If you find the USAJOBS federal job application system frustrating and difficult, there’s some good news coming your way. The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is about to give the government jobs website a complete makeover. The newly redone website is set to make its debut on October 13th. Agencies will be closing all announcements by October 6th, so the old system can be taken off line and the new one set up, and all data moved over. OPM is promising a few new changes that job applicants should like.

First, according to OPM associate director of employee services Angela Bailey, OPM will be able to search resumes for specific applicant information. This is a process that currently takes months. The result will be quicker, more efficient, better-targeted recruiting efforts. Agency recruiters will be able to find and use data and information much more quickly.

In addition, the goal is to make the system more user-friendly. Job seekers will only have to enter personal information once. Users will also be able to expect improved search results with details about salaries, grade levels and job categories.

OPM is working on more changes to streamline the federal hiring process, including a skills testing tool, to replace the Knowledge Skills and Abilities (KSAs) statements that applicants are currently trying to squeeze into their resumes. Stay tuned. It looks like more change is on the way.

Leaving a military career after 5, 10, or 20 years is traumatic. The career transition out of military is difficult no matter what your rank. The good news is that the federal government is basically just “the other side of the desk.” You’re going to take the “hands-on” skills and technical training from your military experience and convert it over to the policy, program, support, and administration side of the work you have been doing – maybe. The first federal resume after military is your most important resume and the most complex because you will translate your skills for a new career, mission, and customer.

Veterans are perfect for federal civil service positions because of their dedication to public service, the nation’s security, specialized expertise, knowledge of certain missions, technical skills and training, leadership, dedication, work ethic, attitude and willingness to learn and start-over. What’s more, these skills allow you to add 5 or 10 preference points to your application score.

However, sometimes transitioning veterans rush through the federal application and make several mistakes when applying for public-sector jobs

TOP 10 MISTAKES

1.) I only apply for jobs on USAJOBS (or CPOL or DONHR or WHS).

If you limit your search to just one agency or website, you are truly restricting yourself.

There are at least five major sites where you can create a profile, set up a resume builder, answer questions, and apply for a federal job:

- www.usajobs.gov – The official government jobs website, includes Air Force civilian positions
- www.cpol.army.mil – The website where all Army jobs are posted and where you would apply for an Army position
- military.com/careers – A commercial site that manages resumes and job postings for federal agencies.
- www.donhr.navy.mil – The website for Navy and USMC civilian positions
- www.whs.mil – Department of Defense civilian jobs are posted here as is the resume builder and application.

2.) I only apply for jobs without KSA narratives.

If you limit your search to applications that do not require KSAs, you will cut out many job opportunities with the Departments of HHS, VA, Interior, Commerce, Justice, Labor, Transportation and others. You will need to learn how to write KSA narratives and questionnaire essays for a successful federal job search. KSAs are just examples that demonstrate you have a certain Knowledge, Skill or Ability. You can use the KSA Builder developed by The Resume Place to write your “stories” that will demonstrate that you do have a certain knowledge, skill, or ability.

3.) I have never written a resume and I don’t know how to get started.

It’s time to find the position descriptions, old SF-171s, evaluations, NSPS self-assessments, training documents and build your federal resume. The author of this article has developed a free federal resume builder where you can build your work experience, education, training, accomplishments, certifications, and other information.

4.) Service before self. That’s what we are taught. I’m not used to bragging, so I usually don’t select the highest level in the questionnaires (or go on and on about accomplishments).

When you read the selection of self-assessment answers, be very careful to think about all of the experience you have. An EPA federal human resources specialist said this about the questionnaires and your choices: “Give yourself all of the credit that you can in selecting the answers in a Questionnaire.” The questionnaires are scored like an examination, so your skills at the highest level will be important to get referred for a position.

5.) My job was totally unique and I can’t write about all that I did in the last 5 years, etc.

