This resume guide is intended to provide an introduction to writing an effective and useful resume.
Your resume should be concise, and a positive reflection of you and your work, as well as your education experiences. The purpose of the resume is to secure job interviews. Its the interview that gets you the job.
A RESUME SHOULD BE
Specific/focused
Action Oriented
Neat
Honest
Positive
Concise
Flawless (no spelling or grammatical errors)
Easy to read
APPERANCE SPECIFICS
Preferably one page in length, two if absolutely necessary
Typed using typeface that looks professional and easy to read
Bond or other quality paper
Well spaced, 1 margins on top, bottom and both sides. The body of the resume should be single spaced with double spacing between sections. Be consistent.
Honest
Components of a professional resume:
1. Contact information:
Make it easy to contact you either by phone, mail or e-mail. Don't make the recruiter track you down. Note: make sure your voicemail message is professional. You dont want a recruiter to get the wrong impression from a silly message on the recording.
Do not include personal information, such as marital status, here or anywhere else on your resume.
2. Objective/Title:
Some experts believe that including an objective may limit your chances of obtaining an interview; if your objective doesn't match the recruiter's needs at the time, you may miss out on a golden opportunity.
On the flip side, a career objective is useful in communicating that you are proactively managing your career. You know what you want, why not say it?
We suggest taking a broad approach: Instead of writing a sentence like "Seeking a career opportunity as a Marketing Executive…," try a simple title after your contact info, simply "Marketing Executive."
3. Summary statement:
First, include your title and years of experience. Second, list special skills. Third, talk about your character traits or work style. Remember that this is a summary; it should only be 2-3 sentences long.
Example:
"Financial Accountant with over 10 years' experience with two Fortune 500 companies. Technical skills include P & L, budgeting, forecasting and variance reporting. Bilingual in Spanish and English. Self-starter who approaches every project in a detailed, analytical manner."
4. Professional experience:
List each position held in reverse chronological order, going back at least ten years. If you held multiple positions within the same company, be sure to list all of them - you want the recruiter to see how you've progressed. Concentrate on the description of the position - that's the meat & potatoes.
The body of the position description has two parts:
1. A description of your responsibilities; and
2. Your accomplishments
Top 12 accomplishments that most interest employers
Increased revenues
Saved money
Increased efficiencies
Cut overhead
Increased sales
Improved workplace safety
Purchasing accomplishments
New products/new lines
Improved record keeping process
Increased productivity
Successful advertising campaign
Effective budgeting
Other resume components include: Education, Professional training, Affiliations/Appointments Licenses, Technical skills and Languages.
Approach these items from the viewpoint of the recruiter or employer: How will these skills benefit the company?
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