Category: Objective Statements

Objective Statements: Elements of a Good Objective

The key to a good objective is to write a statement that adds value to the hiring manager.  Too many objectives are just fluff – nothing specific and nothing of value.  If you are going to have an objective statement, describe the position you are seeking.  Failing to do this will only make a poor impression on the reader. 

In our 2008 Resume Benchmarking Survey, we found the average length of an Objective Statement was between one and two lines, with the majority limited to one sentence. Although it is important to provide a specific objective with sufficient detail, an objective should also be clear and concise. With many hiring managers spending less than a minute reviewing each resume, a lengthy paragraph in an objective statement section is unlikely to be read.

For resumes with Objective Statements, only 29% described the industries preferred by the job seeker and only 54% described the specific job being pursued. This led to only 14% of all objective statements describing both the job and industry being pursued.

Objective Statements: Giving Your Job Search a Purpose

Many resumes start with an objective statement.  This can be a great way to start your resume, or it can make a very bad impression.  It all depends on what you write.  This week, I’m going to look at Objective Statements in detail.  Today and tomorrow, I’ll have a couple articles on how to write an objective, and later in the week, I’ll provide examples of actual resumes.

Do You Need an Objective

The first question regarding objective statements is whether you need one.  Objective statements are not a required element on a resume.  In our 2008 Resume Benchmarking Survey, we found that 56% of resumes have an objective statement.

If you are seeking a position similar to your current role, an objective isn’t important.  Most hiring managers will assume you want to do what you are already doing.

If you want to make a shift into a different role or industry, an objective will help.  The bigger the change you want to make, the more important an objective statement is.  If you want to change careers but don’t have an objective, it’s very unlikely that a hiring manager will see your background as a fit in a different field.  You need to get them thinking about suitability in the different role.

Tomorrow, I’m going to look at what makes a good objective statement.

 

Objective: One More Challenge

We received a resume last week with an objective statement that is almost humorous, except that it will probably hurt the job seeker’s chance to find a job.  Here’s the objective:

To utilize my technical and management skills acquired over the last 36 years for one more challenge.

Now, this objective misses the mark on a few counts.  First, it’s completely general.  It says the job seeker wants a job – not much more. 

Second, it highlights the job seeker’s age.  Will this hurt the job seeker?  I don’t know.  Discriminating on the basis of age is illegal and wrong, so hopefully this won’t hurt this individual.  If it doesn’t hurt, it still won’t help.  Stating that the job seeker has 36 years of experience doesn’t add much value (especially since it doesn’t say what the experience is). 

Finally, it conveys that the job seeker does not intend to have a lengthy tenure in their next position.  Stating that they are looking for “one more challenge” leaves me with the impression that they are biding their time until retirement and intend to have a short tenure.  Finding, hiring and training new employees are expensive and time consuming activities.  You should not give the impression that you are not going to stick around long enough for a company to recoup their costs.  Another individual, regardless of age or background that conveys an image of stability and loyalty will have an edge over this individual. 

Now, picture a hiring manager that is looking at two to three hundred resumes for a position.  They only have a limited amount of time – maybe an hour or two.  So they need to screen several resumes every minute.  It’s likely that this individual will get screened out after reading just the objective statement.  There’s nothing that will cause the reader to want to read more and there is a big signal that they job seeker will not stick around long.  No matter how good the rest of the resume is (and it’s pretty good) there’s a good chance it won’t be read.