Resumes that Sell
Your resume does not have to tell everything. It
is an appetizer which makes the prospective employer say, "Wow, I have to talk to this person and see how he/she did that!”
Start your resume with a Summary Statement. The
Summary Statement goes directly under your name and address and
is the first thing the person will read. Most resumes only get 11
to 20 seconds of attention before they are selected or discarded.
It is critical, therefore, to grab the reader’s attention
with powerful statements or it is unlikely that your job history
and accomplishments will even be read. Your Summary Statement
defines your overall skills, experience, and personal characteristics.
The first sentence of the summary must state the job title
you want! This sets the recruiter’s mind and expectations.
If you want to be a sales person, start your summary with something
like: "An energetic Business Development Professional with 6 years of experience in chemical sales. Established track
record for doubling regional sales in first year." This
tells the reader your search objective and a major accomplishment.
Dynamically express personal characteristics. These
are the attributes which will distinguish you from someone with
similar training and experience such as: "a creative
problem-solver, team player, and leader, known for ability to create trust and loyalty with customers."
Key talents. Below the Summary Statement, you can
have several columns of key talents, skills, and experience. Use
key words important to your type of job and industry.
Accomplishment statements. Never start a sentence with “responsible for.” The recruiter's thought is, “So what! Did he/she accomplish anything?” A good accomplishment statement formula is Problem + Action = Benefit.
Always start with an action verb. Try something like: designed, developed, implemented, maintained, created, resolved, managed, supervised, spearheaded, initiated, salvaged, saved, increased, decreased, etc.
Use quantitative numbers to demonstrate the level of your
capability and responsibility. It is important for your
prospective employer to appreciate the scope and dollar value of
the work you have done. For example, "Supervised/managed
a team of 16 people on a $3 million project which saved the client
company $500,000."
Sell your benefits. This is your personal sales
brochure. Sales are about customer benefits. Go back through each
job you listed. Rewrite the description of each one to make 90 percent
of what you say an accomplishment and/or benefit to the employer
and/or the employer's client. Keep your statements short, concise,
and meaningful. You can expand on the details in the interview.
The prospective employer wants to know what problems you can solve
for him or her.
Education and training. Put all educational data
at the very end with degrees earned, name(s) of university, and
no graduation date. You may also list career-specific training such
as certifications, Six Sigma, SAP, and management training.
It is useful these days for employees, especially hi-tech people,
to think of themselves as "consultants" who happen to have sold
all their time to a specific client for an undefined time period.
This will help you to keep a healthy perspective about the job and
the decisions that are made. Nothing is forever, especially a job.
I can help you craft a resume and develop interview strategies
that will make YOU stand out from the crowd!
Ruth, a financial executive, with a Masters in Accounting, a CPA,
had been looking for a job for seven months. When she called, she
said, “I just can’t seem to get past the gatekeepers.”
I helped Ruth refocus and power up her resume. Together we created
a networking strategy and 90-second personal commercial. Within
45 days, Ruth had five interviews and two highly desirable job offers.
Joan Bolmer, 2400 Briarwest Boulevard, #1907, Houston,
TX 77077; Office 281.293.8864
Copyright (c) 2007-2009, by Joan Bolmer, all rights reserved. Contact
Joan Bolmer by e-mail at joan@bolmer.com Website: http://www.bolmer.com
Permission is granted to reproduce, copy or distribute
this article so long as this copyright notice and full information about
contacting the author is attached.
