MBA Career Services Center Communication Workshop

1. MBA Career Services CenterCommunication Workshop

2. Agenda • Creating an MBA Competitive Resume • Cover Letter • Thank You Letter • LinkedIn

3. Creating an MBA Competitive Resume

4. Purpose of a Resume Always Specific to Your Target Audience

5. Strategize First 3 Critical Pre-Resume Questions • Who am I? • Who do I want to be? • What is my brand? By thinking about how you would respond to these three questions in detail prior to your resume revision, it will help ensure your resume is written to the job you want and not the job you had.

6. Next, Communicate It Think ahead • Write to the future job you want. • Example: If a job you had was not relevant to the job you are applying from a career focus perspective, what transferrable skills did you demonstrate that can help predict future success on the new job such as strong communication or presentation skills. Market yourself • Emphasize specific skills to match the career you are seeking. • Provide measureable results whenever possible to demonstrate success in the roles you performed. Write to your reader • Communicate your past experiences in a manner that is relevant to your targeted industry/job function. • Read your resume from the perspective of a recruiter. Your resume needs to successfully address the needs/requirements of the job description.

7. Resume Structure Number of Pages: • Less than 10 years of work experience: One full page only. • Over 10 years of work experience: Two full pages only. • Why the page limit? • The resume is a highlight of your unique differentiators specific to your career goal and does not list everything. Recruiters get 1000’s of resumes and must be able to scan quickly for qualifications. Resumes that are too long are often not read in entirety. Sections of Resume: • Name and Contact Information (top of page) • Experience • Education • Leadership & Skills Margins: • Not larger than 1” all sides; not smaller than .05 all sides Location: • If US location, list the city and state. Example: East Lansing, MI. • If international location, list the city and country. Example: Toronto, Canada. Dates: • All dates right justified and bolded, listed in numeric format. Example: 5/2012

8. Experience Section How should I list my work experience? EXPERIENCE Whirlpool Corporation, Benton Harbor, MI Financial Analyst 5/2000-8/2000 • First bullet • Second bullet etc. • You should have a minimum of two bullets per job title and a maximum of five bullets. • List your bullets in order of relevance to the job. Your strongest bullets should be listed first in order to grab the readers attention. • Use the default circle shape and size from the bullet library.

9. Experience Section How do I list multiple positions with one employer? • It is important tolist multiple positions separately under the same employer name. Employers like to see progression and this will help demonstrate how you have increased your skill and responsibility levels. EXPERIENCE Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI Director 5/2000-Present • First bullet • Second bullet • Etc. Associate Director 4/1998-4/2000 • First bullet • Second bullet • Etc.

10. Experience Section Write in bullet points, not paragraphs: • Why? It is easier for recruiters to read and navigate your resume. Begin each bullet with a strong action verb: • Sample list available in BroadNet under Resources/Document Library. Include the months and years for each role held and in numeric format: • Recruiters expect to see this to help them understand the true amount of time you were in a role. Example: 5/2005-12/2009 Use succinct bullets (not paragraphs) to communicateyour experience. Examples: • Led market research analysis to help identify new consumer insights and develop a stronger branding strategy for emerging markets. • Directed a U.S. Department of Education grant-funded program which enhanced cultural sensitivity within all areas of the university and surrounding community. • Analyzed purchasing consumption and sales reports to help identify key performance metrics and develop three year expansion plan. This resulted in a 30% increase in market share from 2010-2013.

11. Experience Section Each bullet should communicate the following items: • Show promotion or advancement: This can be accomplishedwith titles and dates. • Structure: Each bullet should have a skill demonstrated and result to showcase that you were successful in your role. • Prioritizebulletpoints: List the most relevant or impactful information first. • Always lead with action verbs for each bullet point: See link at end of PowerPoint for examples. In total your experience section should include: • Transferrable skills communicated: This is especially important for career switchers. Example: If you were a teacher in a prior career, then discuss project management and presentation skills to prove value to the recruiter. • Demonstrate your personal brand: This is what you are known for professionally (your abilities, passion for certain aspects of your job, what makes you unique). • Leadership experience showcased: Does your resume provide examples of how you led people/projects and its value to the company as a whole? • Highlight intent and understanding of your future career path: Your bullets should demonstrate an understanding of your career path intent. This means that you will have to explain past roles in a manner that is relevant to the career path you are seeking.

