First Paragraph is the first tip to writing best cover letters for getting job interviews.Hiring managers review hundreds of cover letters and resumes for every job they fill. To get attention, your cover letter must stand out. Here are examples of effective and interesting first paragraphs. Choose the one that works best for your situation and modify it to suit your needs.State how your skills and experience match the job description and would be a benefit to the organization. Example: After graduating from Northeastern University with a B.S. in Computer Graphic Technology, I spent the summer interning in New York City at Sunrise Communications. During that time, I brainstormed ideas and story concepts with Sunrise's Creative Team. I drew detailed storyboards that formed the basis for local and international TV advertisements. At Sunrise, I learned to share ideas, accept criticism and problem-solve in a high-pressured environment. Example: In response to this opportunity, I would like to call attention to my experience in producing and directing numerous PR events throughout Orange County as well as my large network of both celebrity and national media contacts. Example: Since graduating from Simmons College Prince Program of Retail Management, I've been involved in all aspects of retail, from front-of-the-store management and training to inventory planning, buying, and merchandising. I have worked in both specialty and mass markets and have broad-based experience dealing with customers, fellow employees, management, and vendors. I thrive in a fast-paced environment and feel energized by the thought of helping manage the L.L. Bean Women's Department. If you've talked with the hiring manager, use the first paragraph to remind her of the conversation.Example: Thank you for calling me about the Character Animator position posted on Pixar's website. I enjoyed talking with you and learning more about this position.If appropriate, don't be afraid to name drop.Example: Henry Smith, who supervised my work as a summer intern with your firm, recommended that I apply for the position of Associate Attorney.Mention something you know about the organization. Example: I read the June 10th issue of The Kentucky Sun with great interest. The article, "How One Restaurant Makes a Difference" applauded Pannucci's contribution to the Good Shepherd Food Bank. I believe my experience as a pastry chef as well as my work on the Eastside Food Pantry's Board of Directors makes me a perfect candidate for the position of Pannucci Head Pastry Chef. Example: Cuddledown's branded voice is recognizable and respected; its high-quality products are well positioned in the market. I would welcome the chance to develop and execute marketing strategies to increase sales and distribution of the company's products. Get their attention by asking a question.Example: Are you looking for a self-motivated individual who has organized large-scale events and significantly improved customer retention?2. Keep Their Attention in the Middle is the second tip to write best cover letters for getting job interviews.As you write, keep the company's point of view in mind. Try to anticipate what the hiring manager is looking for and include that information. If you have an employment gap or some other item on your resume that you think the hiring manager will question, succinctly and without apology, answer the issue in the middle section of your cover letter.In the middle section of your cover letter, tell how your education and experience match the job description. Use specific examples to show how your skills meet the job requirements. . Example: To manage this department, I would call on my experience at Jordan Marsh as the Liz Claiborne Department Manager. There, I merchandised product and motivated my sales team to generate the highest company-wide sales volume for dress collections. I am a natural sales person and definitely "have a knack" for merchandising and visual presentation. Example: Throughout my years as a caseworker, I have helped many clients identify and apply for jobs that match their skill sets. I believe my dedication to the people I serve and my ability to identify and match their strengths to the job market makes me the perfect candidate for Employment Specialist position at Crossroads Community Services. If appropriate, mention specific goals you have accomplished. Example: While at Nordstrom's, I motivated my team to exceed department sales goals of $1.2 million annually. The team generated the highest company-wide sales volume for the dress collection. Example: While providing administrative support to the Director of Marketing and Sales, I reduced company travel expenditures by $37,000 in my first three months by renegotiating contracts with the department's suppliers. 3. End your Cover Letter with an Action Follow Up and a Respectful Close is the third tip for writing best cover letters for getting job interviews.Your closing paragraph or sentence should encourage action.·Example: As requested, I have enclosed my resume for your review. I look forward to discussing my qualifications and learning more about the position. Please contact me at 555.555.5555 or by email at dede@afewgoodwords.com with any additional questions. Thank you for your time and consideration.End your letter with a respectful and professional close. "Sincerely yours" or "Respectfully yours" works well.That's it. Use this 3-part format to write best cover letters for getting job interviews. If you do, you'll end up with a cover letter that will stand up to the competition and get you the job interviews you deserve.Best of luck in your job search.

