Sample Resume
If your resume is like most of the thousands of resumes we’ve seen, it probably needs work. After listening to the resume podcast, use the Sample Resume as a guide to developing your resume.
Some of the major points from the podcast are summarized below.
The Document:
- One page long. PERIOD PERIOD PERIOD. The second page won’t get read.
- White space is overrated.
- Do not pay anyone to help you, not even us. What they will charge you for is their document preparation time, which you don’t need if you can type and follow instructions.
- Use a plain, 10 point font. Times New Roman is good, most common serif fonts are probably okay.
- Name, address, phone and non-work email centered and bold at the top.
- The rest of the resume is dedicated to your job history, presented in reverse chronological order.
- Each job has Dates, title, company, and location for admin.
- Then, 2-3-4 sentences of prose responsibilities. These are the things that anyone doing this job would be required to do. “Responsible for the budgeting and coordination of a $3 Million quality improvement program.” “Responsible for motivating 15 call center representatives to achieve quality, quantity, and sales goals.” We want to know what job you have.
- Then, bullets listing your accomplishments. ONLY accomplishments as bullets. We want to know how well you did in the job. And we want it to be easy.
- At the bottom, your education.
- That’s it.
December 15th, 2005 at 10:11 am
Gentlemen:
LOVE the podcast. Spent the past three days in the car getting caught up.
Two questions on resumes.
1. I work in a small, entrepreneurial company where in addition to my core responsibilities, I have been asked to handle several ancillary projects - some of which have led to important advances within the company. Is it unwise to include these as bullets below the core achievements?
2. I have been trained in several selling skills programs. Should I include those at any place on the resume itself? It seems to me that being skilled in a particular sales process might be helpful if the subject company uses that approach.
Thanks for your efforts. I anticipate using my newfound skills will make everything about my sales management job more effortless.
Sean McGinnis
December 15th, 2005 at 10:59 am
Sean- Sending this from my phone from a client site, so hope it works. Yes, DO include those ancillary projects as bullets/accomplishments. Just don’t think they take the place of bullets related to primary responsibilities. And, yes, you can include the sales courses, as bullets at the btm of other bullets (under the job where you were when you finished the course). If you were to interview for a job that didn’t require the sales bkgrnd as much, you might choose to take those out to allow other more germane bullets to stay on…but that’s only if you don’t have room. hope this helps!
Mark
December 15th, 2005 at 11:51 pm
Mark:
Extremely helpful, and the mobile solution worked well.
I have recently spent some time bilding an online network of like-minded sould on linkedin.com
Part of that interesting social network is a concept of being endorsed by your peers or others you have worked with or for.
As an example, check out my linked in profile here…..
https://www.linkedin.com/profile?viewProfile=&key=2289281
I am inclined to include this on my resume (after simplifying it to make it much more like the new resume) due to the inclusion of 9 co-workers and their strong endoresments of my abilities.
Would this make an impact in your view, positive or negative?
December 16th, 2005 at 12:31 am
Swan-
I’ve never recommended it before, but I think it’s a good idea, in your case. I wouldn’t expect anyone to check it out from a paper resume, but they will probably ask about it in an interview. I like the idea.
Mark
December 16th, 2005 at 5:51 pm
I find your podcasts useful. Thanks for creating them and sharing.
I’m wondering how to handle the situation where the company changed hands/names during the course of employment. I worked for a company that was an indepenent company when I started. By the time I left, it’d been bought, sold, and spun out a few times. What’s the best way to handle the many company names?
Thanks.
Paul
December 16th, 2005 at 6:21 pm
Paul-
Good question. It depends a little on the jobs you had and whether they changed when the company changed, or whether you had the same job across a company name change. Focus on the JOBS, and capture name changes within the admin part of the description. For instance, if you were a project manager at Alpha which became Beta, list it as “date - date, Project Manager, Alpha Co/Beta Co. Responsible for…” Then, in the last line of the admin portion add, “Company acquired (or merged, or whatever). If this happens over three company names or more, just list the most recent name, and then at the end of the admin portion, in one sentence describe the acquisition string.
If you want, send it to me with an explanation and I’ll proof it.
it’s a privilege to serve you,
Mark
December 23rd, 2005 at 10:43 pm
Mark,
I found the resume podcast very helpful. However, I am a student and found the recommendations tobe more directed to a different audience (people already in the work force).
One of your points was that education should be at the bottom of the page, with no details like GPA, academic accomplishments, etc. Does that advice apply to an undergraduate business student like myself?
Thanks, and please keep the tips coming!
-Alex
December 26th, 2005 at 1:11 am
Alex-
You’re right! Our resume suggestion is usually for someone with a bit of professional/corporate experience.
If you’re a newly minted grad, here are the differences: at the TOP, put your degree info on three lines by itself. Thus:
BS Mechanical Engineering 2006
Tulane University
New Orleans LA
Below that, a paragraph detailing extracurricular activities and honors. Thus:
Honor Society (3 Years); Deans List (4 Years); Varsity Track (2 years); Debate Club (3 Years, President)…
More honors and activities are almost always better, but never a reason for a low GPA.
Then, for the rest of the resume, you go back to the reverse chronological format we’ve laid out already. It makes MANY college students wish for more jobs in college, and/or internships!
Hope this helps. Send me your resume and I’ll give it the once over.
Mark
December 29th, 2005 at 12:54 am
I really liked your podcast “Your resume’ stinks”. I found out that the smell in my kitchen wasn’t the 3 week old cassarole, but my resume’. Thanks.
I have a frew questions. I am looking to move from the Education field into Corperate, but I have very little experience. I am open to and entry level position that will allow me to show what I can do. How can I convince a recruiter that a former teacher can do a good job at XYZ company?
Also I have recently had two jobs that were short term with employment gaps for 2 months between the two of them. I was looking for work when both of them ended, but I wasn’t successful in finding anything before they ended.