12. Education Section Your education should be listed towards the bottom of your resume. What is the best way to list the MSU MBA degree and other degrees on my resume? • Your transcript will list your major as: Integrative Management • Weekend MBA Program • Executive Style, Weekend MBA • Executive MBA Program • Career Focus: Supply Chain Management EDUCATIONAL BACKGROUND Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 5/2014 Master of Business Administration Indiana University, Bloomington, IN 5/2010 Bachelor of Science in Business, Marketing

13. Leadership & Skills Section This is the area of your resume where you will list items that do not fall into the education or experience categories, but add value to the career path you are focused on. Formatting: LEADERSHIP & SKILLS • Languages: English (fluent), Mandarin (native), Japanese (basic) • Technical Skills: (specific to career intent & only if validated in bullets) • Certifications: (specific to career intent) • Professional Associations: (dates should be listed) • Volunteer: (dates should be listed)

14. Other: Grammar and spelling is a critical area to always review and recheck. Recruiters will reject a resume for a simple misspelling or grammar mistake. It is important to be consistent with grammar and punctuation. • End all bullet points with a period. • Write numbers as 1, 2, 3. • Use “and” not “&”. • Use correct verb tense. • Use “K” for thousand, “M” for million, “B” for billion. Example: $5M. • Use “%” throughout resume, not “percent”.

15. FAQ’s: You should only use your MSU email address. Why? • Many Yahoo, Gmail, or Hotmail email accounts go to recruiters SPAM accounts. Why can’t I use an objective statement at the top of my resume? • Your resume IS your summary of qualifications and your career objective (a reader may not read down any farther). Also, your cover letter, which often accompanies your resume, will communicate your objective for the specific job. Why is a skilled or functional-based resume not recommended? • Recruiters are clear that they want to see where you worked and with the most current listed first. A resume that is organized by skills or function make it harder for recruiters to find what they are looking for. You may be encouraged to do a functional resume if you are making a drastic career change, but it is rare.

16. FAQ’s: Should I list military or mission experience? • Yes, this is a great way to help demonstrate your skills representing leadership, global exposure, etc. Typically, recruiters like to see these types of experiences, especially if it fits well with where you are trying to go. This information would be listed in your work experience section if it served as your full time job. Where should I list my technical skills in my resume? • Readers want to see HOW you have used these technical skills—the impact they had and how they helped you accomplish your goal. For these reasons, it is important to note them within the bullet points of your experiences. You may also provide a summary of your technical skills in the “Leadership & Skills” section of the resume. Note: you should only list technical skills if they are relevant to the career path you are seeking. How do I list language proficiency? • Use the terms: “native,” “fluent,” “conversant or basic,” and clarify written, spoken or both. • List this in the “Leadership & Skills” section of your resume.

17. FAQ’s: How often should I update my resume? • Your resume is a “work in progress” and should be update frequently. You will add various items during your MBA program such as “placement at case competition”. As your resume develops, you will need to drop bullet points on former jobs or extracurricular items that are less relevant or outdated. Resumes are not written in first-person or the subjective voice. How do I write in the third-person or objective voice? • Avoid sentences that have personal pronoun’s such as “I” or “we”. Example: an incorrect version states “Our team took first-place in the competition.” The proper way to list is : “National MBA Case Competition: 1st place”.

18. FAQ’s: Avoid These Items on Your Resume: • Date of birth/Age/Place of birth/Gender • Graphics such as personal photos, logos, art work • Nationality or country of origin/Passport number • Marital status/Children • Individual company salaries or any salary history • Reason for leaving jobs • Signature • High school education or equivalent

19. Other Helpful Resources: Tool for Career Exploration and Job Analysis • Link: http://www.onetonline.org/

20. Creating an MBA Competitive Cover Letter

21. Contents Define the purpose of cover letter Describe how to differentiate a cover letter Outline a good structure Describe what each paragraph should contain Outline when to submit one and why Share what recruiters say about cover letter

22. Purpose of a Cover Letter Your cover letter is a document that: • Convinces the reader to look at your resume. • Makes a sales pitch that matches your skill sets and core competencies to the position you are applying to. Each cover letter should be specific and customized to each job. • Demonstrates your knowledge of the industry, company, and position and outlines how your career interests fit with the specific company or position. Differentiates YOU: • Each cover letter needs to be unique for each company and position that you apply to. • Do not establish a template cover letter. Start from scratch with each letter you write. Your resume must be complete and written competitively so you can better define what you are selling in the cover letter.

