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How to Start a Delivery Driver Career in the Modern Economy

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Thanks to eCommerce and the seemingly permanent shift towards the gig economy, delivery drivers, couriers, and truck drivers are in high demand. While you can become a delivery driver through a rideshare program, you can also take the traditional route for more opportunities.

What Does a Delivery Driver Do?

Delivery drivers are responsible for transporting goods by truck, van, or car. They re responsible for verifying shipments, inspecting their vehicles, loading goods, and ensuring their products arrive at their destination safely. Delivery drivers may have to install furniture or appliances.

Besides transporting goods, delivery drivers are also responsible for maintaining accurate mileage, fuel costs, and delivery records. Depending on the company, delivery drivers will have to communicate with the buyer or central dispatch to schedule delivery times and locations.

What Skills and Qualifications Do Delivery Drivers Need?

To learn how delivery drivers make money, we have to look at the necessary skills couriers need to be successful. Here s a brief overview of what employers look for in potential drivers:

  • A secondary school diploma.
  • A valid driver’s license for the type of vehicle needed.
  • A clean driving record for the last 12 months, but 24 months may be required.
  • A clean criminal record (some states allow for non-car-related misdemeanors).
  • Certifications to handle dangerous goods, like WHMIS, if applicable.
  • Certifications to handle long-form transportation of perishables, if applicable.
  • A valid passport for international deliveries if applicable.

As a rule, international truck drivers make more money than national truck drivers, and government-owned services, like the post office, offer better benefits than private companies. 

It s crucial that you look up the individual requirements for each delivery job you apply for to ensure you have all the recommended licenses and certifications. Some businesses will train you onsight or pay for certificate-based training if you re experienced and trustworthy. 

How to Start Your Career as a Delivery Driver

No formal training or education is required for a standard Delivery Drivers career, but you ll likely have to experience a lot of mental and physical stress. You ll have to keep up with scheduled delivery times where possible, meet quotas, and speak with home and business owners.

To ensure you re the right fit for your new role, it s recommended that you are:

  • Physically Fit: You must lift heavy objects up to 50lbs and walk several miles daily.
  • A Good Driver: You re representing a company, so you can t make mistakes. Do you signal when you turn? Do you come to a complete stop at stop signs?
  • Timely: You ll have to meet daily deadlines without sacrificing your efficiency.
  • Flexible: You may need to change your route or schedule at a moment’s notice.
  • Organized: You ll have to keep to ever-changing calendars and appointments.
  • Friendly: You ll interact with strangers and co-workers throughout your shift.

Experience isn t required for most delivery driver roles, but you re more likely to get hired if you ve worked for another company in the past, whether it s Uber or an employer. 

When writing your resume, it s important that you highlight your skills in:

  • Driving and adjusting to new state road laws.
  • Loading and unloading products in a timely manner.
  • Inspecting your truck/car/van thoroughly.
  • Writing detailed records for fuel and deliveries.
  • Collecting payments and signatures.
  • Assembling appliances and furniture at the time of delivery.
  • Delivering items to the correct location on time.
  • Safety for both the items on board and the other drivers on the road.

Delivery drivers typically make $20 an hour or $38,400 a year, but you have the opportunity to make more if they need a special license to drive a vehicle. Applicants can apply online or at post offices, grocery stores, warehouses, courier services, and most manufacturing plants. 

The post How to Start a Delivery Driver Career in the Modern Economy appeared first on Jobacle.com.

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How To Stand Out To Employers When Applying Online
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How To Stand Out To Employers When Applying Online

In this day and age, it’s crucial to stand out during your job search. Otherwise, your resume gets buried—unread and unnoticed. This is a common problem for job seekers. So, how can you stand out from the competition when applying online?

Here’s what some of our career experts say you can do to catch the eye of employers in your job search:

Research The Company

Woman researches a company before applying for a job online

“Learn everything you can about the company,” says Bud Bilanich, author of Climbing The Corporate Ladder. “Tailor your resume to show what you know about them and their industry. And, more importantly, use keywords and list skills in your resume that will catch the recruiter’s attention.”

For example, if the job application says they are looking for a “self-starter,” make sure you put the words self-starter somewhere near the top of your resume. “Sounds corny,” he says, “but it works.”

