"How would you make my resume more effective?" How would you improve it? I am often asked these questions by executives who have posted their resume on internet job sites without getting even a nibble of interest.
Executive resume writing is a highly specialized field. It requires a high level of analysis, marketing expertise, and a constellation of skills. That's why very few executives can write a good value statement.
The awful reality is that most executive resumes contain serious omissions and/or mistakes. Here are a few:
1.The crucial value proposition is either poorly worded or unclear or has been omitted. Thus, your main selling message will be unimpressive or confusing or missing.
2.The resume is not audience-focused and fails to address the employer's needs.
3.The language of the resume is too "literary".
4.The template used is elegant but not effective for making a presentation to today's recruiters.
5.The length of the resume is either too short or too long. In fact, an executive or consulting resume can be 2-6 pages long!
6.The Job Objective has been omitted or is poorly stated. Today’s job objectives for executives are marketing oriented.
7.The Summary Statement or Profile is poorly worded. It may also include amateurish statements like "Highly motivated".
8.The statement about your track record may not impress.
9.Job titles may need to be adjusted to back up or support your Objective. Such titles may define you in the absence of a well written qualifications statement.
10.Strategic keywords or phrases or names or figures or percentages are not highlighted or emphasized in the resume.
11.Accomplishments are poorly worded (by omitting crucial "numbers") or lie buried in the text or are not properly bulleted and/or indented or highlighted.
12.In many executive resumes there are either no bullets (because some executives are uncomfortable with attention-getters) or too many. Bullets must be strategic, not decorative.
13.The resume is not easily scannable because nothing "jumps out" at the reader. It is long and gray and boring!
14.Cutting and pasting your resume on-line is not always a good idea. It results in a very unattractive ASCII format.
Executive resume writing is a highly specialized field. It requires a high level of analysis, marketing expertise, and a constellation of skills. That's why very few executives can write a good value statement.
The awful reality is that most executive resumes contain serious omissions and/or mistakes. Here are a few:
1.The crucial value proposition is either poorly worded or unclear or has been omitted. Thus, your main selling message will be unimpressive or confusing or missing.
2.The resume is not audience-focused and fails to address the employer's needs.
3.The language of the resume is too "literary".
4.The template used is elegant but not effective for making a presentation to today's recruiters.
5.The length of the resume is either too short or too long. In fact, an executive or consulting resume can be 2-6 pages long!
6.The Job Objective has been omitted or is poorly stated. Today’s job objectives for executives are marketing oriented.
7.The Summary Statement or Profile is poorly worded. It may also include amateurish statements like "Highly motivated".
8.The statement about your track record may not impress.
9.Job titles may need to be adjusted to back up or support your Objective. Such titles may define you in the absence of a well written qualifications statement.
10.Strategic keywords or phrases or names or figures or percentages are not highlighted or emphasized in the resume.
11.Accomplishments are poorly worded (by omitting crucial "numbers") or lie buried in the text or are not properly bulleted and/or indented or highlighted.
12.In many executive resumes there are either no bullets (because some executives are uncomfortable with attention-getters) or too many. Bullets must be strategic, not decorative.
13.The resume is not easily scannable because nothing "jumps out" at the reader. It is long and gray and boring!
14.Cutting and pasting your resume on-line is not always a good idea. It results in a very unattractive ASCII format.
