Résumé Writing

          It’s a common notion that the sole purpose of a résumé is to get an interview. At a time when billions of résumés are circulating over the Internet or stacking up on a hiring manager’s desk, you need to change your thinking about the role of your résumé in your job search.

          When you create a résumé, don’t use it only as a tool to get an interview. Consider your résumé as the first 30-seconds of the interview process. The initial review of a résumé is 20 to 30 seconds. Use that time to connect with the hiring manager. Know your audience and use a vocabulary that speaks directly to your readers. The best scenario is to become acquainted with the person who makes hiring decisions and deliver your résumé directly to that person. However, when this is not possible, learn as much as you can about your desired position through posted job descriptions, industry research, and conversations with people in a similar job. Doing your homework about the job you want helps you easily converse in the same language as the people who are in a position to offer you a job.

          When it comes to resume writing, Employment and Human Resource experts advise job seekers to present a résumé with quantitative and precise achievements and results. This indicates that you can produce these results in the future. Because you have roughly 30 seconds of a hiring manager’s attention, your résumé must be clear, concise, and professional. Open your résumé with a qualifications statement that gets right to the point of who you are and what you can do. If you don’t present a clear picture or have the ability to explain how you can benefit an employer, no hiring manager is going to figure it out for you. For example:

Before

Cost-conscious, people-oriented, problem solver with strong analytical skills.

After

        Accomplished, seasoned project manager with exceptional problem-resolution skills demonstrated by redefining and improving customer-response processes. Analytical expertise, retooled department shifting focus from processes to customer support.

        When engaged in resume writing, use strong, active verbs that present your skills and abilities in a few words. For example:

        Boosted sales revenue from $50,000 to over $2 million within two years.
        Elevated customer satisfaction levels from 20% to 60%. 
        Developed dynamic staff motivation program that produced record-setting performance increases.
        Although your bulleted statements in a résumé are often not complete sentences, you still need to punctuate them as if they were complete sentences by ending each statement with a period.

        Omit phrases such as “Responsible for….,” “Duties include….,” “In charge of….,” etc. These phrases take up valuable résumé space and muddy the clarity of your message. Also, be sure to include concrete data, numbers, and percentages that clearly state your accomplishments. For example:

Before

“Responsible for managing administrative services for health care system with multiple sites in several cities.”

After

“Managed administrative services including office management, staff supervision, and volunteer recruitment for 15 healthcare sites in 5 cities.

        The more you focus your résumé toward a specific position and industry, the stronger your candidacy will be. Resist the urge to use one résumé for a variety of positions across multiple industries. When you target a specific position and industry, you will have a better knowledge of which keywords to use in your résumé. This tells a hiring manager that you understand his or her needs and are capable of filling those needs.

        A cover letter should accompany every résumé unless the employer states otherwise. A cover letter serves as a good preface to your résumé by allowing you to discuss your work ethics and ability to function as a team player. It also lets you provide more detail about one or two achievements in a particular industry. Your cover letter supports your résumé—it does not repeat it. Be sure to follow the rules of professional business correspondence in your cover letter, and use the same active voice and terminology you use for your résumé writing.