Resume Help: Improving Your Profile
Today’s candidate presents a very bland resume. That can easily be corrected with more sophisticated formatting. The biggest improvement that she could make is to revamp the top third of her resume. You guessed it! A new profile would take her from unnoticed to “in demand.” Let’s look at three major updates for
this candidate.
Objective
Objective statements signal to the reader that you are completely out of touch with current resume writing standards. Like big hair and shoulder pads, objectives have not been standard since the late 1980s. Instead, smart candidates use a four to seven-word headline at the top of their resume. For example, “Expertise in Business Transformation for Global Companies” would be a strong headline for this candidate. A headline and profile show what you have to offer the employer. An objective is about what you want.
Profile: Expertise
The candidate has a long string of functions that she performs mixed in with areas of expertise. The reader will likely not weed through that list as it is presented. Instead, I recommend that she identify her basic job competencies, particularly the one most relevant to her career goal. A list of nine competencies would be ideal. Those items can be located in a new section, “Core Competencies,” and that section would be placed after the profile. The very top areas of expertise, including functional expertise, market or industry expertise, and specialized knowledge, should be showcased in the profile section. This organized presentation is easier to read and better sells the candidate’s top values.
Profile: Honors & Accomplishments
It is always best to skip the fluff and unnecessary statements. For example, it is not necessary to state that she has twenty years of experience. Use the profile to feature top honors, an exceptional accomplishment, and most valuable areas of expertise. The profile should be a four to five-line opening paragraph that encapsulates why the candidate is a perfect match for the job.
Would you like to read more resume writing and cover letter tips? Check out the following blog entries.
Resume Help: The Case of the Prickly Profile