Career Tips

As we approach convention season – both national and mid-year – you hear a lot of talk about networking.  Sure it’s the perfect way to talk with people about your facility and compare notes.  But how do you use that opportunity to look for a new job without being uncomfortably pushy?  Here are a few tips:

Be strategic.  Use name badges to your advantage.  Introduce yourself to hiring officials.  There’s a time to gently put the word out to peers and friends and use the filtering method, but since conventions offer clear names and titles, use it.

Respect time.  Introduce yourself and establish a time to talk.  They may be going to a session or through the vendors, so suggest a time and place for about 10 minutes.

Example:  “Hi I’m Susan.  I am the DRG Coordinator at Fantasy Hospital and I see you’re with Dream Hospital.  I’d love about 10 minutes of your time.  Can I buy you a cup of coffee after this session?”  OR “sit with you during this session” OR “Walk with you a minute” Do not suggest buying them a meal or an alcoholic drink.

Have a prepared “elevator speech”.  Be brief but not abrupt.  Convey your message clearly and comfortably in your own words.  If you mumble and fumble, everyone starts to sweat.  This is a four sentence scenario.

Example:  Who are you?

What do you do?

What are you seeking?

What unique experience/skills/goals would you bring to them?

End professionally. Hand them your card, but write your cell phone and a brief memory jogging blurb on the back.  Conventions are a business card festival.  You don’t want your card to get tossed later.

When the coffee’s gone, the meeting starts, or it’s been 10 minutes – shake their hand and leave.

If you’re unsure of this approach or need a little extra practice, try it on me!  I’ll be at Midyear and the AHIMA Convention.  Look for my name badge and I’ll know exactly what you’re doing, so you can do a run-through without consequences.  (And you do not have to buy me a cup of coffee really).

Susan Parker, M.Ed., RHIA Seagate Consultants seagatejobs@bellsouth.net

Marketing Yourself On Paper, Resume Tips
Susan Parker, M.Ed., RHIA
Seagate Consultants

1.One size does NOT fit all.

• New graduates and experienced professionals will not look the same.
• New graduate resumes will be at the close of this article.  Not left out, just figured it wouldn’t hurt for you to read all of this too!

2. Highlight Experience

• A resume is a marketing tool, YOU are the product.  Use it wisely
• Only relevant experience counts.  If you don’t have any relevant experience, start with education.
• Don’t list every job you ever held.  Go with what’s significant to this position.  Certainly red flags fly at gaps in employment, address those honestly.  But you don’t have to list the year you were a holiday gift wrapper in college.

3. Format Tips

• Bullets for quick reading.  Resumes should tell a story, quickly.  Consider your reader to have acute adult attention deficit.  Most duties are self explanatory if the job title is standard.  If you were a coder, identify inpatient or outpatient.  If you were a supervisor, note of what area and number of employees, but not daily tasks.
• Be number specific when you can.  If you have quantifiable experience, list it.  Example -Increased weekly billing from $500,000 to $1,000,000.  You can still use the bullet format, highlighting experience that showcases your specific accomplishments.
• Toot your own horn.  This is a multi-skilled field.  Do not focus on only one area of your training.  Market your training while strategically indicating how the background increases your ability to meet their long term needs.
• Make it POP.
  • Well placed verbs can make all the difference.  Use words with power behind them:  Achieved, produced, implemented, improved, etc.
  • If you have more than 2 pages, put your name and credential at the top of every page.
  • Don’t crowd it.  Leave plenty of white space, easy to read.
  • Use good quality crisp, white paper.  Resumes are frequently scanned into the system, white is simply easier to read.

4.Be honest, 100% of the time.

• No exceptions, you will be caught.  Integrity is irreplaceable.
• Do not inflate job titles or salaries
• Do not enhance duties
• Do not invent degrees

5. The New Graduate Resume.

• Market your strength, list education first
• List only college education, regardless of your prestigious high school, drop it.
• Most Merit-based Scholarships, list for up to one year out of college.
• Most school leadership positions, list for up to one year out of college.