It seems like the ski season has only just finished but here we are in the middle of Summer (we’ll just ignore the temperamental UK weather) and we’re well into preparing for another year. It was great to see so many familiar faces and meet some new ones too. We hope that all of you who joined us for a Snowbizz holiday this season had a great time and are already looking forward to the next one!
Currently I’m in the midst of sifting through lots of applicants and trying to find the very best ones to make sure your holiday is a memorable one. Although we are one of the smaller tour operators we still get hundreds of applicants. It can be quite a time consuming job, but when you find a really good applicant it’s so exciting as you want to snap them up before any of our competitors get the chance to even get a whiff of their application.
Before taking on the Snowbizz recruitment I thought I had quite a good idea of what a cover letter and CV should look like – oh how wrong I was. I’ve learnt a lot over the years about what looks good to an employer and what can just put you off instantly. So I thought I would compile a list of top tips to help those applying for season jobs.
It’s the small things that count
The Application Form
- Until you are offered the job you should keep your emails as professionally worded as possible. When your employer adopts a more casual note that’s your cue to respond accordingly.
- Please and thank you seem to escape the vocabulary of many applicants. If you can’t be polite in an email to a potential employer, then what will you be like when speaking to guests!
- When you’re filling in your application ask someone to read over it to look for spelling mistakes and grammatical errors. One or two can be forgotten but lots of mistakes can look careless.
- If you make a couple of mistakes don’t just scribble them out!! Print out the piece of paper again and re write it. Big black scribble marks again looks like you’ve not taken care of your application.
- A cover letter is great! We’re not asking you to write an essay but something short and sweet and of course polite goes a long way. It actually surprises me the amount of people who don’t bother, so when I do get one it instantly stands out.
- Make up marks, tea stains and a shoe print should be probably not be on your application. Yes people really have sent them looking that scruffy!
- Remember you’re up against lots of people for one job – try and stand out and show us your personality whilst remaining professional. Don’t try too hard though – we’re not looking for the next Michael McIntyre.
- I know it’s difficult but try not to use the same phrases that everyone uses! It seems a lot of people are hard working, bubbly and like meeting new people.
The Interview
- Just like with the initial application try and be as polite as possible.
- Shake the nerves –even the interviewer has been the interviewee before so don’t worry!
- This is your time to shine and show us your personality and show us why you’re the one for us. Before an interview write down everything you want your interviewer to know about you and read it through a couple of times so it’s in your head.
- Don’t be pushy and interrupt the interviewer – you have plenty of time to tell us everything.
- There is such a thing as being too honest – you’ll be surprised at how often people reveal a little bit too much about themselves.
Some of the above points might seem like we’re overly scrutinising applicants but remember we get lots of applicants for only a handful of jobs. Most tour operators will ask for an online application but we prefer to ask for a hand written copy as you can tell so much. Remember when you send your application, cover letter and CV we only have what you’ve written to go off of so all these little things help make you stand out. If we ask you for an interview this means we obviously see something in you and think you could be a good fit with Snowbizz, so be confident.
Each ski tour operator looks for something different but as we only have a small team we’re looking for someone really special. Regardless of the job role you’re applying for you must have a real passion or talent for working with children. Each set of guests are as important as the next and it’s your job to make sure the whole family have a fantastic and memorable holiday. We need people who are ready to go the extra mile and who can still have a big smile on their face after a long day.
No matter who you’re working for, a ski season is a great experience and will introduce you to new friends and give you long lasting memories. If you’re thinking about doing a season – DO IT! You won’t regret it.
If you think you could be the right fit for Snowbizz please email me at elodielyotier@snowbizz.co.uk for more info.