Archive for the ‘Writing Tips’ Category



Show You Are a “Match”

Posted On: Thursday, May 28th, 2009 - Posted By: Adam C.

Don’t Make Employers Guess – Prove It!

Know Your Audience:

You find companies in which to send your resume and cover letter.  But do you know HOW these companies organize their search and selection processes?  Your company research should include an investigation of HOW they receive your resume.  Specifically, does a pair of human eyes review them first?  Or are all resumes scanned into the company’s Applicant Tracking System first?  If so, “you” are not being seen by human eyes unless your resume got the automated system’s attention first through your keywords.  Mid-size to large companies who need to be able to handle a high volume of incoming applications simply cannot manage without such an automated system.  If software is evaluating your resume for best fit, or match, you need to write your resume in a way that the software can best take notice of you and your talents.

Build in a “Keywords” Section on Your Resume:

A keyword section can be placed close to the top, down at the bottom, or along the side margin of your resume.  Keywords are the items that a prospective employer needs to associate with you to know to what extent you are a suitable candidate for consideration. Keywords can encompass and showcase acronyms, buzzwords, software, equipment, processes, tools, job titles, context, and more.

It’s Your Career!

Keywords help to establish that your qualifications and experience are highly relevant for the position in question.

Do your homework: locate 3-4 ads or postings for a particular job title of interest (and suitable for your qualifications).  Between them, come up with a list of 10-12 keywords that you can list on your resume.

Keywords are the important words you want a prospective employer to associate with you.  They are also found prominently within job postings.  You want your keywords to match their keywords (again, as suitable to your qualifications).

Lisa has 14 years of résumé coaching experience.
She currently directs day-to-day operations and programming of a career center at a two-year technical college. From 2006-2008, she served as State Chair of a national organization to support women leaders in higher education. She remains on the Board. Previously, she served as HR Director of a legal services firm and specialized in worker’s compensation issues. From 1996-1998, she worked as a graduate assistant in the career services office of a large four-year college.

Need More Advice?

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Build your resume with the GigTide Online Resume Builder and visit the CYJ website at www.changeyourjob.us.

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Posted in How to Write a Resume, Resume Sections, Writing Tips | 1 Comment »

Remain Objective: How to Target Your Resume to Your Audience

Posted On: Tuesday, April 21st, 2009 - Posted By: Adam C.

Speak Their Language:

Employers have a language of their own.  That language consists of keywords, buzzwords, acronyms, and titles.  You need to speak their language to demonstrate that you know what they want and that you are the right candidate for the job.  You learn the employer’s language by doing your research:  carefully review job postings and the company website; interview current or former employees about company culture; and read their press releases and financial reports.

Be Specific:

A targeted objective uses the exact job title of the position that a company wants to fill.  You can simply list an objective statement of: “Seeking Customer Care Consultant position”.  Or you can develop a bio statement that further demonstrates your qualifications for the job.  For example:  Customer Care Consultant with 3 years of demonstrated experience in building rapport, solving problems, and increasing sales”.  From that point forward, every line of your resume should support that Objective, directly or indirectly.

It’s Your Target!

The WORST objective is vague and directionless.  For example: “Seeking a challenging position that uses my education and experience and offers opportunities for advancement”.

Specific job titles help companies route your resume to the right recruiter.  If they cannot figure that out easily, your resume won’t be reviewed by anyone.

Do not apply generically for currently open positions like everybody else is doing.  Network and do your homework on the position and the company first.  Then send a highly targeted resume and cover letter based upon what you learn.

Sending out 10-20 highly targeted resumes and cover letters each week is far more effective than blasting out 100 generic resumes.  Demonstrate quality over quantity.

Lisa has 14 years of résumé coaching experience.
She currently directs day-to-day operations and programming of a career center at a two-year technical college. From 2006-2008, she served as State Chair of a national organization to support women leaders in higher education. She remains on the Board. Previously, she served as HR Director of a legal services firm and specialized in worker’s compensation issues. From 1996-1998, she worked as a graduate assistant in the career services office of a large four-year college.

Need More Advice?

Get the resume help you need!

Build your resume with the GigTide Online Resume Builder and visit the CYJ website at www.changeyourjob.us.

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Posted in How to Write a Resume, Resume Tips, Writing Tips, Your Career | No Comments »

Resume Writing: Portfolio

Posted On: Wednesday, January 9th, 2008 - Posted By: GigTide

In this section you can add a link or a list of links to samples of your work online. Some examples include; your online portfolio, sample websites, personal projects or any other other online media that supports your resume. This feature is especially useful for creative people and people who want to reference projects or video online.

You can create an online portfolio through sites like:
http://flickr.com
http://www.carbonmade.com
http://www.deviantart.com

Online Portfolio Directions:
Type a descriptive phrase like, “View My Online Portfolio”
Highlight the text you just created and enter the URL to the web page in the input box in the editor. Your link should look something like this:

http://www.gigtide.com

Example 1
View My Online Portfolio

Example 2
Link 1
Link 2
Link 3
Link 4

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Resume Writing: Awards

Posted On: Wednesday, January 9th, 2008 - Posted By: GigTide

List any professional awards in this section. Be sure to include the year and credentials of you commendation. Do not use abbreviations.