Are Resume Builders and Resume Software Really Very Effective

1Are Resume Builders and Resume Software Really Very Effective No. A software program or computer can't have a half and hour phone interview with you first. Do they advertise the fact that you will still be doing all the typing? Someone is looking to get rich off desperate job hunters instead of really helping them. The giant flaw in these automated resume building programs is quality control, being original instead of generic, and there is simply no customization. I try them out and they all are relying on the typist to do all the work. Garbage in, garbage out is still true today. Usually, there are all sorts of issues, flaws and folks just end up calling a professional resume writer right before the interview to fix everything. Basically you get what you pay for in life. Generic resumes are dead. If you want to get hired your resume should be tailored to your targeted position and employer. In case you don't know it, there are many errors which the spell check function cannot catch simply because it doesn't have the ability.   Some examples are: homonyms like there & their, or thru, through & threw and two, too & to etc, misuse of words, all sorts of grammatical errors, word usage errors, mixing past tense and present tense, punctuation errors, proper name spelling errors, missing letters from a word that still makes another correctly spelled word but changes the whole meaning of the sentence. Even simple over use of the same word is not caught.One very common flaw in resumes and cover letters is poor/weak word choice and appearance problems how does a computer program fix that? Why should folks paying for resume services be required to do their own typing? Most quality resume writer's clients do no typing at all. How does a resume builder know the right key words to use in your resume for your targeted career position if you are a pastry chef?At least half the population would not consider English an area strength.  Another half would not consider writing or typing a strength.  Finally there are a lot of folks that are not native English speakers. Is it fair to them to get little value out of these automated assistants?  Even if this software was free and was made with an unlimited budget one of the biggest weaknesses would be the data that is entered in to begin with.In short, know how customizing, editing, proofreading and comprehension are mission critical missing links in these automated resume builders. Most talented writers everywhere use editors and proofreaders including me. Your resume and cover letter must be perfect as they are the only chance at a first impression you will ever get. There are just two results sink or swim. With the way these software programs are promoted you would think resume writers are expensive but we are not. The average client pays $99-150.  So a price comparison is about equal to paying for a resume and cover letter builder with distribution services or preferred resume positioning. Avoid adding new gaps in employment to your resume hire a great resume writer is what my surveyed clients say. Many of whom tried these services merely extended their time without a job. Besides being pedestrian, many had snafus and below average customer service. It seems what many people hated was most the whole long tedious process of typing, formatting and thinking process so they got it over with as quickly as possible resulting in a weak resume.   This is one big reason ~90% of resumes end up being merely adequate or worse. A word about cover letters: Again generic is bad! Lack of editing and proofreading is bad. For further helpful free info on cover letters read: "How to Get Interviews: Use A Great Cover Letter" and "Free Dream Job Tryouts With A Cover Letter"  Direct links to these are below. Honestly, would you send the same cover letter to Rhode Island Hospital and the South Beach Center for Cosmetic Surgery if you were a nurse? Employers are looking for passionate loyal employees likely to stay for a while.There is a great reason when you Google search the terms: resume writer and CV writer there are 45 million results for each. Writers are always in demand, computers are helpless at editing, comprehending and proofreading English, Chinese, Japanese etc. Language is human.  Today people still interview and hire people. Marketing your talents is what a resume is all about, at this point this still seems to be a uniquely human skill as well.Fortunately, today most professionals still demand good resume writer. And every professional writer has an editor and proofreader. I don't think this will change anytime soon. Still I gave this software a try out thinking it might help me. The bottom line is resume writing is hard work that requires lots of patience, know how and expertise. Now that you have the rest of the story, make your own decision based on common sense. But remember you will either be penalized or rewarded based on your decision. I have listened to lots of feedback from clients over the years so I feel it is my duty to pass this truth on.

Saturday, September 3, 2011

7 Tips For Surviving a Layoff

7 Tips For Surviving a Layoff Ask for more projects. I know this may sound like a crazy idea, and you might already be overloaded, but I knew a colleague in IT that had asked for additional projects and she survived three rounds of layoffs and still is working at her company.2. Don't have the "It won't happen to me mentality". I'm not suggesting that you walk around scared that you have no job stability but take the boyscout motto to heart. Always be prepared.3. Start Saving Now. Most financial experts will tell you that you should have 6 months salary saved up in case of emergencies or unexpected job loss. In this economy, I say if you can save 8 months salary.4. Pay down debt. I know one woman that said she wished she would have paid down her credit card debt while she was working. She said now that I'm unemployed and money is tight, making those extra $30 and $40 monthly minimum payments are causing her to struggle.5. Be prepared. By this I mean have your resume and cover letter ready. Don't wait until you are unemployed to start working on it. Better yet, while you're still employed have a professional resume writer do an evaluation of your resume for you and make updates and edits accordingly. A stellar resume can go a long way in a tough job market and save you potentially weeks or months of being unemployed.6. Be proactive. Start sending your resume out now. Even if you don't think you'll be laid off go ahead and post your resume to all those top job boards. It can't hurt to have it out there. Think of it as your back up 'just in case' plan. Your emergency parachute so to speak.7. Know that you'll be alright. When a colleague of mine was laid off he found his true passion. He was in finance but has always wanted to be a Chef. So he used the time away from the office to hone in on his cooking skills. Now he's a Chef for a very upscale restaurant in the City. He told me one day, that he wished someone would have told him the day he got laid off that he would be alright. "In fact, I feel better then alright. It was the push I needed to pursue my true passion."For additional job search tips, resume writing advice or to find out how to have your resume evaluated and written by a professional resume writer visit http://www.greatresumesfast.com

