Career Services in Coda! [Katie Rivard]

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Career Services in Coda! [Katie Rivard]

Portfolio Improvements

Lesson: Creating a Company or Job Specific Portfolio Page

10 minute read

Standing out from the crowd takes more than a slick portfolio and a nice cover letter. Hiring managers love to see when designers go the extra mile for a job they really want.

Although you’re applying to several jobs per week, it’s essential to take enough time to tailor your cover letter to each position, and wherever possible, address it directly to the person who will be reading it. If you use a cookie-cutter version for every job you apply for, hiring managers will recognize this, and file your application with the hundreds of others not receiving callbacks.

Remember, hiring managers are likely to be strongly influenced by first impressions. And one way to get closer to that callback is to ensure that their first impression of you is unforgettable.

A while back, creative director Dan Mall

published an article⁠

about how designers can make the callback pile of portfolios more easily. Using this approach will help companies recognize your talent, comprehension of the job requirements, and desire to join their teams. The best thing about this solution? It won’t take too much additional time!

Mall discusses the concept of building job- or company-specific pages within your portfolio to directly target the requirements asked of the position you’re seeking. By clearly articulating how you can fulfill the duties of the role for a company while sharing work that pertains to its industry, focus, or mission, a hiring manager can envision you taking on the position with ease and confidence.

Much like Mall’s article, the company Basecamp (formerly 37signals) had many candidates apply using the

same technique⁠

. They successfully got Basecamp’s attention, and later led to jobs.

⁠

These company- or job-specific portfolio pages typically contain strong storytelling methods that discuss items, such as:

Who you are and what led you here

Why you would be a perfect fit for the role

Why you’re applying to this position

What you love about the company

Why the work you’ve done fits what the company is trying to achieve

How your previous experience can influence people or decisions at the company

Think of these pages as proposals to potential clients. Much like a proposal, you’re selling yourself on, explaining why you’d be great to work on a project. Except in this instance, the “project” is a role on their team. Enable the company to get to know you better through your storytelling. Paint a clear picture of what you bring to the table, and leave them in no doubt about why you would be the best person for the job. Make your story compelling and interesting. Showcase work that is relevant. Really sell the reasons why you should be the only person they interview and then hire.

When creating these job-specific pages, do some research about who you should be targeting your messages towards. Find out who the team lead and hiring manager are, so that you can directly address their needs in the story you present. Discover more about the projects or products you’ll be engaged with, and figure out how you might go about approaching the work. Talk about collaboration, teamwork, and promoting product quality through your individual contribution.

While these pages aren’t by any means a guarantee of landing a role, they do go a long way in flattering hiring managers. And the more of them you create, the better your narrative will get. Even if these pages don’t immediately lead to a position, it will help them remember you when they next have a design role open up.

Each job you apply for will require a slightly different mix of skills, and will serve different markets. It’s essential that your applications reflect and address what’s unique about each role. By crafting these job- or company-specific pages, it shows you’ve taken the time to read the job description, that you understand what would be expected of you if you are hired, and that you’re willing to put in the extra work for something you’re passionate about.

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