December 29th, 2005 at 12:12 pm
Also what if you had a mediocre job? My most recent education experience was nothing great. I did my job, but that was about it. It ended with me leaving rather than work with a difficult administration. How do I put this on a resume?
December 29th, 2005 at 10:08 pm
Mr. J-
Your question is a good one, but not easily answered with the information you’ve provided. I THINK the answer is very straitforward - you just put the job on your resume as you would any other. We rarely put on a resume why you left, so that’s not an issue yet. You will have to answer that in an interview, I think, and I think your answer would be, “I realized the job wasn’t taking me in the direction I wanted/wasn’t trning out to be as helpful to my career as I wanted it to be/I saw the direction of the organization changing and I wanted to go in a different direction…so I resigned to seek better opportunities.” There is no reason or justification for saying ANYTHING negative about the “administration”.
If you’re worried about your lack of accomplishments, well, there’s not a lot that can cover that up.
A suggestion: send me an email with your resume attached. Give me some more detail about your situation, and I’ll try to help. Before you send your resume, though, please do put it in our recommended format. I get a lot of them, and have established a standard that I won’t critique ones not in the MT format.
Looing forward to helping if I can.
Mark
December 30th, 2005 at 10:33 am
Mark, I will send it to you. However, I don’t have your email address. Is it on the site somewhere?
January 1st, 2006 at 9:32 pm
The podcast was very good indeed and got me looking at resumees in a complete different manner.
I would like some comments on foreign languages, you didn´t leave room for them in the “new sleek resume”, and for some jobs it could be the main criteria for selection.
Besides listing them, the question is how to elaborate on them. There is a difference between someone who had a couple of hours of french in highschool and someone who can speak and write commercial letters or someone who is really fluent or native speaker in a different tongue.
Regards,
Michael
January 2nd, 2006 at 11:29 am
Michael-
Good question! Glad you’re benefiting from Manager Tools.
You’re right - we didn’t address foreign languages. Again, this is one of those areas we just can’t quite cover in a 30–40 minute delivery.
Generally, I recommend it go in the COVER LETTER, but it can also be put in the resume. In the resume, I would put it in a line all by itself immediately above the top line of your education, at the bottom of the resume.
And, you’re right about fluency levels. If you’ve only had high school courses, do NOT put it on the resume (or CL).
You must state the language, and the level of fluency (conversational, fluent, fluent and technical/professional, or native.
For instance:
Fluent in Chinese
Conversational Spanish
Fluent in Spanish (native)
Fluent (technical included) in Arabic
It’s a privilege to serve you,
Mark
January 3rd, 2006 at 2:41 pm
Great resume segment… I have worked as a consultant for the last 15 years so the company has stayed the same but the client and jobs / responsibilities / accomplishments have been different. Any suggestions on how to handle that? Should I just summarize responsibilities and accomplishments and list the relevant clients? Or is there a better way to convert my ‘consulting’ CV into a job hunting resume?
Any schedule planned for the cover letter segment?
January 3rd, 2006 at 9:22 pm
Jeff-
Here’s a way (at bottom) to do it that I like. Basically, you break up your projects as if they were jobs under the single company umbrella. It’s not foolproof, but it’s a start.
BEST thing to do is email your resume (mark@manager-tools.com) and I’ll take a look and give you my thoughts.
The cover letter segment is in the queue. Unfortunately, so are 200 other casts. We’re doing our best…
It’s a privilege to serve you.
Mark
1998 - Present BIG CONSULTING COMPANY, Manager
GROWTH STRATEGY DEVELOPMENT & IMPLEMENTATION
New retail concept development and implementation: Led large scale cross-functional client team in the evaluation and implementation of new format growth strategy for a broadline retailer. Involved in all aspects of strategy development and implementation including: concept development and refinement, store design and operating model, pilot market and real estate site selection, and detailed merchandising planning and implementation.
• Developed and gained alignment with CEO and senior management team on a $150M pilot plan to test new retail format that leveraged retailer’s core strengths but also improved competitive positioning.
• First store surpassed all performance expectations during first year of operation. Revenue projected to be >50% higher than initial proforma projections. Customer feedback has exceeded all expectations.
Growth strategy for fiber optics component manufacturer: Led team that over a 1-year period developed and implemented fiber optics component growth strategy. Evaluated customer needs, market dynamics and core capabilities to develop technology roadmap and product strategy to meet aggressive revenue and profit targets.
Product strategy for fiber optics component start-up: Led team that developed overall product strategy and technology roadmap for a new technology optical fiber manufacturer. Conducted market assessment to evaluate customer needs and current technology limitations to identify attractive component opportunities. Developed partnering strategy to guide product development and commercialization.
TURNAROUND STRATEGY & IMPLEMENTATION
Retail turnaround strategy: Led combined company and client team on a corporate-wide, fundamental strategy revision and turnaround effort for a $40B retail firm, one of company’s flagship clients. Strategy well received by both Board of Directors and analysts: “…the best news I have heard from [company] in 10 years”; “touches every aspect of the business…response to structural changes in the industry, not a short term quick fix.”
• Redefined customer value proposition based on market opportunity and company’s core capabilities. Recommended expansions and exits to virtually all merchandise categories to support new value proposition.
• Developed 4 year integrated rollout plan and gained approval for the $1.7B capital requirement. Implementation comprised planning and integrating 12 major initiatives across 8 businesses in over 600 stores.
• Strategy recommendations are being successfully implemented, firm’s market capitalization increased by over 35% with respect to the S&P retail index since beginning the strategy development.
January 26th, 2006 at 9:01 am
Enjoyed the resume pod-cast very much, and the whole “season” has been great…
looking at the resume example, I notice that there is no apparent place to discuss what the company is doing. For example you are assuming the recruiter understands what the USAF is in business for.
That is fare for large well-known corporations or companies which can be easily classified and where the specific nuances are not crucial to understanding the candidate background.
What is the right approach for small private companies, in my case software start-ups, where you do want to provide some insight as to the company, before diving into your own responsibility?
