Give Yourself a Little Credit - Let Your Resume Highlight Your Accomplishments

Resume Marketing

Most people don't think of a resume as a marketing product, but that's what it really is. Think about this for just a moment - before you get an interview at a company, before you get an invitation to meet anybody at that company, the very first thing you're asked to do is to present a resume.

That resume is what's used to judge whether or not a company wants to invest the time in meeting you. Their employees are busy - very busy. So, why should they meet you?

You're marketing yourself with a resume. You're trying to influence the reader to buy something - you.

There are two major elements to a resume.  The first is your technical qualification for the role. An employer would like to see that if they have advertised that a position requires a bachelor's degree and four years experience as a logistics analyst that you possess at least a bachelor's degree and four years in logistics. And all those job tasks you list under each job supports this.

But there's also an element of braggadocio (neat word, huh?) in a well-written resume.  The resume is an opportunity to tell people what you've accomplished as well.

What's more impressive to read:

• A logistics engineer with five years experience who managed vendors by utilizing a vendor management system, or,
• A logistics engineer who saved their company $2 million by shepherding a team through theimplementation of a vendor management system which enabled the company to find efficiencies and streamline its vendor pool

The first statement outlines what the engineer did. The second statement details the engineer's accomplishments and tangible results to the company.

A hiring manager or recruiter might read the first statement and think, "This guy's got the basic skills."

They might read the second statement and think, "I wonder if this guy can help me save money for the company, take the lead on systems implementations, and get me a big fat bonus for hiring the right dude."

A remarkable number of job seekers don't give themselves enough credit. They spend their time just listing their rote tasks and responsibilities. And they're important - they show that the individual has the basic foundation required for the job. But the wins they've accrued are what separates a job seeker from the pack.

Don't save all your accomplishments for the interview. Make certain that you give employers a reason to want to interview you. Your resume isn't the place to be modest.

Just one note of caution: Find the right balance between individual and team accomplishments. While presenting accomplishments is essential, so is your ability to function in a larger organization. If you take credit for everything that happens in your office, without crediting others, you may come across as self-serving - and not as a team player.

Scott Singer is the President and Founder of Insider Career Strategies Resume Writing & Career Coaching, a firm dedicated to guiding job seekers and companies through the job search and hiring process. He is a Human Resources professional and staffing expert with almost two decades of in-house corporate HR and staffing firm experience, and is a Certified Professional Resume Writer (CPRW) and Certified Professional Career Coach (CPCC).

Insider Career Strategies provides resume writing, LinkedIn profile development, and career coaching services, including a free resume review. You can email Scott Singer at scott.singer@insidercs.com, or via the website, www.insidercs.com.

Do I Really Need to Fill in ALL Those D@$* Boxes When I Apply Online For a Job?

Applying to jobs online is a chore.

First, you upload your resume. Then, there's about three million boxes to fill in asking minute details from your job history, to your favorite color, to which Marvel superhero you'd like to be. Its no exaggeration that filling out an online application can take 30 minutes to an hour. Or longer.

You would think that just uploading your resume would be enough. Couldn't you just type into the boxes on the online application, "See resume?"

You could. But you might really be hurting your chances at snagging the job, or even at getting a second look.

Here's why:

1. Yes, your formatted resume is part of the package. But for the recruiters to do their searches, it helps when you fill in all the boxes, as you might add additional detail. In addition, recruiters might search by a specific field. For example, they might search the job history box for "Motorola" to see who worked there. If you just typed in "See resume," you won't come up on the search. There are a million ways to slice and dice your data, and you need to have your information in the right place to be seen. The good news is you can cut and past from your resume for many of these.
2. It's a test. And the first thing a company will want to see is that you can follow instructions. If you don't enter in the boxes what they're asking for, you don't pass the first test.

Banal? Yep.

Boring? Absolutely.

Necessary? Probably.

Try to remember that job hunting can be a full time job. And some of that time is spent playing the game - which, in this case, means filling in a bunch of little boxes.

Scott Singer is the President and Founder of Insider Career Strategies Resume Writing & Career Coaching, a firm dedicated to guiding job seekers and companies through the job search and hiring process. He is a Human Resources professional and staffing expert with almost two decades of in-house corporate HR and staffing firm experience, and is a Certified Professional Resume Writer (CPRW) and Certified Professional Career Coach (CPCC).

