Inspector – How Important is Your Resume?
When it comes to being hired as an inspector, exactly how important is your resume?
The short answer is – VERY IMPORTANT (I’m guessing that you already suspected that). There’s far more to it though, whether you’re a seasoned inspector or (especially if you’re) a newer inspector.
Let’s look at 3 areas:
- Information
- Honesty
- Access
Information
Your resume, in many cases, provides ALL of the information that a prospective employer knows about you.
That’s a big deal, because they use that information to decide if they want to hire you. If you don’t know how to highlight your strengths and showcase your abilities, you’ll likely to be missing out on some great opportunities. Be sure to be smart about your resume, while remaining honest (which I will discuss later).
- List only RELEVANT job history as much as possible.
Some of your necessary job history might be related to another industry, and that’s fine. Just be sure to not showcase an irrelevant part of your background (regardless of how proud that you are of it).
- Don’t write a ‘book’ about how great and wonderful that you are.
Saying that you are self-motivated and a people person is fine, but be a touch modest. Everyone reading your resume knows that you wrote that stuff about yourself…seriously, think about it.
- Use Psellhcekc… uh, Spellcheck.
The overall accuracy of your resume really does matter. If you’re a Premier Member and you haven’t watched the interviews at OnBoard, you should. (If you’re not a Premier Member – CLICK HERE to become one) This topic comes up over and over. The people who do the hiring are looking for inspectors who can somehow manage to have a resume with proper spelling and grammar. If you can’t even manage to come up with a grammatically correct resume, it says a lot about your abilities in general, because you could have even hired someone to do it for you.
Honesty
Tell the truth on your resume.
Falsifying your resume is fraudulent and it can have legal consequences. I’m not here to judge anyone, but I do have some advice – point your work history towards the truth. It might be tempting to put down that you have ten years experience as a ‘whatever’ inspector, but if you don’t have the experience, don’t list it.
I’ve actually had my own resume submitted to me with someone else’s name at the top…true story.
-David
OnBoard Consulting
Here’s why you shouldn’t over-exaggerate your resume or add a bunch of jobs that you didn’t work.
- Whoever is hiring you deserves the chance to know who they are about to spend money on.
If you have little to no experience and they choose to hire you, great! Regardless of who may or may not agree with it, it’s their money and their choice (that’s how America works). If however, you deceived them, that’s a different story.
- There are entry-level inspection jobs.
The fact that some inspectors are filling positions that they are not ready for has caused a lot of animosity in the inspection community. If you are at entry-level, be honest about it. There are far more entry-level inspection jobs than you might think.
- This is important! – If you appear to have knowledge that you don’t actually have, you could put yourself and/or others in danger.
It’s a fact. There are many dangers in any type of construction related industry (as well as other industries). If you are misleading with your resume, people could decide that you are aware of hazards than you know nothing about. You or someone else could get hurt, or worse. Be honest on your resume!
Access
How many people actually see your resume?
In my opinion, this is a HUGE deal. In the inspection world, opportunities come from people knowing that you exist. So, if you don’t get your resume out there – they don’t know you exist!
Here are 3 groups of people who you probably will want to see your resume.
- Chief Inspectors should be routinely sent an updated resume
These are usually people who you or your friends/colleagues already know. Occasionally sending them an updated resume and friendly email reminds them that you are still out here. If you do that, when the day comes that they are hiring, maybe they will remember you. It sure can’t hurt.
- Construction Managers, Project Managers, and Engineers should also receive an occasional updated resume
I can’t tell you how much work that I have gotten from just staying in very loose touch with these people. Don’t be pushy, I don’t even think that you should usually call them, just a simple email can do wonders.
I’m just touching base to drop you an updated resume. Hope that you are doing well. Keep me in mind if you happen to need an inspector!
- Inspection Companies, Head Hunters, and Staffing Companies are a great resource
These are all very similar and you can get a lot of work from them. Some of my best jobs came unexpectedly through one of these. If you are able to put your resume in front of 100 different companies, your odds of getting a job goes up, A LOT. Having a good resume that they actually SEE is vital. Make sure you have a great contact list.
- Relevant Information on your resume
- Honesty in the details and job history
- Access to your resume by the people who are hiring
These 3 things will help you land the jobs that you are qualified for and hopefully get you more options in the process.
Make your resume a high priority and major consideration in your job search. It is truly key!
Are you a Premier Member at OnBoard? If so, check out Resume Services.
Premier Members also can have their resume built or re-worked for lower prices than you’ll likely see anywhere!
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