Eighty-six percent of executives say that cover letters are valuable when evaluating job candidates, according to a survey by the staffing firm OfficeTeam.
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Download NowThe survey found that 23 percent of respondents said the cover letter is very valuable in evaluating a prospective job candidate. Another 63 percent said that the cover letter is somewhat valuable. Fourteen percent said the cover letter is not valuable at all.
Eighty percent of respondents said it is common to receive electronic resumes accompanied by cover letters. Thirty-seven percent of respondents said it was very common, and 43 percent said it was somewhat common.
"Submitting a resume without a cover letter is like not shaking hands when meeting someone for the first time," said Dave Willmer, executive director of OfficeTeam. "Those who aren't including cover letters with their resumes are missing an opportunity to make a good first impression and set themselves apart from other job applicants."
The survey included 150 senior executives from the largest companies in the United States.