Résumé Writing Truths: Format, Gatekeepers, Etc.
Do you know what happens to your résumé after you send it to an employer? Some résumés produce
immediate results--others disappear without a trace.
Anyone who has scanned, reviewed, and discarded tens of thousands of résumés knows that most
résumés have serious defects; in fact many résumés have flaws that guarantee failure. Intelligent, highly
qualified candidates often write subpar résumés because they are unaware of the cold realities of résumé
writing -- realities that can prevent even the most qualified candidate from getting hired.
Recruiters, staffing managers and HR managers will tell you that the job seekers who get interviews and
offers of employment are not necessarily the best qualified. Often, they are simply the best prepared.
No one enjoys searching for employment. If you are like most job seekers, you spend a considerable
amount of time and effort searching job ads, networking and writing your résumé and cover letter.
These simple activities can take as much effort as a full-time job.
If you would like to work smarter not harder, there are a few résumé writing facts to consider before you
submit another résumé.
The truth about résumé writing:
* Your résumé should be like a Trojan horse: Whether submitted via mail, fax, email or online job
board, your résumé must get you past an employer's gatekeepers (recruiters, staffing managers, HR
managers etc.) and into an interview or telephone screen with the hiring manager. Your résumé must get
past the gatekeepers before the hiring manager ever gets to see it. Needless to say, if your résumé cannot
pass the scrutiny of these gatekeepers, you will not get many interviews.
* A 10-Second scan is the norm: Most staffing managers and recruiters (headhunters) scan and
discard each résumé in 10 to 15 seconds unless the résumé provides them with a compelling reason to
flag it for an in-depth review. Gatekeepers do not enjoy reading résumés. In order to process hundreds
of printed and electronic résumés a week, busy gatekeepers look for excuses to reject most résumés
quickly.
* Gatekeepers are paid to be conservative and suspicious: If they have any questions or concerns
about a résumé, they rarely try to contact the applicant for clarification; they simply discard the résumé
and pull up the next one. Most employers receive résumés from applicants who are obviously qualified;
they do not have time to contact applicants who may be qualified.
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* Strong Candidate + Weak Résumé = No Interview: In résumé writing, mediocrity equals failure.
Many discarded résumés belong to qualified candidates who are not aware that they are doing substantial
damage to their career prospects by using résumés that do not adequately sell their experience, skills, and
qualifications. Résumé screening is impersonal and unforgiving; an energetic job search will not survive a
poor résumé.
* Your résumé must be tall and short, fat and thin: Your résumé must first survive a ten second visual scan,
then it must survive a thorough examination by a gatekeeper looking for an excuse to remove it from
consideration. In order to survive a ten second scan, it must stand out and present a good snapshot of
your skills. If your résumé survives the scan, it should provide enough rich and compelling detail to sell
you to the reviewer and answer important questions that arise during the in-depth review. These
competing imperatives are very difficult to balance.
* Excellence is the only option: If only 100 people apply for a desirable position, your résumé must
tell the gatekeeper in no uncertain terms that you are better qualified than at least 85 of the other
applicants. If your résumé cannot beat 85% of the competition, you will not get interviews. Your
résumé is much more important than your actual qualifications at this stage.
Résumé Writing Tips: Keywords, Length, Objectives, Etc.
Résumé Writing Tips - Theory vs. Reality
There is much more to effective résumé writing than putting together a résumé in a layout and format that
are pleasing to the eye. Effective résumé writing involves art, science, and a large helping of technology.
A good résumé writer should have deep knowledge of the technical aspects of résumé writing. He/she should have strong grammatical and composition skills. Most "résumé services" don't know the rules for using apostrophes or commas -- they couldn't even tell you when to use "whom" as opposed to "who."
A few things have changed in the last 5 years: the Internet, online job boards, the job market, applicant
tracking systems, etc. Unfortunately, some résumé writers dwell on things that were important a few
years ago but are virtually irrelevant today.
The alleged importance of résumé paper quality and résumé scannability are a couple of outdated résumé
writing issues that come to mind. If you apply for jobs online, paper quality and scannability are
unimportant. Even if you apply by mail, inexpensive laser printer paper will suffice; content, structure,
format, and strategy are much more important. If a "professional" résumé writer harps on résumé paper
quality and scannable résumés, or suggests a keyword section, run away as fast as you can.
The "functional résumé" is a favorite fiction of résumé writing books and résumé writers without relevant real
world experience. In theory, functional résumés help conceal deficiencies in a candidate's background; in
the real world, recruiters, staffing managers and hiring managers view functional résumés with suspicion and disdain. In practice, functional résumés raise a red flag before each employer.
Authors of résumé writing books, and unsophisticated, naïve résumé writers who buy into their hackneyed nostrums, often advocate functional résumés for three reasons: it is a simple solution to a complex problem, the advocates do not know any better -- and they do not have to live with the consequences.
If you assume that most people who make hiring decisions are of above-average intelligence, it stands to
reason that they would recognize an overused method of hiding information. Many gatekeepers trash
functional résumés as soon as they see them. Employers use chronological employment application forms. Use a chronological résumé format!
