The First Step

Your resume is the key that opens the door.  It is the only item a potential employer sees when making a decision to further consider you.  A well composed resume shows the employer you are the best qualified candidate and will guarantee an interview. Your resume should be impactful, professional, relatively brief but still comprehensive.

Vital Tips

  • Potential Employers like to see specific accomplishments including numerical results and how you attained them on your resume. This is much better than generalized statements. Examples might be:
    • Reduced Manufacturing scrap by __ % through application of Six Sigma techniques
    • Increased Productivity by __ % via team building and increased employee involvement
    • Attained cost reductions of __ % for a savings of $___from Suppliers via “win- win” negotiations and extensive pre-negotiation research and preparation
  • Be sure to indicate the industries you worked in and the products made or services rendered by both you and the company.
  • Include the approximate size of your prior companies and locations in terms of number of employees and Sales, and the number of people/size of organization you supervised if any.
  • Include your education and certifications including the institution(s) you received them from.  Including the dates of the degrees is recommended.
  • Include the months, not just the years, of your employment background.  For instance “Company X, April 2008 – August 2009.
  • Whenever possible, indicate the reason you left a previous job, such as “Company Closed”, or “Accepted promotion/compensation increase” or “Desired relocation to a different State”.

Accomplishments Employers Want To See

  • Increased Revenues
  • Increased Productivity
  • Saved Money
  • Increased Efficiencies
  • Cut Overhead
  • Increased Sales
  • Improved Workplace Safety
  • Purchasing Accomplishments
  • New Products / New Lines
  • Improved Record Keeping Process
  • Successful Advertising Campaign
  • Effective Budgeting

Don’t Know Where To Start?

Answer some of these questions. We guarantee that you will come up with some new ideas about your job responsibilities and skills.

  • What experience, skills, aptitudes, or traits do you have, or think you might have, that could be of some use to some employer?
  • What skills have you developed, at least to some degree, that you have never used at work?
  • Do others, at work or elsewhere, come to you for any particular kind of help? What kind?
  • Do you have military experience? Provide details such as branch, grade, specialty, discharge status, duties, accomplishments, medals, citations, commendations?
  • Promotions ahead of schedule?
  • Have you ever published an article, report, or anything, even as a volunteer? How about a company or professional association newsletter?
  • Have you ever given a talk, speech, or presentation, or provided training to anyone at work or elsewhere? Give the specifics.
  • Computer literacy and related skills: What platforms or operating systems do you use? List software, programs, internet skills etc.
  • What foreign languages do you know, and what is your level of skill in each (native speaker; fluent; moderate; phrase-book etc.)?
  • Do you have any special travel experience, domestic or foreign? If you studied, lived, or worked in a foreign country, how long were you there?

Responsibilities / Activities

  • How many people did you supervise? Orient? Hire? Train?
  • How large a budget did you manage?
  • Who do you report to?
  • What was the highest level in the company that you reported to or communicated with directly?
  • Did you coordinate anything?
  • Serve as liaison between groups or key individuals?
  • Mediate between groups or individuals? Resolve any conflicts? Serve as mentor to anyone?
  • Did you do, or participate in, strategic planning?
  • Did you set or evaluate or participate in the setting or evaluation of policy?
  • Did you evaluate any individual or group performance, or any task or project research?
  • How did you relate to the product or service?
  • Did you communicate with customers? How?
  • Were you on any proposal teams, in-house or with a customer or subcontractor? Did the proposal succeed?
  • What was your function on the team, or your contribution to winning? Your team’s percentage of wins?
  • Did you communicate with suppliers or subcontractors? How?
  • Did you purchase services or supplies for the office, unit, department?
  • Ever serve as a troubleshooter? In what area?
  • Did you back up someone? Who?
  • Did you do any surveys or other research or studies? Determine requirements?
  • Prepare recommendations?
  • Design or manage any processes, systems, or projects?
  • Organize any events, conferences, meetings? How many?
  • Did you administer anything?
  • Consult for anyone, inside or outside the organization?
  • Did you gain experience in any special use software?
  • Analytical or evaluative procedures?
  • Equipment or hardware?
  • What kind of writing did you do, for yourself or someone else? What did you write about?
  • Did you write any that was delivered to a customer as a product, or part of one?
  • How much reduction in costs or increase in profits did you contribute to?
  • Did you add any smoothness, quality, or economy of operation that noticeably improved the way things were before you assumed responsibility?
  • Any concrete or specific signs of the gain you achieved?
  • Did you propose, suggest, or initiate any programs, changes, or improvements that were implemented at least partly because of your initiative?
  • What positive results occurred?
  • What did you do as a volunteer, beyond the regular duties of your position?
  • Whether you were paid for it or not, what were you particularly good at that made a difference in how the office (job, project, assignment) progressed from day to day?

Awards / Recognition

  • Were you praised, recognized, or given a pat on the back for anything-a particular assignment, a method of working, a trait of character? How? By whom?
  • Were you promoted ahead of schedule?
  • Selected for any special responsibilities or programs?