Emphasis on the “NEW”.

Yes forget what you know or think you know about the resume. There is a lot of information about them being obsolete and outdated. Some folks are even saying that they are dead. Well let me tell you folks, the reports of the resume’s demise are greatly exaggerated. The resume is alive and well, it’s even growing and evolving.

10 years

Ten years – a decade – sounds like a long time right? Well time flies. Did you know the average tenure with a company is about 3.5 years? Did you know technology changes (major changes) every 3-5 years? Did you know you only need about 10 years of stable work history on your resume? Of course there are exceptions but mostly – yeah 10 years of current work history.  Most people do not update their resumes annually. Many people don’t let anyone else even proof read them and that’s a problem, because you would be amazed at how fast time flies and before you know it, you are outdated.

What’s New?

So what’s new with resumes? A lot! Well for instance, you probably don’t need to put your street address on your resume – why? Because no one mails interview requests anymore – it’s all emails, text messages and phone calls. And it’s okay to add a link – yes a link – to your online presence (website -twitter - linkedin). Some employers expect to see your LinkedIn. QR codes, yep, quick response codes are okay as long as they are small and in the top or bottom of the resume, nothing over dramatic – nice and simple. Most employers will search for you on LinkedIn and compare your resume to your LinkedIn profile for consistency. SEO - that’s Search Engine Optimization; what that means is that your resume needs to have the proper buzzwords or industry language on it so if the employer puts your resume through some sort of automated system or database it will find those keywords that the employer is looking for and pass your resume on to the next step.

What’s Old?

Objectives; objectives are always very general for instance “I want to secure a position” or “to obtain employment” and many other variations of those phrases. Remove the objective – replace it with an “areas of expertise” or “career profile”. References Upon Request is old school space filler. Trust me, if someone wants your references, they will request them and guess what? You will supply them. So save it.

Resumes have evolved, there are more things you can do with them from a style and design standpoint. And style is important; when HR personnel, recruiters and sourcers are looking through stacks and stacks of resumes, believe me something visually pleasing with great content stands out – save the gimmicks though. Screeners do not want to see things flashing at them or loud colors - save the reds and yellows. You can be creative especially if you are in a creative industry, such as photography, cinema, web-design, or graphic art.

The NEW resume is sexy - it’s lean - it packs a punch - it’s traditional yet modern.

If you need assistance contact Chris Fields - [email protected].