Create An Online Presence

Man creates a professional portfolio to stand out when applying for jobs online

Rachel Dotson of ZipRecruiter suggests creating an about.me profile, complete with links to your various social and professional profiles online. Include the link in your resume alongside your name and contact information (at least add a link to your LinkedIn profile!), and also include it under your signature in your cover letter. If you have a professional portfolio, make sure you include that as well.

“Because your resume will likely be viewed on the computer,” she says, “it will be easy for the hiring manager to click through to your about.me page, where he or she can then browse your online presence.”

Beat The ATS

“Before you can stand out to the employer, you have to stand out to the applicant tracking software,” says Kristin Johnson of Profession Direction. “There’s a real art to getting your resume noticed in today’s technological job hunt.” Johnson says you MUST read the job description and include key terms on your resume. If you don’t include the right keywords on your resume, it’ll get tossed by the ATS, and it most likely won’t even get read by a human being.

The resume needs to be in a format that the software can read too. “It takes some time, but that’s the way the system works,” she says. “If your resume doesn’t show you’re a match for the job to the ATS, you’re not going to get a call because you won’t stand out to the employer.”

In order to stand out when applying for a job online, you need to research the company before you apply, create an online presence, and beat the ATS. If you consistently do these three things in your job search, you’ll be sure to stand out to employers, no matter your industry or work experience.

Need more help with your job search?

We’d love it if you signed up for Work It Daily’s Event Subscription! Get your career questions answered in our next live event!

This article was originally published at an earlier date.

How Important Is Up-To-Date System Documentation?
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How Important Is Up-To-Date System Documentation?

Your organization bought an expensive enterprise resource planning (ERP) system, and it came with a comprehensive set of documentation including user manuals, training materials, and technical guides. You utilized the documentation and successfully implemented the system, but how much have you used the documentation since then?

Technology is an investment. You want to maximize the use of the system, including that the system’s operations are consistent and reliable. You regularly update the system for upgrades and patches. It’s crucial to make sure your corresponding documentation is up to date because it enables employees to be knowledgeable about the updated system.

Documentation captures critical information preserving that knowledge and making it available to all appropriate individuals. If only a few specific individuals know how the system works, what happens when they get sick, go on vacation, or resign? The solution is to make sure the information is written down and to document that knowledge.

User-Related Documentation

User documentation supports onboarding and training to ensure employees know how to properly use the system. This allows employees to get familiar with the system so that they can leverage it effectively. User manuals provide end users with guidelines including step-by-step instructions on how to use the system. Security roles identify what the staff can/can’t do versus what requires a supervisor to override. If you’ve added a module, make sure you add the new feature/functionality details so that the documents aren’t incomplete or missing information.

Training materials (e.g., instructor/student manuals, cheat sheets) are used to train both new and existing employees poised for promotions and transfers. Training materials can be used for scheduled training classes or for train-the-trainer scenarios wherein designated trainers (department super users or subject matter experts) train the rest of the organization.

If the documentation isn’t up to date, it can confuse or make it difficult for end users to properly use the system. Allow users to submit feedback (e.g., via a service ticket) regarding documentation such as unclear steps, incorrect screen print, or missing information.

IT-Related Documentation

For the IT staff, documentation serves as a reference for how the system is intended to be used. This includes system setup/configuration, system maintenance, as well as troubleshooting.

Many organizations operate 24/7 so it’s crucial that the IT staff be able to minimize any downtime. Some key documents are:

1. System architecture documents – provide an overview of the system components and interfaces that are interconnected. If you need to migrate your environment from on premises to the cloud, having current architecture documents can minimize the uncertainty of what components you have and how they’re connected.

2. Data-related documents (e.g., data dictionaries and data flow diagrams) – document the data structures. If a table is dropped, do you know which processes including reports will be affected?

3. System maintenance documents – did the upgrade affect the patching process? Does the nightly processing schedule need to be updated? Or any of the backup schedules (daily, monthly, quarterly, etc.)?

4. Troubleshooting documents – guidance on diagnosing and resolving common technical issues. When you upgraded the database version, did you become familiar with the new system messages and codes in advance?

When the system has been changed, make sure the documentation has been updated to reflect those changes. You can use a date stamp in the footer and turn on versioning to identify when the documentation was last updated.

Also, don’t forget to update the disaster recovery and business continuity documents. In the event of a disaster, you want to ensure the organization can minimize any business disruption. It can be chaotic when a disaster occurs, and up-to-date documentation can reduce stress, especially for employees filling in for absent employees.

