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Resume Writing

RESUME WRITING

Writing a resume just takes good organizational skill, planning preparation and common sense. Most HR professionals and managers agree that the best resume is still the reverse chronology one, showing your present, or most recent, position first and then working backwards. There are some practitioners who encourage the older job seeker to write a functional resume or skill summary leaving off employment and education dates. Anyone with a few months recruiting or Human Resources experience will pick up on that immediately.

Here are a few timely tips on how to format and develop an effective resume:

1. Use white or light buff colored paper, 81/2 by 11. Do not use odd sized paper to make it stand out. In these days with scanners and career fairs it may get thrown out.

2. Use a basic type font such as Times New Roman or Arial. Avoid bullets, borders and anything fancy. It won't go through a scanner very well.

3. Keep a copy of your resume on your hard drive and on a floppy. Be prepared to Email it as a Word attachment. Many companies expect this and discourage surface mail and even fax copies.

4. Your name, address and home phone should be at the top. Don't include your office phone number. If someone tries to reach you there and leaves a message with your boss or co-worker, you could be compromised.

5. If you work in high technology, you should include a technology summary at the top, if you are a developer, engineer or someone who works hands-on. If you are in management, you can place it at the end.

Have any questions? Feel free to drop me a line at ed@ejp.com.
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