This is a challenge because there is a unique military language with its own acronyms. However, you can write about the skills that you have, including instruction, planning, leading a team, mentoring, personnel operations, administrative operations, problem-solving, negotiations, advocacy, interpersonal skills, and technical skills. The military-to-federal resume requires a translation of skills to the new agency. Your past mission may not match, but the skills CAN match. And you can prove one year specialized experience, as long as that one year doesn’t require special mission knowledge. In other words, if you change from military to transportation, the transportation announcement may require experience in transportation.

6.) I have used the resume I developed from TAP class and it’s not getting me referred although I’m qualified for these positions.

The private-industry resume is shorter than a typical federal resume. The bullet style, one-line description resume won’t be as effective for a federal resume. The recommended format is the outline format. This features your top skills that are transferable to the new position. You could write your description in five or six small paragraphs with headings such as: trainer / instructor; team leader and supervisor; emergency operations planner; interpersonal skills and liaison; administrative operations. These five skills are the most transferable. After you create the outline of your duties with five or six sentences to describe each, you can add two or three accomplishments that will include your outstanding services in your operation.

7.) I didn’t know I had to tweak and edit my resume for each announcement.

With the Army website, www.cpol.army.mil, you could apply to 10 jobs in one day very easily because this system is a Resume Only application with a Self-Nomination online form. But you really should slow down and read the announcement carefully to find the keywords for your resume because the HR specialist will be looking for these keywords throughout your resume. If you haven’t edited each resume with keywords, your resume may not get referred. You can apply quickly, but why bother if you don’t edit and tweak the resume to make sure the keywords are included?

8.) I have accomplishments embedded in the duties section.

Military personnel will write one huge “block of information” for their duties and include the accomplishments somewhere in the middle of the paragraph. This type of content will be difficult to read and difficult for the busy human resources specialists who want to find the best qualified applicants. There is a difference between a regular duty and an accomplishment. They are both important on the federal resume. But the accomplishments are critical if you are to stand out as the most qualified candidate.

If you have had a job for over two years then you have probably been involved with special projects, problem-solving, new programs, new initiatives, new computer programs to improve efficiency, and staff changes. Accomplishments might include your assignment to a task of managing a special operations, situation or program, implementing new processes, and achieving a result. These accomplishments should be written separately from the duties, so that it is clear you have performed more than your position description and you are worthy of a promotion. Furthermore, you want to let the HR specialist know that you’re a federal employee who can resolve problems, take care of customers very well, and achieve and exceed support to the mission.

9.) I didn’t realize that my 5 or 10 point preference really makes a big difference.

Yes, most military personnel will have 5 point preference for service within the last 3 years. Military personnel with disabilities may have a 10 point preference for their application. Your 5 or 10 point preference can give you an advantage over a candidate that does not have preference points.

10.) I can’t take personal credit for the work of my team, so what should I write?

The “team mentality” of federal employees and supervisors is not going to get you hired. It’s time to take credit for your contributions as a leader. Before you apply, ask yourself the following questions: Would the project have been successful without you? Did you set the agenda? Establish priorities? Assign tasks? Solve the problems as they occurred? Brief senior executives on status? Manage resources throughout? Create reports and analyze progress? Lead the team members to meet deadlines and review the quality of their work? Did you “babysit” the group on occasion? Then you need to take credit for leadership, innovation, new ideas, methodologies, policies, procedures, project management strategies that YOU developed and implemented. You are the leader of the team, program, project or group. Write about your leadership and the outcome of the group you lead.

The government has on average 100,000 jobs everyday posted on the main website: USAJOBS.GOV. Consider these positions seriously. They are worth your time and patience. There are good books on federal resume writing and federal job search strategies. Studying federal resume samples and KSAs can help you master the federal job search process and result in a career that can change your life.

Need help with your veteran federal resume? Ask for a Free Federal Resume Estimate from The Resume Place!

Consider the Military to Federal Career Guide Print Book or eBook … Order Here!

John is a GS-13 with 20 years of experience who is looking for a new position. He says, “I am the jack of all trades with experience in Human Resources, Budget, Finance, Procurement, Facilities, Asset Management, IT Project Management, Program Analysis, Supervision, Capital Planning and Investment Control to name (my specialties) that come to mind. I understand that each job must be tailored, but with the job market like it is, I think I need to leverage all my experience and consider many types of positions.”

