The Job Swami Speaks... The Career Blog » Successful Resumes

Rock Them With A Killer Resume Heading

Bill Morgan — Sun, 17 Jan 2010 18:12:41 +0000

< When Your resume is looked at, does it do this?

Or Does it Do This? [

Pretend you're a manager, you have 50 resumes to go through and you're short on time. You will spend on average 7 seconds on the resume so what will grab their attention?

So you've learned one thing already… SIZE MATTERS, but let's break down what we can do to make your resume stand out with a great resume header. That's all we'll focus on in this article.

Let's create a Resume Header that grabs their attention and KEEPS IT.

Let's begin with the standard resume header I see and we'll change it: THIS ONE ISN'T THAT UNUSUAL SO DON'T THINK I'M EXAGERRATING.

SUMMARY

A data processing professional with 25 years of experience in business data mining, data statistical analysis and synthesis, advanced SAS programming (in MVS mainframe and PC client/server architecture environment). Major analytical and technical expertise is in categorical and continuous data analysis, experimental design, analysis of variance, regression analysis, clustering analysis, data modeling, forecasting.
Intensive experience in the development and maintenance of a wide spectrum of business applications involving full project life cycle participation: data collection, analysis, design, coding, testing, implementation, program changes, communication with clients, final product support and program documentation writing.
Strong ability to get to the essence of a problem under analysis, construct an adequate logical model and convert it into computer code according to specifications furnished in written, oral and graphical form.

Good interpersonal skills with ability to succeed as a team player and/or autonomously in very dynamic and challenging working atmosphere.

I don't know about you but I fell asleep after line 1 and it kept going. You can imagine what the rest of the resume looked like.

We need 3 things to grab my attention besides font, size & color(we'll discuss that next):

1. What do you do - Explain in 5-6 Words

2. What are you applying for – Does it tie to the position you are applying for

3 What will you do for me - Show me quickly how your skills match my job

So Let's look at the resume above and fill a job seeking: JOB AD: Seeking a Data Analytics Manager for a Pharmaceutical Company. Must know SAS. Must have managed departments and proven experience.

Let's get rid of the term 'data processing' . That shows already you are out-of-touch as we don't use that term any more. The ad tells you what to say:

FIRST: What do you do and does it apply to what you're applying for?

William G. Morgan

_______________________________________________________

Address, Phone, Cell Phone, etc.

_______________________________________________________

ACCOMPLISHED SR. DATA ANALYTICS MANAGER FOR PHARMACEUTICAL & LIFE SCIENCES COMPANIES

____________________________________________

Okay, did I get your attention? Possibly? Which resume would you look at first? By the way, that was the type of position this individual applied for.

SECOND: What can you do for me?

The next thing is to show me quickly, using keywords how your skills match what I need. What's a keyword? Go to my article on keywords as shown here: http://www.thejobswami.com/2009/10/24/using-keywords-to-make-your-resume-standout/

I might put this in '2-3 column format with bullets and key words' but I'm limited in this article so I'll just bullet quickly 1 column for now with sentences.

10 years experience. managing Data Analytics dept for a leading pharmaceutical company
15 years utilizing SAS Modules X,Y,Z
Full Product Life Cycle Development and Analysis with over 100 clients
Managed budgets and projects from $1MM to $100MM
Experienced in Data Analysis, Experimental Testing, Regression Modeling, Variance Analysis, forecasting and full life cycle management.

So now we've developed a much more compelling resume, plus what else did I do to make it more compelling?

1. Font Size

2. Font Color

3. Bullet form versus Paragraph form

4. Underline something that may be important

There are so many ways to generate a more productive header. What you don't want to do is be BORING!!! Now go write a strong header.

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William G Morgan, the Job Swami, is the Regional Manager and an Executive IT & Sales Recruiter with Segula Technologies, Inc. He can be reached at (610)579-3216 if you are looking for great people or are looking for next employment.

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If you want to write a great resume fast, check out: www.distinctiveweb.com for a truly distinctive look and while you're there, you may want to get their book "101 Before-and-After Resume Examples" e-book. Disclaimer: This is a product I endorse and have an affiliate relationshi with so I make income from proceeds but I am fully behind the product. Doesn't hurt to check it out.

10 of the Best Resume Sites on the Web

Bill Morgan — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 04:49:42 +0000

I'm doing research on the best video resume products, and I came across this article. This is taken from www.Mashable.com. The author is Dan Schawbel .

Creating the perfect resume is not easy. Luckily, there are a number of online resources dedicated to helping you create outstanding traditional and social media resumes. Here are 10 great social sites with unique features that let you create your own resume-like profile, edit your resume online, get it reviewed by experts, print it, share it on social networks, and much more.

Remember, building a strong profile can help serve as a great marketing tool to help you get the job you’re looking for.

Have another resume building site to recommend? Tell us about it in the comments.

