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In today's competitive job market, having a resume is a must. Before an employer takes valuable time to interview you, they want to meet you on paper. Without a resume, you can't even begin to compete, and an inferior resume will quickly eliminate you. That is why it is important to have a well-written, well thought out resume that effectively lets employers know what you can do for them and how you can benefit their organization.
A Resume is a Summary of Your Qualifications
The term resume comes from the French and means a "summary." That's exactly what your resume is -- A summary of your qualifications, skills, and achievements. It shows a future employer what you have done in the past. It details your skills and training, work experience, and education, and, most importantly, the accomplishments you have made with past employers.
Your Resume is Your Marketing Brochure. Think of yourself as a product with unique features and benefits, and the employer or recruiter is a customer who needs this product. Your resume should be like a sales tool, telling the reader why they should want to meet you for a demonstration of who you are. Your resume should WOW the reader into wanting to learn more about you through an interview.
Key Components of a Resume
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Heading / Identification |
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The heading should include your full, legal name, permanent address and phone number, with the area code, cell phone number, and e-mail address. |
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Objective |
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The objective should clearly state the position you're applying for. |
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Summary or Profile (optional) |
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A summary includes a sentence or two highlighting your skills, enticing the reader to look at the rest of the resume. It supports the objective. Quantify the statements whenever possible. |
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Education |
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Make sure to list all your relevant education, training, and certifications. List degrees(s) awarded, school(s) attended, dates of attendance or year of graduation/completion and your program/major. List your education in chronological order, starting with your most recent first. Include your grade point average if it is a 3.0 or better. |
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Work Experience |
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Include the name of the employer, geographic location (city and state only), position title, dates of employment, a brief statement of duties and your major contributions and accomplishments. Include military experience, internships/cooperative and volunteer experience. List these in reverse chronological order - the most recent first. |
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Qualifications and/or Skills |
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Provide a concise list of your qualifications, skills, and accomplishments that are requirements for the position you are seeking. Use action statements to describe these and quantify whenever possible. List in order of importance. It is not necessary to identify the employment situation where these qualifications were obtained. Include computer software/hardware skills, technical skills, percent of increase in production, sales, etc. |
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Awards / Achievements / Honors |
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You can use this as a separate category or place this information under the Education heading. This area should highlight formal recognitions, professional and academic awards. |
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Activities and Associations |
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Include participation in professional associations, student government, clubs, or community activities. Include the name of the organization and any leadership roles you held. |
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References |
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Indicate that these are available upon request. Prepare a list of references on a separate piece of paper. Include the person's name, job title, phone number, name, and address of the organization. DO NOT PUT YOUR REFERENCES ON YOUR RESUME. |
Resume Guidelines
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One Page or Two? |
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Trying to get your resume onto a single page isn't easy; two pages are OK if your career history and accomplishments warrant it. Anything beyond two pages may overwhelm or even bore the reader. When detailing out your accomplishments and responsibilities, ensure that your two most recent positions have the most information listed, and are on the front page. No one really cares about what you did in your first job out of high school 20 years ago. |
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Use a Font that is Easy to Read |
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A 10 or 12 point font in Arial or Times New Roman are the best choices for your resume and cover letter. They are easy to read and consistent with most business writings of all types. In addition, if the company receiving your resume uses scanning software, these formats are easily read by most scanners. |
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Use Bullet Points |
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In the body of your resume, use bullets with short sentences rather than lengthy paragraphs. Resumes are read quickly. This bulleted sentence format makes it easier for someone to quickly scan your resume and still absorb the contents. |
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Use Power or Action Words |
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Use words in your resume that are descriptive as the first word in your bullet points. Words to consider using are: Supervised, Led, Developed, Mastered, Coordinated, and Managed. These words convey confidence to the reader of one's abilities. To view more,
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| accelerated | advised | analyzed | approved | arranged | assembled | assisted | built | completed |
| conceived | conducted | controled | coordinated | created | delegated | detected | developed | directed |
| distributed | edited | delivered | demonstrated | designed | eliminateed | established | evaluated | expanded |
| expedited | formulated | generated | implemented | improved | increased | influenced | installed | instructed |
| maintained | managed | motivated | obtained | operated | ordered | organized | originated | oversaw |
| performed | pinpointed | planned | prepared | presented | processed | produced | programmed | promoted |
| protested | proved | provided | purchased | received | recommended | recorded | reduced | reorganized |
| represented | researched | revamped | reviewed | revised | scheduled | selected | sold | solved |
| streamlined | structured | studied | supervised | supported | taught | tested | trained | wrote |
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Lead With Your Strengths |
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Since resumes are typically reviewed quickly, take the time to determine which bullet points most strongly support the type of job you are applying for. Put those strong points first where they are more apt to be read. |
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Add Numbers to Your Accomplishments |
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Employers and Recruiters look for people with measurable accomplishments. Numbers, dollars, and percentages stand out in the body of a resume and grab the reader's attention. Some examples of bullet points where you can highlight your accomplishments are in the areas of people, sales and controllable costs.