My idea was to have something like:
“July 2001 – June 2004: Team Leader - Foo – Alpha - Alpha is a software start-up which is building the next generation flying toaster based on state of the art technologies in the areas of frying pans. Responsible for development and productization of the Foo module, leading 4 software engineers”
Any thoughts ?
January 26th, 2006 at 3:42 pm
Y-
Thanks for the feedback! We appreciate the kind words.
Yours is a good question - sorry we weren’t clear. I think you are right to want to give some perspective about the firm in this case. What I would do is just a little different than what you did. I would include a brief bit about the company at the end of the first sentence of the responsibilities paragraph without mentioning the firm’s name again. For instance:
“Responsible for Ajax software development in a start up web development firm growing by 75% per quarter by providing totally secure web applications for the financial services industry.”
The rest of the paragraph simply continues with responsibilities, without any further reference to the company.
Hope this helps - let me know if you need more.
It’s a privilege to serve you.
Mark
March 27th, 2006 at 5:18 pm
What’s the best way to include relevant accomplishments outside of a position. For example, I co-authored a book that was a top seller in its space for 2 years. The book was relevant to the position and field I work in. After the book, I was commissioned to write a white paper for a partner and then present the content of the paper at a conference in China with about 5000 attendees.
I didn’t see this in your example resume or hear how something like this fits into a good resume.
Thoughts?
March 27th, 2006 at 6:01 pm
Michael-
Great question!
Inlcude it as a bullet under the job you were in when you published it. Include publication and sales records in one bullet, ala:
- Co-authoered best sellling blank blank book title, “…”; presented related white paper to 5,000 attendees at industry conference in China.
That work?
It’s a privilege.
Mark
March 30th, 2006 at 5:21 pm
Hi Mark,
Your sample resume definitely clears several misconceptions that I have had, ever since I started writing my first resume. Truly.. every one of my previous resumes “STINK”.
I have few questions though.
I work for an IT firm where I am often moved from one project to the other within months.. and at times in different roles and functional domains. I am Business Analyst in one, Project Manager in the other.. and Team leader in the third. Also these roles do not map directly to my positions which are often worded as Sr. Systems Integration Engineer, Associate Engineer, IT Analyst and so on. The question I have is, do I have to include separate paragraphs in my resume giving responsibilities and achievements in each project or should these be summarized in a single paragraph right under my employers name?
Is it important to show that you were promoted thrice in three years? If yes, how do I show that in my resume.
I was outsourced by my previous employer to a firm for a period of 1 year. When I decided to move on for better prospects, my client made me an offer I could not refuse. However, post employment I worked on the same project for another 6 months. How do I explain this transition in my resume?
A piece of positive feedback: What I really like about your podcasts is the acknowledgment that situations can be less than ideal in reality. And follow it up with practical tips and advises to do what one does.. a lot better.
March 31st, 2006 at 12:21 am
Curious IT-
Thanks for the kind words! Sorry your resume stunk, but I’m glad it will smell good shortly.
And thanks for the kind words. They mean a great deal every time.
- Under each company, list the jobs (by title, like Sr. Systems Integration Engr), and give a several sentence job description which is as broad as possible. Then, for each accomplishment in that job, mention the role you were filling. “Reduced closure time on type 1 complaints by 37% as a project Team Leader.”
- it is important to show the promotions. Do so.
List the time with the original employer, list the 1 year outsourced above that as a separate job, while indicating it was an outsourcing. Then, in the last bullet of the outsource job: “Re-hired by client (original firm) due to exceptional performance.” Hopefully, you will have bullets above this one to support the “exceptional” assertion.
Do your best, get it to one page, and then send it to me, and I will take a look, as a way of saying thanks for the kind words.
Mark
April 5th, 2006 at 4:26 pm
Hi There-
Quick question: Where should additional industry related training go?
Thanks!
Sally
April 5th, 2006 at 9:08 pm
Sally-
As a bottom bullet associated with the job you were in when you attended the training.
Don’t get TOO excited about including it. If you have 4-5 bullets for each job, say, and 2 are industry training, you will be sending the WRONG signal: “I just go to training, which I ought to know is less valuable than producing results…” 1 bullet is fine, unless the training is really significant (and it rarely is). We assume some knowledge development comes from growth of job responsibilities.
My pleasure!
Mark
April 13th, 2006 at 9:22 pm
I just discovered your podcast, and really appreciate the content. I am in the process of looking for a new position outside my company, and recently listened to the resume and excutive recruiter podcasts.
I revamped my resume back in February, but have now decided that it too stinks. I’d love your feedback on a couple of things:
- How do you recommend handling multiple positions within a company? With my past two companies, I held two different roles of increasing responsiblity.
- How far back do you recommend going in your job history? I have about 15 years of post-grad school experience with 4 companies, and should be able to pare to one page with your recommendations. However, as I move around and continue in my career, I was wondering when positions may seem “obsolete”.
- Since I haven’t maintained my resume in this recommended format, most of the current bullet points are around responsibilites vs. accomplshments. I’m having a hard time remembering some of the specific achievements in my earlier jobs. Any suggestions for brainstorming?
Thanks again for the content and I appreciate the recommendation for the Lucht book in your recruiters podcast. I plan to buy it today.
April 14th, 2006 at 3:21 pm
Melinda-
Great post! Thanks for listening, and glad you’re getting value out of our efforts.
Multiple positions are handled just like any other. Our sample shows that each job entry starts with dates, title, company, location, followed by responsibilities. For jobs at the same company, leave the company entry the same.
The reason for this is that it takes THREE LINES to make a separate entry to imply that “all jobs under this header are in this company. Since it’s LINE control that is so important in the one pager, our way works better.
And by the way, make sure that if you got promoted, or somehow earned that second job through high performance, make that move an accomplishment bullet in the earlier job. (This only works intra-company.)
