Provisional Accounting Blog

Job fairs can be a great opportunity for candidates and employers to connect. However, these events are typically very crowded and allow little time for in-depth conversation. If navigated incorrectly, they can actually be a colossal waste of your time, so it’s important to do more than just show up.

5 Ways to Make the Most of Job Fairs

Planning to attend an upcoming job fair? Following these five steps to get the most from your experience:

Carefully Research the Event

All job fairs are not created equally. Some offer a great value to accounting candidates, while others do not. Take the time to thoroughly research the event to see which employers will be attending and what type of candidates they’re looking for, to decide if it’s a good choice for you.

Perfect Your Elevator Pitch

You’ll probably be competing with hundreds of candidates for a few precious moments of each recruiter’s time, so make it count. Devise a 30 second elevator pitch summarizing your skills, level of experience and why you’re a great fit for the organization.

Formulate Your Strategy

Not only is it impossible to speak with every company at the job fair, it’s also unnecessary. Carefully review the list of employers who will be attending to see which ones make sense for your career. Zero in on them instead of getting distracted by other organizations that you’re not interested in.

Arrive Early

Gain a competitive advantage by getting to the job fair early. Scope out where your target companies are located before it starts, so you don’t have to waste valuable event time tracking them down. Head to the company you’re most interested in as soon as it begins, to secure the first spot in line.

Promptly Follow Up

Recruiters meet a lot of people at job fairs, so it’s important to send an email following up on your conversation as soon as possible. Thank them for their time, reiterate your interest in the company and suggest a meeting so you can continue discussing a potential opportunity.

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If your job search has been going on for awhile now, but you haven’t really gained much traction, your cover letter could be to blame. Many candidates mistakenly believe it’s okay to include the same standard cover letter with every job application, but that couldn’t be farther from the truth.

Your cover letter and resume are the first impression you’ll make on a hiring manager. If you can’t be bothered to do an outstanding job on each item, then why would they want to interview you? If you take the time to write an outstanding cover letter for each job, you might be pleasantly surprised by the response you get.

5 Tips to Make Your Cover Letter Stand Out

Does your cover letter strategy need a makeover? Use these five tips to step your game up:

Personalize It

No one wants to read a cover letter addressed to “hiring manager.” Do everything you can to find the actual name of the person reading the letter and specifically direct it to them. Be sure to also include the exact job title and the company name to show this isn’t a generic document.

Include Relevant Keywords

Work the same keywords into your cover letter as you did your resume to ensure it passes any software the company has in place searching for specific words and phrases. If it doesn’t contain enough, you may be automatically excluded before the hiring manager ever has a chance to review your application.

State Your Value

Use your cover letter as an opportunity to describe what you can do for the company, rather than explaining why you want the job. Sell yourself as the best person for the position by detailing why your skills and experience are a perfect match for it.

Use Bullet Points

A busy hiring manager doesn’t have time to read large blocks of text. Increase your chances of having your cover letter read in its entirety by using bullet points. This makes it possible to learn all necessary information by quickly scanning the text.

Make it Short

Just to reiterate, hiring managers receive a great deal of applications for each open position, so they’re not going to take the time to read a long cover letter. For best results, avoid all fluff and keep it to a few brief, information packed paragraphs.

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Let’s face it, the average accounting job description isn’t exactly a great read. In fact, if you compare postings for similar positions at a variety of companies, you’ll probably see that most are markedly similar. As a result, it can be difficult to attract top candidates to apply for positions at your organization, because your posting doesn’t offer anything unique.

Make this problem a thing of the past by adding a bit of flair to your job descriptions. Rewrite standard dull accounting postings to represent how interesting the position really is. No one wants to apply for a job so boring that the hiring manager can’t even sell it. Your company has a lot to offer accounting candidates, so use this to attract top talent.

3 Tips to Write an Eye Catching Job Description

Need a little help making your job posting a little fun? Follow these three tips:

Write a Catchy Headline

Any company can have a posting for an accounting specialist, but your description is sure to stand out if you title it “accounting guru,” “accounting ninja” or any other crafty name. This is a great way to ensure clicks in a sea of postings that all look exactly the same.

Get a Little Creative

It’s okay to have a little fun writing the job description. In fact, it can be much easier to find your ideal candidate when you let your company’s personality shine through. Adding a little pizazz to an otherwise dull description makes it clear that your organization is a fun place to work. Definitely still include all relevant job duties and the minimum required experience, to define what you’re looking for.

Describe Your Company Culture

Include a paragraph describing your company culture to give candidates a sneak peek of what to expect if hired. This is another effective way to capture the attention of the best person for the job, as you need someone who can seamlessly adapt to your way of doing business.

Need a little help finding the right person for the job?

Partner with Accountingpros Recruiting + Staffing. We’re here to help you fill your open positions with the top accounting candidates in the Seattle area!

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Do you believe everything you read on a resume? If so, it may be causing you to hire dishonest accounting candidates who don’t have nearly as much experience as they’ve led you to believe. Surveys have revealed that an overwhelming 25%-50% of job seekers lie on their resumes.

These people craftily alter their work histories to increase their marketability, because they assume you won’t verify it anyway. Alarmingly enough, this tactic often works, as many companies don’t run background checks on candidates. Taking the candidate’s word certainly makes the hiring process go quicker, but it can be detrimental to your organization in the long-term.

3 Ways to Catch a Lying Candidate

Feeling like a candidate’s credentials don’t quite add up? Don’t make a hiring decision without using these three techniques to see if you’re being lied to:

Conduct an Online Search

The availability of information on the Internet makes it easier than ever to catch a liar. If a candidate claims they worked for a now defunct company, simply search for the organization to see if it ever existed. If it did, it shouldn’t be too difficult to find the names and contact information of past employees online or on LinkedIn to verify their employment.

Request Copies of Past W-2s

If you’re skeptical that a person actually worked for a company cited on their resume and they’re unable to provide any references to vouch for them, ask for a copy of their W-2 from a year they claimed to have worked there. If they’re telling the truth, they should be more than willing to offer up this document.

Contact Employment Security

Ask the person to contact Employment Security or the Social Security Administration to obtain copies of their in-state employment records, if they no longer have copies of their W-2s. This is another effective way to verify a work history that you’re not sure really existed.

Need a little help choosing the right candidate?

Partner with Accountingpros Recruiting + Staffing. Our recruiting managers provide you with a personalized, relationship-based approach throughout the entire staffing process, so you can be certain you’ll find the best person for the job.