Save Trees: Write a Great Cover Letter

From my interactions with several recruiters, I have come to understand that most cover letters are trashy. They quickly reveal that the prospective candidate has done very little work in putting the letter together. Thus, giving the recruiter no other option than to quickly trash the letter – this is not tree-saving. I am sorry if that sounds harsh. I am speaking from experience. I have had my cover letters trashed too. A little while ago, an Illinois MBA Alum offered to refer me to a very senior person in one my target companies. The Alum asked me to send him my resume and cover letter so he could forward it to this very senior person. “Sure” I said. So I quickly tweaked my “prototype cover letter” and sent it to the Alum. Below is a ‘copy and paste’ of the reply I got from the Alum.

“Your cover letter is too general.  I could replace the company’s name with any company’s name and send it to 20 different places.  These are the types of cover letters that get thrown out.  You need to make it more company-specific.  Show that you’ve done your research in the company.  Visit the webpage link below and draw as much information from the website into your cover letter as possible.  You need to show them why you are a good fit and want to be a part of THEIR organization.  That is extremely important…..”

As you can see, I have had my fair share of writing trashy cover letters. When I read the above email, I was startled but also really grateful. I was startled because I thought the response was sharp and very brisk. I was grateful because the comment came from an Illinois MBA Alum and was therefore a no-risk case. It then occurred to me that each time I send out a “thoughtless” cover letter, I am misrepresenting the Illinois MBA. Thus, I made a resolution to never send out a one-size-fits-all cover letter (and/or resume) again.

As I researched, I realized that writing a winning cover letter is not that difficult. It does, however, take going the extra mile to find out what the recruiting company wants, compare that with what you have to offer and structure your cover letter to reflect how much you fit the role/company. To write winning cover letters, you need to follow four simple rules:

1. Customize your cover letter to a specific firm. Research the firms you are applying to via the internet or by attending company presentations. This gives you are very good idea of what the firm is looking for in an ideal candidate. You can then marry your strengths with the requirements of the company.
2. Be aware of the nuances of the industry. For example, the consulting industry is a conservative industry hence; you should keep your cover letter simple and professional. On the other hand, if you are applying to an advertising company, you need to show some creativity in your writing.
3. Proofread as many times as possible. Make sure your grammar and spelling are correct. Crosscheck for common mistakes like writing the name of a wrong firm. For example reading an application to Apple with a Microsoft name in it will automatically get your application discarded – no matter how qualified you are.
4. Keep it simple and short. Brevity is the soul of wit but make sure you answer yes to the question “Would I preselect myself for an interview if I was the one reading this cover letter?” If you need to make your letter a little longer to prove how much you fit the company/role then do it.

My conclusion is that, a successful cover letter should make whoever reads it want to meet you. Keep it in mind that recruiters read tons of cover letters everyday. So write it right! Keep your cover letter out of the trash and save trees.

Fake IT or Make IT

"If you “fake IT”, you really do not have IT, why not break the habIT and try to “make IT”"


Simply speaking there are two basic approaches to getting a job – you can either  “fake it or make it”. Most prospective job candidates advertently or inadvertently use one of the two approaches.

The ‘fake it’ approach is a “ready, fire and aim” approach to getting a job. It entails simply acting to be who your target employer wants you to be. To put the term “faking it” into perspective, I will give you an example of a hypothetical MBA student called Tyrone who uses the "fake it" approach. Tyrone often starts out not being clear about his target industry/company/role. He is simply concerned with getting a well-paying job (the closer to six digits the better). So once he sees an attractive employer on I-Link (the career website) or at a career fair he immediately reaches out to them. He selects a pitch from his bag of instant-ready-to-use 30-second pitches and lashes out at the prospective employer. Since he is equipped with a generic one-size-fits-all resume and cover letter, he wastes no time in filling out an application. Once he clicks on the “submit application” icon, he takes a deep breath and hopes for luck. Yes, his luck shines and one of the ten companies he applied to invites him for an interview. He gets excited and can hardly think of any thing else but his interview with company X. He gets on the company’s website and studies the company’s financials and other key indices. He checks for the attributes the company is looking in prospective employees and convinces himself that he has all those attributes. Next, he tweaks his life’s stories in readiness for the behavioral interview and BAM!! He is ready for the interview. You know the rest of the story.

More often than not, people like Tyronne do not get past the first interview. Moreover recruiters have gotten smarter over time and most of them have learned to see through the “faking” shield. Besides, there are more authentic candidates out there for the recruiters to invest their time and resources on (that really hurts). In short, to get your target job you need to be more than qualified, you need to be the best applicant.  You need to “make it” happen.

The “make it” approach is really not about trying to impress the interviewer. It is about being the best person for the role. To start with, you are very clear about your career objectives. You have an idea of what your target companies are and you are clear about your target role. For instance if you are using the "make it" approach, you are convinced that after your MBA, you will like to be a Business Development Manager in a fortune 100 consumer goods company. Next, you compile the list of companies that fall into these category and you begin to research them. Upon researching the companies, you realize that only four of those companies are a great fit for you (that is, your skills, personality and experience). Thereafter you compare your strengths and weaknesses with the requirements for the job role in those right-fit companies. You then start working on improving on your weaknesses and building more experience that will be relevant to your target job role (I refer to this as the “breaking it” process). For example, if you would like to become a Business Development Manager in the consumer goods industry and you have no prior experience in that functional area or industry, you may consider joining IBC (or some other experiential learning platform) and working on projects that are similar to the type of work you would be engaged with in your future job role. Thus you will become more focused with your learning and have great stories to tell during interviews.

Thereafter, you start networking with professionals who are currently working on your job role. This is a more focused approach to networking. You are more concerned with learning from your connections than you are with getting interview slots. More so, you will grow through this process and become a more attractive job candidate. Ultimately, you will be able to write better resumes and cover letters and also land interviews (by levering your insider networks). Once you land the interview, the rest is history - preparation breeds room for performance. The other steps to “making it” are outlined in the “Fake it or Make it” framework (Please see the “Fake It/Make” Model in Fig 1 below”).

The framework was put together based on the lessons learned from people who went above and beyond to achieve their career aspirations. It is definitely not tamper-proof but applying the underlying principles will go a long way in improving your positioning with target employers, consequently increasing your chances of getting your target role.

In sum, if you “fake IT”, you really do not have IT, why not break the habIT and try to “make IT”.