Comment by Amber on February 4, 2011 at 11:45am

I usually read most cover letters. I read them to see the written communication skills, and also sometimes they contain information that I might have not picked up on in my initial review of their resume. If the cover letter contains information that is not on the resume, and it is someone I am considering submitting to a client, I will determine why it's not in the resume, can/should it be in the resume, and am I going to have the candidate make revisions accordingly.

Big negatives when I look at a cover letter: poorly written, addressed to another company/person, or clearly totally generic and/or irrelevant to my job description.

Majority of my clients do not ask for cover letters, and do not often want to read them. They prefer a summary in the body of my email, or just a resume.

Comment by Mark Bregman on February 4, 2011 at 11:53am

Call me old-fashioned, but I am a strong advocate of customized cover letters that include a value proposition (what the candidate offers the employer) and specific info on how the candidate meets the objective for the job (if known).  When I see these as a recruiter, the cover letter tells me the candidate is proactive, bright, and willing to differentiate him/herself.  That says something about what they'd be like in the job.  Sample cover letter is on my web site.

Comment by Todd Nilson on February 4, 2011 at 12:00pm

I'm interested in knowing the opinions of the group about whether a somewhat less formal  email has replaced the need for the cover letter. Is the cover letter itself antiquated?

I do not believe that it fits the channel (email), except, arguably in cases where the employer is asking for a cover letter or higher level executive positions where I want to see what a formal communication from this candidate looks like. I work in executive IT level placements and more often than not I receive a cover letter as a Word document attachment. Do I read them? You bet, though I'm honestly never thrilled to have an extra document to file. Are they usually bloody awful? Oh yeah. Many of them are so mired in boilerplate that they are next to useless.

Think about the value, then, of a cover letter that truly addresses the position in question.

Comment by Bill Humbert on February 4, 2011 at 12:06pm

If the candidate is unemployed, I suggest they network instead of post & pray. 

 

Rarely do I read cover letters.  There was a time they had a place.  Too often today, they are written by career coaches.

Comment by Alasdair Murray on February 4, 2011 at 12:10pm

I think recruiters who don't read cover letters are missing a trick. I always used to read cover letters when looking to employ someone., Why? Because whilst many people simply copy a template and fill in the blanks, others go to great lengths to personalise their message and as a result you get a snapshot of their personality coming through. If it's well written and presented without any grammatical errors or 'typos' then chances are that person has a good eye for detail and can express themselves well. I'd trust them to draft correspondence or send a group email out for instance. Obviously depends what the vacancy is but these days communication skills are possibly more important than ever thus the cover letter is an important introduction that a CV can't necessarily convey as well. Sadly, technology is doing its best to crush creativity. Many recruiters think that technology alone can bring them that ideal person. It can't Human beings need to be motivated and enticed. Why does good product advertising work? Because it has an allure, something that people can relate to or want to be a part of. So many job ads fail to do that, hence poor response in terms of quality. I've heard talk in some circles that the CV is dated and on its way out. Hell, why don't we just get everyone to make videos and put them up on youtube and hold an online talent contest/freak show every time we want to recruit someone?

Comment by Ambrish Kochikar on February 4, 2011 at 12:11pm

This is a very interesting and relevant discussion. Great points for and against. I'm coming down on the side that thinks the cover letter is a relic of the past. My two cents:

 

The cover letter might serve as a starting point for the hiring authority to discover more about who you are, but the proliferation of public data available about a candidate far outweighs the impact of a cover letter addressed to one person.

 

Addressing the letter to a position and not a named individual ('Dear HR Manager') is a death knell, because it tells the reader that you have not attempted to do any research on who is in charge, assuming that you were confident your letter would be read by the person holding that title.

 

Your online presence and (well-written and thoughtful) recommendations from peers, reports and managers serve as more pointed supporting arguments to why you qualify for the position.

 

Finally, if you really love the idea of creating custom covers for important positions you apply for, think about rewriting the statement of objective on your resume in a more compelling and persuasive tone that brings you the results you so desire...the first interview call.

Comment by Jon Prete on February 4, 2011 at 12:12pm

Coming from the IT staffing industry, the blog was written for IT job seekers. I did preface in the blog that the cover letter was still necessary for job seekers submitting their resume directly to HR/hiring manager.

Comment by Alasdair Murray on February 4, 2011 at 12:17pm

"think about rewriting the statement of objective on your resume in a more compelling and persuasive tone that brings you the results you so desire" This statement could equally apply to 90% of recruiter job ads. Compelling and compulsive or cut & pasted job descriptions with no sell on the company or the role whatsoever? It would seem that some recruiters are cutting more and more corners. No creativity in writing a job ad, no cover letter reading, no acknowledgment or response to unsuccessful candidates. What happened to customer service? The client may be your customer but the candidate is your lifeblood. I think many have lost sight of that. I expect incoming :)

Comment by Emily Eversman on February 4, 2011 at 12:35pm

My opinion is cover letters are no longer needed and objective statements are heading that way too. I only look to the cover letter to see which postion they are applying for. I would rather see a longer more detailed resume then read through a letter telling me why they think they are great for this position.

Comment by Brandon S. Ellison, MBA, PHR on February 4, 2011 at 12:52pm

I definitely agree that simply sending a blank email with a resume attached is not acceptable. I believe in writing a short, personal email message expressing your interest in a position.

 

I received 100+ applicants for one of my reqs the other day. Reading through these cover letters would be terribly inefficient. I screen my applicants based on their experience outlined in their resume. Once I've narrowed my applicant pool down to a handful of qualified candidates, I may go back and compare cover letters. However, I've always subscribed to a philosophy of communicating information in a concise and efficient manner. I think a brief email message does this much more efficiently than a one page (or even half page) cover letter.

 

The rules of resume writing and job applications have changed. The cover letter is a remnant of an era when resumes would be faxed to a hiring manager and reviewed in hard copy form. Much of the information contained in a cover letter is redundant and can be found elsewhere in the application. Clinging to the old way of doing things and ignoring technological advances that make the application process more efficient is not a sustainable approach.

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