Job search... résumés and cover letter WWGRMD?

I have been toying around with the idea of getting a real job... My current position is not very challenging and it's as though I have been on paid vacation for the last ten years.

I have a current and professionally written résumé.. so that's taken care of... I guess.

As an experiment, I sent off a résumé with an unusual cover letter. The cover letter included a link to my GRM Dyno build. I figured the dyno build covers all the bases of my skill set. Fabrication, electrical, electronics and writing code.
Dyno link

I didn't hear back from the prospective employer.. so I don't know if they even looked at the link or whatever.

Is providing a link to a build thread a good idea....WWGRMD?

I would include a hard copy along with the link. As far as pro resumes, when you google resumes it's interesting to see the preview images. For the most part an ocean of boring. Very few actually stand out. Pay attention to how those are written/designed

Is this a paper resume? I wouldn't go through the hassle to type in a long URL.

Maybe if you had a site with an easy URL to type in (e.g. "homeenginedyno.wordpress.com"), I might be bothered to type it in and look at what you've done, but only if the rest of your cover letter and resume peak my interests, and I've got the kind of time to poke around. I probably wouldn't waste the time until you've gotten past one or two weeding-out phases.

Hmmmm.. this is interesting. I submitted the résumé and cover letter online, I haven't really thought about what to do about a hard copy. Anyway along with the link, I provided a google search term in case the HR person was reluctant to click on the link.

I'm going to submit a few more résumés today and so far it sounds like its probably ok to add the link.

Any other suggestions?

I occasionally get to recruit people at my current job. If I receive a resume and cover letter with a link to something that is relevant to the job you're applying for, I'll definitely look at it. But then, I am the technical manager here and not an HR person doing the "pre-filtering".

I wouldn't put any stock in not hearing back, that is unfortunately normal these days.

I'd put the link to the build in your cover letter. It's a good place to put a human voice to your accomplishments, interests, and what problem or pain you solve. What I'm not sure of, based on the original post, is how the resume and cover letter move from your computer screen to the eyes of the person that receives it. How are you finding the person on the other end? Are you sending these in regards to a job opening online or what?

In reply to pres589:

I sort of keep a list of interesting vendors that I see at trade shows. I recently checked a few online and saw they were recruiting.... so I sent in a resume and cover letter via the internet.

So far I have only sent out two resumes and was hoping for some feedback. I don't want to spoil any chances if sending a link is a bad idea.

Anyway, I just updated the cover letter with two embedded photos of stuff I built plus a link... I'll sent it off in a few min to yet another place that interest me.

Okay, so I think the important question that hasn't been asked at all is how relevant it is to the position you're applying for. I've never been on the hiring side of things, but I can imagine that the first round of "run through the resumes" would make it annoying to want to have to look something up. The proof needs to be in your resume/ explain your experiences and why they'll be benificial in the new role in your cover letter (use phrases from the job description). Again, I'm not HR but I hear a LOT about what recruiters are looking for/exactly how little time they're going to spend per resume IF it makes it through the automated weedout system.

In reply to classicJackets:

The first one I sent out was to a local large company that was looking for a Chassis Dyno lab Engineer/tech. I have a few years experience in with chassis dynos and whatnot so I figured it was a good match. The second resume was for some kind of robotics position. I fool around with robot stuff on a hobby level and do automation on a professional level. Meh... it may have been wishful thinking, who knows.

Anyway, it probably takes more than two resumes to get a hit

I don't recruit, but I do work in HR.

The odds of you getting any response beyond an automated email are very low. Not because of your approach, but because only about 10% of employees hired come from resumes submitted through a company website. Here in Silicon Valley we refer to company website applications as "The Black Hole". Between often poorly implemented screening software and overworked recruiters, the odds of your project making much of splash in the initial screen process are low.

The place where I think it could make a big different is in an actual interview. Bring pictures and specs with you and it will make you stand out of from the crowd. It gives you something something tangible to talk about and show your capabilities. You can then send a copy of the URL in a thank you note.

In reply to Type Q:
Thanks for the insight and advice!

The truth is 70% to 80% of hiring happens through some kind of personal or business referral or connection. If you are interested in a company, step number one is start looking to see if you have friends, family or (best of all) former coworkers or bosses working there. The most effective way to get an interview is to have someone in the company deliver your resume to a hiring manager's desk with an endorsement like, "I know Fukioko" or "I have heard very good things about Fujioko."

I will say this from personal experience, sometimes a shared hobby can get you hired. My current boss probably would not have had as much interest in my resume if I didn't mention in my cover letter that I was interested in mountain biking and trail building advocacy. It also helped that I had experience.

The first image on the link screams "unprofessional." You might get a pass if you pull off a bad-ass project and you're 21 and still in school. After that, a nicely detailed but concise walk through of your project would have been a better approach.

(I screen ~200-500 resumes a year, and interview ~50 people per year for various technical roles)

On phellars point, don't rely on that--but also don't forget that the people who hire you also have to be around you a lot. The fact is that there are nearly zero people that are hard to replace functionally. But if you have to be stuck on a layover for 5 hours in an airport in Atlantic City, you'd better do your best to make sure you won't want to kill that person at the end of it.

Great comments!

In reply to Paul_VR6:
Good point, the build thread starts off very unprofessional, I couldn't agree more. It's hard for me to judge my own work. I appreciate the honesty.

I think overall the dyno project is interesting but as Paul points out the lack of professionalism may prove otherwise. Hmmm.

In reply to mtm:
I did the airport game for eight years. As long as I'm being paid to drink in an airport bar, I'm happy.

I think a better approach would be briefly talking about how you you built your own dyno and some of the work that when into it. If they are interested they will question you further on it and you can explain in more detail, but i dont think a thread is the best way to make an impression as there is no professionalism in build thread so it can create a misleading image of you.

I would not send a link to this site. Host the build on a blog site or something. You don't want them to be able to see your social media history, even if it is clean. At least that is my opinion. This will also allow you to reorganize the formatting to be more professional.

Also post the resume and job/career goals you have. We can collectively be helpful, sometimes.

Wow, great suggestions!

I had a look at a blogspot another member is using to document his build. I think I'll try a re-write of the dyno project to clean it up. This might take some effort.

As for resume and job/career goals...Another good point. The resume was written so it includes a wide range of experience. I wanted to present myself as a person with a unique skill set in both the automotive field and the electronics field. The resume is almost too broad and that is why I wanted to include the dyno build as proof that I can do what I say I can do.

I'm a self starter and work best unsupervised. Problem solving challenges are one of my best attributes. Being a somewhat creative person, I don't really fit, nor would I be happy in a cubical or structured environment.

Jim

As others have said, most hires come from real connections. I work with a lot of recruiters and hiring managers and know about "the black hole". Our software actually has a resume parser, which means that a computer reads the resume and looks for words, phrases or combinations of them. My advise knowing that is that you need to describe your skills and experiences in such a way that the words on your resume will match up with what the hiring manager or recruiter would be searching for. This is also true for your linkedin profile. The resume and cover letter need to look good for the next steps of having a human actually read them and decide if they want to move forward.

In reply to fujioko :

I sent you a PM. Let me know if it comes through.

Forget a resume, that died with padded shoulders and piano ties.  You want to work on your personal brand, especially if you want to catch the interest of someone interested in fabrication skills.  You should have your LinkedIn account optimized for the kind of work you want (Google it, there are plenty of articles out there) and someone should be able to see what your skills are by researching your online (FaceBook, Instagram for photos, a personal website, videos on YouTube, etc.) 

Thread is from 2015, likely revived by a canoe that is now deleted.