We recommend going back to the beginning. That said, you’re proably okay on your earlier jobs. If you want to dig, go through old emails (oh, you didn’t keep them in an archive? Start now), annual reviews (oh, you didn’t keep THOSE EITHER? Oh well, start now…
). If you don’t have those, let it go and leave as is.
Depending upon your level in an org - executive or not - at some point a two page resume may become reasonable. Until then (think pay of $150), just pare the details of the earlier jobs. Make them a couple of lines each.
Remember that Lucht’s book is for executives, and most of it works very well for those not at those more senior levels. His multi page resume is for VERY senior folks who are working with retained search firms, and the rules get bent a bit.
It’s a privilege to serve you,
Mark
April 14th, 2006 at 4:55 pm
Thank you very much for the feedback, Mark. I am looking forward to seeing the response to a revamped resume.
All the best!
April 28th, 2006 at 3:08 pm
Hi Mark,
I recently discovered the MT podcast (and now blog), and find it immensely helpful - the resume podcast in particular has been great to listen to, and I too find that my initial efforts ’stank’. I had a question regarding employment history dates - there have been certain gaps between positions held (i.e. before beginning grad school, and after graduating during the job search stage - that was upto about 4-5 months). Would that look unfavorable in a resume?
thanks!
April 28th, 2006 at 6:47 pm
Asheeta-
Not really, particularly around school. You might get asked about it, but I really wouldn’t worry. And more importantly, there’s only one thing worse than a resume with a blemish: a resume that attempts to mislead, however subtly.
You’ll be fine - just be ready to asnwer about why it happened.
Thanks for the kind words - it’s a privilege to do this for you.
Mark
May 11th, 2006 at 5:25 pm
Greate podcast — graete tips — loving it
Can you post a link for your kellog presentation ( you mentioned in the podcast
that if we google it we can find your 2 hr presentation given in kellogs university)
Thank you
May 11th, 2006 at 10:16 pm
Rugved-
Thanks for the kind words!
Before I post a link…. I just googled myself (yuck), and the video was the first link. Why not just do that?
Mark
May 29th, 2006 at 6:44 pm
Wow! Great show. Thanks to you I’m starting understand how should I clear all the mess in my resume and LinkedIn profile: http://www.linkedin.com/in/olafbujak
May 30th, 2006 at 1:32 am
Olaf-
Glad to hear we’re helping you!
It’s a privilege to serve you.
Mark
May 30th, 2006 at 10:36 pm
Great podcast! Like many other folks, I’m in the process of refining my resume and found your advice very interesting. I was wondering if you could elaborate on how to draft the resume for a career change, either industry or function.
I really like and agree with the approach outlined on the podcast that the resume should be a document that focuses on your positions and accomplishments. My only concern is if I do this, I will attract similar opportunties as the job I have now.
I’m assuming that part of the logic is that employeers will make their hiring decisions based on past performance. However, how does this play out when you want to change industries or function and there is not a match to indicate a past success. For example, lets say that I am a Senior Product Marketing Manager in a Financial Services firm, but I’m interested in opportunities in International Alliances for a Software Company.
Appreciate your feedback.
Regards
Luis
June 10th, 2006 at 3:28 pm
Mark,
Just finished listening to the MT podcast and reading all of the BLOG comments. I found the ideas and information great!
Here is my situation - I am a very experienced data/telecom engineer. The dotcom bust found me in a city where telecom jobs shrank by more than 50%. My company closed the sales office (I was a Sales Engineer) in early 2002.
Due to family concerns, moving was out of the question. I immediately started independent consulting, but pickings have been thin. In addition to the consulting, I have also been the primary caretaker of our son (born 5 months after I was layed off), while my wife worked.
After a year and a half, I started a 2-yr Executive MBA program at the State University. In the meantime, I picked up the odd consulting gig, was a substitute teacher, worked in a sandwich/coffee shop, and continued to take care of our child. In the middle of the MBA program, I worked a summer for a small mom & pop Video Conference VAR as their engineering & sales manager. Cash flow forced them to cut all their employees, and I went back to substitute teaching. After graduating last year (2nd in my class), I went to work for a major discount retailer, thinking maybe a change of careers were in order. While I learned a lot about people and retail, I wasn’t really happy, and so I resigned after 11 months.
I am now making a more systematic effort at job-hunting and consulting, focusing on using the “Sales” part of my SE skills to identify and pursue either jobs or contracts.
Everything in my resume before the “bust” is pretty clear and strong. How do I best handle the period after that? Especially the retail part? Part of me is afraid that mentioning it in a resume would be the kiss-of-death for a tech job. Yet, I really don’t like “shading” the truth - it offends the engineer in me!
I came across MT while still working at the retail store. Your podcasts helped me immeasurably, and I have recommended your site to many of my friends.
Thanks and keep it up!
“Still Learning”
June 10th, 2006 at 10:40 pm
Luis-
Thanks for the kind words! I am sorry this took so long - I had to reformat my laptop, and failed to go back and comment on posts that came in around the time you posted.
There is something you can do to your resume to help with an industry transition. Before I do that, though, let me mention two important points.
First, remember what the purpose of your resume is: to get you an interview. If you know someone that can get you an interview in International Alliances (?) in Software, your resume becomes less important for THAT specific opportunity. So, cultivate relationships when you can.
Second, making a move like the one you’re talking about - changing careers and industries BOTH - is VERY hard. It’s not NEARLY as hard to go from Product Marketing in one industry to another, and then ONCE THERE, make the move to International. Something to think about.
Third, it’s not just the resume that will matter. You’ll also have to answer questions that show the skills they’re looking for. That means reviewing your accomplishments, and knowing which ones show not just what you used to think about them, but how those accomplishments prove you have skills for the new industry/job. You better know what they’re looking for!
The thing to do with your resume is review it for what it says about you, by looking at your accomplishments. Make sure that those accomplishments show the right skills and abilities for the jobs you’re looking for in that industry. You may have to put different accomplishments down in a few cases, and you may have to rework your answers based on those accomplishments so they highlight the right skills (per my third point above.)