Here are some example bullet points that highlight the accomplishments of the applicant to potential employers:
- Increased sales 35% over last year and 12% under budget.
- Developed new sales concepts that increased profits by over 40%
- Supervised over 10 sales managers and 100 sales associates.
- Recruited and trained 3 new sales leads increasing revenue by $1 million dollars
- Reduced payroll expenditures by 10% |
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Proofread Your Resume |
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The last thing you should do before submitting your resume to a company for review is to have it proofread. Your word processor's spelling and grammer check is a great tool but you can't always rely on it to catch every error. Have at least two other people review your resume to identify any additional mistakes you may have missed. |
Example Resume
| John Q. Sample |
5342 Clark Road, Sarasota, FL 34233
(941) 555-5555 · johnqsample@email.com
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| OBJECTIVE |
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To obtain the postion of Regional Sales Director where my skills and experiences can be effectively utilized for increased profitability, increased product sales and in developing a dynamic sales team.
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SUMMARY |
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- Dedicated manager with background of leading sales force teams as large as 16
- Detailed sales forecasting background and overseeing more than $12MM in sales annually
- Recognized leader with proven experience in implementing new sales strategies and training programs
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EDUCATION |
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UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA - GAINESVILLE, FL
Bachelor of Scienece in Computer Science (May 1996)
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WORK EXPERIENCE |
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ABC SALES COMPANY - SARASOTA, FL
Regional Sales Director (Feb 2004 - Present)
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- Managed, hired and trained inside/outside sales force of 16 covering 12 states throughout the Southeast
- Oversaw budgeting, operations and logistics for new sales division generating $8MM in sales annually
- Increased client base by 33% in two years by revamping outside sales force relationships, trimming
roster and implementing referral program
- Launched fully integrated print and Internet marketing program in the Southeast
- Increased profitability and sales substantially by heading up a major revision of product pricing
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XYZ COMPANY - TAMPA, FL
Sales Director (Jun 1996 - Jan 2004)
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- Directed a team of nine sales/marketing representative generating 12MM in annual sales
- Increased overall sales by 135% from 2001 - 2004 by revamping training and sales techniques
- Ranked first in sales out of five regional sales directors for four consecutive years
- Saved the company more than $150,000 per year by outsourcing marketing initiatives
- Promoted from Sales Representative to Sales Director in only one year
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QUALIFICATIONS |
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- Operating Systems: Windows Vista, XP
- Software: Microsoft Office Professional, QuickBooks, Salesforce
- Business skills: typing (approximately 45 wpm), FAX machines, and photocopiers
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AWARDS / HONORS |
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- National Sales Achievement Award, ABC Sales Company (Oct 2007)
- Top Sales Achievement Award, XYZ Company (Mar 2003)
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ASSOCIATIONS |
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- National Association of Top Sales Professionals (Jul 2006 - Present)
- University of Florida Alumni Board (Sep 2003 - Present)
- Chamber of Commerce Board Member (Dec 2005 - May 2008)
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REFERENCES |
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Available upon request
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