cover letter help, please--internal position

[Anonymous]

I work part-time for a smallish division of a mid-sized company. Within my division of the company, there are a handful of departments, each of which has a few full-time and part-time employees. I had expressed interest in transitioning to full-time if it were ever a possibility, and recently, the supervisor of my department let me know that a full-time position was being posted. He even said that he (my supervisor) and the supervisor of another department (for which I've done some work here and there) had collaborated on the job description with me in mind, splitting my time between the two departments. And that the head of the overall division was part of the conversation when they were crafting the job description. I was thrilled! But now I'm writing my cover letter and I've kind of psyched myself out. I believe the main decision makers are the two supervisors who specifically want me for the job as well as the head of the division (who doesn't know me very well, just knows the other supervisors want me on board full-time). But the decision also has to be approved by the CEO of the whole company, who barely knows me at all and can have unanticipated opinions on things that are presumed to be settled. I'm worried that something in my cover letter or resume will rub the CEO the wrong way, or I'll leave out something important, or a more interesting outside candidate will catch their eye, and I'll snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. Now that I've typed all this out, I guess the simple answer is that I write the cover letter as though I'm convincing the CEO that I'm the very best candidate for the job? It's almost the same work I'm doing now (same title, even) but with more regular responsibilities in the second department and likely more leadership on projects within my department. Anything that I should be sure to include (or sure to avoid)?

Any tips or dos/don'ts about applying internally are much appreciated! I really, really, really want this position.

[Anonymous]

Is this question about addressing the cover letter? You address it to the hiring official, which sounds like your supervisor, and not to the CEO even if the CEO approves the decision. I would think the content would be the same, regardless -- why you would be excellent for the job. Part of the reason is that you already do the job, and you're excited to do more of it.

Don't worry about other candidates or quirky reactions, just write the strongest professional application you can.

Honestly, though, it doesn't sound like you've talked to your supervisor about this move in any detail. I have worked in places where an internal move "has to be" posted instead of just agreed to internally, but even in those cases the supervisor has sat down with the employee and talked about how everything would work, why the move makes sense, etc. Have you done this with your boss? What is your boss's goal here? These decisions feel very personal but they usually are not: your boss has some business objective he's trying to fill, other than getting you more hours, so figure out what that is and write to it.

[Anonymous]

Some bosses are sticklers for protocol and won't want to talk about the job until the final hiring decision has been made.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Is this question about addressing the cover letter? You address it to the hiring official, which sounds like your supervisor, and not to the CEO even if the CEO approves the decision. I would think the content would be the same, regardless -- why you would be excellent for the job. Part of the reason is that you already do the job, and you're excited to do more of it.

Don't worry about other candidates or quirky reactions, just write the strongest professional application you can.

Honestly, though, it doesn't sound like you've talked to your supervisor about this move in any detail. I have worked in places where an internal move "has to be" posted instead of just agreed to internally, but even in those cases the supervisor has sat down with the employee and talked about how everything would work, why the move makes sense, etc. Have you done this with your boss? What is your boss's goal here? These decisions feel very personal but they usually are not: your boss has some business objective he's trying to fill, other than getting you more hours, so figure out what that is and write to it.

Thank you! We did have a conversation in which we talked through some of my questions and clarified expectations for the new position, and I left that conversation thinking it was basically a done deal and the application was a formality, but then the more I thought about it (and considered the other parties involved) the more I realized that it would be a huge mistake to assume the job was mine if I was willing to take it. I appreciate this advice; thank you again.