Previous management teams, industry leaders, and executive recruiters know you.
They evangelize your worth and your next career role magically materializes.
Here’s the problem: you haven’t updated your resume in 10 years. You haven’t needed to update it; you are that good. Interview conversations move along and a Board Member or CEO eventually asks to see a resume. You better have it together. And this resume better showcase your undeniable worth.
Who needs a resume anymore? We’re racing into absolute digital connectivity. LinkedIn has disrupted HCM, CRM, and once static networks into always-on, hiring, buying, dynamic interactions. It’s a powerful new reality. Even more powerful is owning a flexible arsenal of personal career tools that expertly deliver your value to audience-specific targets. Your resume serves as an exclusive spec sheet of value shared in discretion with a potential executive employer.
In service to others, I’ve gutted a few resumes. I know which specific data points a hiring exec is looking to find on you. With this in mind, I’ve created a resume guide and blueprint for you.
- A resume is a tool to secure interest. Your resume serves as a reference document for elaborated conversation and evaluation during interviews. Its purpose is not to barf up your life story and land the job for you. Sell your experience as a product. Activate the wow factor.
- 2 pages max. Invest an hour combing through your work history to edit and update for relevance. Refrain from slapping another ‘copy & paste’ role to the top of the page. Remove bloated descriptions. If you can’t chop your stats and wins down to a clear and digestible value prop – What does this suggest about your ability to get to the point with customers and partners?
- Sex this thing up. Offer something inviting and easy to read. Leave whitespace. Remove hyperlink lines. Reserve the use of italic and bold font for titles that draw the eye onward. Repetitive blocks of underlined type are not pleasant to read. Save your file as a PDF so it will arrive just as sleek as when you sent it out. There are many online resources if you want to invest in design time. I’ve also created a clean, minimal blueprint for you here.
Sell the greatest product ever: You. Use this blueprint to produce a resume worthy of captivating attention:
- Name & Contact
- Value Prop
- Experience & Contribution
- Skills & Tools
- Education & Community
Leave elaboration and juicy details for real conversation; this is precisely why we have interviews.
With thoughtful editing and space to breathe, your resume is an accomplishment synopsis and argues why any company would be crazy not to meet you.