Resume Writing Archives - Page 5 of 16 - Palladian Career Resources

Military Resume Benchmarking Report

The 2009 Military Resume Benchmarking Results provides transitioning and former military personnel with hard data on resume writing best practices. The report identified common resume writing mistakes and recommendations to avoid these pitfalls.

The 2009 military resume benchmarking study examined thirty-six separate elements within each resume. All of the resumes were from former or current military personnel, representing all branches of the military. Both enlisted and officer ranks were included.

The study examined the content of each resume. A few results stood out:

Employer Name – 30% of the resumes failed to include the name of each employer in their work history. Listing the employer name for each job is an essential component of a resume.
Job Titles – One in six resumes failed to include job titles for every position in their work history. Job titles are critical to understanding the experience and career progression of a job seeker.
Introduction – In the study, 90% of the resumes had an introductory section, typically including an objective statement or summary of the candidate’s background.

Based on these results and others contained in the report, Palladian provides specific resume writing recommendations, especially applicable to military transition candidates. Specifically, a resume should provide the employer name, job title, start and end dates (with months and years) and the location for each position listed. The resume introductory section should focus on accomplishments, not responsibilities. Resumes should be one to two pages, and 300 to 600 words in length. To improve the readability of the resume, short bullets should be used. Finally, the job seeker should provide the military rank, or the highest rank achieved at minimum.

Wordiness on a Cover Letter

A cover letter needs to be clear and concise to be effective. Awkward and wordy sentences will discourage a hiring manager from reading the entire cover letter and will make a poor impression before the reader gets to the resume. Unfortunately, many writers struggle with identifying wordy phrases in their own writing.

Passive Voice

Many job seekers write in passive voice. It provides a weak presentation. The bullet below is written with an indirect passive style that moves the core activity of the job seeker to the end of the sentence.

I've consulted for <company> on a project that involved evaluating, creating then implementing learning paths for <client company>.

This sentence is longer than it needs to be and uses a very weak structure. To improve the sentence, take the primary verb and move it to the start of the sentence.

I evaluated, created and implemented learning paths for <client company> as a consultant at <company>.

Emphasizing the Wrong Information

This bullet emphasizes the job title and company name instead of the experience.

During my stint as the <job title> at <company>, I had to create then implement a rapid development system for developing Flash-based elearning modules to be delivered globally.

The work experience section of the resume details the positions held by the job seeker. There is no reason to repeat the details here.

I created and implemented a rapid development system for designing Flash-based elearning modules to be delivered globally.

Eventually

One word can destroy the impact of a bullet on your resume. The job seeker states that they “eventually” produced a successful result. This implies that path to success was very long… longer than expected.

My team eventually successfully designed and developed 6 hours of WBT that was delivered to support a new software configuration.

A better option is to focus on the verb and object, and leave the “eventually” out.

I led the design team that developed 6 hours of WBT supporting a new software configuration.

Review Your Cover Letter and Resume

Look at each sentence of your cover letter and resume and pick out the single most important verb. Try to rewrite the sentence to start with that verb. Delete any elements that are unnecessary. In each of the examples, I reduced the word count but maintained the core message of the sentence. Cutting out non-essential words and focusing on the actions (leading with the verbs) will improve the impact of your writing.

Resume Accomplishment: Saved Less Than 1%

I read a resume today with an accomplishment that stood out. The accomplishment stated the job seeker had saved $60k in the last year on a $14 million budget. This works out to 0.4% of the budget – a very small amount. Despite this, the accomplishment was noteworthy.

In spite of declining sales, labor and expenses were managed proportionally leading to a favorable budget variance of $60k.

The reason this accomplishment is significant is the context the job seeker provides. The company is facing declining sales. This is common today. Managing in a declining sales environment poses unique challenges. Companies have fixed expenses that do not fluctuate with sales. This requires a manager to adjust variable experiences significantly to maintain margins.

The job seeker was able to manage the change in volumes and achieve results similar to plan. In a different bullet, the job seeker provided background details on the position, including responsibility for a budget of $14m and a staff of 140 employees. This provides the scope of the responsibility.

Although the accomplishment is a great addition to the job seeker’s resume, there is one additional detail that would improve it. Adding some measure of how much sales had declined would show a more complete picture. If sales dropped 1%, adapting would be easy. On the other hand, if sales dropped 50%, managing expenses to match this would be a tremendous accomplishment.

