Are you invisible? Don’t laugh. If your resume is not generating interest, you may as well be invisible. If your resume is not read do you exist? If your resume is not read and its content appreciated, your job-search is dead in the water. And, when I say “read” I mean scanned. A recruiter will spend less than 30 seconds evaluating your resume. If your resume is not generating interest, it is a safe bet that it is not reader-friendly. You may be the ideal candidate for a particular job, yet fail to get into the queue just because you crafted a resume that recruiters don’t want to read. I can tell you from experience that there is a direct correlation between the quality of candidate’s resume and the amount of interest it generates.
To craft a resume that generates interest, start by putting yourself in the reader’s place. Think of your own reading habits, especially on a busy day when time is short. Do you like the thought of reading densely-packed pages of small-type-faced words? That is a turn-off, happily to be avoided. I am confident that you know exactly what I mean. To maximize my productivity, I want to receive the most information I can in the least amount of time. I will likely put aside a difficult-to-read resume, and move on. Unfortunately, that usually means that other candidates make it to the hiring manager.
Follow these rules to help craft a resume with impact.
- Use header and footer function to retain continuity.
- Use Table function to hold formatting for employers, job titles and dates.
- PDF is the best format for integrity in transmission.
- 12 pt. type face size for the body of the resume, larger for headers, 14 to 16 pt.
- Use spacing to break up jobs held and to transition from different formats.
- White space is important! Use it liberally.
- Use 1” margins
- Use underlining to separate employers.
A resume is really more of a marketing tool than a detailed work history. Even if you are trying to convey your history, your goal is to engage the reader with every word, coaxing him into reading more. You are trying to tell a story, your story. If you cannot present your story in an interesting way, why make me suffer through a bad read? As a professional you have likely attended many PowerPoint presentations that use short sentences and bullet points. You know that these presentations are effective because they distil the key points in a way that is easy to grasp. The message literally jumps off the page! The sentences are short and the words have impact. Your resume should use these techniques too!
Most of my work is with C-level Executives so I don’t get too involved in Automated Tracking Systems, but I do have a resume data-base. When I search my data-base I use key words that match the client’s ideal candidate profile. This task is always more productive when candidates have taken advantage of their resume’s file properties menu. It is important to populate your resume with key-words, and don’t neglect the “file properties” feature.
Finally, always leave your audience wanting more. The important point of a resume is to get you into the game. If you provide the most important information in an interesting, easy to read manner you are more likely to get a phone call from a hiring manager. At that time you can begin providing more detail about your experience and accomplishments. I definitely recommend that you develop a highly detailed CV that recaps your complete career history and accomplishments. That document will serve as basis for your resume, bio, and key accomplishments. However, that is not a document to use for an introduction in a job-search.
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Jim Weber, President
New Century Dynamics Executive Search
www.newcenturydynamics.com
