Considering that our country spends more per student than almost every other country in the world, and more people are attending college than ever before, this doesn’t say much about our education system
(NY Post) He doesn’t think it’s too much to ask of a job seeker. A resume, a statement of salary expectations and a single written paragraph that answers a question like, “What do you believe a good customer service representative’s attitude should be?â€
But out of the more than 100 respondents who answered the ad placed by Robert Basso’s firm for someone with a college degree and one to three years of general business experience, not a single one wrote the paragraph, and fewer than 10 included salary expectations.
“It’s shocking,†says Basso, the president of Advantage Payroll Services, based in Freeport, LI. “You’d expect that people who are looking for work in a highly competitive job market like this one would make more of an effort.â€
Basso isn’t the only one who’s alarmed. At a time when the unemployment rate is above 9 percent, hiring managers say they’re tearing their hair out over entry-level job candidates who fail to follow simple instructions and observe basic job-seeking protocol.
Stories are legion of inept or half-hearted applicants who submit resumes marred by misspellings, show up at interviews dressed for a beach party, make inappropriate jokes, fail to learn basic details about the job and company in question, and otherwise leave hiring managers aghast.
Back during the days when one of my duties was interviewing (the company took that away from us and moved it to HR, freeing managers time up to manage our people, as well as for a few other reason, such as asking the wrong questions which could set the company up for lawsuits), I’d deal with lots of people who would come inappropriately dressed and would be unable to answer the questions asked. I’ve seen resumes where the Objective line read “to have a good time in life.” I’m not making that up. During a round robin interview, we had a candidate answer their phone and then ask which door the pizza delivery guy should come to. I had another bring her baby to the interview. Also, she was wearing dirty jeans, a dirty jacket, carrying a filthy backpack, and was unable to work the hours the job ad stated. And, no, I would not interview them. To one out of 6-7 I’d use the phrase “did you not know that this is a professional position and requires a professional appearance? Yet you came dressed like that.” Followed by “thank you for coming, we won’t continue.”
Hiring managers commonly attribute this lack of initiative and/or competence to a millennial generation who grew up with helicopter parents overseeing their every move. All the hovering has left today’s post-collegiates unable to fend for themselves, they say — which is especially troublesome to employers given that today’s lean workplaces don’t have the resources to pick up where their parents left off.
“These people who grew up with mommy and daddy doing everything for them now have to learn to think and to direct themselves,†says Schnitzerling.
I’d also say we have to place the blame on an educational system that fails to prepare these young folks to get a job while they spend time teaching socialization, social programs, social learning, feel good crap, diversity, etc and so on. They aren’t prepared for the adult world (witness the Occupy movement).
Anyhow, you’ve got read the whole story, especially page 3, which provides some interesting stories, as well as some hints to people looking to get a job.
