About a year ago, I wrote a post about resumes after a conversation with two experienced hiring managers. As I am looking for jobs again, I have
received advice from a number of people to revamp my resume. I would like to
pass along this information to those of you who are also searching for jobs.
The first advice came from a recruiter who told me that
given what he saw on my Linked-In profile, a one-page resume would not make sense.
He suggested that I add a little more "meat" to the resume. He did
not really tell me how, so I turned to a friend who also was a recruiter. She
took it further by pointing out a few things that I have never considered
before. Thanks, Kandi! I hope you don't mind me putting your words on this blog:
1. Whether the resume is one or two pages long is irrelevant
"as long as the resume is saying something meaningful. You get into 3 or 4
pages, that's too much, but if trying to squeeze everything onto one page means
you leave out important stuff, then go to 2."
2. Addressing my resume with initial headings listing my
best accomplishments, K believed that it might do more harm than good as it
would not show a consistent history of success or accomplishments. It would be
better if the hiring managers could scan down my resume and see the success or
accomplishments with every position.
3. Bullet Points - These should emphasize the things that I
have done, my accomplishments on the job, rather than the generic job
description.
K took the liberty of transforming my resume for me so I
could see what it could look like. Thank you so much for that! I very much
appreciate the advice and all your suggestions.
The transformation of my resume continued as I started
applying for various positions. A friend, G, made a few recommendations on my resume that
I had never considered before:
4. Listing reasons for leaving a position - I have always
thought that if I get a chance to speak with the hiring manager, I could
explain my various reasons for leaving a company. G suggested that I make this
knowledge known upfront and on my resume. Being laid-off would be understood by
any future employer.
5. Consistent format - Though you might consider a minor
detail, a resume could say whether you are a detail-oriented person or not. For
example, sometimes I had a period and sometimes I didn't have any punctuation
after a bullet point. G suggested that I make the resume consistent with no
periods, as a bullet point is more a phrase than a sentence. I would like to add one more piece of advice to this short list that has served me well over the year.
6. I would suggest having someone else look over your
resume; a fresh pair of eyes can never hurt.
I would welcome other suggestions anyone would like to offer
to me or my fellow readers. In this economy, we could all use a little help!
Thanks, everyone, for reading and best of luck to all of us job hunters out
there.
Update: 7/5/2012 - I spoke with the mysterious K and she was willing to let me post her name on here. Kandi is a biotech recruiter with her own recruiting firm. If you are looking for a position in biotech sales or marketing, Kandi would be happy to speak with you and help you with your search. http://www.isearchbio.com/about.html
Update: 7/5/2012 - I spoke with the mysterious K and she was willing to let me post her name on here. Kandi is a biotech recruiter with her own recruiting firm. If you are looking for a position in biotech sales or marketing, Kandi would be happy to speak with you and help you with your search. http://www.isearchbio.com/about.html