Hope this helps!
Mark
June 11th, 2006 at 3:00 am
Still Learning-
Thanks for your post. I’m sure there are others out there in your situation who haven’t asked.
There are schools of thought that suggest you use some cleverness to cover up what happened. But it’s a delicate game I never recommend. Any recruiter worth their salt will have alarms go off, and get to the bottom of things. And when they do, you’re left not with a rough patch on your resume, now you’re perhaps guilty of misleading someone. Kiss of death.
So, prepare your resume as normal. You can downplay the recent history by listing your primary job as the executive MBA. Some short gigs (less than a month), if you feel they aren’t helpful, might be left off.
Yours is the one situation where I might recommend a summary/skills piece at the top, so before they get to the recent history, they get some positive in their head.
The big issue for you will be HANDLING it in the interview. Being frank (don’t say you quit if you got laid off, just say you got laid off in the downturn), and talking about being primary parent for your son, and the investment you chose to make in your education will all help.
Get over your fear of what the retail job might mean. Put it on there, explain why you chose it, and why you left, and where you want to go to now. If you’re energetic, qualified, and candid, you’ll do fine.
The resume is NOT what will get you the job - that would be you.
Glad you asked!
Mark
June 12th, 2006 at 10:54 pm
Mark-
Thanks for the reply. I understand about losing data and can relate to the catch up. After reading your response and re-reading my question, I realized I left out some relevant details that may have been useful for you to consider.
Of my 13 years of professional experience, 10 have been with the same company in 4 different roles. I have 7 years of experience in International (3 in International corporate alliances , 4 in International marketing and sales operations support). Additionally, I have an MBA with concentrations in International Finance and Marketing. As a result of a layoff, I was able to return to the work force but in a US focused Product Marketing role. I enjoy International and specifically the liaison role, as it is a strength and want to return to it.
My question centers around dealing with my career “detour”, if you will, into non-international product marketing and my desire to return to the international arena. The impression that I have is that hiring managers and recruiters often focus on the last job and accomplishments. How can I reflect my intent to return to international on the resume, when my current job is not in the same area? I’m also interested in looking at other industries for several reasons. So to conclude, the challenge I’m facing is more how to show on my resume (or otherwise) 1) returning to international and 2) possibly switching industries.
BTW I agree with all you have said on relationships and networking. I’m constantly reaching out to my international network of contacts to touch base and see where I may be able to help.
I apologize for the length of the post, but wanted to give you some more details in order to respond.
Thanks again!
Regards
Luis
June 13th, 2006 at 7:49 pm
Luis-
Thanks for the detail.
What I would do is put more weight (extra bullets and perhaps a sentence or two more responsibilities) in your international job… and that’s about it for the resume. Then I would just be open about what you want and why you want it.
The resume just can’t do everything. What you’re worried about MAY happen… but I think you’ll be okay.
It’s a privilege to serve you.
Mark
June 16th, 2006 at 12:25 pm
Great show! I just stumbled onto your podcast yesterday and it’s already one of my favorites! I’m not really a manager, but I would like to be one oneday and am doing everything I can to learn about management, business, technology, advertising, marketing, and design (my industry).
My am in a dead end job right now and currently looking elsewhere. Their really is no place for me go within the company, and they don’t really value the employees in my position (graphic designer). Even though I’m one of the top performers (production-wise), I’m not really valued either monetarilly or with promotion opportunities. I’ve taken the time to develop myself professionally by reading books, websites, seminars, classes, this podcast, etc. and started building a part-time business.
I do want to work on my business part-time, but I like the security of having a full-time career to furnish my business expenses and expected income. I feel that I have a lot to offer a new company but most of business development was done in my time after work hours, and towards my business. How can I express this into a resume without giving the impression that I’m only in it until my business takes off (not true) and without giving the impression that I wasn’t willing to accomplish more at my job?
Thanks in advance.
June 16th, 2006 at 4:10 pm
Brian-
Thanks for the kind words. Glad you’re getting value out of our work.
This is a non-problem, I think. If you don’t put your own business on your resume, this is moot, right?
If you do, it’s because you believe the benefits outweigh the costs. I don’t know what you’re doing or how well, but that may or may not be true.
If you’re asking, “will companies ding me for starting my own business once they see it on my resume?” the answer is generally no. As long as you can ethically say that you started it to stretch yourself, to work harder (and leave the implication about your workplace hanging but UNSTATED), to do so without stinting at the office, to learn more about business, sales, and customer service, and you’ve done this and this and this, and it’s helped grow your skills and made you better at work… then you’re completely fine.
This is particularly true if you did different/more expansive stuff away from work. In your field, this is not unusual. If they ask, you could say, “I wanted to continue growing, and was finding it harder to pursue. I volunteered and yet structure worked against me, I think. They have a good system, but it probably doesn’t focus as much on individual initiative.”
It’s a privilege to serve you,
Mark
July 4th, 2006 at 5:13 pm
I discovered Manager Tools several weeks ago and have been a devoted fan ever since. Recently I was promoted into management and am finding your tools very useful. I particularly like your resume format and am in the process of converting my resume over.
I completed a 20-year career in the Navy back in 2000. Since then I’ve written and used many different resumes. I would guess that I have somewhere around 20 different versions of my resume targeted at different markets. One thing I was told upon leaving the military was to civilianize my resume so that corporate America could understand it. However, I noticed in your resume sample that you didn’t really civilianize your resume. What is your opinion on civilianizing a resume?
July 5th, 2006 at 3:29 pm
Phcret-
Thanks for the kind words! Glad you’re a member. And, thanks for your service to your country for 20 years. We are in your debt.
I absolutely DO NOT recommend civilianizing your resume in the way that so many places recommend. That resume you’re looking at was my brother’s… and I wrote it. He retired after 20 years as an AF pilot, and had LOTS of accomplishments.