For more information on the importance of keeping system documentation up to date, follow me on LinkedIn!

6 Ways To Be Interesting During Your Interview
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6 Ways To Be Interesting During Your Interview

Congratulations, you’ve scored the interview! But, now what? You’re going to do your homework to research the company, practice your elevator pitch, and pick up your suit from the dry cleaners…exactly like your competition.

Getting an interview is a huge hurdle to clear and a wonderful sign that you’re on the right track with your job search efforts. Now it’s time to shift your focus to becoming a rock star candidate.

Approach your interview with the expectation that your competition is equally qualified. Having the skills and wanting the job badly isn’t going to cut it in today’s market. You need to figure out specific ways to stand out and be interesting.

Here are some strategies to do exactly that…

1. Get Your Interviewer Talking​

Hiring manager answers interesting question from a job candidate during an interview

We know that the more you make me talk, the more interesting I’ll think you are. Humans are funny like that. Use this knowledge to your advantage, and immediately engage all the people you meet in conversation—about themselves.

Whether it’s the receptionist, the HR manager, or your future boss, ask people questions about themselves, and do as much as you can to draw them out. At the end of your interview, they’ll have a much more positive impression of you.

2. Be Prepared With Interesting Questions

Woman tries to be interesting during a job interview

Don’t ask the same old, tired questions as every other candidate. You can combine this strategy with the one above and ask your interviewer about his or her experience at the company or perspective about a hot new product or service.

You can also use this as an opportunity to flex your creative powers and ask questions that show you’ve not only done your homework and research on the company (and the people who work there) but that you went above and beyond to create solutions for the problems they’re facing.

3. Be Prepared With Interesting Answers

Man tries to be interesting during a job interview

Most people will answer situational and behavioral interview questions with straightforward examples from their career. It is very important to do this in your job interview, and highlight the results you’ve achieved on the job. But the truth is, employers hire for three things: personality, aptitude, and experience—in that order. You need to let your personality shine through in the job interview in some way to show that you fit in with the company culture.

Differentiate yourself by being prepared to share stories from other areas of your life that are equally impressive. Did you survive a solo ride on your motorcycle to the Arctic Circle? Create a hip-hop website that gets hundreds of thousands of unique visitors per month? Start a non-profit to save a historic building in your hometown? Share those tales in ways that highlight your problem-solving skills, intrinsic motivation, and unique experience (and always relate it back to the job opportunity).

4. Show Off Your Style

Hiring manager looks at interesting job candidate during an interview

Conventional wisdom says you should stick to neutral, conservative styles for your interview appearance. In general, it is best to go with classic suits and subtle accessories. But if you’re the type of person who normally has some artistic flair to your look, you don’t need to stifle it completely.

Choose one or two ways to let that style and personality shine through—a bright accessory, unique jewelry, or moderately funky hair. As long as you look professional, it’s okay to have an accent.

5. Create A 30-60-90 Day Plan

Hiring manager refers to a resume from an interesting job candidate

When preparing for your interview, create an overview of how you plan to tackle your first 30, 60, and 90 days on the new job. This is called a 30-60-90 day plan, and it never fails to impress hiring managers.

If you’ve done your research on the company and position, you’ll have a sense of what kind of strategy you’d employ to start adding value right away. Write it down on a page or two, and pull it out at the end of the interview to leave behind as a form of marketing collateral for you, a business-of-one.

6. Mind Your Body Language: Mirroring & Power Poses

Interesting job candidate shakes hands with the hiring manager after an interview

Interviews are stressful, and it’s easy to get tense and physically awkward. Pay attention to your interviewer’s body language and do your best to mirror it. Mirroring tends to disarm people and make them feel more comfortable with you.

To really impress them, use power poses immediately before your interview, in private, and avoid weak poses at all costs. Everyone’s subconscious will perceive you in a more flattering, confident light.

What have you done to be interesting in job interviews? Are there techniques that you’ve found to be particularly successful? If you think you need to work on being more interesting in job interviews, try one or more of these tips during your next job search to stand out from the competition!

Need more help with your job search?

We’d love it if you signed up for Work It Daily’s Event Subscription! Get your career questions answered in our next live event!

This article was originally published at an earlier date.