How to make your resume stand out
In today's competitive job market, a stand out resume can be your golden ticket to securing that all important interview. Your resume is often the first impression you make on a potential employer, so it's crucial to put your best foot forward with a resume that showcases your skills, experience and career achievements. Whether you're a seasoned professional or just starting your career, here are some essential tips to help you craft a resume that stands out from the crowd.
Elements to include in a strong resume
A strong resume can make the difference between getting noticed and getting lost in the shuffle. When reviewing resumes for positions that attract a large volume of applications, hiring managers may only spend up to 30 seconds to scan the main contents of a resume. Given this, it’s essential to create a strong resume that grabs attention quickly, highlights what you do best and what is unique or different about you compared to other candidates.
There are a number of main elements to include in a strong resume including your work history/experience, your skills, accomplishments or career achievements and any qualifications or awards.
How do I make my resume look impressive?
One of the most important aspects of a stand out resume is its design. While it might be tempting to use flashy graphics and complex layouts, it's best to keep things simple. A clean, easy-to-read format without photo’s ensures that your resume won't get caught in spam filters and will be easily scannable by applicant tracking systems (ATS).
Some key resume design tips include:
Use a professional font. Stick to common fonts like Arial, Open Sans or Calibri.
Format your resume design using headings. Eg. Use clear headings such as ‘Professional Experience’, ‘Education/Qualifications’ and ‘Systems’.
Keep it concise. Focus on technical responsibilities verse behavioural skills and include any achievements in your role. Discuss the last 10 years in some detail and past that time frame keep it brief.
Remember this is your one chance to make a great first impression, so ensure you highlight your best achievements and technical skills and how they align with the position you are applying for.
Focus on including keywords in your resume
Many companies use ATS (applicant tracking systems) to screen resumes before they ever reach a human. To pass this initial screening, it's crucial to include relevant keywords from the job description in your resume.
When considering keywords to include in your resume, the following ideas may help you:
- Tailor your resume for each job. Read the job description and highlight the skills and experience that are most relevant to that specific position.
- Use industry specific terms. By including terminology specific to your field, it will help the recruiter understand that you know what you’re talking about.
- Avoid keyword stuffing. While it’s important to use the right terminology and keywords throughout your resume, make sure it sounds natural. By simply cramming as many keywords into your resume, it can make it appear less genuine.
Highlight your career achievements
Rather than just listing your job duties, focus on your achievements and how you added value to your previous employers. A great way to highlight your career achievements is to use quantifiable results to demonstrate the impact you had in your previous roles.
An example of highlighting your career achievements may look like the following:
- Increased sales by 20% within the first year.
- Managed a team of 10 and improved project delivery time by 15%.
- Developed a new training program that boosted employee productivity by 25%.
Providing achievements that highlight KPIs and other measurable elements is a great way to help the recruiter understand your potential and highlight why you are the best candidate for the role.
Craft a strong professional summary
A strong professional summary is the perfect way to engage the recruiter. It is essentially your ‘elevator pitch’ and is positioned at the top of your resume after your personal details. This brief section should encapsulate who you are as a professional and what you bring to the table - in both the role and to the company.
When writing your professional summary, keep the following in mind:
- Keep it brief. Aim for 3-4 sentences.
- Be specific. Highlight your top skills and experiences that are relevant to the job.
- Show your value. Explain what is unique about you and how you can benefit the potential employer.
Outline your experience and key skills for your resume
One of the most important aspects of creating a resume that stands out is outlining your professional experience and key skills. It’s important to list your professional experience in reverse chronological order, starting with your most recent job. Include your job title, the company's name, the dates you were employed, and a few bullet points outlining your responsibilities and achievements.
Tips to help you structure your professional experience include:
- Job title and company. Clearly state your role and the organisation you worked for.
- Dates of employment. Include the month and year of your employment.
- Responsibilities and achievements. Use bullet points to make this section easy to read. Focus on achievements rather than just listing duties (where possible).
In conjunction with your experience, it’s also really important to include a skills section, to highlight the skills you have that are aligned with the role you are applying for. This can include both hard skills (like technical abilities) and soft skills (such as communication and teamwork).
For example, if you were a website developer, some of the skills that might be most relevant to the role you are applying for could include:
- Technical Skills: Proficient in Adobe Creative Suite, SQL, Python.
- Leadership: Include how many direct reports you had.
- Soft Skills: Strong communication and project management
Proofread and edit for a polished resume
Once you’ve compiled all of the information in your resume, it’s important to proofread it thoroughly. Spelling and grammatical errors can create a negative impression, even more so if the role is based on communication. Consider asking a friend or professional to review it for you as it is easy to miss mistakes in your own work.
Perfecting your resume to land your dream job
Creating a resume that stands out requires attention to detail and a focus on showcasing your most relevant skills and experiences. By keeping your design clean and simple, using the right keywords, and highlighting your achievements, you'll increase your chances of making a great first impression and landing that coveted interview. Remember, your resume is your personal marketing document – take the time to highlight why you are the best candidate and make the recruiter feel excited about interviewing you for the job.