Example

Applegate Award of Excellence, 2006 – For excellence in Sales Leadership.
Smith Medallion, 2007 – For volunteering efforts in 2007.

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Resume Writing: Education

Posted On: Wednesday, January 9th, 2008 - Posted By: GigTide

This section is pretty obvious. Here you will list your education history in reverse chronological order.

Example

  • Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration/Marketing, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM
  • IS Programmer Training Program, New Mexico Power Software, Albuquerque, NM:
    − Management and Leadership
    − Project Management (PMI Certification Curriculum)
    − Microsoft Windows 2000 Server
    − Java2 Programming Language
    − Customer Service
  • Frontline Leadership Training, New Mexico Power Software, Albuquerque, NM

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Resume Writing: Software and Technical Skills

Posted On: Wednesday, January 9th, 2008 - Posted By: GigTide

Here you can list any technical skills and/or computer software you feel would be beneficial for you prospective employer to be aware of. It is important to be as truthful as possible when describing your proficiency with software or technical skills.

Example

  • Microsoft Office
  • Report Maker Pro
  • Efficiency Expert PRO
  • AppleTree 4.5

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Resume Writing: Experience

Posted On: Wednesday, January 9th, 2008 - Posted By: GigTide

This is an important section but not the most important. Here you will list your employment history and, depending on the style of resume you are writing, include the details here or in the Qualifications section. Do not use your job description to describe what you did at your previous places of employment. Instead, focus on the things that matter to your potential employer.

You might include these items: (A bulleted list is recommended for this section)

  • Name and City / State of Company
  • Title of Position (Department- optional)
  • Month/Year Hired – Month/Year Departed
  • Accomplishments (optional depending on your choice of resume style)

Example

  • Acme Widget Co., Somewhereville, MN – Sales Manager (2006-Current)
  • Widgets R-Us, Somewhereville MN – Sales Associate (2004-2006)
  • Widget Media, Somewhereville NY – Marketing Associate (2000-2004)


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Resume Writing: Skills and Accomplishments

Posted On: Wednesday, January 9th, 2008 - Posted By: GigTide

This section allows you to describe your most valuable attributes in more detail. Place your accomplishments in order of importance and quantify them. Meaning, describe the results of your efforts with your previous employer(s) or project(s) and include how your skills/ accomplishments positively impacted the project or job you were working on. A bulleted list or paragraph is acceptable for this section.

Example

  • Exceeded stated sales goals for 5 consecutive quarters resulting in a 15% increase in net revenue.
  • Planned and executed internal marketing strategy that increased overall market share by 4%.
  • Oversaw the complete relaunch of all online marketing collateral, including online sales tools.

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Resume Writing: Qualifications

Posted On: Wednesday, January 9th, 2008 - Posted By: GigTide

This section allows you to provide an overview of your most valuable attributes to the employer. Highlight the very best examples of your skills, abilities and accomplishments. Speak directly to what the employer is looking for and how your skills are best suited to meet their needs. A bulleted list or paragraph is acceptable for this section.

Example

  • Innovative professional with 8+ years of progressive experience within the widget sales industry and the skills to drive business growth, capitalize on new revenue potential, and manage all aspects of daily business operations.
  • Expertise in new and used widget sales, pricing strategies, client relations and needs assessment, marketing, financial management, purchasing, administration, and staff training, supervision, motivation and mentoring.
  • Quick study, with an ability to easily grasp and put into application new ideas, concepts, methods and technologies. Dedicated, innovative and self-motivated team player/builder.
  • Exceptional leadership, organizational, oral/written communication, interpersonal, analytical, and problem resolution skills. Thrive in both independent and collaborative work environments.
  • Proficient in the use of various computer programs and applications including Macro Smith Office.

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Basic Resume Types

Posted On: Wednesday, January 9th, 2008 - Posted By: GigTide

Chronological Resume

Traditional resume style, conservative by nature. Perfect for someone maintaining their career in the same field. Experience focused with each position described in detail.

Typical Chronological Resume Flow:

  1. Contact Information
  2. Objective
  3. Background
  4. Employment History
  5. Education
  6. Professional Memberships
  7. Software Skills
  8. Other Skills

Functional Resume

Resume style highly focused on skills and accomplishments. Perfect for someone who wants to highlight a broad range of skills or accomplishments. Jobs and job descriptions are separated into different sections with the employment history below the accomplishments or skills section.

Typical Functional Resume Flow:

  1. Contact Information
  2. Objective
  3. Qualifications Summary
  4. Experience Highlights
  5. Employment History
  6. Education & Training
  7. Community Involvement or Clubs or Professional Associations

Combined Resume

A combination of Chronological and Functional resume formats. Perfect for someone with a wide range of work experience and a broad range of skills or accomplishments. This style of resume is typically longer than the Chronological or Functional resume formats.

Typical Combined Resume Flow:

  1. Contact Information
  2. Objective
  3. Qualifications Summary
  4. Employment Overview
  5. Education
  6. Experience
  7. Computer Experience/ Languages
  8. Professional Affiliations

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