Resume Geek

O.K., so I guess I am a “Resume Geek”. Let me tell you how this transformation happened; there are so many folks out there emailing, posting, Twittering, and LinkedIning their little fingers off, just to get someone to read their resume, it’s become a global obsession.

As a 20+ year veteran recruiter with a currently active desk I spend a good part of my day reading tales of fiction, factual faux pas, and statistics without rhyme or reason. All the aforementioned documents are being presented under the guise of resume/CV.

On behalf of the hiring community (recruiters, HR professionals, business owners, hiring managers, decision makers from all walks of life), I beg you stop. For much of my career I encouraged job seekers to click their Word icon courtesy of Bill Gates, and move their mouse to the prefab resume templates supplied in that program. My sage advice at the time extolled the virtue of spending an hour or so reminiscing about one’s career. I encouraged candidates that called my recruiting office too chronologically report the events of their careers onto a Word resume template.

Well throughout the ‘90’s and for a good part of the early 2000 years that advice could easily suffice. However, the massive numbers of resumes being sent out into cyberspace (over 100,000 per month on CareerBuilder and Monster alone, and growing everyday), simply places the job seeker in another realm when it comes to presenting their individual background.

Yes, yes I know – this change of counseling stance is going to be looked upon by some readers as self serving and solicitous. My new company, AllowMeToIntroduiceMyself.com (website currently under construction) offers a professional resume and cover letter resource. This for fee service could be construed as impetuous for my change of heart. On the contrary, I’m not making any specific recommendation in this space other than for job seekers with a serious commitment to landing an interview, to research a professional resume writer, and contract a professional to put forth a readable document.

Let me state for the record that not all resumes and cover letters are created equal. It is not necessary for every resume to be presented in the same style. I’ve seen unique presentations with elaborately decorated boarders, html links offering in-depth info on a candidate’s career, and professional accomplishments. The technology resources are spurring a move towards different forms of “video resume”. Many job seekers are looking for a crisp basic format that informs the reader, and illustrates a consistent career progression. All of these varying styles can be contracted with different writers for fees ranging from $150 - $1500. Each and every option will serve the purpose of presenting your career profile in a professional manner.

Keep in mind that regardless of the dollar investment you make, your resume will not get you a job. The most we can ask of the cover letter/resume introduction is to gain you entre for an initial interview. If your resume and cover letter present you as a competent, career minded professional; detailing a skill set meeting a majority of the position profile, you are using these introduction tools properly.

Every major job board (many of the niche boards as well), and countless resume writing services offer for fee assistance to job seekers looking to put forth a coherent well constructed document. The old adage, “you only get one chance to make a good first impression” was never truer than it is today. With resumes and cover letters pouring into recruiting firms, and HR departments at a record pace, you want to insure when your document is ready to be reviewed it captures the mind, and eye of the reader.

Your cover letter should preview for the reader a sense of who you are professionally, why you’re the ideal candidate for the position available, and how your background fits the corporate profile like a glove. If you detail family tragedies, your success as a youth soccer coach, or the fact that your last employer “cheated” you out of earned commissions, you’re providing inappropriate material for your cover letter. Yes, I’ve seen all of these subjects written about in cover letters from job seekers on every career level. In many instances errors such as the ones mentioned above irreparably damage the reader’s mindset as they continue reviewing your resume.

My biggest pet peeves on resumes I’ve seen recently:

• Entire pages that state hardly any facts.I have to read two-thirds through the resume before I know the industry related to the work experience.
• To review a resume that intimates the job seeker’s ability to transfer any skill, to any industry, in any job function.
• Lines and lines of “gobbly-goop bullets” really frustrate me. Like this bullet I recently read on the resume from a Sales Manager, "Directed the sales efforts of my sales team.” Well now, isn’t that a unique talent for a Sales Manager?
  

I see too many resumes from senior managers, (25+ years or more work experience) without any mention of involvement in current technology. Guys, I’m 52 years old. Those of us that remember free TV, and pay phones on the corner, need to show prospective employers that we’ve made the transition from company beepers to BBM.

If a pertinent fact relates to your career, here’s a motto to live by in terms of your resume: “If you know it, show it”. Show information that makes the reader say, “wow, if I meet this person they could probably offer a number of enhancements to my business.”

Last, be honest when preparing your resume. All recruiters, HR departments, and senior hiring managers maintain some type of candidate database. If you are sending a resume for a second or third time to the same recruiter, or hiring manager, make sure your history jibes with previous submissions. No one likes to think that someone is trying to pull the wool over their eyes. If you’ve had a short tenure (90 days or less as a rule), and you do not want to show it on your updated resume, that’s understandably. In the body/text of your email, simply indicate the omission. The reader will appreciate that they are up to date on your career progression, and you’ve been straight forward with them.

Best of luck, and remember to keep networking… please stay in touch with me through
LinkedIn.com - http://www.linkedin.com/home
Twitter.com - http://twitter.com/Recruiter
Jack Young Personnel Services, Inc. – www.jackyoung.com
AllowMeToIntroduceMyself.com, Inc. - www.allowmetointroducemyself.com