The key is to provide enough detail that the recruiter can get a sense of the scope of responsibilities you had. You can do that without civilianizing.
Send me your resume. I’ll look at it for you.
Mark
July 6th, 2006 at 1:12 am
Last Saturday, I retired from the Marine Corps after 30 years. I went through the same issues with regard to “civilianizing” the resume, and decided against it. So far, that decision has worked for me. As Mark said, describing the scope of responsibilities seems to be the key.
July 6th, 2006 at 12:35 pm
Len-
Thanks for your service. Glad that you’ve got your resume where you want it. If you need any other help, please just let us know.
Mark
August 4th, 2006 at 9:20 pm
MArk/Mike
I’m with my company (hospital) for about 2 years and I can out of a big-5 consulting environment. I was used to co-workers who were focused on getting the job done even if it took long hours. Here, it seems as though all managers believe that they are only required to put in 8 hours then go home. Any thoughts about how to begin to change this culture? Our hospital is struggling financially and there is a lot of work to do.
September 22nd, 2006 at 9:42 am
Mark:
Great content and advise. I am preparing my resume to interview for an internal promotion to Sales Manager. My tenure at this organization has been over two tours. After my initial three years, I left the industry for 10 months and was asked back into a role with greater responsibilities. My question is how to show that on a resume. I’m thinking that the format should follow the previous suggestions for multiple positions with the same organization. If I was looking to move outside of my organization, would I want/need to show this experience differently?
Thanks again Mark and Mike for all of your hardwork. The Members Only Podcast for September couldn’t have come at a better time for me!
Jeff
September 22nd, 2006 at 12:54 pm
Jeff-
There’s no difference in how to show one job at one company, regardless of industry, versus different numbers of jobs at one company, again industry irrespective. That said, not sure I understand your question.
Just list each job you’ve had in reverse chron order, as if they were all at different companies (though some will have the same company name). Does that make sense?
Mark
September 22nd, 2006 at 2:27 pm
Mark:
Sorry that I wasn’t clear….but I think you’ve answered my question. I will list the experience:
May, 2002 - Present, ABC Company
Febrary, 2001 - May, 2002, XYZ Company
January, 1999, February, 2001, ABC Company
Thanks again!
Jeff
October 15th, 2006 at 3:54 am
Mark:
How would you recommend handling the responsibility section for similar jobs. I am in an industry where I held the same position at 4 stores. The job description was the same at each location but differed slighly in size. My concern is that in listing the responsibilities they are effectively the same and I’m giving up a lot of real estate on repeat information when I want to spend that on the bullet points. How would you handle this?
ex: Store manager, City State Jan 99 - Feb 02
Store Manager, different city, Oct 96 - Dec 98
Store Manager, city, Jan 94 - Oct 96
Love the podcast. I’ve personally benefited from them and have shared with colleagues at work.
Steve
October 15th, 2006 at 8:39 am
Steve-
Nope, you gotta list the stuff. You run the risk of being questioned about scarce info (which is never a sales opportunity) if you skimp.
Mark
October 16th, 2006 at 10:57 pm
Hi Mike & Mark,
This is my first response after ardently listening and following Manger Tools for more than half an year. It was suggested by my Mentor and my Project Manger to me. It has been a great tool in helping me take up more responsibility the way it should be taken and helped me in learning the specifics of project management. I just love it and cant thank you guys enough for your great podcasts. Thanks a lot.
Resume format you suggested fetched me more interviews than I could ever imagine
Harry
October 17th, 2006 at 7:21 am
Harry-
Well done! Glad it worked well for you. The credit ALWAYS goes to the one in the ring.
Please thank your mentor and project manager for us as well.
It’s a privilege,
Mark
October 24th, 2006 at 1:25 am
Mark and Mike,
First, a hearty congratulations on everything you’ve achieved.
It’s been a while, but I think this is the cast where you suggested getting a personal email address that was basically your name, adding dots, underscores, or dashes as necessary to make it different from others with your same name. I absolutely agree with that for all the reasons you suggested, but do you have any suggestions for someone with an incredibly common name (so common that all the variations of it have already been taken)? After hearing this cast, I was a bit concerned that the email address I chose might be seen as unprofessional.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
October 25th, 2006 at 11:16 am
Tim-
Thanks for the kind words.
Interesting question. What’s your email address now?
Mark
October 26th, 2006 at 7:58 am
Mark,
I went with tim.toolguy@gmail.com.
Tim
October 26th, 2006 at 11:44 am
Have no worries. THat’s fine.
It reminded me of the interview I had - holy moly TWENTY years ago - with Nalco Chemical, where my bags were lost and I had to wear brown socks with a blue suit and black shoes. I made a point of pointing out my error to all my interviewers, and it was a good laugh on me. Later they told me they liked my candor.
You could do that if someone comments!
Mark
October 28th, 2006 at 12:40 pm
Mark and Mike,
I started listening to your podcasts about a week ago and want to thank you for all the advice and tips thus far. The resume podcast has been very helpful and I have a question pertaining to the use of a resume. In several days I will be attending an MBA fair in Budapest. Do you think it would be wise to hand out resumes as I am meeting prospective business schools? I would do it for the reason of giving the schools my contact information, as I do not have a business card (due to my age). Any help or ideas would be appreciated. Keep up the excellent work.
Best regards,
George Guhr
October 29th, 2006 at 9:51 pm
Mark and Mike — I was introduced to Manager-Tools by a friend in my MBA program a few weeks ago, and since then I’ve been spending my commute getting caught up on the podcasts. Excellent show, and thank you to both of you for your excellent advice!
Regarding resumes, I had a question about where (if at all) positions held on boards or advisory committees should go, as in many cases, I think these would be very relevant to your career, and a search for a new one.
Rgs,
Zabe
November 3rd, 2006 at 6:03 am
Mark - I watched your lecture at Kellogg three times, and listened to your podcast about resume building, and have a couple of questions for you!