It is important to understand that some resume writing strategies are better than others. John has two options. He can write one resume covering all of the different accomplishments and skills he possesses or create at least four or more different resumes that each feature a certain skill set and add accomplishments for each skill set tailored to the specific job he is apply for, while leaving out irrelevant and old experience. Remember, human resources specialists and supervisors will review your last 10 years of experience, so make sure you only analyze, write and present the specialized areas of expertise for these recent positions.

In John’s example, I would recommend four different resumes.

Since John performs budget, finance and procurement duties for more than 50 percent of his day, this should be the first resume. Each of the specialized areas requires a paragraph to describe the scope of work. For a GS-13, this resume requires a description of the financial responsibilities, examples of financial and budget reports, and procurement activities for customers. John should add accomplishments and specific details for all three specializations.

John has been also been working in the facilities, assets, investments and capital planning division of a large department. This position involves facilities oversight and real estate management. This is a very specialized series, thus it is important to make this John’s second resume. It will require accomplishments and detailed descriptions of assets and capital planning projects. The set of skills for this type of a position is specific and there will be fewer jobs available in Facilities and Asset Management at the GS-13 level.

Program Analysis and project management is the most general of the skill sets and could be the most marketable. In this third resume, John needs to demonstrate how he analyzes programs for efficiency and effectiveness; utilizes both quantitative and qualitative methods; writes and presents briefs; consults with program participants; advises on solutions; and gives recommendations. This occupational series is popular and he should be able to find these positions in every agency and every state.

Throughout John’s career, he has managed daily operations, supervised staff, written position descriptions, trained staff, ensured work performance and managed the office budget. Therefore, John’s fourth resume should include his roles as an administrative officer in human resources, supervision and budget. All agencies have administrative officer positions with promotion potential to GS-15.

You don’t go to battle without a plan. If you are seeking to advance or change your career to a new agency or state, you need to first identify your skills sets, then determine the various resume targets and finally begin researching specific new positions. Once you have several resumes drafted, you are primed and ready to launch a solid campaign for your new position.

Kathryn Troutman is the author of The Federal Resume Guidebook. Kathryn is a popular Federal Resume Writing trainer throughout government, teaching the latest KSA in the Resume writing methods. She is founder and president of The Resume Place, Inc., experts in Federal Career Consulting and Federal Resume Writing, a service business located in Baltimore, Maryland.

The application process is still complicated, but if you can play poker, golf, bridge, monopoly, or another game with complex instructions and a little strategic thinking, you can compete for a federal job. Here are a few of my favorite tips and insights about what’s new and important in federal hiring after the hiring reform of last year:

1. The written narratives as part of the government jobs application – KSAs – are mostly gone.

This is the best news about the hiring reform that was implemented in November 2010. Before then, government job applications required half-to-one-page written narratives for about four or five required skills for the position, such as: how you can “communicate orally,” “plan or coordinate,” or provide technical expertise in your field.

2. Time for applying for federal jobs is cut in half.

Many more jobseekers are applying for federal positions now that the narrative KSAs are eliminated. This change means that the total time investment required to apply for each position is roughly half of what it would have been under the old system.

3. Now is the time to apply.

The government agencies finally got their budget for 2011. But the budget year will be over at the end of September 2011. So this is a great time to look at announcements and apply for positions. They’ll still be hiring after the budget year ends, but right now there are more positions posted.

4. The government job application process is totally online, with a resume builder and upload system.

I recommend that you copy and paste your resume into the builder, even though it will take you 30 to 45 minutes to set up your first resume. The resume builder will prompt you to give certain resume details that are critical for your qualifications, such as month and year of employment dates for at least 10 years, hours worked per week, supervisor’s name, phone numbers of employers, and salaries for positions going back 10 years.

5. Federal positions are the best in the country.

The entire application process — from finding the best announcement through using the resume builder, completing the questionnaire and uploading both the cover letter and transcript — will take time, determination, and patience. But the end result could be an outstanding career for you, security for your family, and an opportunity to provide service to America.

