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---Liz_Vela -at- bcbstx -dot- com wrote:
> > When I was laid off a year ago, I posted my resume
> on Dice and Monster. I
> > received very few calls, although my resume showed
> 25 years of good
> > experience. After knocking off the first 10 years
> and taking out
> references
> > to old technology, I received many more calls and
> emails.
--- Maggie_Secara -at- capgroup -dot- com replied:
> I'd say dumping the outdated technology was the
> significant change. That's
> not about your age. No one cares how much you know
> about stuff no one uses
> any more, which is also probably stuff you haven't
> used in years.
Maggie, I have to disagree. Age definitely was the
concern here. Anyone who was not concerned about Liz's
age, and who read her resume before she knocked off 10
years, could have simply ignored references to old
technolgy. But obviously they did not ignore those
references.
Familiarity with older technology implies an older
worker - pure and simple. If your resume lists
software that hit the open market 20 years ago, nobody
is going to assume you studied that software last
year. They're going to assume you were using it 20
years ago, and that means they're going to assume
you're older than the guy who lists only stuff thats 5
years old or less.
My own experience echoes the experience Liz had. I
noticed a significant increase in the number of emails
and calls I got from headhunters and hiring firms
after I trimmed my resume to remove possible clues to
my age.
----------------
Keith Hood
Senior (only) tech writer
ACS, Inc.
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