RESUMES GET INTERVIEWS!
Use a resume to sell yourself and your accomplishments. Don’t create a job description. Think of your resume as a mirror of you and your abilities. Your resume is your first impression to a prospective employer and a poor resume might prevent you from getting an interview. Today’s preferred resumes are focused and brief. When developing your resume, be truthful. Include dates and list these in chronological order- most recent to past experiences. Make sure your dates are correct as these may be verified during a background check by a potential employer.
- Use light colored paper since it is easier to copy.
- Watch grammar, spelling and punctuation.
- A summary does a better job of presenting you than a job objective.
- Photos and personal information are not necessary.
- Make sure that your skills and achievements can be noticed with a quick glance. Bullets are great to grab someone’s attention.
- Use action words such as: implemented, selected, achieved, completed, generated, analyzed, administered, etc. Select strong key words, concrete nouns and positive modifiers for emphasis.
- Length of resume will depend upon your years of experience. Rule of thumb is generally 12-15 years of experience per page. Try to keep your resume to one or two pages if possible.
- Omit hobbies and interests unless specific to the job in which you are applying.
- Do not include salary requirements unless requested by the employer.
- Provide references upon request only.
- Always include a formal, well-written cover letter to demonstrate your writing abilities, personality, manners and intelligence. Target your cover letter to fit the job.
- Do not list your personal Web page site address at the bottom of your resume. Employers find this is too personal. It is fine to add your personal e-mail address if you check your e-mail regularly. Do not put your e-mail address if it is through your current employer on your resume as sometimes these are not secure.
- Sales numbers are the most important area of the resume for a sales professional. Highlight your past sales accomplishments by including past quota attainment, percentage of market share, percentage of plan attainment. Employers see past success as an indicator of future success. Remember to showcase your success by selling yourself.
- Most importantly, be honest. Background checks are performed. It is important for employment dates and education to be accurate.
Your resume is a portrait of your skills and abilities. A resume is not intended to be an autobiography or a job description. The purpose of your resume is to market you and your abilities.
There are several types of resumes-chronological, functional and a combination of these. The most commonly used resume format is the chronological resume. It is easy to read and allows the interviewer to follow your career movements. We feel this type of resume is preferred by most employers because of its straight-forwardness. Below is an example of a chronological resume.
Length of Resume
The length of your resume is not as important as the content. If you have been working for over 10 years, you may have a two page resume. Three pages should be avoided, if possible.
Accomplishments
Employers are looking people who have a history of excelling. Achievements five years ago are important but will not have weight unless you can show recent accomplishments. You will have less than 10 seconds to catch the interviewers attention. Therefore, accomplishments should be bulleted or listed in the top portion of the resume. Avoid using complicated, unrealistic language. Be clear about what you have done.
Keywords
Computer technology has changed human resource and recruiting. Today, resumes are submitted and stored electronically in large databases. Employers utilized “boolean technology” to find appropriate candidates. Boolean technology is a keyword based search method, similar to doing a search on the Internet. Because of this search method, it is important to use keywords in your resume. For example, if you are seeking a job in pharmaceutical sales, the words “pharmaceutical sales” should be found somewhere in your resume.
Objective Statements/Summary of Qualifications
We recommend using a Summary of Qualifications instead of an objective statement. The main reason is that an objective statement is about what you want, not what the employer wants. A Summary of Qualifications is a sales statement about you, your experience and your abilities. Utilizing a Summary of Qualifications sells your skill sets to the employer.
If you are trying to obtain an entry level position or attempting to switch careers it may be beneficial to use both a Summary of Qualifications and an objective statement. The reason for this is that objectives statements can help you by adding important keywords to your resume.
Other
Contact information listed on your resume should always be up-to-date. Email addresses can sometimes sound inappropriate as well as voice mails, answering machines or call tones on your cell phone. If you put an email address or phone number on your resume make sure you check this often, otherwise leave it off.
Beware of your image on social networking sites that are open for public search. Google your name to see what can be found about you. Getting a free account on www.linkedin.comcan be very helpful. Linkedin.com is a social networking site for business professionals. Ask your past managers, coworkers or clients to give you a reference and add this to your resume.
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