THE EFFECTIVE RESUME

Is your resume being read or is it being put aside on indefinite hold? Why are some more effective than others? As strange as this sounds, most resumes are written without a clear understanding of their true purpose. Simply put, a good resume should motivate management to interview you. Generating interest is not the same as providing information.

What creates that type of interest? Accomplishments, achievements and detailed accounts of contributions to former and current employers can make a potential employer realize that you might be a valuable addition to his or her staff.

Consider these two brief, hypothetical resume samples. These might be from two engineers who worked for the same aircraft manufacturer during the same time. They even worked on the same projects. However, their resumes might not look alike at all.


Engineer #1
1992 - 1996 Production Engineer, ACME Aircraft Co.
Worked on production of next generation space shuttle.

Engineer #2
1992 - 1996 Production Engineer, ACME Aircraft Co.

• Worked on production of next generation space shuttle.

• Participated in development of new production technique which reduced product manufacturing time by 3%.

• Led Quality Assurance team which reduced waste by 6%.

Which one would you be more likely to interview? It could be that #1 achieved more than #2, but the resume doesn't show it. Suppose they had attended the same college and #1 graduated ranked as the very top of the class but didn't say so, while #2 said they graduated in the top 10%. Who would you interview? Tell your story of accomplishment. Don't "save it for the interview" because you may not get that chance. A resume is a personalized and customized marketing document. If it is written as a routine, chronological record of jobs you have held, it will fail to generate interest.

Another important point to consider is whether or not the information in your resume is easy to pick out. Don't expect your resume to get more than 25-30 seconds of review before someone makes a decision to look at it further or throw it away. It is critical that the important points of your record, the achievements which make you a good candidate, be presented in a way that will be easy for the reader to find. Important points should be in bold, underlined, italicized, indented and bulleted. Make that information jump off the page and grab the managers attention.

• information contained in paragraphs must be hunted and may be missed.
  
  

• information in bold, underlined, italicized, indented and bulleted will jump out and get attention.
  
  

Regardless of your position, your contribution to your employer should be made obvious on your resume. Companies are in business to earn a profit and a resume which shows a positive impact on a corporate bottom line and is easy to read is much more likely to be reconsidered and reviewed after the others have been thrown out.

Finally, in this age of computerization it is a relatively simple matter to customize your resume for each position you seek. Of course, we do not refer to changes of fact. Above all, it should be an honest document. However, with whatever knowledge you have about the company and position you are pursuing, highlight the four or five accomplishments and skills which are most likely to arouse their interest in you.

SUBMITTING YOUR RESUME

We want to put your best foot forward when we contact potential employers on your behalf, so the format in which we receive and disseminate your qualifications is essential. If you have the capability, we prefer to receive your resume electronically as an attached file via e-mail. If you use a word processing program other than MS Word, please save your file in Rich Text Format as a .rtf file or as an MS Word compatible .doc file.

When you choose to submit your resume by e-mail below, an e-mail response screen will appear automatically. Please do not paste ASCII text. Instead, just click on the "Attach File" button and identify your résumé's filename. You may send a cover letter the same way or type a short note in the text portion of the e-mail screen. Please indicate which position(s) in which you are interested.

We will distribute your resume to the appropriate consultant in our office.

You may also fax your resume to 800-783-1913 or mail it to the attention of the Director of the appropriate division.