If corporate recruiters had only one word to describe the perfect job candidate this summer, it would be “honest.”
“It’s hard to say who’s perfect,” says Jessica Heilmann, senior recruiting manger for 3Di Technologies, LLC, Annapolis, Maryland. “The candidates I like best are honest and say what they want up front and what they’re truly looking for. Don’t say you’ll move to Montana if you won’t.”
And don’t say you have security clearances you don’t have, as one recent job seeker did, she adds. That candidate came out of the military in 2004 and moved into stateside civilian work. He told Heilmann he was Ready Reserve and thought he had some kind of clearance, but didn’t know what his status was. “My security officer checked and he didn’t have one [a clearance],” she says. “I find it interesting when people have no idea of the status of their clearance. It’s mysterious and unless you have a facility security officer (FSO) you have no way to find out.”
Barbara Kalman, CEO of Kalman & Company, a Virginia Beach government contracting services firm, agrees. She likes candidates who neither over-inflate, nor understate their abilities. “The best thing is to be honest about your capabilities,” she says.
Among the dishonest resumes Kalman has received was one from an applicant who claimed to have a military logistics background, yet knew nothing about logistics and another who claimed to have a degree from a university he hadn’t attended.
Kalman, who hires for secure, technical positions, always checks the facts on the resumes she receives. “There are a lot of people unemployed right now, but the jobs we have are specific in background and educational needs, so it’s not like I can randomly hire people,” she says. “We check background, resume and references.”
As a small business owner, Steven Mackie, president of Storage Strategies, Inc., a Springfield, Virginia data storage and engineering company, says he looks for candidates who are honest about their career goals. “What recruiters want are candidates who know what they want to do,” he says.
He estimates that 20 percent of the applicants he hears from are teachers, former military and government employees who don’t have a specific job target and are looking for any job in the Department of Defense (DoD) contracting arena because they think there are lots of open jobs in that field they can fit into.
Meanwhile, he’s hiring from among the 80 percent of candidates who know what direction they want their career to take and the next job they want. “I look for an objective up front that supports what you want to do,” he adds, “and enough horsepower in education, experience and qualifications to get there.”
In addition to being able to clearly represent your skills and clearance, Richard Mazelsky, president of Clovis, a Bethesda, Maryland recruitment firm, suggests you think about the type of company culture where you’ll be effective.
“Do you want to be in an environment where you have to report to a project plan lead once a week, or have a team directing your activities? Do you need to find the work intellectually stimulating?” he says. “You really have to do an assessment around fit.”
Sticking to the truth about yourself and your career needs will ensure that your next position is the right one for you. “Nothing is worse for the candidate than to be placed in a situation where you’re not capable or you’re asked to do something you’re not comfortable with,” Mazelsky says. “It doesn’t fare well for the candidate or the company.”
