Press Release – Kathryn Troutman’s appearance on Mike Causey’s “Your Turn” Show
How to Get a Job During the Pandemic (Troutman on Federal News Network!)
Employment Coach Kathryn Troutman Appears on Mike Causey’s “Your Turn” Show
Tells Worried Jobseekers to “Go Federal!”
The Segment, “Life after COVID-19: Finding (and keeping) a Federal job”
provides a roadmap to employment during the Time of the Coronavirus
Baltimore, MD; June 9, 2020
Despite COVID-19 re-openings, an estimated 21 million people are still out of work—and unemployment is at a higher rate than during any other recent recession. Jobs coach Kathryn Troutman was recently invited to address the unemployment crisis on Mike Causey’s “Your Turn” radio podcast, the segment appearing June 3 on Federal News Network. Her answer on how to end the struggle to find work in a COVID-19 world: “Go Federal!”
On a day leading up to the show, Troutman told the host there were 16,110 openings available on the Fed’s website, USAJobs. During the live interview, Causey asked, “Where are these jobs?”
“They’re everywhere in the world,” Troutman answered. “A lot of them are in DC and the major cities. But the USAJOBS website is really helpful. You just type in the city and state where you’d like to live, and see how many jobs come up. Right now, a lot of Fed employees are working remotely from home.”
To listen to the full June 3 podcast, visit: here.
During her interview, Troutman noted that seeking employment with Uncle Sam requires learning to write a Federal resume, which is quite different than the private sector version. For one thing, it’s longer—three to five pages on average. At her firm The Resume Place, she coaches jobseekers on creating the best Federal resumes and empowers them with her insider tips. To get started, aspirants click the Contact link at the top of her resume-place.com website. A one-hour consult ($190) is arranged for feedback on refining their goals and transforming their current resume.
Some common corrections? If they’re responding to a particular USAJOBs vacancy posting, are they in a category that can apply? (Some jobs may only be open to current Federal employees or workers already with the hiring Fed agency). Is the applicant actually qualified for the position? (If not, Troutman helps them find a better fit.)
“One of the challenges of coaching people to write a persuasive resume is getting them to brag,” she told Causey. “Reviewers of USAJOBs resumes are human beings. It’s not automated. If they’re looking at your resume on a screen, and if it’s just about duties, it won’t stand out. That’s why we coach applicants to add a couple accomplishment stories from their current job.”
The “Your Turn” host recalled attending an event where Air Traffic Controllers were gathered. A woman supervisor shared her experience of arriving at work on 9-11, only to learn that both World Trade Towers had been hit. “I’d love to see that experience on a resume,” Troutman replied. “I wonder what the first things were that she did when she went to her tower.”
The jobs coach added that matching keywords from the Vacancy Announcement is also crucial. Troutman told the story of a Ship Captain who navigated huge container ships. He wanted to become an Assistant Director of Cargo Operations at a Fed agency, but the essential word “cargo” did not appear even once on his original resume. “Finding those keywords is truly fascinating,” she said.
“Looking for Federal jobs and learning how to write a Federal resume are really good things for jobseekers to be doing right now,” Troutman advised. “With all the COVID-19 jobs they’re adding and otherwise, you should go for it. Plus there’s so many retirements. This is the time to go Federal.”
To listen to the full June 3 podcast, visit: here.
Kathryn Troutman is the original designer of the Federal resume. In 1995, when the SF-171 form was eliminated, she introduced her 1st format in the 1st Edition of the Federal Resume Guidebook, which is now in its 7th Edition and a best-seller.
Nicknamed the “Federal jobs guru,” Troutman has many popular Federal career guides available at her website resume-place.com. Also on the site are insightful blogs on the Federal resume as well as the Federal job search.
