How to Write a Cover Letter HR Can't Ignore

by James Ellis on June 22nd, 2010

Here's the problem: There are jobs out there, but there are a lot more people looking for jobs than there are jobs. Even entry-level jobs are getting hundreds of resumes.

A hiring manager would go blind trying to sort through all these resumes (and she's already got a full-time job), so the task gets passed to Human Resources. The problem here is that HR doesn't know as much about the job as the hiring manager. So the hiring manager wrote down all the thing she thought the new person would need to do and all the requirements that person would need. HR dutifully wrote all that down and turned it into the want ad you saw on Craigslist.

Remember, HR doesn't know anything about project management or office management or server and networking security, they only know what the hiring manager told them. So when faced with the daunting tasks of sorting through 100-plus resumes to find the dozen or fewer that will get passed to the hiring manager, the HR person just goes by what was on the ad.

This is something we can work with. If HR just wants to make sure that every resume they pass on to the next level meets the requirments, we have to show that you meet requirements.

How? 

A table.

In your cover letter, after your introductory paragraph, you need to insert a tw-column table that lists everything the ad said they wanted, and your experince and skills at each one. Like this:

Your Requirements My Experience
Develops best practices and tools for project execution and management. Spent six months developing a series of best practices for (company A) that were used by management and the department to reduce waste and increase efficiency.
Develops and manages project-specific budgets. In my last position, I managed an annual budget in excess of $400,000 in each of the three years I ran the project. I developed this budget by surveying past projects and new requirements to come up with each budget, that I then presented to the CEO for approval.

Note that I copy and pasted the left-column straight out of the want ad. Don't play around with the wording or try and get tricky.

Also, don't worry if this means that your cover letter goes longer than one page With a table that point-by-point spells out why you are a perfect match, HR will love you, since you are doing their job for them.

You aren't here to get the job, you're here to get the interview. And this is how you get past HR's filters to make to to the hiring manager. The best part is that few hiring managers will throw your resume and cover letter out because you look like a great fit. You will be worth the hour it will take to confirm that fit in an interview.

Use this and you will increase the number of phone calls and interviews you get.

Raves & Praise

David

A Cisco Success Story

I attended a resume writing seminar & conducted mock phone interviews with a Microtrain career counselor. These two activities gave me a leg up on distinguishing myself from all the other people looking for work. Since the career counselor's at Microtrain had a track record of getting people hired, their insight and positive past experiences helped me tremendously in getting hired with a Cisco Voice Systems Integrator in the Chicago area. I was hired as a Cisco Voice Tech Engineer with a starting salary of $65,000 / year with a Cisco voice systems reseller located in the Chicagoland area. Microtrain was very instramental in making this a reality. From expediting my WIA grant, to providing excellent hands-on training from knowledgable instructors I was able to achieve becoming certified with my CCNP. Microtrain's career services was the final catalyst in connecting me with this company by communicating with them on my behalf and with me in setting up the interview. One week later and I was hired. No joke. Thanks Microtrain!

Jennie

Student Employment Success - Project/Process Manager

My Career Services Manager was very friendly and helpful and had excellent follow-up. She seemed to really care how things were going and kept me moving in the right direction. The resources available in job search were great and the visibility that there were jobs out there looking for my skillset was promising. Additionally, the training, as well as having an updated resume stating the Microtrain course work I had taken made me feel more confident and marketable as I looked for employment. It showed that I was dedicated and took project management and process management seriously.

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Very thorough, good mix of lecture and lab work. Al is great! Keeps classes interesting and supplements required test material with need-to-know items from real world experience.

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The instructor [Al Khalfan] was very knowledgeable in the field. He presented the materials and concepts with a professional touch. He also frequently adds humor to his teachings, which made it easier for me to understand. The support staff was all nice, gentle, caring, and very helpful. The materials, rooms and amenities were excellent and exceeded expected standards.

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Project Management

Great class, loved the interaction and team-building exercises. Plenty of materials and learning tools supplied. Although it was a full week's class, never boring. Donna [Russell] was awesome and gave many supporting examples for better understanding.

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