Getting called for an interview is the crucial first step to landing any job. But with employers often receiving hundreds of resumes for each open role, how can you ensure your resume stands out from the crowd? Follow these tips to create a resume that is polished, tailored, and hard for a hiring manager to ignore.
- Optimise For Applicant Tracking Systems
- Keep It Clean and Concise
- Craft an Accomplishments Section
- Tinker With the Format
- Double and Triple Check
1. Optimise For Applicant Tracking Systems
Many companies now use applicant tracking systems (ATS) to automatically scan resumes and filter out candidates before a human ever lays eyes on them. To avoid getting tripped up by the ATS, customize your resume for each job you apply to by integrating relevant keywords from the job posting. Match the titles you’ve held to how the role is described, and sprinkle related skills and qualifications throughout.
2. Keep It Clean and Concise
Hiring managers spend just a few seconds scanning each resume before deciding if the candidate is a potential fit. Make those seconds count by keeping your resume clean, visually attractive, and skimmable with clear section headings. Use short, punchy bullet points rather than long paragraphs. Limit your resume to one or two pages.
3. Craft an Accomplishments Section
Rather than just listing your previous job duties, dedicate a section to spotlight your most impressive, quantifiable achievements. Use hard numbers and metrics to show the impacts you made, such as “Increased sales by 25% in the southwest region” or “Slashed production costs by $150,000 through lean process improvements.”
4. Tinker With the Format
There’s no one-size-fits-all resume format that works best across the board. Craft your resume layout based on your background. If you have a solid, linear work history, go with a chronological format. Those with gaps or looking to change fields may want to lead with a skills-based functional format. Or blend the two approaches with a hybrid combination resume.
5. Double and Triple Check
With hiring managers quickly dismissing resumes with even minor flaws, you can’t afford any typos, inconsistencies or formatting errors. Proofread your resume meticulously, double-checking details like dates, spelling, and alignment. Consider having a friend take a second look as well before you hit send.
Follow these suggestions, and you’ll craft a polished, modern resume that grabs hiring managers’ attention and separates you from the sea of other candidates. With a foot in the door, you’ll have a tremendous opportunity to wow them further in the interview. The job could be yours!
