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Benefits June 25, 2008
Employers Still Value Cover Letters
June 25, 2008 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - Eighty-six percent
of executives polled said cover letters are valuable when
evaluating job candidates.
Reported by Rebecca Moore
Specifically, 23% of senior executives surveyed said cover letters are “very valuable” candidate evaluation tools and 63% said they are “somewhat valuable,” according to a press release from Office Team, a staffing firm. Only 14% of the 150 respondents indicated cover letters are “not valuable at all.”
In addition, the survey found it is common for managers to receive cover letters with electronic resumes. Thirty-seven percent of senior executives surveyed said it is very common, while 43% said it is somewhat common.
“Submitting a resume without a cover letter is like not shaking hands when meeting someone for the first time,” said Dave Willmer, executive director of OfficeTeam, in the press release. “Those who aren’t including cover letters with their resumes are missing an opportunity to make a good first impression and set themselves apart from other job applicants.”