Top Five Reasons Why Your Resume Sucks.
You have sent out hundreds and hundreds of résumés with barely a response. You reason that it’s the economy and some other factors that you are simply not aware of. How can this be? No response whatsoever? You have accomplished a lot; you were well liked in your last role and did a number of things for the company that even resulted in a promotion. So what’s going on? I will tell you. It has nothing to do with you. It’s your RÉSUMÉ that sucks! What’s wrong with your résumé? It may be these top five things:
1. Your Résumé Is Not Results Oriented
For reasons completely unknown to me, people like to reference the things they are responsible for rather than the results they obtained! Again, this document is an important marketing and sales tool. The examples of what you have done with the corresponding outcome are paramount to ensure that your résumé is considered! If you don’t reference how you drove productivity, revenue, profitability, or added value – some type of value, you will not be successful!
Make sure you provide the reader with the juicy details of how you added value for your employer. Here are a few examples to help you get started:
- Drafted a full business plan, including the financial forecast to open a new profit center for the company, resulting in a 40% revenue increase in year one.
- Conceptualized and implemented a team training concept, which reduced production downtime by 35% and increased employee productivity by 50%.
2. You Don’t Have Core Competencies Called Out
This is a quick snap-shot of what you are offering your next employer. This section is critical; it shows the reader at a quick glance what you bring to the table and what you have accomplished in the past. It will help the reader quickly understand the competencies you possess as they connect with the position for which you are applying.
It can be a bulleted list of key words that when scanned by a person or a system will be easily identified as your key attributes. Don’t be afraid to revise your existing, or add new competencies to meet the position description. I would not suggest adding them verbatim; get a little creative in how you write them.
3. You have Grammar And Spelling Mistakes
Grammar and spelling errors plague résumés! I once had a client who indicated that he put a plane in the ‘hanger’. Really, I thought – that had to be some closet! Spell check will not pick up things like this because hanger is a word, the wrong one, but a word nonetheless. Whatever the reason for the mistake - this is a costly error if detected by a hiring manager.
I would like to say that there is a catchall that will help you identify all errors related to grammar and spelling, but alas, I cannot. Of course use spell check. You should also read your résumé backwards, yes, backwards to help you catch errors. I also recommend identifying a friend or family member that is rock solid with English grammar and spelling. Have that person review your résumé to ensure that all errors are caught before you submit the résumé. You should also consider getting The Blue Book of Grammar and Punctuation, which will definitely put you on the straight and narrow with respect to proper word usage. You will still need to get help with the spelling area though.
4. Your Presentation is Awful
How your résumé looks is also important! Do your dates line up? Do lines roll to a second or third page? Consistent and an aesthetically pleasing presentation will help your résumé shine. This demonstrates attention to detail – an all-important characteristic. If your résumé looks sloppy, what will the hiring manager think? Possibly that you are disorganized and lack focus to ensure the details are reviewed. First impressions are lasting ones, and you want your résumé to clearly articulate that you are focused, capable, and able to contribute to positive and lasting change. Choose an updated font like Book Antiqua in 10pts, Cambria in 10pts, or Tahoma in 9.5pts. Times New Roman is an outdated font, so I would encourage you to use something more timely.
Either get your résumé professionally done, which will ensure that you are positioned correctly, and all your i’s are dotted and your t’s are crossed. Alternatively, there are many templates available online where you can populate your information into an existing format. This will help you stay on track and generate a document that is consistent and pleasing to look at.
5. You Still Have An Objective Statement
Aside from being completely outdated, objectives tell the reader what you want, not what you offer. A résumé is a marketing and sales tool about YOU. You need to offer up information about what you bring to the company – not what you want them to do for you.
Instead, start your résumé off with a compelling summary. This is 6-7 sentences about what you offer. Since you don’t have a lot of time to make an impact, reference things that are unique – things where you made a sustainable impact. You can even show metrics in your summary to quickly demonstrate the value that you offer. Your summary is your overview about your key attributes peppered with an example or two to make a swift impact.
There’s my top five for you with some actionable solutions to help you create a rockin’ results-oriented résumé!
Comments and feedback are requested and desired; and you are welcome and encouraged to submit questions to thecareerdoctor.
Debra Wheatman, CPRW, CPCC is the founder and Chief Career Strategist of ResumesDoneWrite, a premier career services provider focused on developing highly personalized career roadmaps for senior leaders and executives across all verticals and industries.
Debra can be reached at -
DWheatman@ResumesDoneWrite.com
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