Tips for Applying

Set up your accounts to apply for government jobs. There are usually two parts to each application:

1. The Resume Builder in USAJOBS.gov; and
2. The Questionnaire in ApplicationManager.gov

Both systems require a user name and password. The Questionnaire can have between 10 and 80 questions, but they are multiple choice, so they don’t take too long.

Give yourself as much credit as you can. Read the multiple-choice questions and determine your answers carefully. You will be self-scoring your skills for the human resources reviewer. You will usually have 5 choices for each question, and can often choose one of the following:

1. I have no experience or education in this skill area.
2. I have education in this field, but have never done this work.
3. I perform this work closely supervised.
4. I perform this work independently, with little or no supervision.
5. I am an expert in this work. I supervise others or I am the person who is consulted in this area because of my expertise.

Your resume must match the answers to your questionnaire. If you select the “5″, or the highest score, your resume must demonstrate this expertise. Edit your resume slightly for each application, so that the resume shows that you have the skills that are listed in the announcement and the Questionnaire.

Order your college transcripts right away. You do not have to upload originals. You can scan all of your transcripts into one file and upload them into USAJOBS.gov. Later the agency you are applying to might ask for an original, but they are not needed for the applications.

Write a cover letter now with your application. You can upload this into USAJOBS or ApplicationManager. This is another step that you can take with your federal application according to recent Federal Hiring Reform regulations. The letter is optional, but could help you stand out.

For up to date advice, tips, and news regarding federal jobs and the federal application process, “like” The Resume Place on Facebook and follow Kathryn Troutman on Twitter.

Long KSA narratives may be on the way out, but this KSA written by Kathryn Troutman is a Fourth of July classic!

This KSA features the Context, Challenge, Action, Results (CCAR) format preferred by federal human resources specialists. See our free KSA CCAR Builder to create your KSAs in the CCAR format.

Read the original blog with the historical background to this inspiring story here: Star Spangled Banner Inspiration.

Star-Spangled Banner: Classic KSA

Candidate: Francis Scott Key, Sept. 14, 1814

Position: Public Affairs Officer, U.S. Congress

KSA: Ability to Communicate in Writing

AUTHORED THE STAR SPANGLED BANNER

Context: As an attorney and aide-de-camp to General Smith, stationed near Upper Marlboro, MD, I found out my dear friend and elderly, Dr. Beane, who was captured by the British Army during a party at his home in Upper Marlboro. I was on a British vessel flagged for truce by President Jackson, on my way to pick up a captured friend in Marlborough. We got as far as the mouth of the Patuxent and then we were not permitted to return lest an intended attack on Baltimore by the British should be disclosed. We were brought up the Bay just across from Fort McHenry and there we were compelled to witness the bombardment of Fort McHenry, which the Admiral had boasted that he would carry in a few hours, and that the city must fall.

Challenge: We watched the flag at the Fort through the whole day with more than 500 bombs from British ships to Ft. McHenry. In the night the smaller weather flag was flying while we watched the Bomb shells in darkness not knowing that the American Military had secretly planned 4 barges, which the British did not detect. These barges attached the British militia and sent them running, some with tugs assisting. At the early dawn our eyes were surprising greeted by the proudly the 15-star flag of our country (late to be known as the Star Spangled Banner).

Actions: By morning, I was compelled to pen a poem that reflected my thoughts of the war and particularly of the flag, “Oh say can you see by the dawn’s early light?” was my first thought.

I wrote four verses that reflected topics about the day before and my vision of the flag in the morning. The first verse reviews the dawn’s light and the flag with broad stripes and bright stars that was still flying in the morning; the second verse reviews the dread silence and how the flag was fitfully blowing; the third verse reviews the havoc of war and the battle’s confusion; and the final and fourth verse celebrates the victory and peace that preserved our nation.

Results: I witnessed the last enemy fire to fall on Fort McHenry and in this memory, I wrote the poem “Defence of Fort McHenry,” which has been renamed to “The Star-Spangled Banner” and has become a well-known American patriotic song. The poem and song were recognized for official Navy use in 1931 and became the national them by a congressional resolution on March 3, 1931 and signed by President Herbert Hoover.

