If you still think of your resume as simply a historical document of your working life it may be time to revamp your thinking and your resume. Studies show that the average resume gets only about 15 to 30 seconds to drive its point home and to, hopefully, impress your future employer. Today, resumes are leaning toward a hipper, more progressive tone. They play down age, and play up achievements using monetary gains and savings to accentuate the positive.
You can hardly read a business document or attend a meeting without hearing the term value proposition tossed around. While it has been used for years by businesses, wise job hunters today know that to help sell themselves, they'll need to incorporate into their resumes. Specifically, it relates to something in your resume that explains real results a company will get from you. Whether it is cost cutting measures you've implemented in the past or sales programs you've directed, businesses want to see more money on their bottom line.
Another change is the now common resume summary statement, which replaces the old fashioned one-line objective statement. The newer style takes a more direct approach to the employer, expressing how you can use your goals and values to increase their bottom line and make their company better.
Yet another trend is downplaying your age, while playing up your experience. It's a well-known fact that in spite of age discrimination laws, sometimes 40-somethings and up aren't given the opportunities they deserve. There's a good chance that your old-fashioned resume may be making you out to be a member of the over-the-hill gang. Potential employers are probably not discriminating on purpose. It's just that if you have a 30-something office manager who's thinking about hiring a supervisor who'll be working for him, he's probably going to shy away from hiring anyone he subconsciously considers to be "old".
One way to overcome that is to strategically omit the date you graduated. Don't include every job for the last generation, just highlight the ones you've held over the last several years. Be aware of the tone and the words you use, as they will play a role in capturing an employer's attention. Likely the best way to communicate value is to keep your technical skills updated to current levels. If there are certain courses that employers are looking for, then you would be well served to get certified in them. Highlight your achievements and skip the mundane details, and you'll be more likely to get a call and an interview. - 15465
You can hardly read a business document or attend a meeting without hearing the term value proposition tossed around. While it has been used for years by businesses, wise job hunters today know that to help sell themselves, they'll need to incorporate into their resumes. Specifically, it relates to something in your resume that explains real results a company will get from you. Whether it is cost cutting measures you've implemented in the past or sales programs you've directed, businesses want to see more money on their bottom line.
Another change is the now common resume summary statement, which replaces the old fashioned one-line objective statement. The newer style takes a more direct approach to the employer, expressing how you can use your goals and values to increase their bottom line and make their company better.
Yet another trend is downplaying your age, while playing up your experience. It's a well-known fact that in spite of age discrimination laws, sometimes 40-somethings and up aren't given the opportunities they deserve. There's a good chance that your old-fashioned resume may be making you out to be a member of the over-the-hill gang. Potential employers are probably not discriminating on purpose. It's just that if you have a 30-something office manager who's thinking about hiring a supervisor who'll be working for him, he's probably going to shy away from hiring anyone he subconsciously considers to be "old".
One way to overcome that is to strategically omit the date you graduated. Don't include every job for the last generation, just highlight the ones you've held over the last several years. Be aware of the tone and the words you use, as they will play a role in capturing an employer's attention. Likely the best way to communicate value is to keep your technical skills updated to current levels. If there are certain courses that employers are looking for, then you would be well served to get certified in them. Highlight your achievements and skip the mundane details, and you'll be more likely to get a call and an interview. - 15465
About the Author:
Craig Calvin is a noted authority on the value of Six Sigma in the business world. If you are looking for Six Sigma training, you should visit www.sixsigmaonline.org to help you navigate through your questions. They're the premier provider of Six Sigma certification.
