A resumé is the single aspect of job search that job seekers primarily focus on. I would say that finding the person doing the hiring is more important, but the resumé is a key, a key to open the door of an interview. I recently worked with a man to make sure his resume was an effective key.
Richard is a senior software guy looking for new opportunities. He has 30 years of experience developing and managing technical solutions in diverse industries. We have known each other for 12 years so I asked him to send me his resumé so I would know what positions he is targeting. When it arrived by e-mail I realized we could make some immediate improvements.
His resumé was written perfectly for the late 1990s, but the expectations of today's employers are quite different. The first improvement was to shorten and punch-up the content. The resumé was five pages long. "Cut it to two pages maximum" was my first response, because no one reads more than two pages of any resumé, and many readers do not go past the first page. Second, I asked him to remove the Qualifications section at the beginning. "Your qualifications will be apparent from your content, and this section is stealing real estate better used for your job achievements."
Next, the scope was too broad. Richard has the curse of being a multi-skilled, senior person. That means it was too easy to put everything he has done into one resumé. I suggested that he convert this one resumé into three resumés with each focused on a major skills area: software architecture, IT management, and software development. Employers need to fill specific job openings so one should always have a resumé that matches that job area, and the resumé should describe supporting skills that "come along free" as part of your skills package.
Then I suggested he make this the first of his three resumés and focus his content totally on his software architecture skills. This meant deleting all but the most in-demand software languages and tools. "For every job you have held, make your content sell your architecture skills. Craft it so it presents a unified picture of your value as an architect, not a set of independent snapshots." It also meant rewriting many job entries to tailor them to an architecture focus.
I sent Richard the "Resumé" section from my book so he could get the Big Picture on what resumés should look like today. It resonated with him. He was gracious and bought a couple of copies of Hired! on Amazon. When I received the last version of his resumé, I was really impressed.
Richard did it all - a virtual rewrite. His resumé now is exactly two pages. Every job entry describes not only his job responsibilities but also his achievements that will create interest in the reader. It is focused entirely on his software architecture skills with a dash of "sizzle" about his programming and management skills. It is well-balanced and emphasizes his most recent job experiences with lighter descriptions about his job positions more than ten years ago.
Then he blew me away. He sent another e-mail saying, "I LOVE IT! I got hits on it in under an hour after putting it up on Dice.com. I have an interview on Friday, with possibility of another while I'm there. For contract and permanent positions. Just got another email about a different contract gig with a State agency. Got an email from a start-up in Virginia needing an architect. Awesome."
Awesome, indeed. His resumé became that effective key to open the door to these interviews. Results don't always happen this quickly, but if your resumé has not been severely pruned and tuned recently, you might might find that no doors are opening for you. I have more ideas on resumés and job interviews in Hired!
If you want to bring some new life to your resumé, the sample Resumé chapter Richard read is available for download at http://www.garykevans.com/sample.html.
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