In today's vastly changing technological world, paper resumes are becoming obsolete. "As the Internet continues to revolutionize the business world, job-seekers must show their ability to excel in an increasingly digital environment."(Ramage, 1998, p78) E-mail is now the preferred way to receive resumes, over 34 percent of human resource professionals prefer resumes sent this way while only 17 percent of job seekers send resumes via e-mail. With the on slot of these changes preparing a useful resume and cover letter becomes highly significant.
"A good resume is well organized and effectively communicates a candidate's goals and experiences."(Hattersley, 1999, p.4) It should include short concise measurable statements that are free of clutter and erroneous detail. "They are pleasing to the eye, easy to read and have a balanced amount of white space."(Bowden, 2001, p.56) Good organization helps the employer to locate major points such as the candidate's intention and role they want to fulfill. Under all circumstances the resume should be no more than three pages long, one or two pages are preferable. In a tight labor market a well-developed resume should capture the essence of a candidate's career direction in 60 seconds or less.
The cover letter to a resume quite frankly gets a foot in the door. A boss filing through hundreds of possible candidate's will rapidly narrow the search to a few individuals who fit the profile. The cover letter should "make the hirer want to learn more about you."(Tucker, 2000, p.20) It should show that the applicant is familiar with the organization, placing emphasize on how your education and training qualifies you, be crisp and punchy, and most importantly have zero mistakes. "Good conventional cover letters adopt a Me-You-We model."(Hattersley, 2001, p.4) For instance, a cover letter should convey to the employer how you qualify for the job, how your organization needs me, and how we work well together.