In a story about video résumés I wrote in this week’s TIME (paper version), I mentioned online job board Vault.com’s video res contest. It appears they’ve picked a winner. Or five. (Watch them here.)
When I talked to Vault.com CEO Mark Oldman (“spelled like old man,” he says, the card), he had some clear ideas about how the video résumé ought to look and sound. All five of the winners followed his specifications to a T.
And that makes for some pretty boring viewing. Sorry, old man. American Idol it ain’t.
Here are some of Vault.com’s video résumé guidelines, spelled out on its web site (click here for the complete guidelines):
• Your video resume should be between 90 seconds and 2 minutes.
• You can either look straight into the camera or have someone interview you.
• Highlight your skills and experience that correspond with your resume headers (ie, education, experience/background in the field, computer knowledge, languages).
• Wear a suit. Dress and groom yourself as if you were going to an interview.
• Be sure there is no background noise. Also check to make sure the video is clear and audible.
• Think news anchor: the camera should be focused on your head, shoulders and upper torso.
All of the submissions follow Vault’s blueprint:
• State your first and last name. (“Hello, my name is Jane Smith.”)
• State your educational background, including university and major. If you graduated with honors or a high GPA, you should say so.
• If you are applying for a specific position, state why you are interested in the position and the company in particular.
• Now discuss your top three qualifications for the position. If you are not applying for a specific position, state your qualifications for a position in your career path. Your qualifications should correspond to items from your written resume. Make sure to give dates, the names of your previous employers and any specific accomplishments. You can discuss more than three, but pay attention to time.
• If you have any other special abilities that relate to your job (advanced computer programs, language, honors, membership in professional organizations) state them.
• Thank the watcher for their time and reiterate your interest in the position.
What it amounts to is you reading your résumé–on camera. Zzzzz.
The liveliest one is by Khadija Ali of Mount Holyoke College. She uses the Q&A format, with an unseen buddy reading softball interview questions to her off-camera. She dresses conservatively in a suit jacket and blouse, and her answers are pretty much what you’d expect of a college student seeking an investment banking job. But she speaks naturally and confidently and has a nice smile. Also she manages to toss in, “A fun fact about me is that I speak Swahili!”
I suppose these videos would serve as an initial interview for the employer, giving a recruiter an idea of a candidate’s poise and personality. I might not mind Ali in the cubicle next to mine, while a couple of her competitors would annoy me intensely. Also she could teach me to curse in Swahili.
And I suppose this kind of video serves a useful purpose in giving the job candidate an idea of how he/she comes across in an interview situation. Ken’s delivery is decent, if a little monotonous. Rahul needs to speak up, and maybe rethink the moustache.
But here’s the thing. To me, the whole point of a video résumé–if you’re going to go to the considerable trouble of making one–would be to showcase something about you that the interviewer won’t necessarily see sitting across from you during an interview. Like Benjamin Hampton’s piano playing in this video, or the project he created during a previous internship. Otherwise it’s just a talking cover letter.
Vault.com’s Oldman laughed when I suggested this. He’s an amiable guy. “I think there is room to add more flair,” he agreed, “if, say, you’re performing a job that is more visual–such as showing a clip of you leading a seminar. Or adding charts and graphs to indicate your accomplishment. If you have that ability.” For his taste, though, “I prefer to keep it simple. My attention starts to wander after about a minute.”
Wise words. Three minutes of me typing on camera probably won’t win me my next job. Even if I type really, really fast.