Avoid Identify Theft

I read a resume recently with a piece of information that should never be listed: the candidate’s Social Security number.

I read a resume recently with a piece of information that should never be listed: the candidate’s Social Security number. A resume provides the job seeker’s career background and potential. In an active job search, a job seeker will often try to distribute their resume as widely as possible. You can’t do this with your social security number.

The resume I read was posted online in a resume database. The database was secure with only a limited number of people having access, probably less than a thousand. That’s still a thousand people with access to the resume and social security number. Even worse, this job seeker was obviously very active in his search. It is likely he made his resume accessible elsewhere.

If the resume was posted on one of the big job boards, the number of people with access could be in the hundreds of thousands. Any one of these people could have run a keyword search for “social security” and would have turned up this resume. This poses a significant risk of identity theft. Your resume needs to have your name and contact information, but other identifying details should be omitted. Do not list your social security number or driver’s license number.

Why would a person put their social security number on their resume? At some point in a search, a company will need your social security number. The company needs this to do a background check and to complete the new hire paperwork (IRS and other filings for tax purposes). Some job seekers try to make the process easier for the company by providing this information on their resume. This is a mistake. Personal information should be collected when it is needed and the company should explain why they need the information.

There is one other time you might be asked for your social. Early in the process, you may be asked to complete an employment application. Often, the social security number will be part of this form.

These situations are normal. Companies have procedures for safeguarding personal information. The safeguards are not as rigorous for resumes. A resume could be distributed to a number of hiring managers and employees involved in the hiring decision. Personal data such as social security numbers is typically held in a secure area of the HR department. Placing your social security number on your resume will circumvent these procedures and allow this information to be accessible to a much wider audience.

Bottom line: Do not put your social security number on your resume.

Resume Tip #11

Resume Tip: Limit the use of gobbledygook words that are overused and lack specific meaning.

Resume Tip: Limit the use of gobbledygook words that are overused and lack specific meaning.

Some words are so overused they lose their meaning. These words are called Gobbledygook. Stay away from these words.

Should You List Every Job on Your Resume?

One of the questions I’m asked frequently is whether a job seeker should include every job on their resume. You should provide a complete and honest picture of your background. For most job seekers, this means listing everything. There are a few exceptions. One significant exception is when a person makes a major shift in their career.

This week, I read the resume of a job seeker that had held an entry level admin position at the start of his career. He then joined the military. The candidate’s work experience prior to the military totaled less than a year. The candidate served in the military for twenty years and is now transitioning.

The admin experience prior to the military has no relationship to the progression within the military or the career objective the candidate is currently pursuing. It is also more than twenty years old. There is no reason to include the work experience prior to the military service on the resume. Omitting this information will not mislead an employer and will not change the impression the resume makes. It will make room for more relevant and important information.

Where do you draw the line?

An entry level admin position held for less than a year more than 20 years ago isn’t significant to a person’s career progression. Making this position more recent, a longer duration or related to the job seeker’s career field could make it important to include on the resume. The challenge is knowing when the position becomes significant and when it isn’t.

Generally, you should list any positions you have held in the last ten to twenty years. If you had a full-time position and a part-time position at the same time, you may omit the part-time role, especially if it is unrelated to your primary career.

An entry level position early in your career may be important to list even if it is twenty or more years ago if the position establishes the start to a career progression. Individuals that stay in the same career field, progressing upward to increasing levels of responsibility can show a consistent pattern of success through the promotions they have received. To do this, you need to show the starting point – an entry level position where you got your start.

In the case of the resume I read, the initial admin position had nothing to do with the military career. Omitting it wouldn’t detract from the career progression. The job seeker should show all of his military positions. This establishes the start of the career progression.

If you need help determining what to include in your resume, get help from a resume writer.

Successfully Showed Up

I read a lot of resumes that are nothing more than copies of the job descriptions the employers wrote. The basic responsibilities from a job description do not demonstrate any ability or skill. One resume I read recently was especially bad.

The resume had a litany of basic responsibilities that did nothing to sell the job seeker’s potential. One bullet that really stood out for me was:

Attended staff meetings

A staff meeting is a meeting where all the staff get together. Attending requires moving from one’s desk to the conference room. This is barely a step up from “showed up to work.”