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Defence of our Nation, Patrick Henry

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

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.

In his recent speech at a panel discussion in Washington, DC, John Berry declared, “We have gotten off of KSA island. It’s an amazing leap forward.”

The OPM Press Release published on Tuesday, May 18, 2011 listed the following hiring improvement statistics: “Since the launch of the Hiring Reform initiative in May 2010, OPM has supported federal agencies with 351 training sessions in 66 cities for 17,300 people involved in the hiring process. Successful outcomes from this effort have included:

• Hiring based on resumes and cover letters 91 percent of the time;
• 96 percent of job opportunity announcements no longer require KSA essays;
• Hiring managers now have more choices
• Applicants are now seeing shorter, easy-to-read job announcements;
• 86 percent of announcements in plain language;
• 66 percent of announcements are five pages or fewer.”

However, today, a USAJOBS Vacancy Announcement listed KSAs as a requirement to apply for a position. This Department of Health and Human Services advertisement for a GS-343-11/12/13 position, salary: $62,467.00 – $115,742.00 per year, for a Program Analyst included this information for applicants: “Your qualifications will be evaluated on the following competencies (knowledge, skills, abilities and other characteristics): 1. Ability to design and conduct studies; 2. Ability to monitor grantee performance; 3. Ability to communicate orally.”

The KSA listing in this HHS job announcement statement can be puzzling for federal jobseekers, who have heard that the KSAs are eliminated from requirements. Federal job applicants are trying to follow the directions, but there are no directions in some of the USAJOBS announcements regarding the submission of KSAs.

KSAs are obviously still important to the human resources specialists when determining the Best Qualified candidates. For savvy federal jobseekers, the KSA listings in the announcement are important clues to writing a Best Qualified application.

Since the KSAs are not required as separate written narratives, recommendations for including knowledge, skills and abilities competencies in the federal application are given by Kathryn Troutman, the leading federal career consultant and author of several federal job search publications including the recently released fifth edition of the “Federal Resume Guidebook.”

Kathryn Troutman recommends that the federal jobseeker include KSA accomplishments in the work experience section of their federal resume. The KSAs can also be briefly covered in the cover letter. The job applicant can prove their KSA skill level in the questionnaire multiple-choice selections. Finally, the KSAs could become interview questions in the government job interview.

“’Don’t ignore those KSAs, even though they are eliminated,’ said Kathryn Troutman, whose company, The Resume Place, helps federal job applicants.” wrote Joe Davidson in his Washington Post article on May 19th, 2011.

2011 Hiring Reform eliminated KSAs – maybe. They are 96% eliminated as separate written narratives but KSAs are still listed in most federal job announcements. Kathryn Troutman recommends that the government job applicant include KSA accomplishments in the USAJOBS federal resume, cover letter, best selections in the multiple choice questionnaire, and as preparation for the federal job interview.

For tips on how to include KSAs in the federal resume, please read The Resume Place’s article on how to properly include KSAs in the Federal Resume.

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.

1. Study Chapter 10 of the DOD PPP Operations Manual (1998). Determine the match between your occupational series and the option codes. Option codes are used for registration for the PPP, to more specifically define qualifications and help clarify job requirements.

Your PPP federal resume needs to demonstrate specialized skills in 2 or 3 occupational series for which you are qualified. This will ensure that your PPP counselor and panelist can help you land a new federal position that you will be qualified for, while utilizing your experience and qualifications.

View Chapter 10 of the DOD PPP Operations Manual.

2. Write a statement of “objective” on your PPP Federal Resume. The statement of “objective” listed below is an example of an individual who was classified as an Electronic Technician, but performed IT Specialist duties for many years. He was successful in landing an IT specialist position through the PPP.

CAREER OBJECTIVES: Information Technology Specialist (Customer Services, Networking, Application Systems), GS-2210-11 OR Electronic Technician GS-0856/0802-11. PPP Skills Options Codes include: CSP, NET, ASW. Competencies include: Customer Service, Interpersonal Skills, Team Lead, Problem-Solving and Technical Competencies.

