Whether you are a fresh graduate looking to launch your career or a midcareer PMET looking for a new start, here are some tips that will help you craft a solid resume that might improve your chances of getting that dream job.
No no, don’t read it wrongly. I’m not asking you to cheat. Understanding the job description can help you greatly in crafting a resume. Many companies & organizations rely on HR solutions to sift through tonnes of resumes they get for a single job role. Using keywords often found in the job description and adding them to your resume can help boost your chances. For example, if the job requires a “sales-driven team player”, then your resume should include metas, aka examples of how you have fulfilled/can fulfill that role. Certain meta-phrases such as “acquired new clients”, “team player” or “continually hitting quota of <insert sales figure>” which you should add into your resume.
This is especially important for newbies/fresh graduates. Unlike your more experienced peers who may have proven track records, you need to give your future employer a very good reason to consider hiring you. Offer your strong “interpersonal skills” that can help the company build its reputation and relationships with customers, or talk about how you have a “good sense of responsibility” when receiving and executing instructions from your superiors. The key to this is not to bullshit of course, but give your potential employer an idea what your capabilities are and if you’ll be considered a good fit for this role.
No seriously, stop it. It’s childish to see resumes with power bars describing their software & language skills. Keep it professional by just listing your software competency skills instead, this will give your potential employer a general understanding of your software skills at a glance. Language-wise you can simply state “English – Fluent both written & conversational” or “Mandarin – conversational only”
There are available platforms you can use (some for FREE) to help you fine-tune your resume. You can use CVScan to double check if you’ve got #1 down pat, or Grammarly to fine tune your draft. Also, do your own dry-run – Read your resume and see if it is too: 1) Boring & lengthy 2) contains too much information or 3) Just about right. Remember, if it makes you want to stop reading on, it’ll most likely do the same to the hiring manager.
Ok this is more of a shameless plug, but you have to do all you can to make it through the 1st round of sifting. Your resume has to stand out from the rest. Despite all the tech available to filter out the unworthy, I believe there’s still a huge portion of employers relying on the old methods of looking through resumes. This is good for you, job seekers to consider using our resume templates and boost your chances. It’s almost as good as handing your resume to the employer in person.
I wish you all the best in your job hunt. Remember, YOU are your best resume. So stay positive no matter what in these challenging times! – Ken