1. Razume

Razume is a service that enables job seekers to complete their resumes and polish them up with feedback from reviewers in the community. The resume you create using this service is exactly like traditional resumes you may have created in the past, but this service allows you to improve your resume so you’re more likely to better your chances at landing your next job. Users are able to search for jobs on Razume and will soon be able to apply for them through the site itself.

2. LinkedIn

LinkedIn() seems to be on all of my job lists and for good reason. LinkedIn is a combination of a resume, cover letter, reference document and a moving database of your contacts. The resume portion is quite standard, with fields asking for your education and work experience. The cover letter piece is the summary you get to have at the beginning, where you can position yourself for a particular job, based on your qualifications, awards and an explanation of what type of job you’re looking for.

As you accelerate in your career, your network can easily observe your change in jobs or positions. You can also update your status bar, just like in Facebook() or on Twitter(), with the type of job you’re looking for. Your LinkedIn “resume” will be perceived as noteworthy when you fill it out completely, acquire endorsements for your work, join groups related to your interests, and add applications (such as your blog).

3. VisualCV

VisualCV is a website that provides users with a virtual resume, as well as a database of job openings and networking opportunities. Whether you’re a job seeker, entrepreneur, consultant, student or manager, VisualCV lets you display all of your credentials in an easy to read format, with multimedia integration. For example, you can upload or embed a video resume or a podcast of you being interviewed.

The latest capabilities that they offer allow job seekers to integrate their resume with social media sites, such as LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook, to share their qualifications with friends and colleagues. When you update your resume, it can be shared through websites such as Digg() and StumbleUpon(). Your resume, or VisualCV, can combine other elements, such as images, charts, awards and recommendations, in addition to traditional resume fields such as “work experience.”

Disclosure: VisualCV sponsors my blog and magazine.

4. Emurse

Emurse allows you to create, share and store your resume for free online. Their resume builder is job seeker friendly, allowing you to create and maintain a professional resume which can be downloaded in any format, such as PDF. Just like LinkedIn, your resume can have a unique URL linked to your name and the ability to view employers who have seen your resume in the past.

You also get statistics and graphs to aid in resume distribution. In addition, Emurse lets you keep track of your contacts, invite contacts and always access their latest information, similar to LinkedIn. Just like Google() does with AdSense, you get job postings in your local area that are relevant to your resume. There is also a job search area and organizer, similar to Monster.com’s, where you can keep track of the resumes you submit over time.

5. Xing

Xing() is a social network with over 7 million business professionals globally, and is read in 16 languages. Aside from being able to create a profile, the networking part of this site is what shines. There are over 22,000 groups and networking events from London to Beijing advertised.

Xing offers many of the same services as LinkedIn, and like LinkedIn, can serve as your online resume and cover letter. The standard service lets you create a professional profile page, search for people by name and industry, and join groups and events. When you login, you’ll see jobs that might interest you, new members, visitors to your profile and much more.

6. ResumeBucket

ResumeBucket is a service that enables you to post a resume quickly online. The site provides you with a unique URL for your resume and enables you to promote your resume on your website or blog with embeddable ResumeBucket badges. In addition, resumes are shareable via popular social bookmarking and social networking sites.

If you’re currently employed and would like to keep your resume private, you can. ResumeBucket also provides you with sample resumes and cover letters as best practices to help you when you build your own. And if you need assistance, they have a resume writing service where their professional writers can help you along the way.

7. ResumeSocial

ResumeSocial is a social resume community, where you can post your resume online and get feedback, just like Razume. Registered users can build a resume through feedback and comments from other users who have similar job experience. You can also be a resume expert and become a valuable member of the community by providing others with resume assistance.

There is also an area for sharing cover letters and follow-up letters, which are very important as well. When someone finds your resume on this site, they can print it, quote it, favorite it and email it to other people. There is also a job search area, a blog and a career area, which gives you advice for putting resumes together.

8. Gigtide

Gigtide() is a website that lets you create, publish, manage and track your resumes, contacts and cover letters online. You can store unlimited resumes, contacts and cover letters and there are professional resume templates to help you. You also have the option of creating a social media resume, which includes images, video, direct links and sharing functionality. Another interesting feature is a direct employer contact form, where employers can contact you directly through your resume.

9. Howtowritearesume

Howtowritearesume gives you an easy way to build a professional resume, without being an expert. You get their phrase builder technology, which helps you build compelling headlines, qualifications, achievement statement and more. Then there is “one-click formatting,” which automatically reformats your resume and makes it easy to choose the best layout. Your resume is stored online and is accessible by potential employers. The templates are all predefined, so filling in the blanks is really easy. You can change the font and margins and preview the changes instantly before printing or saving it.

10. Ziggs

Ziggs is designed to help you market yourself and manage your personal brand on the web. The service lets you create a profile and manage your online identity, and alerts you each time a recruiter views your profile and resume. You can discuss topics, ask people for advice or referrals, and search for jobs.