1. As a student going to graduate (aerospace engineering) in Summer 2007, is it inappropriate or wrong to have “BS Engineering UAH Summer 2007″ on the resume, if I’m going to be interviewing before I graduate?
2. I read your advice on how to head a recent graduate resume differently (including education at the top instead of the bottom); how/where would I include 2 years of community college before transferring?
Thanks a bunch, and I’m eager to try closing in an interview!
November 3rd, 2006 at 9:46 pm
1. Nope. Just fine.
2. Leave it off. Where you got your degree is what counts. They’re acceptance of the comm coll credits give them the patina of the university.
Mark
November 7th, 2006 at 3:47 pm
From where I can get the copy of the sample resume …. please
thanks in an adavance
November 7th, 2006 at 11:15 pm
Right here!
http://www.manager-tools.com/podcasts/Sample_Resume.pdf
November 8th, 2006 at 2:52 pm
Thank you so much for the sample resume!!!!
November 8th, 2006 at 5:04 pm
Hi Mark, and everyone. I checked out the sample resume and the only problem I have with it is that I have no idea what this person wants to do. I assume that he (or she) wants to transition out of the military but there is no indication of that.
Sending a resume without a professional career identifier is perfectly useless. You have to indicate what it is that you want to do.
And by this indication I don’t mean a career objective. Those are completely useless because they are self - serving. A typical objective states that the person is looking for a job with the possibility of advancement.
Who cares?
The employer doesn’t care that the person wants to advance their careers. All the employer cares about is what the person can do for them!!!
So, it would be nice to see something on the top of the resume that indicates - in a short, sweet, and targeted way - what he wants to do.
You might say that the job candidate will probably spell that out in the cover letter.
Well, that’s fine.
But what happens when cover letters get lost? Get separated? Or, even worse, they sometimes don’t even get read!
So, spell it out in the resume!!!
Also, a nice professional summary would be great right there on the top that kind of gives a glimpse into who this person is - professionally.
It’s just a few lines (or bullets) long, basically “the professional in a nutshell.”
Just my 2 cents worth. (Lot more where this came from, LOL.)
Best to you and all!
Rita Fisher, CPRW
www.ExecutiveCareerPro.com
November 8th, 2006 at 10:42 pm
Hi Guys,
First and foremost, I must say that I have found manager tools to be an invaluable resource for a young manager like myself. I’ve spent the last month catching up on the podcasts and now I feel like once a week is not enough. I have completely revamped my resume according to you guidelines and I must say that it looks incredible and I would definitely appreciate receiving resumes in this format for positions that I am hiring.
My comment/question somewhat piggybacks on what resumelady said. I have always found that cover letters were my forum to summarize my skills and value that I would bring to a potential employer while also explaining why I am looking to make a move. However, I agree that they probably often do not get read. Do you have any thoughts on the value of cover letters and perhaps some advice on how to prepare one? Your resume format makes so much sense, but I’m lost on the cover letter and the forum to explain why I am looking.
Many thanks and keep these invaluable podcasts coming!
Jason
November 8th, 2006 at 11:18 pm
Rita-
Thanks for your comments. Isn’t diversity of thought wonderful?
Mark
November 29th, 2006 at 12:09 am
I just started listening to the podcast and find it very helpful. I have a question about resume/CV in the Medical/Academic area. My CV has grown to multiple pages because in this arena both “work” and “academics” are important. My CV has all of my “work” experience, then education/training, then licensure and board certifications and then publications. The only way I can get that to fit on one page is with 3PT type, single spaced. In my experience both as employee and employer, all of these components are necessary in order to apply for an academic position in a medical center. Any thoughts on how to handle this?
November 29th, 2006 at 6:09 am
Hi Mark,
I’ve recently started listening and am learning a lot from your podcasts. Hope you don’t mind this late question on your resume podcast?
In addition to my primary career, I’m also an officer in the Army Reserve, and as both careers are in logistics, and I have more seniority and management responsibility in my military role (hence the reason for looking for a new job), my military experience has bearing on my overall employability. My military postings naturally overlap (but do not correspond) with my civilian role changes. As I’m sure you can gather, my roles as I progress in seniority and work through “corps” “non-corps” and “admin/instruction” roles have been varied in experiences gained and responsibilities. Would you recommend that I add a second set of “most recent to least recent” of my military roles. fit them in in the chronological order, or add a single entry at the end that discusses my most current military responsibilities and lists major achievements over that career.
This has always been a tricky one for me, particularly as I find some employers in Australia can be wary of military service (don’t know if you’ve found this to be the case in the US), and I’ve had recommendations to either “convert” the role to a civilian equivalent or hide any evidence of reserve involvement until the interview stage.
I’d love to hear your thoughts.
November 30th, 2006 at 1:05 am
You must never “convert” or “hide” these accomplishments. It may be different in Australia - in the US the military is considered great training and veterans are sought after. But, experience is experience.
I would simply add a bullet or two under existing civilian jobs that start with, “As a Reserve Lgistics Officer…” It works fine.
This is based on the fact that you were only serving in the Reserves periodically - that is to say, on weekends and/or in the summer, and were going back to your civilian job. If you stopped a civilian job to work full time in the Reserves, then you need to list that Reserve job fully, as you would any other job.
Hope this helps.
Mark
November 30th, 2006 at 1:17 am
SMKlein-
You have too much on your resume. All of the certifications can be put in a separate document (often the cover letter, addressing what was in their ad) offered at the interview, or you can include them as bullets/accomplishments under the job you were in when you received them:
- Received MCTncC dertification, Critical Care Licensure, and PulmTest Certificates (Yes, I made these up)
To be clear, I have worked with several hospitals, HUNDREDS of nurses, and have had 3 large medical practices as clients. This comes from specific experience.
One page, no smaller than 10 point type.
Mark
December 20th, 2006 at 2:53 pm
I loved your cast on how to get into a group. Great advice for this introvert!
