Resumes and interviewing for tech jobs. Given at Milwaukee BarCamp 6, October 1, 2011.

1. Resumes and
Interviewing
Andy Lester, Land The Tech Job You Love
http://petdance.com/
andy@petdance.com
Saturday, October 1, 11 1

2. Awesomeness
Saturday, October 1, 11 2

3. Y! are a
unique & beautiful
snowflak"
Saturday, October 1, 11 3

4. ... but this is my desk.
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5. Your awesomeness
is not self-evident!
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6. Hunting
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7. Start networking
NOW
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8. LinkedIn is not
networking.
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9. Facebook is not
networking.
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10. BTW, what's your
Google footprint?
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11. Leland
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12. "I'm not good
talking to people."
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13. "I'm not good
talking to people."
Tough.
No better time to start.
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14. Talk to a stranger
here at Barcamp.
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15. Talk to a stranger
here at Barcamp.
Conferences are a
goldmine of contacts.
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16. Resumes
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17. Resume questions
• Should I put skills first, or education?
• Does it have to be only one page?
• Should I list extra-curriculars?
• Should I leave off ...
• Should I tell about my ...
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18. Saturday, October 1, 11 18

19. Why you write a resume
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20. There is no
Resume Police.
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21. You do not have
a resume.
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22. Master resume
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23. One page?
Two page?
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24. "No good movie is too
long and no bad movie is
short enough."
-- Roger Ebert
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25. Lose the clichés
• Professional
• Industrious; hard worker
• Good people person; team player
• Motivated; self-starter; makes things happen
• Strong communication skills
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26. Give examples!
Let the reader decide.
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27. The resume
• Summarize at the top
• Tailor it to the job
• Emphasize what's important
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28. NO! NO! NO!
• No lies
• No fudging
• No "objective" or "references available"
• No salary history
• Nothing illegal
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29. Emphasize what's
important
21 years professional software development, most
recently in Perl and PHP
• Manager and senior engineer for e-commerce site
(3+ years)
• Develop object-oriented Perl and PHP, interfacing
with Oracle and MySQL (8 years)
• Create intranet database applications with
ColdFusion, Access & VBA (5 years)
Saturday, October 1, 11 29

30. It came from my inbox
July 2001-present
Night Operations Technician, Bug-Be-Gone Corp.
* Maintained insect population by applying
insecticides with truck-mounted sprayer.
* Precisely tracked assigned paths through areas
served.
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31. Cover letters
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32. Rule #1:
Write one.
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33. Rule #2:
Write one for the
specific position.
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34. It came from my inbox
Dear Prospective Employer,
Your Advertisement on jobs.perl.com for a
Sr. Prog. for library book wholesaler
caught my attention. I would like to apply. I am
confident that I can perform the job effectively. My
background and career goal, seem to match the job
requirements well.
Saturday, October 1, 11 34

35. It came from my inbox
I am much more than a programmer. In my long and
varied work history, I have performed such jobs as
knife salesman, manager of a hardware store,
extracting retinas from bovine eyes as a neurological
lab assistant, flower delivery driver and retirement
home activities director, all of which make me a well-
rounded candidate.
Saturday, October 1, 11 35

36. It came from my inbox
I am much more than a programmer. In my long and
varied work history, I have performed such jobs as
knife salesman, manager of a hardware store,
extracting retinas from bovine eyes
as a cow eye sucker, cow eye sucker and cow eye
sucker, all of which make me a well-rounded cow eye
sucker.
Saturday, October 1, 11 36

37. Your cover letter
• In plaintext in your email.
• Explains relationship with contact, if any.
• Explains what you're looking for, and what you
can bring to the company.
• Shows that you care enough to send a
personalized cover letter.
• Shows that you know about the company.
Saturday, October 1, 11 37