23. Elizabeth J. Test 123 Winton Lane, Anycity, MI 14512 Email: test@bus.msu.edu Phone: (123) 123-1234 February 15, 2015 Contact Name Title Company Name Address City, State, Zip Dear (name), XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX Sincerely, Elizabeth Test Attachment: Resume Cover Letter Structure Major sections: • Heading: your name, address, telephone, email address • (2 spaces) • Date • (2 spaces) • Contact Address: Name, Title, Department/Office (if applicable), Street/Office Address, City, State, Zip of person letter is written to. • (2 spaces) • Salutation: Dear (Mr., Ms. or Dr. last name), only use first name if correct salutation not known) As a last resort, use “To Whom It May Concern,” “Hiring Manager, ” or “Corporate Recruiter” but this is not recommended. • Body of letter: includes 3 separate, distinct paragraphs. • Closing: Sincerely, write your signature (blue ink), type your first and last name below your signature. • Bottom: “enclosure” (Encl.) or “attachment” (Attach.)

24. Paragraph One Goals • Opening sentence: Grab the reader’s attention creatively and personalized. • State purpose for writing (position applying for within the company). • Provide an introduction on how you can specifically contribute to the company based on your experience, competency level and company research. • Showcase passion and enthusiasm for the position and company. • Begin to match your skills, abilities, experiences with the position (in one sentence).

25. Paragraph Two Goals • Convince the reader with evidence why you should get an interview. This is where you prove what you stated in the first paragraph about your skills, experiences and knowledge. • Match the skills the position is seeking with examples from work or academic experiences • Select your strongest performance stories and the experiences that are most relevant to the position. • The strongest appeal will come from your professional experience. • Example: • “While at Aerospace Systems, I was deeply involved with the strategic planning process, particularly with systems and technology issues. By consulting with diverse technology vendors, I had many opportunities to achieve significant results (minimum savings achieved 20%) for these organizations as well as my own firm. In managing these vendors, I coordinated the entire project, from initial negotiation through project completion.”

26. Paragraph Three Goals • Two to three sentences: • This is where you summarize paragraphs one and two. Lastly, reiterate your desire for an interview---ask for it! • Convey your enthusiasm in this section. • Bring closure with a summary statement. • This will be the shortest paragraph in the cover letter. • Example: • “Thank you for the opportunity to introduce myself. It would be my pleasure to share more about my experiences and how they match with XY position at AB company in an interview. May we schedule a time to talk?”

27. When to Send and How • It will be rare to send a cover letter hard copy through the mail or fax. Cover letters will most often be sent via email as attachments, as part of your email text or as a document upload. • When applying through a company’s website, always include one. Depending on the venue for submitting your resume, you may have to include the “cover letter” in the body of an email message to a general email address, such as careers@gm.com. • When attaching your resume for consideration to a specific contact, for a specific job posting, you may include your cover letter in the body of the email—not as a separate attachment. Some postings may define specifically which is preferred.

28. What Recruiters say about Cover Letters • “The cover letter should not be memorable for the wrong reasons, like typos!” • “…candidates can be eliminated from interview consideration because of gross errors in the salutation/address (wrong company) or because of poor quality writing or content.” • “…use the cover letter to reinforce candidate’s intent.” • “…look for professionalism in writing and goals and objectives, and I prefer to receive via email.” • “…look for specific experiences that are highlighted.” • “…to see if candidate did company research.” • “Cover letters provide great insight into communication skills.” • “…look for differentiating factors like, proper grammar, or correct spelling of name.” • “The cover letter should be short and to-the-point.” • “Cover letters are simply used to review writing skills.”

29. Creating an MBA Competitive Thank You Letter

30. Writing Winning Thank-you Letters The most effective thank-you letters are marketing communications written to further sell yourself into a position. And, this can easily be accomplished by highlighting any of the following that may be appropriate to your particular situation and the specific interview situation: • Relate how your experiences are tied directly to the company's current needs or challenges. • Highlight how you solved a comparable (or similar) problem in your previous experience.   • Respond to an objection the company made about you in the thank-you letter.   • Share a really important quality or experience you did not bring up in the interview. • Highlight your specific accomplishments as they relate directly to the company and the position for which you are applying that you may have learned about during the interview.

31. Writing Winning Thank You Letters • Length of Thank You Letters • Considerations for E-mail vs. Printed/Mailed

32. Creating an MBA Competitive LinkedIn Profile

33. Top 10 points about LinkedIn • #1 professional networking site • Not just for job seekers • Not a resume • Profiles must be rich with keywords • There is no one preferred “voice.” • Regular status updates are important • Always include a professional photo • Strive for 100% profile completeness • Highlight information beyond the resume • Do NOT use default connecting message, personalize it!