There are two reasons I can think of why a job seeker would list something like this. First, the job seeker may have copied the job description and was too lazy to edit it. Second, the job seeker may have added this bullet in order to fill space and make his resume look more hefty. In either case, the bullet makes a terrible impression.

When writing your resume, focus on giving reasons why you are valuable. The key question you need to answer is:

How are you better than others doing exactly the same job as you?

If you do not give a reason why you are more valuable than your competition, you will not get hired. The job market is competitive enough to guarantee that someone applying for the same job as you will develop a resume highlighting their skills, accomplishments and potential value.

Does your resume show specifically the attributes that make you valuable? Do you show how you have used these abilities in the past with concrete examples of what you have done? Do you provide specific results you delivered? Does your resume show the value you will provide an employer?

If you are having trouble identifying how you stand out from your competition, talk with a resume writer or career coach. These individuals are a experts in assessing job seekers and identifying the strengths that can be marketed.

Reverse Chronological Order

The most common resume structure is the Chronological resume. The name is a misnomer though. A chronological resume should be in reverse chronological order, with the most recent information at the top and oldest at the bottom of the resume.

There is a good reason why this structure is so common and effective. A resume is a sales pitch for the job seeker. The sales pitch should start with the most persuasive and impressive information at the top. The most recent experience usually makes the the best impression.

For the vast majority of job seekers, listing the most recent job first is not news. Despite this, there are job seekers that continue to make mistakes. I’m currently conducting a resume study, similar to the resume benchmarking survey we did last year. So far, I have run into several chronological resumes that either start with the oldest job or have the jobs in an order unrelated to the dates of the jobs.

The reverse chronological order is so common, you should not deviate. Choosing a different order for your work experience will draw attention away from your skills and experience and cause the reader to question why the order is different from normal. You only have a short time to make a good first impression. Wasting even a few seconds can hurt your chances. The time the hiring manager spends thinking about the structure is time they are not thinking about the content of your resume.

Choosing something other than reverse chronological order for work experience is rare, but is more common with other sections the resume. I’ve read a number of resumes that list training and education in unusual orders. For example, one resume listed the bachelor’s first, then the master’s degree. This wouldn’t have been as big a problem if the degrees had not be mixed in with a list of training classes. This caused me to almost miss the master’s degree.

When listing your education, degrees are listed separate from training classes. They should also be listed in reverse chronological order. This should place the most advanced degree at the top of the education section. Training classes can be included within the education section, or in a separate training section. These should also be listed in a reverse chronological order. You may want to put your degrees near the top of your resume, but your training classes should be at the end. They are far less significant and should be placed after more critical information.

If you have other sections that list experience, place these in reverse chronological order. For example, someone in the construction industry might have a section of their resume with a project list. This list should be in reverse chronological order.

Now there are other organizational options that need to be considered. Dates are important, but grouping information by type and function is also important. I mentioned that a person’s education should be organized with degrees and training classes separate. The same can happen with the construction example. Projects in construction may be organized by building type. Within the building type sections, we go back to the reverse chronological order.

The work experience order can have one major issue that may cause a person to break their experience into different sections. There are job seekers that concurrently have two different careers. This is common with military reservists. The job seeker can have a civilian career at the same time they have a military career. Listing two work experience sections, one for military and one for civilian work can make the resume easier to read and understand. Other individuals may have a business they run outside of work. Others may have significant volunteer work. Separating these roles from their career is good idea. In both experience sections, the reverse chronological order should be maintained.

When you write your resume, group information in the sections that make it easiest read. For most people, this will include a summary, work experience, eduction, skills and training. Each of these sections should then be in reverse chronological order. If you consider breaking up information into other sections or a different order, get someone to do a resume review. Make sure your organization makes your resume easier to read, not harder. It is likely your resume will only get a 15-30 second look before the hiring manager decides to keep reading or throw it away. Don’t waste a second.

A Recruiter’s Perspective

One of my primary goals in writing the this blog is give you the ability to look at your resume the same way a recruiter or hiring manager will. I ran into a resume today that illustrates a common mistake I see, although this example is worse than most.

The resume is from a salesperson with fifteen years of experience. The resume listed a number of great accomplishments. There were bullets where the job seeker had exceeded their annual quota by significant percentages. Other bullets showed their ranking within the company or region – for example, top five out of three hundred sales associates at one position.

