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Posts Tagged ‘Federal Jobs’

Marking the One Year Anniversary of Federal Hiring Reform, Kathryn Troutman, “Federal Resume Guru” and President of The Resume Place, Addresses the Great KSA Debate

Posted in Federal Job Search, Federal Resume Writing, KSA Writing
by Kathryn Troutman on May 23rd, 2011 | No Comments - Make a comment »

REGISTER FOR KATHRYN TROUTMAN’S HIRING REFORM WEBINAR ON JUNE 3, 2011!

One year ago, John Berry, Director of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), and President Obama made bold moves to improve the application process for federal jobseekers by eliminating the dreaded Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSA) narratives from federal applications. Kathryn Troutman and The Resume Place, the leading experts in Federal Resume Writing and Career Consulting, witness firsthand the effects and confusion that government job applicants face regarding Federal Hiring Reform and the supposed elimination of KSAs in federal applications. Receive advice and tips from Ms. Troutman and The Resume Place on how to handle KSAs in the federal resume with the newly published fifth edition of the “Federal Resume Guidebook.”

Federal Resume Guidebook, 5th Edition by Kathryn Troutman

Federal Resume Guidebook, 5th Edition by Kathryn Troutman

It’s no secret that the federal application process is a daunting task for most jobseekers, especially considering that applying for federal jobs is a totally different beast than applying to positions in the private industry. The separate KSA narratives required to apply for government jobs have kept many highly qualified applicants from applying for these positions. The Resume Place provides expert advice regarding federal resume writing and how to deal with KSAs in the applications for federal positions.

One year ago, President Obama published an Executive Order mandating human resources specialists eliminate the dreaded Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSA) narratives from the first-time federal application by November, 2011.

On Thursday May 19, 2011, Kathryn Troutman addressed the National Press Club to discuss how the lingering effects of the recession combined with the Obama administration’s reform of the federal hiring process, has resulted in more Americans than ever applying for federal positions.

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5 Tips for Writing a PPP Federal Resume for BRAC Affected Federal Workers

Posted in Federal Job Search, Federal Resume Writing, KSA Writing, Vet Federal Resumes
by Kathryn Troutman on May 19th, 2011 | No Comments - Make a comment »

PPPFor federal workers affected by Base Relocation and Closure (BRAC), the Priority Placement Program (PPP) provides career transition assistance. The PPP is a 45-year old career transition assistance service that retains and reassigns federal workers to relevant positions if a worker is unable to relocate to a new agency location or the position is eliminated. The PPP has proven effective and has placed more than 250,000 federal employees to date. The PPP human resources specialists will review your resume, qualifications, specialized experience KSAs, option codes, grade and series to assist with career transition.

Many BRAC-affected Department of Defense (DOD) workers send their resumes to the PPP to help land a new federal position. This resume, needed for the PPO service, is similar to the USAJOBS federal resume, but there are distinct differences. The tips below will help you maximize the services of the PPP human resources specialist in locating a position for you.

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“Leading Change” Writing and Evaluation Strategies for the Senior Executive Service

Posted in ECQs, Federal Job Search, Federal Resume Writing
by Kathryn Troutman on May 16th, 2011 | 2 Comments - Make a comment »

Kathryn Troutman and The Resume Place are excited to be offering a new two-day SES Application Writing Workshop at the Federal Career Training Institute in Catonsville, MD. Click here to learn more about this class!

The ability to Lead Change is a critical and exceptional executive competency. Leading Change is the first Executive Core Qualification (ECQ) that is required to write and prove in order to apply for a Senior Executive Service Application. The official definition also requires that the Leading Change examples include 6 leadership competencies:

1. Creativity and Innovation
2. External Awareness
3. Flexibility
4. Resilience
5. Strategic Thinking
6. Vision

Leading Change Tips from former US Mint Director, Phillip Diehl

A tip from Phillip Diehl for leading change in government agencies is that “employees have been through every change management slogan of the month and have witnessed management that have used those programs to mask other agendas. Their response to authentic change agents will range between skeptical to cynical. They’ve earned the right.”

“During change, workers need to know that their work has value to a customer whether internal or external.” Phillip Diehl, former Director, US Mint, 1994-2000. In the classic Leading Change Fast Company article, Mint Condition, Anna Muoio wrote that “Philip Diehl knows how to make change — deep-seated, far-reaching, this-feels-like-a-different-place kind of change.”

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Counting Characters in your USAJOBS Federal Resume Work Experience

Posted in Federal Resume Writing, KSA Writing, www.USAJOBS.gov
by Kathryn Troutman on May 16th, 2011 | No Comments - Make a comment »

Federal Hiring Reform, which is to be implemented by Nov. 8, 2011, includes a directive that human capital officers should “eliminate all requirements of separate narratives from initial applications.” Most federal vacancy announcements are compliant and do not require separate written narratives for Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSA) in initial applications. However, most vacancy announcements are still including KSAs for open positions and advising that you include accomplishments in your resume that demonstrate your KSAs. These mini-KSA narratives, or “KSA accomplishments,” demonstrate that you are best qualified for a certain position.

The big challenge of adding KSA accomplishments into your USAJOBS federal resume is space. Each work experience section in the USAJOBS Resume Builder allows 3,000 characters, including spaces. You have to decide how much space will be dedicated to your keywords, duties and responsibilities, and how much will be dedicated to your KSA accomplishments. How do you describe an impressive KSA accomplishment when you may have been in your position for 5 to 10 years? Last week, during a federal resume writing class I recommended that applicants write 1,500 characters about their job responsibilities and 1,500 characters on their KSA accomplishments, or any combination that will add up to 3,000 characters. But, both duties and KSA accomplishments are critical to get best qualified for a position.

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How a Government Shutdown Will Negatively Affect Federal Job Seekers

Posted in Federal Job Info, Federal Job Search, www.USAJOBS.gov
by Kathryn Troutman on April 8th, 2011 | No Comments - Make a comment »

Since 800,000 federal employees are probably now receiving their furlough notice instructions today, this will include human resources specialists and hiring managers. It’s time to think about how the shutdown will affect federal hiring and federal job search for thousands of jobseekers. Remembering the furloughs of 1995 and 1996, here’s what happened with federal job hiring due to the furlough and the lack of a government budget. Here’s what’s already happening with today’s hiring due to a potential furlough and the Continuing Resolution that continues today.

CURRENT APPLICATIONS SUBMITTED FOR USAJOBS ANNOUNCEMENTS ARE NOW AND WILL BE FURTHER STALLED: For thousands of active federal jobseekers who currently have applications submitted on USAJOBS, their applications will be further stalled for weeks and months if the human resources specialists are furloughed. The federal hiring process is long and complex, even without a furlough. The furlough will be very difficult for human resources specialists and managers who are trying to hire for new positions.

CURRENT POSITIONS THAT ARE POSTED ON USAJOBS WILL BE CANCELED: Many current vacancy announcements will be cancelled, due to the time of the deadline of the position closing, the lack of time to review the applications and manage the hiring process. If the HR Specialists are furloughed, they cannot handle the new applications efficiently or at all. The positions will eventually be re-posted, but it will be a couple of months from now, in order to catch up with hiring activities that are in progress at the time of the furlough. Many jobseekers who have applications in process will check their application status and find that the position is cancelled. This is happening now.

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