Going Extra mile by dropping CV in person
Job advertisements generate hundreds of emailed responses daily. It is possible to make an impression on the employer with a cover letter, but the chances of this are slim when there is a lot of competition. Many employers seek candidates who take initiative and go beyond expectation characteristics evident in candidates who choose to apply in person rather than submit a resume via email. Your visit could be impressive enough to lead to an impromptu interview and subsequent placement on a short list of key candidates (Amo)
When a person is going for an in person drop of resume, he must be prepared physically as well as mentally. He should be properly dressed and must have his resume and cover letter with him. Also, he should know the names of the key people in the company, most importantly the hiring manager. The candidate may have fear of rejection; fear of insult; fear of non-cooperative behavior of company staff and many more but facing your fears is the best option indeed.
Recently, I was given a project to drop my resume to my dream company. As I am a student of journalism, and its dream of every mass media student to work with CITY42. So, I decided to drop my resume in their office for crime reporting. To prepare for it, I did some research about City 42 and noted down the names of all major reporters who are currently working with this media group. Now the next step was to customize my resume. During my research, I discovered cover letter is not required at all rather a good demo for crime reporting is required. I searched the internet and made a report on acid attacks as I had mentioned about my project on acid attack victims in the resume. I practiced it 7–8 times in front of the mirror. Satisfied I moved to next step that was to prepare my elevator pitch.
On the decided day, I dressed up and took the rickshaw and reached the office at 10 am. Whoa! I was already nervous. I took some deep breath and entered the office. The first person I met was Imran sb, the DSNG manager of city 42. He seemed to be quite in hurry. I greeted him politely and repeated my elevator pitch before him. When I stopped he was smiling politely. He asked me about my degree and university. I told him I am currently doing mass communication from PU. He told me to submit my resume to HR office. Now next step was going to HR office. The clerk there took my CV and placed it on his desk, telling me he’ll call me. That was all. Seriously!
PS. I didn’t take any picture with Sir Imran or the clerk. It looks so unprofessional.
