Resume Writing Basics
Resume Writing Basics
Resume writing: do's and don'ts
Don't
use small fonts
be sarcastic or humorous
use customer or account names without permission
use acronyms without explaining once
editorialize - (keep to the facts)
use colour to emphasize a point
overstate or understate
Do's
Ÿ be concise yet complete
Ÿ be specific
Ÿ ensure it is truthful, believable, credible
Ÿ be consistent with fonts & words
Ÿ keep it current (update every 6 months)
Ÿ use power / action / strong words
Ÿ avoid abbreviations
The most important Do is to proofread and edit your resume. In fact have a manager, peer, friend or career coach help you edit your resume.
Tip: All word processing applications have a spell check function...please use it!
General Layout: headings, profile, prof. experience/success, technical experience, awards, education
Headings: Profile, Professional Experience, Technical Experience, Education and Awards.
some resumes may also state an Objective section before the Profile; other more technical professionals may include a Key Skills section after the Profile.
There is no right or wrong way to do a resume, but generally this is the format ITer's follow.
Review the Resources QuickView section for downloadable self study guides.
Profile - this is an overview paragraph where you should identify your:
full name
the name of your practice or organization
a summary of your expertise and the range of your related experiences.
you should only include your job title if it is meaningful, e.g. Project Manager or Consultant.
This paragraph establishes credibility and builds interest to read on. To see more on building a Profile go to the FAQ section "How do I get started building my resume".
Professional Experience or Successes - provides evidence of your applied experience, highlighting your skills and results. When building this section keep these three things in mind:
1. "what did you do",
2. "what did it result in", and
3. "what skills did you gain".
You may want to look to your past PBC results to help you build your content. The content is typically delivered in a paragraph format. When you start to focus on the results aspect of your accomplishments think of the following:
"what were the customer satisfaction ratings?",
"how much time or money did you save",
"what is being done differently now, and why is it better".
Technical Experience - this area directly supports the expertise you discussed in your profile and experience. You would list and perhaps expand on all of the relevant technical skills.
For highly technical professionals, you may wish to:
add a Key Skills section directly after the Profile to highlight your technical expertise up front.
If you are not a technical professional, try to:
list any technical experience you do have e.g. webcasts; e-meetings; teamroom or database management.
skills such as Lotus Notes and SmartSuite are assumed, therefore it is a personal choice whether or not to include them.
Education - in this section you list your education, including any Degree's or Certification's you have. One recommendation is to:
bold the Degree you obtained, versus the educational institution you received it from, e.g. Bachelor of Arts (would be listed first and bold)
and then Queen's University (unbold).
It's not to say the institution isn't important, but you want the academics to catch the readers eye.
In this section you may also wish to list education.
If you have taken numerous courses you may choose to highlight some of the key ones i.e: e-business fundamentals, project management, team building and presentation skills. You don't have to list everything.
Awards - if you have received any formal awards.
a BRAVO Achievement Award; then why not share these wonderful accomplishments on your resume?!
don't just list the award, state what you accomplished and why it resulted in an award.
Action words mean a powerful presentation
Action word make your content powerful! Here are some action words that may be relevant to your experience (don't restrict yourself to one or two headings):
Leadership skills: analyzed, appointed, attained, assigned, coached, converted, decided, delegated, eliminated, enhanced, established, executed, facilitated, improved, increased, initiated, instituted, motivated, managed, reorganized, strengthened.
Communication skills: addressed, advertised, articulated, communicated, composed, convinced, defined, described, developed, discussed, elicited, enlisted, expressed, formulated, influenced, interacted, marketed, negotiated, persuaded, presented, resolved.
Research skills: analyzed, clarified, collected, diagnosed, formulated, gathered, invented, investigated, located, measured, solved, surveyed.
Technical skills: adapted, applied, assembled, built, configured, designed, engineered, installed, operated, overhauled, programmed, rectified, regulated, remodeled, replaced, upgraded.
Financial skills: administered, adjusted, allocated, assessed, audited, balanced, developed, estimated, forecasted, planned, prepared, projected, reconciled
Creative skills: created, designed, developed, directed, displayed, established, fashioned, formulated, founded, illustrated, initiated, integrated, introduced, modified, revitalized
In the case of a billable professional
It is recommended that you have one of each of these documents, so you can pull together your relevant successes for your next potential engagement.
If your resume is for internal use only, a Functional resume would be suitable.
The difference between a historical resume & a functional resume
A Historical biography or resume:
is an account of your career or history of your work experiences (more of a catalogue).
gives the reader a broader view of who you are and the variety of your accomplishments over a long period of time.
lists different positions you have held and the associated responsibilities (in chronological sequence)
A Functional biography or resume
is more like a brochure or an ad
articulates what you have accomplished in your areas of expertise
is used when applying for short term projects in your given field
would focus on your most relevant success stories, including results and the benefits to your customers.
can be tailored to customer requirements and would be used for a billable engagement.