Job Seekers: How To Craft The Perfect Resume

Posted by on Jun 15, 2012 in Blog, Resume advice | 1 comment

Stuck in a rut in your job search? Consider going back to the basics…starting with your resume.

Resumes are all about you. However, what job seekers tend to overlook is that they should be focused on you from an employer’s perspective. After all, employers are looking for candidates who can add more to their company. At the same time, employers and recruiters don’t have or give much time to devote to scanning resumes. A study revealed that the average time looking at resumes to make a decision was six seconds. In those six seconds, your resume has to get the point across on why you’re the best candidate for the job, or, at least get moved into the “consider” list.

It seems like an impossible order to fill, but there are ways to communicate your case for the job within a few seconds and on one piece of paper. The key is to show your accomplishments and results, rather than job duties.

Consider these tips below on how to craft your resume to accomplish that: 

Quantify Results. Every accomplishment you can think of, ask yourself “How much?” or “How many?”. How much was gained from sales? How many people did your articles reach? With hard skills especially, like product management or marketing, having quantifiable metrics on a resume is important. It grabs the employer’s attention immediately and puts an emphasis on what you can contribute.

Example: Implemented new sales strategies that increased the retention rate of our business by 30%

Explain Outcomes. Quantifying is necessary for showcasing your technical (hard skills), but what about those important soft skills that can’t be measured? One of many studies reveal many soft skills, like teamwork, leadership, and work ethic, are considered by employers to analyze if a candidate will “fit” into the company culture. For soft skills, simply explain the obstacle or objective that your soft skill helped to resolve or achieve.

Example: Managed a team of interns to create and launch a new media campaign that secured three new clients

Make It Relevant. Not sure which accomplishments to choose? Look at job description to see if there are specific skills desired or keywords used. Use it as guide to tailor your resume accomplishments for that job specifically. For every position, you apply to, your resume must be tailored for the job. Why? It actually helps the employers to envision you in the position and what you can achieve for the company.

Make It Concise. For each past experience, showcase three to four accomplishments with one to two bullet point sentences explaining what you did. Any more information will seem overbearing and might actually hurt your chances of being taken as a serious candidate.

Before you send out your next resume, consider taking the time to update it with what you achieved.

What do you think? What else needs to go into the perfect resume? Share with us!

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