12

I have a phone but I very much seldom use it. I prefer the communication through email (which I had already included in my job resume).

Is that okay if I don't include a phone number in my job resume since phone is not the best way to contact me?

|improve this question
  • 3
    This is very much location dependant. In the UK, 95% of IT jobs go through recruitment agencies, and even if you do include your contact details they will remove them before forwarding your CV onto the client. My email address and phone number have not been on my CV for over 10 years – Matt Oct 20 '14 at 23:58
  • 2
    Is it OK with you if they don't contact you? – keshlam Oct 21 '14 at 5:49
21

Should I include my phone

Even if seldom used and your preference is email, you also have to consider the preference of others. I personally prefer to contact people by phone then in person. (you can't get a good read on a person's personality via email.)

That said, I'd probably just skip past your resume since I get applications by the dozen. Now if you were one of only a few I received I might email you asking for a phone number, but honestly it'll hurt your odds of consideration.

What if I prefer Email?

You can specifically mark email as preferred, but offer the phone as backup. If you REALLY want to only be contacted by email, by all means you can omit it, but it could potentially cost you opportunities with those who do not prefer email.

|improve this answer
  • 1
    I hope on your job postings you emphasis the phone number requirement. – user8365 Oct 20 '14 at 21:14
  • 1
    @JeffO - Other than "potential applicants will be contacted by phone for interviews" I don't think it should be an explicit 'requirement' per se. – Robotnik Oct 21 '14 at 0:29
  • Well, /proffered/ is clearly a typo for /preferred/, but I'm not sure about /then/. Do you mean "I prefer to contact people by phone first, and then in person second" or do you mean "I find it preferable to contact people by phone than to contact them in person"? – TRiG Oct 21 '14 at 1:44
  • 6
    By the way, I strongly suspect that your hiring practices count as discrimination against deaf people. You should probably reconsider that. – TRiG Oct 21 '14 at 1:45
  • 1
    There are many ways for deaf people to access phone systems, at least in the US, and I would suspect in many other countries. – ZAD-Man Oct 21 '14 at 16:42
6

I'm thinking a little out of the box here, but why not sign up for a Google Voice account or something similar, and list that number on your resume? I see a couple of advantages to this:

  1. You can route the Google Voice voicemail notification to your email
  2. You limit the spread of your "real" phone number and can more or less ensure that any calls to the Google Voice number are related to your resume

This is kind of a "best of both worlds" approach that satisfies RualStorge's concern about omitting the phone number. I have done this in previous job searches and it has worked out very well.

If you decide to do it this way, be sure and put a professional voice mail message on your Google Voice account.

|improve this answer
  • 1
    +1 Even if Google Voice is not available to you there are many VoIP-to-phone services that offer disposable numbers and redirecting capabilities. – rath Apr 20 '16 at 10:41

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service, privacy policy and cookie policy

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.