My name is Ryan Graves and I’m a Staffing Consultant for Office Business Platforms, which is part of Microsoft Business Division.

I enjoy working with the product groups I recruit for, but I love working with candidates. It’s fulfilling to provide a great interview experience, and better yet, an offer!

Outside of recruiting for Microsoft, I’m a typical city guy. I often spend time out and about in Seattle with friends -- and of course -- looking for ways to use our Prime card discount at local restaurants and attractions! I’m pretty good at Rock Band 2 and enjoy a handful of PC strategy games. When I’m on vacation, you can usually find me either on a beach or at a Disney theme park.

If the posts below leave you wanting more, be sure to check out my own blog where I post everything from recruiting tips to news about Microsoft.

Coming off the heels of the launch of the new Bing Entertainment feature, we're excited to kick off a music-themed summer with an East and West coast concert series, chances to win tickets to private shows and a Lady Gaga fan search contest.

First let's talk Gaga. In honor of the 40th Anniversary of  America's Top 40, we're teaming up with Stubhub and Ryan Seacrest to launch the Lady Gaga Superfan Search. To enter, upload your best Lady Gaga Superfan photo showing your most fierce Lady Gaga fashion.  The winner will receive the ultimate Lady Gaga prize package – round-trip travel and tickets to one of her shows either in Miami, New York, Las Vegas, or Lollapallooza in Chicago. Go to Bing.com/gaga to learn more details and get inspiration from Bing Visual Search and Bing Video; sample Lady Gaga music; read the latest news on Bing Music; and check out what the social sphere is saying about Lady Gaga.

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Following my last articles about interviewing at Microsoft (read:Part 1, Part 2, Part 3), many of you asked for some pointers about how to get noticed by a recruiter or how to get your foot in the door at Microsoft. I didn’t respond with a post on the topics because I had already done an interview with The Seattle Times back in April and knew there would be a story was coming out.

Take a look through the article "Online presence helps companies such as Amazon, Expedia and Microsoft notice you" and gain some insight from myself and other recruiters in the industry as well.

I’ll look forward to hearing your specific questions after you read the article. 

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Our very own Ryan Graves was interviewed on KUOW 94.9 (the National Public Radio affiliate radio station in Seattle and the most listened-to news station in Washington State) last Friday.

Host Ross Reynolds, of the popular program The Conversation, looked to Ryan to provide a recruiter’s perspective on how to find a job in this economy.

Reynolds previewed the show as, "In this tight job market, people are competing with many well qualified applicants for every job. How can you make your resume standout? If you get the job interview, what can you do to make a positive impression? Microsoft staffing consultant Ryan Graves joins us to offer advice. Have you ever totally blown an interview, or been appalled at an interviewee? Tell us about it."

Ryan - as always - had a ton of insight and great ideas. Check out the interview here. You might just learn something.

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Read Part One: How to prepare and what to expect here.
Read Part Two: The anatomy of the big day here.

Based on some of the comments we’ve seen, as well as your prior questions to the JobsBloggers, I suspect this may be one of the more popular segments in the three part series. I’ve tried to think of the various things I bring up when preparing candidates for the interview at Microsoft. If there are other things you’re curious about, please ask in the comments section and I’ll do my best to answer them.
 
Nerves
Interviewing can be nerve wracking. I’ll share with you some insight I received on being nervous from a facilitation training program I’ve taken. “You’ll either be nervous, or you won’t.” To expand on that, if you’re nervous during an interview, that’s ok! It’s expected even. I find that beating myself up for being nervous, or trying not to be nervous, makes it worse.  If you notice you’re nervous…  great… notice it and move on. You can answer questions, and be nervous at the same time. If you start to worry about being nervous, instead of focusing on what the interviewer is asking, things could go downhill. So remember… you’ll either be nervous, or you won’t.

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Read Part One: How to prepare and what to expect here.
Read Part Three: Question and answer game plan here.

Now that you’re prepped and rested, you’re ready for the big day!

First thing’s first
Not to sound like your mother, but  – even if you’re not a breakfast person (like me) – make sure to eat something before you start your day. You will likely have a chance to refuel at a lunch interview, but it’s important to be at your best during the morning sessions. Being hungry and anxious for lunchtime can distract you from your interviews and affect your performance.

For all you coffee drinkers (myself included), be mindful about how much caffeine you have. I find that if I need to do a presentation or something similar, the more coffee I have – the more anxious I get, and it impacts my confidence level.

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Read Part Two: The anatomy of the big day here.
Read Part Three: Question and answer game plan here.

No matter if you are just out of college or an experienced professional, your upcoming interview at Microsoft is bound to conjure all sorts of emotions. Most candidates are excited, nervous, anxious, ecstatic or some combination of all of the above.

Regardless of what you might be feeling, this three-part article is intended to help you prepare for your interview. It will give you a sense of what to expect on the day of the interview, as well as some hints and tips to help you be successful.

Part 1: Preparation and the day before your interview...

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It’s no secret that there are a lot of people out of work these days. What you may not have known is that the national unemployment rate has a direct effect on everyone looking for a job.

Companies are inundated with resumes, many from people who aren’t necessarily qualified for—or even interested in—the position for which they’re applying. This has been not only my personal experience, but I’ve also heard similar reports from many of my peers regarding the sheer volume of resumes landing in our inboxes.

So how do you highlight the right skills on your resume to stand out, especially given the current quantity of resumes recruiters are sifting through? 

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My mom recently asked me to review her resume, and so did some of her friends (one of the joys of being a recruiter). These are all very accomplished healthcare executives, but their resumes lacked the pow that I find in resumes of candidates I usually choose to move forward with. It wasn’t because they weren’t stellar professionals, but because they didn’t present their skills in the most advantageous way.

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People interested in working at Microsoft often contact me (and other recruiters, I’m sure) through LinkedIn. For me, this and other social networking sites are a great way for recruiters and candidates to connect, and I’ve made some great hires for Microsoft by using LinkedIn.

But when you reach out to recruiters online, it’s not the same as adding old high school friends on Facebook. Here are some tips for contacting recruiters on social networking sites:

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Dear JobsBlog: Would you recommend I tailor my resume when applying for a job? Does this help or hinder my chances of getting the position?

-Resume Riled

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