38. A good cover letter
Dear Mr. Lester,
My colleague Richard Dice referred me to the job
recently posted on jobs.perl.org. I believe that I can
help Elsinore Publishing with my skills, including:
• 4 years of database apps for MyCo, including....
• 3 years Perl experience, including two CPAN modules
(http://...) that extend DBI....
• A BS in CS from UIUC, with a 3.7 GPA.
• Experience in the book industry, and a natural love
of books.
I look forward for a chance to meet with you to discuss
your needs and how I can help you and Elsinore.
Saturday, October 1, 11 38

39. Interviews
Saturday, October 1, 11 39

40. 15 ways to
kill an interview
• Show up late
• Be unprepared
• Chew gum, smell like smoke, bring a drink
• Shake hands like a fish
• Have bad breath or body odor
Saturday, October 1, 11 40

41. 15 ways to
kill an interview
• Come underdressed
• Speak ill of anyone, including especially
past employers
• Complain or discuss your problems
• Bring up your needs: Money, benefits
• Lie
Saturday, October 1, 11 41

42. 15 ways to
kill an interview
• Appear uninterested
• Appear overenthusiastic or desperate
• Fail to ask your own questions
• Leave your phone on
• Cut the interview short
Saturday, October 1, 11 42

43. Interviewer + candidate
want the same thing.
Saturday, October 1, 11 43

44. Hiring manager's task
• "Can this guy do the job?"
• "Do I want this guy working for me?"
• "Do I want this guy on my team?"
• Convince candidate that yours is a
company to work for.
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45. Candidate's task
• "Can I do the job?"
• Convince the HM you can do the job.
• Get a job offer, or move closer to it.
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46. After the offer
• "Do I want to work for this guy?"
• "Do I want to work on this team?"
Saturday, October 1, 11 46

47. Conversation,
not interrogation.
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48. Your interview is your
first day on the job.
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49. Preparing
the day before
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50. Preparing
the day before
• Clear your schedule.
• Prepare to get there.
• Prepare what you're going to take with you.
• Include a portfolio of work if you can.
• Prepare your own questions.
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51. Questions you'll
have to answer
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52. Tell me about yourself.
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53. Tell me about yourself.
• Did she do any research?
• Is she prepared?
• How does she speak?
• Does she take pride in her work?
• What else should I ask about?
Saturday, October 1, 11 53

54. Where do you want to
be in five years?
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55. Where do you want to
be in five years?
• Does he have any sort of plan?
• Does he work on self-improvement?
• Will I have a place for him?
Saturday, October 1, 11 55

56. What is your greatest
weakness?
Saturday, October 1, 11 56

57. Why do you want to
work for us?
- and -
What do you know
about our company?
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58. Why do you want to
work for us?
• Has she done research?
• Is this just another job for her?
• What drives her?
Saturday, October 1, 11 58

59. Tell me about a project
that didn't go well.
- or -
Tell me about a
teammate you've had
trouble with.
Saturday, October 1, 11 59

60. Saturday, October 1, 11 60

61. Tell me about a project
that didn't go well.
• Is he a blamer/whiner?
• Can he learn from mistakes?
• How are his personal skills?
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62. Candidate questions
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63. What's a day like?
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64. What sorts of projects
will I be working on?
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65. What will the first day be
like? First month?
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66. Is this a new position, or
are you replacing?
What happened?
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67. Tell me about the team
I'll be joining.
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68. Can I meet the team I'll
be joining?
Saturday, October 1, 11 68

69. Show you can
do the job.
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70. Show you can do it.
• Diagnose a dead PC.
• Write some code.
• Assess design problems on a web page.
• Participate in a code review.
• Critique a network diagram.
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71. Closing
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72. Always ask for the job.
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73. Debrief after.
• Thoughts
• Impressions
• Stories
• Follow-up
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74. Recap
• Your awesomeness is not self-evident.
• Think like the hiring manager. You both
want the same thing.
• Speak of value in terms of time & money.
• Interview is first day on the job.
Saturday, October 1, 11 74

75. andy@petdance.com
http://petdance.com
@petdance on Twitter
Saturday, October 1, 11 75