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Subject:Re: Dear company exec etc. From:charles desaro <soacon -at- IOS -dot- COM> Date:Tue, 18 Apr 1995 17:15:44 -0400
Replying to the question Melissa asked.....any hiring managers with inputs...
Here's mine.
Quite frankly the responses to this thread are looking at the trees and
not the forest.
My firm, a consultant company, hires personnel on a continuous basis and
I really don't care about the salutation, I am interested in the context
of the cover letter and resume.
I don't believe there ever was a case where I was turned off by a
salutation. It was nice to see my name in the salutation, it showed some
initative on the part of the job seeker. However, to repeat myself, if the
resume indicated skills, experience, etc. which satifyed one of our
requirements, then, that is all I am interested in.
Charles De Saro
On Tue, 18 Apr 1995, Melissa Hunter-Kilmer wrote:
> Arthur asked:
> >> What do you use as a greeting in the cover letters you enclose
> with your resumes?
> Several people suggested finding out the name of the contact person who
> will actually read the application materials.
> Bill Burns said:
> > If I know the name and gender of the person on the other end, I write,
> > "Dear Mr./Ms. ______." I've never met any women who object to "Ms" as
> > opposed to Miss or Mrs. It's quite possible that it might offend some,
> > but I'd rather err in this manner than assume that Miss or Mrs. is
> > acceptable or even relevant.
> As far as the Miss/Ms./Mrs. issue goes, there are at least a few women
> out there who are offended when you don't hit their title right on the
> nose. (My sister-in-law is one.) So when you find out the contact
> person's name, you could find out the title, too. Who knows, it might be
> "Dr." -- that would eliminate the Miss/Mrs./Ms. problem!
> My first mentor told me to use the full name when you don't know the
> title, as in "Dear Melissa Hunter-Kilmer." I've gotten letters like that.
> It seemed a little odd at first, but I got used to it. (Hey, anybody who
> puts in both halves of my last name is already in my good books!)
> I like Marc Santacroce's idea very much: "Dear 'company name' Executive."
> We've heard from a bunch of job-seekers, former and present. Are there
> any hiring managers out there who can tell us what they like to see?
> Sincerely,
> (Mrs.) Melissa Hunter-Kilmer (it's okay if you call me Ms. at work :> )
> mhunterk -at- bna -dot- com
> The Bureau of National Affairs, Inc.
> Washington, DC
> BNA and I have a deal -- I don't speak for the company, and it doesn't
> speak for me.
