Ten Tips For an Effective Resume

A thoughtful, carefully constructed resume, using information you have obtained through research about a specific company and industry, does more than ensure that you get an opportunity to interview. It also prepares you for the interview and will contribute to your ability to effectively make a case for hiring you allowing you to close the deal! Each resume should be tailored to the job you are applying for. Using broad or generic resumes may (by luck) get you an interview, but they will not prepare you for answering tough or specific questions when you get there.

1. GET THE EMPLOYER'S ATTENTION. The easiest way to get an employer’s attention is to include the exact skills they have requested in their job announcement in your summary. The use of key words at the very beginning of a resume will capture the employer’s attention. Conversely, using a variety of skills that are unrelated to the position will detract from your value, not add to it. Using their specific words will ensure you get their attention. This is not the time to get creative by using other language. Tagging hard (technical) skills on at the end of the resume may work for recruiters’ electronic searches, but when the recipient/screener is actually reading your resume, it may cause the most important skills to be overlooked.

2. CLEARLY STATE YOUR SKILLS. Having the right hard skills will determine if the employer will read further. Soft skills are important, but very difficult to measure/prove. In many cases, it is assumed you have the related soft skills, until they learn otherwise. Typically, soft skills can only really be determined with proof (quantifiable results) or when the employer actually meets you. The employer will determine more evidence of the level of your soft skills when they speak with you, meet you or ask your references about you.

3. SUPPORT YOUR CLAIMS WITH FACTS. If you have stated a skill in the summary portion of your resume, then it needs to be supported by an example of your related accomplishment in the experience portion, whether you are using a functional or chronological resume format. Describing a specific incident, event, work experience or project will show evidence or “prove” you have a specific skill. Fancy language may appear engaging, but for the discerning decision maker, it does not take the place of facts. Facts sell. Using concrete examples in your resume will also prepare you for your interview. Using vague statements may get you in the door, but at some point, you will have to come up with specifics to make it real. Better to do it now, than assume you will be able to produce them on cue during and interview, without preparation.

4. PROVIDE EXAMPLES OF QUANTIFIABLE RESULTS. Avoid generalities, or broad statements. Stick with numbers, percentages, specific outcomes or descriptions of a process. Stating that you produced “extremely positive results”, or that you “greatly improved performance” is vague. You need to include: by what measurement, in what time frame, and compared to what?

 5. TELL THE EMPLOYER WHAT YOU CAN DO FOR THEM. Make sure that you are using work examples that are similar to their business needs. Define the scope of your work with the scope of their work in mind. Expecting the employer to interpret is a risky undertaking. Screeners look for candidates that are “the same” as the announcement. With enough easily identified “qualified” candidates, they will not try to interpret, translate or understand experience that is not the same as their request.

6. SPEAK THEIR LANGUAGE. Make it easy for the employer to relate to your value by using relevant terminology. Omit any unrecognizable acronyms or industry specific language that they will not recognize or identify with.

 7. CREATE A GOOD FLOW. The flow of your information should be logical and compel the reader to continue reading. Bouncing from idea to idea without a natural progression will lose the reader’s attention. Grouping similar examples of your work, or related outcomes is easier for the reader to follow.

8. AVOID REDUNDANCY. When you repeat skills that you have stated in your summary again in the body of your resume, make sure you have added information by attaching them to a result, outcome or specific event, rather than simply re-stating them.

9. MAKE IT READER FRIENDLY. If you are interested in making information stand out, using white space is more effective than underlining or using italics. Italics and underlining are hard on the reader’s eyes when they may be reviewing hundreds of resumes per day. Starting with no less than an inch margin around the border of your resume allows the reader to focus on the center. Use white space to make headings and titles stand out.

10. HAVE SOMEONE PROOF YOUR WORK. Friends and family can proof for typos and grammatical errors. They can also tell you if it is pleasing to the eye. However, they cannot tell you whether or not it will be effective. Typically only the person screening your resume or a hiring manager in your specific industry will truly know if it is an effective resume.

Sherri Edwards
Resource Maximizer
Consultant - Trainer- Career Coach
sherri@resourcemaximizer.com
www.resourcemaximizer.com

Comments

[Sherri Edwards]

Hi Claire,
Thanks for the info- The link didn't work when I tried it.
Sherri

[Claire]

Several sites now help students create a free student resume online and even post their jobs wanted ad! One example is NUresume, http://www.nuresume.com, where students create a free online resume and can post internships, scholarships, jobs and even colleges wanted. Why not apply these 10 resume tips in an online post!