Angie Weinberger: «The Lost Art in Job-Searching»

Getting a Swiss recruiter’s attention is almost like asking someone out on a date. Global mobility coach Angie Weinberger on how to boost your chances thanks to a lost art.

You might be in a position right now where either you are worried about losing your job or you are already looking for a new one. When you apply, a good cover letter aims to get the other person to like you and find you attractive enough to read your resumé.

If you get to the interview stage, then that’s like having the dessert on the first date. And after three interviews you might get kissed – meaning, you might get the job offer you long for. To stick with the dinner-date analogy, your resumé is the main course in getting a Swiss recruiter’s attention – but a good cover letter is your appetizer.

Don't Spoil Their Appetite

So, don’t spoil the recruiter’s appetite by presenting the main course in the cover letter. Imagine you are on a first rendezvous and your date talks for half an hour about how great they are. Rather boring right? You zone out of the conversation and wish to run away. The same is true if a recruiter reads your whole resumé already in the cover letter.

How can you make the conversation more interesting? Cover letter-writing is an art. With modern technology, applicants often do not see the need to write a cover letter but in my own opinion, it is the most artistic part of a good application. Emphatically, in Switzerland, it’s simply a must.

No Impersonal «Copy Paste» Job

Many recruiters want to see you made an effort to get that interview. I receive a number of cover letters and most of them sound like they were copied from a textbook. Nobody gets excited reading some sort of «copy and paste» write-ups devoid of human touch. They have to be personal, crisp and show me who you are to grab my attention.

Here are rules for fresh cover letters:

• Use the correct name of the recruiter instead of Sir or Madam. Take out time to research the recruiter’s name. Make sure you also spell names of references correctly. Be respectful and address recruiters formally.
• Make the letter appealing by using one font only and adhering to normal letter writing style in the country you are applying to.
  - Address the needs of the other party before you talk about your needs. This is so important because the prospective job is about what you can bring to the table.
• Find a personal connection between either you and the company or you and the recruiter. Do you use one of their products, or associate positive feelings with the brand because of a personal story?
• If you copy and paste – in general not advisable – double-check the company name or contact person. Reading the letter out loud helps.
  - Use active language and full sentences: more verbs than nouns, avoid passive construction, and keep sentences short.
• If you are writing in a foreign language, check your translation and let a native speaker review your grammar. Most recruiters get ticked off identifying grammatical errors in cover letters.
• Be brief: five paragraphs are sufficient, and never more than one page.
• Add your contact data in the last paragraph, especially your phone number and email address. Make sure your email sounds respectable and the name is memorable. Email addresses like «This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.» are not acceptable.
• Avoid slang and casual writing style. You are a professional so behave like one! Even if you are from Generation Y or Game, remember that this is a letter and not a chat. The person you want to «date» might be the age of your parents.

This is potentially a challenging time to find work. However, if you play it right, build the right connections and treat every recruiter like a person you would want to pursue you will have a great chance to land a new job.

Angie Weinberger is the founder of Global People Transitions, a coaching and consulting firm for career mobility based in Zurich. She worked in human resources and global mobility for Winterthur Insurance, Deutsche Bank, PwC, and LafargeHolcim before launching her own firm in 2012. Weinberger graduated with a Master in international business studies from the University of Paderborn as well as a Master in global mobility from the University of Rotterdam. She is also an executive coach in St. Gallen University’s «women back to business» program.