5 Things Your CV or Resume Must Have

5 Things Your CV or Resume Must Have Preparing a good CV or resume can be compared to preparing a fine meal. An "uneducated" chef may have the best ingredients in his/her kitchen, but the dish that is presented is dull, unflavorful, and without interest.The "educated" chef, on the other hand may have nothing but leftovers in the pantry, but knows how to present those ingredients in the most appealing way possible.If you can learn...and you WILL learn...how to "whip together" a good CV or resume, despite undistinguished qualifications and uninspiring experience, you will be much more likely to land an interview than the super-candidate who has "killer" credentials, but a "dead" CV or resume.5 CV / Resume EssentialsThere are certainly exceptions, but in general, the content of today's CV or resume is limited to:1) Contact InformationAll your contact information should go at the top of your CV / resume. Name (Avoid nicknames & including middle name - KEEP it simple AND professional) Address Use a permanent address...even if it's not yours. (Use your parent's address, a friend's address, or the address you plan to use after graduation if you're still "between residences") Telephone Number Use a permanent telephone number and include the area code. (If you have an answering machine on both your home phone AND mobile, record a neutral greeting during your job search) Email address - Choose an e-mail address that sounds professional Website address - Include your web site address only if the web page reflects your professional ambitions. 2) Objective or SummaryAn objective tells potential employers the sort of work you're hoping to do. This is your chance to be specific. If you have skills that you want to use in a specific industry, say so. Rather than an objective that says, "To obtain my first job and make a significant contribution to my new company," try this...To obtain an entry-level position within a prestigious financial institution that will utilize my strong analytical and organizational skills.In essence, your objective is always, "To get hired." But you'll want to customize that message, but tailoring your objective to each employer you target and every job you seek. The new-and-improved message is "To get hired by YOU."3) EducationYour most recent educational information is listed first. Include your degree (A.S., B.S., B.A., etc.), major, institution attended, minor/concentration.Add your grade point average (GPA) if it is higher than 3.0.Don't forget to mention academic honors.New graduates without a lot of work experience should list their educational information first. If you've been out of school for more than a year or two, education should be moved to the end of your resume, after the work experience section.4) Professional ExperienceALWAYS use the heading PROFESSIONAL EXPEREINCE - using the heading work experience makes you look like a college student.List your professional experience in reverse chronological order--that is, put your last job first and work backward to your first, relevant job.Important: Account for any gaps in your CV. It is critical to ALWAYS ensure that your dates of employment flow and if there is a gap for any reason always explain why. (If you were unemployed at anytime throughout your career explain it by stating that you were on a career break or relocating or spending time with your family etc.)The details of each experience should be presented in a consistent manner with details including: Your title/position Name of organization Location of work (city, state, and country, if appropriate) Dates of employment Description of work responsibilities with an emphasis on results and achievements. The goal is to provide a showcase of your professional experience using relevant industry buzzwords where you have utilized your skills.5) SkillsDon't miss this opportunity to list any special, job-related skills you may have.Some examples include: What computer programs do you know? Are you familiar with both Mac and PC? Are you bilingual? What presentation equipment have you used or what is your typing speed? Don't miss this opportunity to list any special, job-related skills you may have. You can tailor this list to fit the needs of the position for which you're applying, or simply change the order of the list to present your most valuable skills first.Do you know the Top 50 Recruiter Turn offs? Sign up to the Secure That Job Newsletter and get the TOP 50 Recruiter Turn-Off's Report FREE which shows you the mistakes job hunters make - Make these mistakes and you haven't got a chance of landing the job you want.

