Her Allies is a non-profit organization that provides support and resources to women who want to return to the workforce after taking a break, many of whom did this due to caregiving responsibilities. Her Allies has been a great help to many women who have been struggling to return to work by offering workshops, mentoring, and other support resources to women who want to get back to work. Kelley Bailey, a senior recruiter at Mixpanel, has been volunteering with Her Allies to share her insights and help women get back to work.
Kelley has been a senior recruiter at Mixpanel for the past 2.5 years. At Mixpanel, she is an in-house recruiter. Kelley worked with Vicki Yang at Looker, prior to her current position. When Kelley saw what Vicki was doing with Her Allies, she was impressed and wanted to help in any way she could.
Kelley is very passionate about women in the workplace and believes that women can and should play important roles in business. Plus, one of her personal goals is to make a difference in the world as much as she can so she joined the Her Allies team as a volunteer.
Giving Resume Insights for Her Allies Applicants
Kelley has been a great help to Her Allies as part of the resume workshop panel. Kelley looks at hundreds of resumes literally every day, so she has important insights to give to women on how to improve their CVs. During the panel, Kelley shared some insights into the recruiting process that have helped many women move forward with their career path.
Kelley says that the biggest issue with resumes that don’t move forward is that they don't show the impact that the applicant has made. Instead of listing what they did, the applicant should focus on the results they achieved.
Kelley suggests using the X-Y-Z formula, which is
"Accomplished [X] as measured by [Y], by doing [Z]." According to Kelley, "Adding as much data as possible and including numbers where possible really has an amazing impact. Applicants should always make sure the results of what they did are apparent.”
Kelley also advises applicants to tailor their resumes for the job they want.
“It doesn't have to be one resume that is submitted to every job. The resume can be altered to match the requirements of each job.”
Kelley suggests creating a resume in a word doc or something that is editable so that applicants can tailor it to the job they want.
Kelley highlights that even the simple things like font size and clarity of the dates can make a big difference. She suggests all applicants make sure to get additional eyes on their resumes in order to offer feedback in a real way. Kelley says,
"Even if you have a 5-year gap, don't let it be the recruiter's job to wonder what you did then. Explain what it is you were doing and the benefits of the gap, and don't just leave it open. Give as much context as possible."
Don’t Underestimate Using LinkedIn for Career Networking
Kelley also suggests using LinkedIn as an additional career resource. Add anyone in your network to help extend your career reach. Plus, make sure your profile is as up-to-date as possible when you start applying for jobs.
According to Kelley, recruiters tend to look at a resume for only 2-10 seconds, so it is essential to make the resume relevant and to the point. She says,
"Make sure your resume has your LinkedIn Profile link at the top. Linking to LinkedIn is awesome. That means I'll spend at least 15 more seconds on that, so it is important that your LinkedIn looks good."
Kelley says that there is a misconception that recruiters are the enemy and that they reject everyone. Even if there are applicant tracking systems, there are still real people going through resumes. She says,
"We are real people looking at the resume. We are your friend, not the enemy. We will have questions if you don't make the answers clear, we don’t always have the possibility to schedule interviews to review them.”
Use Your Resume to Get an Interview
“A resume doesn’t get you a job; it gets you an interview,” says Kelley.
She encourages including as much context as possible, even if you have a five-year gap, don’t let it be the recruiter's job to wonder. Kelley advises explaining any benefits of a gap, such as traveling the world or being a stay-at-home mom.
Kelley says recruiters want to hire you and that she would like nothing more than to fill the role with an awesome person, especially a woman. She advises that job seekers help the recruiter help them by showing on their resume why they should have a 30-minute phone call to learn more.
Kelley dispels some of the myths about recruiters and the recruitment process, stating that recruiters are not the enemy but are real people looking at the resume who want to go to bat for you. She advises job seekers to make their resume to the point, relevant, and match the job they want.
Kelley has reviewed a number of resumes for job seekers through Her Allies. Plus she says,
“I would be open to help anyone who reaches out to me for feedback. I think it would benefit all of humanity if more women were in the workplace.”
Kelley believes that women bring so much value to the world, and that needs to be in the workplace as well. Unfortunately, the US doesn’t offer many families leave benefits and this makes it hard for many women to take maternity leave and stay with their jobs. She believes that it is so important to help all people, even if they have a gap or are stay-at-home moms or caregivers, and that anything that people can do to help them is essential.
Kelley's insights into the recruitment process are invaluable, and her passion for helping women in the workplace is admirable. She is an excellent example of someone who has found a way to make a difference and give back to the community. If you are looking for ways to improve your resume, Kelley’s advice is a great place to start.
“Women who come to Her Allies find people who care and have empathy. You can ask for a referral or to get perspective, or even to a network when it is possible. Through the network, people can understand more about the industry they want to get into and have guidance. It's a welcoming place for other women to help other women and you can’t go wrong joining. Worst case you meet some new people to put in your networks..”
Kelley had good mentors in her career and she loves paying it forward.
“Women don’t always have people to talk to about their career or money and I'm always open to having those conversations that are kind of taboo. Sometimes having those conversations that are candid with a stranger can be helpful, and I'm always happy to do that.”
Women ought to stick together to support each other. If you need support or want to help other women, join the Her Allies network.