3. Find the classification standard used by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) for your occupational series. Identify keywords in OPM’s classification standard that can be used to write your federal resume duties and responsibilities sections.

4. Add accomplishments to demonstrate you have specific experiences and competencies. The accomplishments will help the PPP human resources specialists understand the complexity and level of your experience and provide them the information they need to select your next position.

5. Format the PPP federal resume for a human resources specialist – not an automated system. Your resume for PPP can be a printed, formatted resume. It can include bold type, underlines, indentations and bullets so it is easy to read, but don’t overdo it. Use at least 11 point font. There is no particular length for the PPP federal resume, but it is recommended to keep the length between four to six pages.

Your PPP federal resume is important for your next career move following BRAC. Follow these tips, so your resume will stand out and result in a position referred from the PPP.

View general PPP information.

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.

Many accomplishments in federal resumes are too short and do not include enough detail to prove you have the knowledge, skill or ability at the level and complexity of the target position. For instance, the following is a single sentence description of an accomplishment: “I was lead staff to evaluate the district’s request to provide $9 million in funding to electrify 13 diesel rubber tired gantry (RTG) cranes at the Port of Baltimore.” That’s interesting, but doesn’t include the result of the evaluation of the request.

One option is to use the old, long KSA style, which included the popular Context-Challenge-Action-Results (CCAR) formula and write a mini CCAR. With the limited space, you cannot include a full page blow-by-blow description, and careful writing and editing must produce a story that engages the HR specialist and the supervisor, and proves your past performance. Include your role or title during this project or activity, a few actions, a short challenge and a result.

A State of Maryland Environmental Protection Agency Air Resources Engineer wrote about her KSA accomplishment in support of environmental quality. The KSA required in the announcement stated: “Ability to direct internal and production control reviews and validity studies.” The applicant wrote the following 527-character KSA accomplishment in her USAJOBS federal resume:

“PRODUCTION CONTROL REVIEWS: Wrote EPA Program Guidelines to support production control reviews and implement requirements to best prevent fraud and to set up internal controls. I was lead staff to evaluate the District’s request to provide $9 million in funding to electrify 13 diesel rubber tired gantry (RTG) cranes at the Port of Baltimore. I discovered that the current engines in the RTG cranes had not been certified to the standards for new off-road engines. I informed the District the project could not be funded, as Baltimore does not fund projects in which the applicant is not in compliance with current regulations.”

This writing technique will provide critical information to the human resources specialist and help them determine if you are qualified or best qualified for the position. Additionally, the supervisor receiving your resume, along with many others, may be impressed with your KSA accomplishments, which could lead to an interview for the position.

When writing your federal resume in USAJOBS, be aware of the space limitations and make a decision as to how to divide the 3,000 characters between your duties and accomplishments. A total of five to seven KSA accomplishments are recommended for all of your work experience sections. Remember, supervisors will read the accomplishments to determine if they want to interview you for the position.

As we count down to 2011, here are my Top Ten federal job search resolutions to help you get a quick jump start back into your federal job search as soon as the holiday festivities are over.

10. Get inspired! Read a book about an expertise that you have.

Find a book on a topic of interest, such as leadership, management, teamwork or supervision. If the book is inspiring, you might feel more energetic and proud of your past accomplishments – which will translate into a good mood and higher confidence. Looking for a federal job? Here’s a great list of Federal Leadership Books!

Sometimes, job interviewers will ask you what you are reading now. You better get ready for this one. Books on leadership, history, or a topic that supports your non-profit or volunteer work would be perfect for the interview (not political books).

9. Be systematic with your online job search strategies.

Keep a list of your favorite webpages, and check them every day, or, at a minimum, once a week, for positions that could be of interest.

You can waste time at the computer if you don’t have a clear list of sites that you visit regularly and search strategies that work. Limit your time on searching for jobs, so that you can move AWAY from the computer and be productive in other ways.

8. Say “Happy New Year” to your references and people in your network.

This time of year is perfect for reconnecting with people you haven’t touched base with in awhile. Your references and network are your most important allies for your job search. Make a clear list of your best references / network contacts. Write to them, or preferably meet with them in person for lunch or coffee.

