Maria Hebda, CCMC, CPRW

Watch Out for That Resume “Black Hole” Trap!

If your resume looks as if it could have come from 20 years ago or it just hasn’t been put together carefully–with good attention to what your targeted employers are probably looking for–it most likely will end up in the resume “black hole” trap. The same... Read >

CIO & IT Leaders: How to Plan for Career Success

As I work with senior-level IT leaders, IT operations directors, as well as IT program and project managers, I hear more and more about failed technology implementations. Not that the technology itself failed, although that certainly happens too. What rea... Read >

Reducing Your Resume Age

Consider this scenario; after 20 years of loyalty to his employer, Ken’s position has just been eliminated due to a company merger. He suddenly finds himself unemployed at the age of 58. As he begins to search for his outdated resume typed in 1987, he wor... Read >

Big Changes Require Bold Moves

Do you ever look at others who have achieved great things and think, "They're different from me. I could never find the courage to take such bold steps?" Don't sell yourself short. Often, it's a matter of determining the right career fit and breaking your... Read >

Choosing the Wrong Career Path

Do you find yourself spending a lot of time ruminating about your past career decisions, wondering if you should have done things differently-if you should have made other choices? Do you worry that you wasted your efforts or made a wrong decision somewhe... Read >

Job Search Strategies: Reach Beyond the Obvious

The process of finding a new job can be overwhelming. It takes time, energy and focus-resources that most people don't have in abundance. Job hunting can also be psychologically taxing and usually requires some degree of discipline and organization. In my... Read >

Value-Added vs. Job Description Resumes

Put yourself in the place of the busy manager who has to read a stack of job description resumes. Your reaction might range from falling asleep to tearing out your hair-or wanting to! Why is that? Because job description resumes are BORING and do absolute... Read >

5 Best Practices for LinkedIn Profiles for IT Professionals

This headline should come as no surprise to you if you've been following Google's growth and expansion in the Northwest: Google plans 840-worker office in Bothell. This is a tremendous opportunity for those with the right skills to fit Google's technical ... Read >

Will a Generic Resume Get Results?

Many job seekers ask professional resume writers to develop a generic resume that can be used for several targets. Sometimes the client is not even sure what those targets will be but wants a document that will work for any position he or she decides to a... Read >

How to Leverage Volunteer Experience in Your Career

We've all heard that volunteer work can enhance your resume. While it certainly can't hurt, it's much more effective to be strategic about the opportunities that you take on in the first place. One of the universal "selling points" of volunteer work is... Read >

Writing Resumes for C-level Tech Executives

The department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) just released employment numbers that revealed a monthly net gain of 4,400 IT-related jobs, a sixth straight net jobs gain in IT labor segments. On the surface, this sounds like incredible news - ... Read >

The Case for the Cover Letter

One of the most common questions I'm asked by executive-level clients is "is a cover letter really necessary?" I can certainly see why they may think it's not. These letters have gained a reputation for something employers don't read, many candidates hate... Read >

Part III: Resume Makeovers; I Should Hire You?

It's time for Part III of resume make-overs. Hope you enjoyed reading the other two parts and began to redo your resume. That's what this is all about. By this time you should have created two or three short phrases about yourself that carry impact, th... Read >

Part II: Resume Makeovers; I Should Hire You?

This is the second of a two-part series on making over your resume. If you read Part I, we talked about having a focus. Now, that you know how important that is let's talk about the next topic. I've said in the past that you have 8-10 seconds in grabbing ... Read >

Insider Tips for Resume Writing

Not everyone is a professional resume writer, nor wants to be, but this article will help you to go from thinking about writing a resume to actually being able to write an effective, eye catching and results-driven resume. One of the most important thi... Read >