Insider Career Strategies provides resume writing, LinkedIn profile development, and career coaching services, including a free resume review. You can email Scott Singer at scott.singer@insidercs.com, or via the website, www.insidercs.com.

I've Been Running My Own Company - How Can I Get a Job Working For Somebody Else?

Keys

Working for yourself can be a blessing - you are your own boss, and that means you often make your own rules. You determine working hours for yourself and your employees. You decide what work you want to take on and what work you want to delegate. Heck, even the keys are yours. You're the boss, you make the rules, and that's pretty frickin' cool.

Unfortunately, life sometimes throws curve balls. For any of a variety of reasons - the economy kills your business, you need a steady paycheck, you hate doing business development, your spouse has accepted a job in another city and that means leaving your business behind, whatever - you need to dust off the old résumé and start looking for a job.

The previously self-employed face a variety of challenges, and they need to adapt to the employment market. Here are some of the obstacles they may face:

• Lack of Modesty - When you're in charge, nobody really questions what you're doing. You built your business from scratch, and you've made all the decisions. That cockiness you've developed from being an expert in your field may have helped land some business in the past, but employers want to know that you will understand and abide by your role in their organization. I've interviewed folks who were in this type of transition, and they've unconsciously broadcast a confidence as if they owned the joint - casual body language, exuding a "know-it-all" attitude, and a general sense of being the BMOC (Big Man on Campus).
• Executive-itis - Being your own boss means delegating tasks as you see fit. Sometimes individuals in positions of authority develop a condition I call "Executive-itis." This condition is developed over time, where an individual gets used to everybody doing what they say without question due to their role in an organization (I've seen internal company executives get this, too). Basically, you ask a subordinate to make something happen and, BINGO! - it shows up on your desk in the morning. Larger organizations have spans and layers of individuals, and are often heavily-matrixed to boot. So, delegation often requires seeing the larger organizational picture. And, by the way, you may not have somebody to delegate to, so you have to do it your darn self. Are you prepared to do the dirty work?
• Knowing Your Role - You may have been top dog in your own company, but in a larger company your skills and experience may relegate you to middle management or - GASP - a role as an individual contributor. Will your ego allow you to take orders? You may have somebody younger or less experienced assigning you tasks - can you tolerate it? If there's a human resources issue, can you follow the company protocols to address it?
• Following the Rules - Company hours require you to work from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., with two weeks vacation and five personal days at your disposal. You're used to dropping everything and playing 18 holes at a whim - can you bring yourself to live within such a structure? You're used to being the one to pick up your kid from school at 3:00 p.m. everyday. Now, they're going to have to take the bus - will you survive? This lack of flexibility can be a bigger deal than you imagine.
• Playing in the Sandbox - Let's say that you worked alone in your last company. Do you have the skills to work with and through others in a larger corporation? Working with others is a learned skill, honed through experience. If you treat others poorly - even if it's unintentional - you won't last long at the company. Often, how you work with others is just as (if not more) important than what you accomplish.

If you're running your own company and looking to reenter the world of the corporate employee, I recommend the following:

• Conduct a mock interview with a trusted friend. Have them point out any body and verbal language cues which may be detrimental to your case. Polish out the kinks.
• Consider taking on a volunteer role with a charitable organization you like. Put yourself in a position where you are taking and executing orders - and see how you feel about it. Then work on adapting your mindset to the task.
• Request and go on informational interviews with individuals who understand where your skills may fit. They can provide you guidance on the appropriate level of your skills in their type of organization, what to expect on a day-to-day basis, and the salary range you might reasonably expect.
• Adapt your résumé to reflect your job hunting goals. Does it accurately reflect the type of role you may be qualified for? Downplay the executive side of things if you are looking at individual-contributor roles; in such a case, play up the technical and process skills.
• Be prepared to tell interviewers why you are looking to join a company. Come ready to speak at length about how you have worked with and through others, and how you have been a great team player.

Scott Singer is the President and Founder of Insider Career Strategies Resume Writing & Career Coaching, a firm dedicated to guiding job seekers and companies through the job search and hiring process. He is a Human Resources professional and staffing expert with almost two decades of in-house corporate HR and staffing firm experience, and is a Certified Professional Resume Writer (CPRW) and Certified Professional Career Coach (CPCC).

Insider Career Strategies provides resume writing, LinkedIn profile development, and career coaching services, including a free resume review. You can email Scott Singer at scott.singer@insidercs.com, or via the website, www.insidercs.com.