Write Your Resume for the Reader
Many
clients contact me because they have applied for a large number of jobs without
getting invited to an interview.Some people simply provide their current resume, saying something along the lines of “All the information you need is in the attached document”. If this is correct then either they don’t have the qualifications or experience required for this new position, or the information in their resume doesn’t really tell the reader what he/she needs to know. If you are not getting an interview, imagine that you are the recruiter trying to select the best applicants when you only have the information provided in possibly hundreds of resumes.
No Errors
It is highly unlikely that a resume with spelling mistakes and
grammatical errors will create a good impression. You should remember that a
resume is a summary, and whilst it is not written in the same way that you
would write a novel or magazine article, it should make sense and contain no
spelling errors. Hence, if the first paragraph in your resume states “I
am Computer Engineer working as a business analyst in the changing environment
of them” then you need someone from the Successful Resumes team to help you.
Demonstrate Qualities
Each job advertisement usually contains reference to the skills and
experience needed to work successfully in that role. If your resume shows the
reader how your experience and skills make you ideally suited to this position,
then they will want to meet you and obtain further information. However, it is
not sufficient to simply list your roles and responsibilities. You need to clearly
show the reader how you demonstrated these qualities during your
employment.
Highlight Relevant Skills
Most of the resumes people send to me show the name of their employer,
the title of their position in the company, and the length of time they were
employed in that position. Some of them go on for five or six pages listing all
the positions they have held during their working life. Think of the person
reading this document. Do you really believe they want to know the
responsibilities associated with your employment 10 or even 20 years ago? Your
higher order skills should be associated with your most recent employment,
and this is what you should emphasise.
Describe Skills
Some people quote from their position description when listing
responsibilities and miss an ideal opportunity to sell their skills. If
I read in a resume that a person had responsibility for “Identifying
opportunities for system improvements”, I immediately ask myself “How did he/she do this?” I believe
it would be better to say something like “Logged system failures, conducted
root cause analysis, prepared and implemented system improvements which reduced
maintenance calls by 10% during 2012”.
Specify Achievements
Specifying your achievements allows you to show how your skills and
experience make you better than the other applicants. It is better to nominate
two or three of the most significant achievements of your career, than try
to find achievements for every role you carried out. When a Business
Development Manager lists as an achievement “Implementation of promotional
activities” he/she is missing an ideal opportunity to impress. Perhaps it would
be better to think about the type of activities you implemented and how much new
business they generated. Depending on your experience, you may be able to write
something like “Conducted quarterly seminars for existing and potential
clients, and implemented third party sales incentives which resulted in a 15%
increase in revenue.” Think carefully about the achievements you nominate,
because you want them to showcase your outstanding qualities. Too many resumes
include achievements that read like a list of responsibilities. If it’s an
achievement to carry out your current responsibilities, then you are not ready
for a promotion.
Remember that whilst you know your strengths and how you have
contributed to the success of your company, the person reading your resume only
knows what you tell them. Make sure you provide the information that shows
how you stand out from the crowd. If you find it hard to market your skills
and experience in a resume, then you need to talk with one of the Successful Resumes team.
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