background that you have, and make sure that
you’re telling the story of how you’re qualified to
do the actual responsibilities of the job.”
HIGHLIGHT YOUR ADAPTABILITY
Businesses across the country are settling
into new normals. That might involve
reconfiguring workspaces or learning to operate
remotely. You’ll make a good impression by
demonstrating you can roll with changes. How
do you do that? Showcase personality traits and
attitudes like flexibility, empathy and creativity,
known as soft skills.
“With people not able to be in the same place
as their coworkers, being able to show that you
have strong communication and collaboration
skills is really important right now,” Kim says.
Resumes and application forms often revolve
around hard skills: the technical, measurable
skills like proficiency in a particular software or
programming language. But your cover letter
and interview can be suitable places to insert
soft skills.
Transferable skills are also crucial to mention,
especially if you’re looking to change roles or
industries. Those are skills that apply to a wide
variety of roles and can include both soft and
hard skills, such as sales, writing or leadership.
Previous telecommuting experience can give
you a leg up, too.
“Experience managing a remote team would
be huge right now because very few managers
have managed like this,” Kratz says. “But even
having successfully contributed to a virtual
team, especially if you can lead with the