Monday, August 22, 2011

Best Cover Letters For Getting Job Interviews

There's no doubt about it. People who write the best cover letters get job interviews. Research has shown that the best, most effective, cover letters have a number of common characteristics.
They follow a 3-part format that consistently garners positive results and earns the job applicants who wrote them highly sought after job interviews.
Even if you're not a great writer, you can write great cover letters by following the format listed below. If you write your cover letter and still aren't comfortable with the result, have no fear. The link at the end of the article offers cover letter writing services and software that may assist you.
But first things first...

1. Grab Attention in Your First Paragraph

Hiring managers review hundreds of cover letters and resumes for every job they fill. To get attention, your cover letter must stand out. Here are examples of effective and interesting first paragraphs. Choose the one that works best for your situation and modify it to suit your needs.
State how your skills and experience match the job description and would be a benefit to the organization.
- Example: After graduating from Northeastern University with a B.S. in Computer Graphic Technology, I spent the summer interning in New York City at Sunrise Communications. During that time, I brainstormed ideas and story concepts with Sunrise's Creative Team. I drew detailed storyboards that formed the basis for local and international TV advertisements. At Sunrise, I learned to share ideas, accept criticism and problem-solve in a high-pressured environment.

- Example: In response to this opportunity, I would like to call attention to my experience in producing and directing numerous PR events throughout Orange County as well as my large network of both celebrity and national media contacts.

- Example: Since graduating from Simmons College Prince Program of Retail Management, I've been involved in all aspects of retail, from front-of-the-store management and training to inventory planning, buying, and merchandising. I have worked in both specialty and mass markets and have broad-based experience dealing with customers, fellow employees, management, and vendors. I thrive in a fast-paced environment and feel energized by the thought of helping manage the L.L. Bean Women's Department.
If you've talked with the hiring manager, use the first paragraph to remind her of the conversation.
- Example: Thank you for calling me about the Character Animator position posted on Pixar's website. I enjoyed talking with you and learning more about this position.

If appropriate, don't be afraid to name drop.
- Example: Henry Smith, who supervised my work as a summer intern with your firm, recommended that I apply for the position of Associate Attorney.

Mention something you know about the organization.
- Example: I read the June 10th issue of The Kentucky Sun with great interest. The article, "How One Restaurant Makes a Difference" applauded Pannucci's contribution to the Good Shepherd Food Bank. I believe my experience as a pastry chef as well as my work on the Eastside Food Pantry's Board of Directors makes me a perfect candidate for the position of Pannucci Head Pastry Chef.

- Example: Cuddledown's branded voice is recognizable and respected; its high-quality products are well positioned in the market. I would welcome the chance to develop and execute marketing strategies to increase sales and distribution of the company's products.
Get their attention by asking a question.

- Example: Are you looking for a self-motivated individual who has organized large-scale events and significantly improved customer retention?

2. Keep Their Attention in the Middle

As you write, keep the company's point of view in mind. Try to anticipate what the hiring manager is looking for and include that information. If you have an employment gap or some other item on your resume that you think the hiring manager will question, succinctly and without apology, answer the issue in the middle section of your cover letter.

In the middle section of your cover letter, tell how your education and experience match the job description. Use specific examples to show how your skills meet the job requirements.

- Example: To manage this department, I would call on my experience at Jordan Marsh as the Liz Claiborne Department Manager. There, I merchandised product and motivated my sales team to generate the highest company-wide sales volume for dress collections. I am a natural sales person and definitely "have a knack" for merchandising and visual presentation.

- Example: Throughout my years as a caseworker, I have helped many clients identify and apply for jobs that match their skill sets. I believe my dedication to the people I serve and my ability to identify and match their strengths to the job market makes me the perfect candidate for Employment Specialist position at Crossroads Community Services.
If appropriate, mention specific goals you have accomplished.

- Example: While at Nordstrom's, I motivated my team to exceed department sales goals of $1.2 million annually. The team generated the highest company-wide sales volume for the dress collection.
- Example: While providing administrative support to the Director of Marketing and Sales, I reduced company travel expenditures by $37,000 in my first three months by renegotiating contracts with the department's suppliers.

3. End your Cover Letter with an Action Follow Up and a Respectful Close

Your closing paragraph or sentence should encourage action.

- Example: As requested, I have enclosed my resume for your review. I look forward to discussing my qualifications and learning more about the position. Please contact me at 555.555.5555 or by email at dede@afewgoodwords.com with any additional questions. Thank you for your time and consideration.

Use "Sincerely yours" or "Respectfully yours" to close your letter.

That's it. Use this 3-part format to write cover letters that will stand up to the competition and get you the job interviews you deserve.

Best of luck in your job search!