On average hiring professionals spend less than a minute scanning resumes submitted by candidates.  In today’s highly competitive market place, it is more important than ever to have a resume that grabs the reader’s attention QUICKLY.

Collectively, having scanned 1000’s of resumes, we know what works when it comes to writing resumes.  Bulleted factual achievements are some of the most important components that candidates include in their resumes. Bullet points are organized easily therefore making the resume easier to read and they help to quickly generate quick interest.  You should avoid using generalizations or personal opinions about your qualifications because they don’t allow for quantifiable accomplishments which are key components of quality resumes.

All resumes should be written in 3rd person.  If you’ve already written your resume in 1st person, take the time to rewrite it eliminating I, Me, My, or Myself.  It is fine to use sentence fragments in a bulleted resume.

Also avoid overly verbose language.  A resume isn’t the place to show off your literary skills.  Clear, concise points get better results.

The following is a list of things that all resumes should include & tips for creating a resume that will generate the kind of results you’re looking for.

Contact Information:
Name
Address
Telephone (Home and Cell)
Email Address

Career Summary and Objective:
Summaries should give the reader a basic understanding of what you have accomplished in your career and the goals you’re trying to accomplish.

Education/Professional Licenses:

• Educational Degrees (Both earned and being pursued) — include names of institutions, locations and dates of attendance.  Most employers and all Executive search firms verify all degrees (even ones from 30 years ago).  Don’t claim you have a degree if that’s not the case.  Eventually you will be caught & that isn’t the kind of first impression you want to leave with a potential employer.
• Professional licenses or certifications

Achievements:

• Use concrete, quantifiable examples of how you contributed to previous employers' success. Use facts and figures describing the size and scope of projects.  It is always a good idea to emphasize ways in which you increased revenue or decreased spending.  It’s also a good idea to describe how you accomplished it.
  Example: Consistently increased portfolio revenue by 15%.
• Demonstrate problem-solving skills.
  Example: Hired to take over a division of the company that consistently lost $1MM per year.  Division turned a $500,000 profit within 1 year by initiating an aggressive ad campaign targeting….

Employment History:

• List all previous employers starting with the most recent, going all the way back to your education. Include titles, dates of employment and progression if multiple positions were held with the same company.
• Include a brief description of the company and your responsibilities for each position. Provide specific information to distinguish your experience from others in the same position.  Every Regional Property Manager or Construction Project Manager has the same basic job description.  How successful you’ve been is what sets you apart from all of the other candidates applying for the same job.
  Example:
  Non-specific: Responsible for overseeing several individuals on a construction project.
  Specific: Responsible for the direct supervision of a seven-person staff building a 15-story, Class-A apartment building. Project, which was completed on schedule and within budget despite weather delays, had a contract value of $75M.
• Make sure you account for all time between when you went to school & your current position.  Address any gaps in employment with a sentence that explains the disruption in employment.  Don’t claim you had a consulting business if that is the truth.

If you’re having trouble packaging all of this information in good looking format, take a look at the format we use.  It can be found on our Resume Format page.