With
employers receiving hundreds of resumes you must make sure that
your resume hooks an employer's attention within a 5-second
glance. A great way to do this is to use job titles and skill
headings that relate to and match the jobs you want. For
example, compare the headings Roger used in his before resume to
the headings used in his after resume.
Before Resume:
Accounting / Recordkeeping
Administrative
Computer Skills |
After Resume:
Management of A/R and A/P Accounts
Computerized Accounting Applications
Departmental Administration / Recordkeeping |
Which set of headings are the strongest for
an Accounts Payable / Receivable Manager position?Even though
Roger's title was Accounting Assistant, he actually managed over
1,000 A/R and A/P accounts. Using skill headings that market the
true nature of Roger's job duties will generate him more
interviews and higher salary offers. For more examples, like
this one and the ones discussed below, |
| Tip
2 - Use Design That Grabs Attention |
|
Employers make snap judgments when glancing at your resume. If
they see unrelated job titles or skills the likelihood is very
high that they will make an immediate assumption that you are
not qualified for the job you want. Adding to this problem is
the fact that employers don't have the time to read through each
of your job descriptions to determine if you have the skills
they need. You Must
Do That For Them! The design of your
resume must highlight the most important information about your
work experience, skills and education. At first glance this
information forms the image that employers have of your skills
and abilities. |
| Tip
3 - Create Content That Sells |
Resume
design should get attention but it's really the content of your
resume, the descriptions you include of your skills and
abilities, that determine how many interviews you generate--as
well as the level of salary offers you receive. Compare the
before and after statements from Roger's resume shown below:
Before Resume:
Maintained records for accounts receivable
and accounts payable accounts. |
After Resume:
Managed over 1,000 accounts receivable and
payable accounts working directly with the Chief Financial
Officer. |
Which of these examples presents Roger as
being more qualified, having higher skills and worth a higher
salary? As this example illustrates, our image of Roger is
changed and elevated when we read the after example.
|
| Tip
4 - Quantify and Use Power Words |
| As
Roger's after statement demonstrates, using numbers to describe
your achievements and responsibilities can greatly expand and
elevate your image. Using numbers and quantifying creates vivid
images in our mind when we read them, whereas general statements
like the before examples are easy to skip over or forget.
Typically the more specific you can be in describing your duties
the better. Another strategy that is
extremely important in controlling the image that employers
develop about you--is to use Power Words or verbs that match the
level of position you want. For example, Roger wants to use the
experience he's gained to move into a management position. To
strengthen his image he should use as many "management oriented"
words as possible. Which example below do you think is the
strongest?
Typical Verbs:
Gave work assignments to staff of entry
level accounting clerks. |
Power Words:
Directed workflow, supervised and trained
accounting staff performing posting to general ledger,
accounts receivable and payable accounts. |
|
| Tip
5 - Analyze Ads and Job
Descriptions to Identify Key Words |
Learning how to analyze the key words that employers provide in
help wanted ads and job descriptions is a key element in
creating powerful resumes. For example, read the ad Roger found
for an Accounts Receivable Manager below and see how many key
words, phrases, or skill descriptions that it includes.
Accounts
Receivable Manager
Seeking experienced A/R Manager to oversee
accounts, manage billing and collections, train accounting
and clerical staff, develop status reports for management
and prepare monthly balance sheets. B.A. Degree or A.A.
Degree with minimum of 2 years experience required. |
Even though this ad is small it contains
12-13 key words or phrases that should be addressed in Roger's
resume. Roger can also key words from an ad like this to create
headings for his resume such as:
Key Word
Skill Headings
Management of A/R Accounts
Billing and Collections
Supervision of Accounting and Administrative Staff
Balance Sheet and Management Status Reports |
|
| Tip
6 - Identify and Solve Employer's
Hidden Needs |
| In
addition to the skills or needs listed in the ad shown above,
the employer will have many more needs that Roger should
identify and address in his resume and cover letter. For
example, this employer will need someone who can deal
effectively with other departments, research accounting issues
and records to solve problems. To beat today's heavy competition
for jobs, it's important that you identify and anticipate the
full range of needs each employer faces and show how you can
solve those needs. |
| Tip
7 - Sell the Benefits of Your
Skills |
Most
resumes provide a list of duties that each applicant has been
responsible for--without explaining the benefit of those skills
to employers. For example, a secretary's resume might state she
can type 80 wpm and is extremely accurate. This statement lacks
an explanation of how her typing speed and accuracy benefit an
employer's bottom line. The real benefit is that the employee
can produce more work and ultimately save the employer money. A
better statement for this person's resume would be:
Selling
The Benefits of Skills
·
Achieved top production volume by maintaining high degree of
accuracy with typing speed at 80 wpm.
· Cut
labor expense over $6,000 annually by eliminating the need
for part-time wordprocessing staff. |
|
| Tip
8 - Create An Image That Matches
The Salary You Want |
| As you
write your resume, keep in mind the level of job and salary you
want. Be sure to create an image that presents you at the
appropriate level. For example, language used in a resume for an
$8 an hour position is much different than the language used for
a $16 an hour position. I recently met Lynn, who had held a
Health Insurance Claims Management position making $42,000 per
year. She had retrained for the accounting field and hadn't yet
gained any "direct accounting experience" although she had
prepared monthly accounting reports as a Department Manager.
I was appalled when she shared the resume she
had been counseled to create. It began with this statement:
|
Seeking an entry level
position in the accounting field.
|
Now what pay rate do you think this statement
would motivate employers to offer Lynn? A much better statement
would be:
|
Seek an Accounting
position utilizing my experience:
· Managing a
department and accounting for up to $250,000 in monthly
claims.
|
My goal is to help people either stay at
their current salary level or move up--not go backwards. As you
can see, the last statement greatly elevates Lynn's image and
will be much more likely to generate salary offers comparable to
her last pay rate. |
| Tip
9 - Prioritize the Content of Your
Resume |
Another
big mistake that job seekers make is to list very important data
in the lower sections of their job descriptions. As you compile
statements for your resume, prioritize them by importance,
impressiveness and relevance to the job you want. Remember that
a strong statement which uses power words and quantifies will
affect every statement under it. Read the two examples below.
Which one has the most impact?
Unprioritised
Maintained records control, filing, office
supply purchasing and equipment maintenance.
Managed front office functions to support the President,
Vice President and staff of 20 Sales Representatives.
Prioritised
Managed front office functions to support
the President, Vice President and staff of 20 Sales
Representatives. Maintained records control, filing, office
supply purchasing and equipment maintenance. |
|
| Tip
10 - Tweak and Target Your Resumes
and Cover Letters |
You
will generate many more interviews by tweaking your resume and
cover letter so that they address the specific skills each
employer requests. For example, Sally originally wanted a
customer service position, then found an ad for a Retail
Management opening. How well qualified do the headings in the
left hand column present her for the Retail Management position?
Do you think the headings in the right hand column will generate
more and better interviews for Retail Management positions?
Customer Service
Cash Accountability
Computer Skills |
Retail
Management / Customer Service
Cash Accountability / Supervision of Retail Stations
Retail Accounting Applications |
Sally's actual title had been Lead Cashier,
even though she managed her own retail cashiering station in
addition to 6 other cashiers and stations. Once Sally had
created her original resume, it only took about 5 minutes to
tweak and relabel her skill descriptions to fit Retail
Management positions. This "relabeling" is entirely truthful and
is extremely important in landing more interviews because it
allows job seekers to apply for, and look qualified for, a wider
range of jobs. |
