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What’s important about a resume?

This is where your resume goes. I like to see the actual text of the resume on this page, and create a hyperlink to allow the reader to upload or print the document.

Rather than insert an actual or sample resume, I’d like to spend some time discussing the importance of a well written resume, and how it’s often used in the hiring process. As a senior hiring manager, I’ve seen a lot of bad and some good resumes. It’s important to note that these are my opinions, not absolute rules taken from the “how to write a resume” bible.

First, it’s important to realize that a resume will NOT get you a job. It’s really only a tool for reducing the pool of job applicants. Think of it this way – a hundred people apply for a job and all submit resumes. As a hiring manager or HR recruiter, I’m going to give each resume 5-15 seconds to sort them into two piles. About 90 of them will end up in the “nope” pile. The remaining 10 “maybes” get 1-3 minutes each to review. From those, I’m going to end up with 3 best candidates to bring in for an interview. Your resume serves only one function – to make sure you’re not one of the 97 who are eliminated in the first two rounds and get you an interview. Remember, at this point you haven’t even had a chance to meet someone to show them how good you are.

How does a resume become one of the first 90 rejects? Typos. Boring. Use of slang. Trying too hard to fit everything on one page with ¼” margins and 6 point font. A 10 page resume (although some career paths may require an exhaustive curriculum vitae or CV). Using acronyms that I don’t understand. Listing employment from 25 years ago. A personal pet peeve, although it won’t disqualify you, is writing “references available upon request” on the bottom. You wasted a line of text. What, if I asked for references and you didn’t write that on your resume, you wouldn’t provide me with your references? Just Google or Bing or Ask “resume mistakes” and you’ll find hundreds of traps to avoid.

You’ll notice that the last paragraph didn’t even list experiences and skills. If your resume is not clear and concise I may not even get to that step. It’s too easy for us to simply write a chronology of what we’ve done. What I want to see are results and actions. I want to be drawn in to an explanation of “I created value for my prior employers, and I can do it for you.” How did you make money for your past employers? How did you save them money? How did you rank in performance?  How efficient are you at your assigned tasks? How did you take initiative to make your boss’ job easier and make him/her look good?

Have friends and family review your resume and give you candid feedback. More importantly, ask strangers to look critically at your resume. You already have enough cheerleaders in your corner to tell you “this really looks great” – you need someone to brutally look at each word you’ve written and tell you what needs to be fixed before you become one of the 97 who don’t get the interview.

I always suggest that you customize your resume for each position you’re applying for if you’re submitting one for a specific job. That’s not as easy when you’re posting one on your website, where you may want to stick with a more generic version. If you’re applying for a program management position, however, make sure you highlight those areas more than your CPA experience. Take the time and effort to focus on those accomplishments, and certainly your objectives, that address the job you’re applying for.

Next, after you get the call and interview scheduled, that’s in our next discussion!

Here’s to a successful job search!