Talk to your references, update them on what you are doing, and ask them if they have any leads or ideas about positions. Be positive about your skills, experience, and new or renewed determination for 2011. Review your job search strategies with them.

If you don’t have a Linkedin or other online resume, you could work on that also. You can get testimonials and post your entire resume online for searches.

7. Make a new list of keywords, and check it every time.

Keywords are words that you can find in the recruitment advertisement. Look especially for words that are repeated several times in the job announcements. Make sure these words are included in your Work Experience descriptions. The human resources recruiters read or scan for those keywords in your resume.

Make sure you adapt your resume to include your skills, knowledge, and areas of expertise to each position for which you are applying. One resume won’t work! You have to take that one resume and change it slightly for each job announcement and position.

6. Add a few new “competencies” to your resume.

Competencies are the latest “thing” for human resources – both federal and private industry. Examples of competencies are: flexible, adaptable, customer services, interpersonal skills, excellent at problem-solving.

Do you have good interpersonal skills? If yes, say so in the resume somewhere. Are you great with customer services? Make sure it is in your resume. You might think it is OBVIOUS that you have great communications, negotiation, and problem-solving skills, but don’t be bashful now! Say it in the context of one of your accomplishments. Seriously, the HR specialists and managers love a person who get along great with team members, customers, supervisors, and even complainers! Here’s a Top Ten Managerial Competency List.

5. Stay up on the current events.

Keeping up with the latest happenings can help you get an edge in an interview. Stay on top of the news headlines and get out to local cultural activities, such as museums or galleries, which will have the added benefit of giving you a break from the job search.

4. Add pizzazz to your cover letter.

Cover letters are the hottest new item in federal resumes. Update your cover letter and add a new first sentence or paragraph give it a new 2011 zing.

Samples of positive, energetic starter sentences:

– I’d like to introduce myself to you as a Top Notch Office Administrator for your firm. – Are you looking for a person who can multi-task, solve problems, and who has initiative and energy? I’m available. – I can offer your firm outstanding skills in customer communication, problem-solving and project management. I can prove these skills and strengths by success in growing my company’s sales by 300% in 2009.

3. Take a class or course on something relevant.

Interviewers will want to know what you have done to keep up with your skills. Taking a class in just about anything will give you an interesting angle to talk about in an interview or while networking.

If you can take an online or community college course, here are some suggested courses that are helpful for career development: Technical Writing; Computers Skills; Public Speaking; Ethics (always good for any job); Organizational Development; Leadership; Supervision; Teamwork; Social Media Marketing for Businesses; Budgeting; and Acquisitions and Contracting (for government jobs).

You never know, you might also meet someone in class who knows about job for you.

2. Join a job club.

Go to a job club meeting or job fair once or twice per month. Get out of the house, meet people, listen for ideas, pass around your resume, smile and be friendly. You can be your own BILLBOARD.

I teach federal resume writing at several job clubs in the DC and Virginia area. These FREE meetings are invaluable for job leads, meeting other jobseekers and mentors who review resumes, practice for interviews, and help with job search strategies.

1. Celebrate your accomplishments.

What are you most proud of for 2010 (or the last time you were working)? Make a list and read it out loud. These will be your talking-points for your job interview. Review your list of accomplishments to prepare for an interview and compare them to your resume.

Many resumes that I review do NOT contain accomplishments at all. Or if they do, the accomplishments are one line. Expand on your accomplishments. Add the RESULTS. and even add the CONTEXT or CHALLENGE for what you did. Talk about the problems you overcame and how achieved success. It might seem like bragging, but if you are good at something in your job, you have to write it on paper to get the point across to the hiring official.

Best Wishes for 2011!

Finally, just keep up the good work and remember that perseverance is the key to success in this job market.

