Polish Your Resume
The Kiplinger publication had a relevant article about resumes – http://www.kiplinger.com/features/archives/2005/01/resume.html – although somewhat dated, it contains pertinent information.
An overview: Its time to give your résumé a major makeover – necessary to be prepared if you’re suddenly laid off, a headhunter contacts you or you see an ad for the job of your dreams. And if you have just completed a performance review and your accomplishments are fresh in your mind, the timing couldn’t be better.
Summary of the article:
- Create an e-mail résumé
- Include critical words
- Skip the objective
- Let your past promote you
- Weed out old jobs.
- Create a new résumé for each job
- Get personal
Other Thoughts about the Resume
The resumé is the first impression you will make with your future employer; so make it as professional as possible. You resumé, either formatted as chronological, functional, targeted or executive summary, is important and here is why:
• A professional resumé, one that will get you past the first cut, will look simple, neat and straightforward. Caveat: It just takes a lot of work to get there.
• Put yourself in the position of the hiring manager, the recruiter… look at your resumé and ask, “Would I hire this person?“ Be painfully honest with yourself.
• At the top of the first page your name, address and contact information are important. Make sure your telephone number is on all correspondence. Graphics and your picture are not.
• Use the job title as shown on the job advertisement – as well as the classification or reference number. This ensures, but never guarantees, that your resumé will put in the correct “In” box.
• Use the same language in your resumé as the company used in their announcement. Whether scanned by a real person or by computer, these key words will open the door and get you past the first cut.
• Use bright white paper; 103+ brightness in a 20- or 24-lb stock is perfect. Do not use grays, tans, pastels or anything else. Never use pink. Stay away from “fancy” and “cute.”
• Use the font of Times New Roman or Arial with a point of 10- or 12-point, and be consistent throughout your resumé and correspondence.
• Do not put falsehoods on the resume – it will be checked, so do not do it.
• Follow the KISS axiom – Keep It Short and Simple. Resumés should be no more than one page. Use one-inch margins
• Your career objective must be company orientated. As a potential employer, would you rather read “I am looking for a position that…” or “I bring to your organization proven professional experience…”? Employers only care if you can do the job.
• Go back only 10 or 15 years in listing your experience; anything older is outdated. Your college education, professional designations and awards are all important. (without dates)
• Include hard facts and action verbs, not fluff. Do not elaborate on what was expected of you but, rather, include your successes and achievements. Be positive and assertive.
• Proofread! to find misspellings and poor grammar (and a negative tone). If you can, have someone else proof your work.