Résumé samples at the bottom of this page.
When it comes to résumés, it’s not what you say, it’s how you say it.
No One Cares About You
Sorry, but it’s true. Even when you’ve made it to the interview stage, a recruiter, HR director or head hunter isn’t primarily interested in your work history, experience and accomplishments.
They want to know what you can do for them going forward. That means your résumé has to focus on the future, not the past. It needs to focus on the employer’s desires, not me, me, me.
Yes, your résumé must talk about you, but primarily in the context of how you can help a future employer.
Of course recruiters will grill you about your work history, experience and accomplishments, but only after your cover letter and résumé have told them what are able to do for this specific business going forward. That means you need to format the content of your résumé so that this point comes across first and foremost.
I am adept at arranging the different elements of a résumé or CV, and providing high-level line editing to make your document talk to a recruiter, not just talk about you.
Should You Fear an ATS?
Depending on how (or to whom) you’re submitting your résumé, you may or may not need an ATS-friendly document. Typically, it’s high-level executives who don’t need an ATS-friendly résumé. Everyone else should create an ATS-friendly résumé.
Many résumés at managerial levels and lower never get screened by a human because they don’t get past the initial Applicant Tracking System used by many companies today. In these cases, the résumé is scanned and searched for keywords the company has specified. If your résumé doesn’t contain enough of those keywords, or your document’s formatting interferes with the scanning (such as putting key skills in a box), your résumé can come out of the ATS garbled.
For example, you might be rated a manager instead of a director, or be categorized as working in the wrong department or even the wrong industry.
Your résumé needs to be formatted correctly (must be ATS-friendly) if you’re not submitting directly to a decision-maker with whom you’ve had some contact. An ATS-friendly résumé makes sure that any text, images, boxes, headings, bullet points, colors and other facets of your document don’t interfere with the ATS program.
I can help you create a résumé that doesn’t interfere with ATS systems.
NOTE: If you’re résumé is going directly to a department manager or division head, you won’t need an ATS-friendly résumé. A networking résumé (more graphic design freedom) will be fine, but your submission should include a targeted cover letter.
Working with Steve
The first step in creating an effective résumé is a discussion so Steve can quickly learn (from you) what will turn on a recruiter or department head at a specific company who is going to read your résumé and refer to it during an interview.
Before we start working on your résumé document, you and I will spend time on the phone (or via Zoom) discussing the position you’re seeking, or the types of positions you’re going to be applying for.
I will then create the first draft of your résumé, which you and I will then tear apart to get closer to your final draft. I will most likely fight you over keeping the loads of very technical information you want to put into your résumé because, “It’s important in my profession!”
You must remember, however, that a résumé is never intended to get you a job – it’s intended to get you an interview. Or two. Or three.
Your résumé needs to tease and turn on a recruiter. THAT’S how you get interviews. And that’s where you sell yourself.
The total process of creating your résumé usually involves a phone call or Zoom meeting, going over the first draft together, then tweaking the final draft. In many cases, the first draft requires very little tweaking.
You can review sample résumés I’ve created for executives here.