From Kathryn Troutman, Author, Ten Steps to a Federal Job

Success Story from First-Time Federal Jobseeker (who was from private industry):

I applied for a position in Reston, VA for a HR Asst. The job announcement closed on Monday (12-20-10) and I rec’d a call yesterday from a Hiring Official yesterday to set up an interview for today (12-22-10). After talking with him for 20 mins; he offered me the position!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Can you believe that?! I owe a huge THANK YOU to you and Kathryn for making me look GOOD!

Baltimore, MD (PRWEB) November 24, 2010 — Earlier in November, federal jobs expert Kathryn Troutman and her staff of federal job application consultants gathered around a cake decorated with the words: “Bye Bye KSAs!” They had come to The Resume Place to celebrate the start date for federal hiring reform. Suddenly, applying for a federal job just got easier. The government had finally adopted a commonsense, efficient, applicant-friendly hiring system that called for resumes and cover letters and scotches the dreaded KSAs, a lengthy set of demanding essays intended to show “Knowledge, Skills and Abilities.” Finally, sanity has come to the federal application system.

Bye Bye KSAs, Not So Fast! “If only that were true,” laments Troutman.

With over 80,000 federal employees retiring or otherwise leaving the federal government each year, thousands of mission critical and management positions must be filled with the best and brightest Americans. Federal application practices, however, have many times deterred the “best qualified applicants” from seeking federal work. President Obama’s May 11 memorandum therefore called on Executive Departments and Agencies to overhaul the way they recruit and hire highly qualified employees. By the November 1 deadline, however, only three out of 240 federal agencies were ready for hiring reforms.

“I was really surprised by how little the agencies have accomplished in the last six months,” shared Troutman. “Plus, this new application process is in many cases much harder, because the announcements don’t tell you what’s needed. It looks like the best and the brightest will have to slog through the morass of the federal hiring system for a while longer. We’ll just have to call it an interim reform cake,” she joked.

After 30 years working with more than 200 agencies in the Beltway, Troutman is recognized as one of the most tuned-in experts on what’s happening in federal hiring circles. Her clients benefit from her unique perspective as an outsider with inside information.

Business at the Resume Place has been slow and Troutman wonders how many jobseekers have been thinking that the November 1 implementation date will usher in an era of easy applications, with cover letters and resumes just like those in the private sector.

“It’s interesting that applicants seem to believe that hiring reform is going to make applying for federal jobs a lot easier. Ironically, the applications that we have been preparing for clients have been extremely difficult,” she observed. “The new application process is not simple at all. A set of KSAs are no longer supposed to be a part of the initial application. But you have to interpret the announcement. Some postings still require the KSA. Others expect to see them in the resume, and your resume must respond to items in a complicated, online questionnaire. You will probably have to submit KSAs at a later point in the process.”

Troutman adds that the newest challenge for the federal jobseeker is to make KSAs stand out in their resumes. That’s a main way that the human resources specialist reading the resume from USAJOBS will be able to determine if an applicant is a “best qualified” candidate for a job. Also, the jobseeker must know that federal resumes are different; they can reach up to five pages in length, as opposed to the one or two pages typical of private sector resumes.

Troutman also identified a trend towards drastically shortened application periods—to as little as two days—which means that federal applicants have no time to waste with trial and error, fumbling to get it right.

This is where The Resume Place’s resume writing and job coaching services can become essential. As the various federal job application systems evolve, it’s good to get advice from people who have studied and continue to keep in touch with all aspects of the various employment practices of more than 200 federal agencies. For a free resume assessment, go to [plug in web address. Help also comes from Kathryn’s books, including Ten Steps to a Federal Job and the Federal Resume Guidebook. These books are highly regarded in federal and private sector employment fields for their practical use as handbooks for individuals and classrooms.

No one knows how long it will really take for the entire government to completely make over their various application systems. Some speculate at least a year, others say several years. Ron Sanders, former Chief Human Capital Officer at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence and currently a Senior Executive Advisor with the consultancy Booz Allen Hamilton, thinks that it will take both time and a cultural change. For the government to truly reform its hiring practices, he says that there must be a radical shift in the mindset of those who for decades have been evaluating applications with inefficient, arbitrary tools.

Until then, it appears that reports of the KSA’s demise have been greatly exaggerated.