However, I really don’t understand why your resume advice is so narrow in focus. Only one page? That really doesn’t do my background justice. My education takes up half of a page.
December 20th, 2006 at 5:37 pm
Cait-
Thanks for the kind words. Mike and I call notes like yours, “complibuts.”
Our resume advice is the way it is because it WORKS. I’ve never met anyone whose education would ever take more than 3 lines.
BS Mechanical Engineering, Tulane University, 1978
MBA, Harvard Business School 1985
PhD, Organizational Behavior, Johns Hopkins University, 1992
If you’re considering professional/technical classes that you took as education, it’s unlikely that many of them will make the cut. They are usually inferred from your experience.
I’m nearly 50 years old and have a one page resume.
Mark
January 6th, 2007 at 7:21 am
Hi,
In the sample resume, I noticed that it is more like an acheivment oriented CV. It focuses more on the posts occupied by the person and does not look inot the personal profile. There are some jobs that ask for some family profile (i.e marital status, no. of children, citizenship….etc).
Do you think that those are essential items in a CV
January 6th, 2007 at 10:38 am
Sinanshakir-
No, those items have no business in a resume. In fact, in the US and elsewhere, asking about those things is illegal, so many people would never offer them in a resume.
Mark
January 16th, 2007 at 4:18 pm
I am currently preparing my resume for MBA application and decided to goo back to this podcast.
I was just wondering how I can indicate on my resume job positions (sort of promotions) from the same company. That is: in 2001 I was hired as a training consultant primarily teaching classes. In 2003, still in the line of consulting, I was hired to teach and become project manager. In 2005, still as a consultant, I was hired to handle Accounts / Finance for the Department while still being a Project Manager / Teacher (on some occasions). In 2006, the company absorbed me as their employee, still doing Finance and Program management.
Any help will truly be appreciated. I have been advertising your podcasts to everybody including in the seminars that I give out.
More power!
January 17th, 2007 at 12:22 am
Jonathan-
Gee, that’s easy. Each of those jobs is listed separately, just like on the sample. The “promotion” nature of the move is communicated through the responsibilities paragraphs, each growing in scope and scale.
That’s how it’s done.
Mark
January 18th, 2007 at 4:39 pm
Thanks Mark. I think I’m getting the hang of simplfying my resume, thus removing the stink.
January 28th, 2007 at 10:27 pm
Gentlemen, I love the shows. I am having trouble writing my resume. I am a 17-year veteran of Law Enforcement and had plenty of accomplishments during my career. Here’s the problem. I have participated in the promotional process twice. Both times my resume score has placed me on the bottom half of the eligibility list. Some in my agency write their own resumes and others hire someone to do it. I have heard both sides to each. I know your feelings about doing your own resume but it’s not working. Can you recommend someone to write my resume?
February 2nd, 2007 at 8:32 pm
Mark and Mike,
I’ve been listening for a year now, but just checked out your website to find the Resume Podcast with a sample resume. What I appreciate most is that you have taken the time to answer every post. Keep up your fantastic work!
A quick question that I hope might be helpful for others as well.
How would you address resumes for individuals who speak English as a second (or third/fourth) language, and may have grammar errors in their resume. I am helping a new immigrant to write a resume (a fantastic art director/graphic designer) but don’t want to be deceitful about their English level. This person’s conversational level is good, but not perfect. Are there any resume rules about including a sentence that the resume was prepared in consultation or would you put forward a perfectly written resume and wait until an interview to share that the resume was prepared with help.
Deborah
February 12th, 2007 at 5:49 pm
No skill sets?
I guess managers aren’t expected to know: QuarkXPress, Photoshop, Illustrator, Acrobat Professional, Excel, Macromedia Dreamweaver, Graphic design & layout, original illustration, photography, logo design
Marketing design, Web design, HTML, Image retouching and editing
keeping it to one page is very hard, but thank you for giving a designer permission to ignore whitespace.
March 21st, 2007 at 8:24 pm
Deborah-
I am so sorry this took me so long. I regret my absence.
There is NOTHING wrong, and everything right, about a non-native-English speaker having a perfect resume. It won’t create false expectations on the part of a recruiter.
At the bottom, list their language skills: Spanish - Native, fluent; English - conversational (or whatever you deem appropriate).
Mark
April 3rd, 2007 at 11:26 am
Mark-
I am a student at Skidmore college and I LOVE the podcast. not only do I listen to it but I make CDs for all of my business professors too. I am currently working on getting an internship in the marketing field and I have just completed my resume. However, I am having trouble applying some of the principles from the podcast to the “student resume” Could you shed some light on what a company is looking for in an intern rather than an employee?
April 5th, 2007 at 12:45 pm
Toph-
There is no difference. A college student’s resume would have their college work experience on it, and high school as well, for the most part.
Mark
August 1st, 2007 at 6:16 pm
Certifications…
Hello,
I just listened to this podcast and I have a question on certifications. In many technical fields the job offering will state that a particular certification is preferred. I was thinking of adding this across from my education. Also, should professional associations be listed?
Thanks,
James
February 19th, 2008 at 5:13 am
Your podcasts are the biz! I am starting to implement one-on-ones this week, thanks to you guys. I had shied from doing so in the past, thinking I could get away with informal, impromptu sessions. Unfortunately, that had worked with some, but not with others. The reception to this new idea from at least one of my team members has been somewhat icy, but I am sure they will warm to it when they realize this benefits everyone and it is not primarily about keeping tabs. I started writing the email as the closing music for the podcast was playing. Very empowering, guys!
On to another subject: resumes
I have lived overseas for 17 years, mostly in Asia, and will be moving back to Canada next summer. What do you guys think about functional resumes for career changers (I am 40)?
If I only completed 3 years of a 4 year undergraduate program, is it worthwhile mentioning?
My wife caught me sneaking an earbud into my ear after going to bed last week. She asked what the hell I was listening to and I proudly said: “Manager-tools podcast!”. She gave me a “look”, but I kept on listening anyway.