English spelling and grammar hampering your job search?

Is your command of English hampering your job search?

by Sharon Graham. Filed under: $100k+ Job Seekers.

70% of six-figure Canadian resumes have several spelling and grammatical errors.

According to a landmark research study conducted by Graham Management Group (GMG), many professionals are not performing adequate due diligence to ensure that they are presenting impeccable documents. GMG evaluated 1000 resumes received from six-figure candidates over a period of one year and found that an astounding 70% of the documents have several errors in spelling and/or grammar.

The GMG study found that most individuals miss important factors such as uniformity in currency and numerals, correctly identifying idioms, applying serial commas consistently, employing active language, and utilizing modifiers correctly.

If you make a spelling mistake on your resume, do you think a potential employer will give you an interview? Think again. In a separate recent study by Accountemps, an independent research firm found that 40% of North American executives evaluating candidates for a position would eliminate an individual from consideration if they found even one typo in the associated resume; 76% said that more than one typo would disqualify the applicant completely.

If you are asking for a six-figure compensation package, then most Canadian employers expect that you have an impeccable command of written and spoken English. If you show them otherwise, they may discard your resume before you have even had a chance to speak with them.

Canadian spelling and grammar is especially tricky to master if you have not had exposure to the language. There are subtle differences between Canadian English and other versions.

If you are new to Canada, you might want to start by reading this post: Oh Canada You Have a Way with Words

If you are considering targeting positions in Canada, it is imperative that you supply recruiters and hiring managers with a resume that is free of errors. However, everyone makes mistakes. If you wrote your own resume, then you are probably so close to your own work that you don’t even see your errors. It is in your best interest to engage a professional with in-depth expertise in Canadian English to proofread and edit the document. Your flawless resume will be the hit of the job search circuit.

DOWNLOAD THE FULL GMG REPORT HERE: http://www.grahammanagement.com/ResumeResearch2010.xpg