34. Why use LinkedIn? • LinkedIn member statistics Average Age 41 Household Income $109,703 Male 64% Household income $100k+ 53.5% Own Smartphone/PDA 34% College Grad/Post Grad 80.1% Business Decision Maker 49% EVP/SVP/VP 6.5% Have a Portfolio Value of $250k+ 24%

35. Creating the “Snapshot” Online Name Photo Headline Location and Industry Facebook Link Current, Past, Education Recommendations Connections Websites Twitter Public Profile

36. Creating the Profile--Headline • 120-character limit • Goal: To define “who” you are • General guidelines: Highlight the most valuable information about yourself (job titles, industries, product lines, companies, etc.) Include information that will give you a truly competitive advantage • Example: Sarah Tobin, CNPDP Product development Leader – Technology & Telecom/CPG/Business Services Gaining competitive edge through innovation

37. Creating the Profile--Summary • Goal: To create a rich profile that strategically positions you and makes full use of the 2000-character limit • General guidelines: Write to be read on screen--short paragraph, concise bullet points, ample white space Tell career stories and/or showcase specific accomplishments, project highlight, honors and awards, and other distinctive and impressive information Start with summary section from the resume and paint a more complete picture

38. Creating the Profile--Summary Example: Sarah Tobin (1995 characters) Summary I am a Product Development leader with a passion for delivering “What’s next” and improving “ what’s now” for companies that value innovation as a market advantage. In a fast-track career through product development roles in diverse industries, I have had a measurable impact on revenue, market penetration, and product innovation. An overview of my career includes these highlights: * Solution Tech: Built a world-class product development organization for this global business outsourcing provider with clients in 52 countries on 4 continents. * … Primarily focused on technology innovation, I excel at both the art and the science of product development. Specifically, my expertise includes research and development(R&D), pipeline development, market-validity testing,…..I am highly experienced …. I thrive on challenge and am known as an innovator, change driver, and product evangelist. My expertise helps companies deliver on the promise of their ideas, capture new customers, expand into new markets, and outpace/outperform the competition.

39. Creating the Profile--Specialties • Goal: To highlight keywords and other distinguishing material about your client • Option#1: Pack with keywords Example: Corporate communication, Six Sigma, B2B Sales, etc. • Option#2: Pack with achievement, projects, honors & awards, and additional highlights Example: Performance highlights * Twice built agile product development organizations from the ground up, keeping companies on the cutting edge.

40. Creating the Profile—Experience • Goal: To write keyword-rich, accomplishment-focused job descriptions that clearly communicate the roles, responsibilities, and successes of each position. • General guidelines: • Include ALL/MOST positions and companies- these are what recruiters look for, but be careful about the “age factor” just as you are when writing resumes. • You can consolidate some of the older positions into one job block as you might do on a resume. • Write in paragraphs and/or bullet points– paragraphs to tell stories mostly; bullets to highlight projects, assignments, or individual achievements. • Automatic bullet formatting is not available, so use asterisks, periods, dashes or whatever symbol you prefer. • Consider including a short company description to help recruiters and prospective employers understand the scope of your client’s experience. • Include key accomplishments and activities. • Fill job descriptions with substantive content, achievements, project highlights, and more and include quantifiable results whenever possible as numbers always capture attention. • Don’t bother using html or hyperlinks as they will NOT work in the text of LinkedIn profiles.

41. Creating the Profile--Education • Goal: To include all educational credentials, degrees, training programs, seminars, academic honors and awards, activities, and other education-related qualifications and accomplishments. • Example #1: Typical for a recent college graduate or young professional B.S. in Business Administration, Myers University, Cleveland, OH Graduated Summa Cum Laude (GPA:4.0/4.0) Member, Alpha Chi Honor Society Captain, Men’s Lacrosse Championship Team (2 Years)

42. Creating the Profile--Education Example #2:Typical for mid-to senior-level professional or executive Michigan State University MBA-Concentration in International Commerce 1986-1988 Michigan State University BS– Business Administration with minor in Economics 1982-1986 200+ hours of Continuing Professional Education including: -- Financial for Non-Finance Executives, Columbia University -- Global Economic Theory, The Simpson Institute -- International Contract Negotiations, Harvard University -- New Business Development in Emerging Third-World Countries, The World Bank

43. Creating the Profile—Groups and Associations • Goal: To demonstrate professional, industry, and personal involvement, visibility and contributions. • Example: Member- Product Development and Management Association (PDMA) Member- Bay Area Bicycle Club

44. Creating the Profile—Honors and Awards • Goal: To spotlight distinguishing recognition you earned. • Example: “Product of the Year”– Internet Telephony, 2009 “ Outstanding Achievement Award”– XYZ Retail Networks, 2006

45. Samples

46. Sample- Cover letter

47. Sample-Resume

48. Sample-Thank You Letter