The work history looked good. Then, at the start of 2007, the candidate took a new sales job. The new position had one bullet, “Sell comprehensive line of…” and a list of products. The listing had nothing about the success of the individual. No details of the territory, customer base, training or anything else about the position.

Recruiter Perspective

My reaction to this resume is simple. The job seeker had been successful in the past but failed dismally in their most recent position. I can’t think of any reason why the job seeker wouldn’t give some detail of their performance for this position if their performance was good. Describing this as a dismal failure may seem strong. I have to assume the candidate did not meet or exceed expectations in any way.

I also read the cover letter closely. My thought was the candidate might have a reason why he didn’t detail the position. The company many have had financial difficulty or the sales process may not have been a fit for the candidate. These reason could mitigate a failed position. The cover letter mirrored the resume, emphasizing the past and skipping over the most recent position.

The Job Seeker’s Perspective

I expect the job seeker left out details of this position because he has trouble acknowledging the failure. The career track record shows a pattern of success. It doesn’t appear that he has had to deal with failing before. The easiest thing for the job seeker is to skip over the position and emphasize his accomplishments. I’m sure this seemed like a good idea, but it doesn’t create the impression the job seeker wants.

Just as there are reasons that would mitigate the significance of a failure, there are reasons that could make this failure a major issue. What changed about the job seeker that led to the failure? In an interview, this would be my focus.

Solution

The best way to deal with this is to be upfront and give some detail. The job seeker should explain their performance. If the performance was below expectations, then the job seeker should explain way. I’m not suggesting that they job seeker needs a bunch of excuses – that’s the wrong approach. He just needs to provide an honest assessment. For example, shortly after starting the position, the company may have experienced a change in a their operations that made their products less competitive. Stating this by itself is just an excuse. Adding details about how the company’s sales dropped significantly would make it understandable that a new salesperson would struggle.

Another option is to remove all the accomplishments from the resume. I think this is a terrible option, but some job seekers may consider it. By removing the other accomplishments, the job seeker will create a consistent pattern from start to finish. The lack of accomplishments in the current position will not standout without any other accomplishments on the resume. In a down economy, this tactic will cause the job seeker to appear completely unimpressive and reduce the chances of getting an interview.

Often a resume tells as much about the job seeker from the lack on information as it does from the information is included.

Identifying Impressive Accomplishments

I read two resumes today with accomplishments that appeared to have nothing in common. One is from a senior manufacturing executive and the other is from an individual in the Navy. The scope and type of the accomplishments are vastly different, and yet, they both are impressive.

The Manufacturing Executive

The accomplishment on the resume provided specific results and a description of how they were achieved:

Reduced annual labor costs by $1.75 million through standardization of work methods, instituted employee productivity reporting system, improved product-flow, realigned supervisory responsibilities, and implemented a comprehensive employee training program

This is an impressive accomplishment. Nearly $2 million in labor savings through a number of changes. Any manufacturing manager would want an accomplishment like this on their resume. Most people don't have accomplishments this significant, though.

The Transitioning Sailor

The accomplishment from the individual transitioning from the Navy also provided specific results and a description of how they were achieved:

Saved over $7,000 by expertly using outside government sources to provide services previously taken from activities budget.

After reading about a $1.75 million in savings, $7,000 appears insignificant. You may be thinking that it is pointless to write about saving a few thousand dollars. For this individual, the accomplishment is impressive and may be more impressive than the accomplishment from the manufacturing executive.

The reason the accomplishment is impressive has nothing to do with the dollar amount. Going by dollars, there's no comparison between these two accomplishments. Dollars saved isn't the only factor. We also have to look at the role of the individual and the potential for savings. If the CEO of GE, IBM or Exxon listed an accomplishment of saving $1.75 million, it would not be impressive. These companies have sales in excess of $100 billion dollars. A million is insignificant to the scope of company.

For the transitioning sailor, there is very little opportunity to generate cost savings. This individual was enlisted and at a lower level. Very few of his peers can identify any specific cost savings they have delivered. This is what makes the accomplishment significant.

In your career, you may not have had the opportunity to save millions of dollars. This does not mean you do not have significant accomplishments. Review your background for situations where you were able to make a contribution beyond your basic expectations. These accomplishments could involve saving money, but they could also relate to other aspects of your job. Have you improved a process? Did you help a company become more efficient? Did you do something that elevated customer service levels? There are a wide variety of ways people contribute to their employers. Look for ways you have contributed and highlight these on your resume.

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