As an older executive you've probably looked at hundreds of resumes over the years. You've used them yourself as screening devices before you interviewed applicants. You identified almost at a glance the people you'd like to see and those you didn't. But did you actually analyze the characteristics that the good resumes had that the bad ones didn't? And how long has it been since you tried to write one? It's a lot harder to write one yourself than it is to evaluate the resumes of others. Also, resume writing has changed, and you don't want to date yourself by using the same form you used when you were younger.
Why do you need a resume? Because a well-written resume is one of your strongest job-hunting tools. Well done, a resume is a marketing piece that says, "Look at this person. See what he/she did for others and can do for you. Isn't he/she great!" It forces you to organize what you've done with your life so that you can give the strongest possible message about your background and experience. It helps you to sell yourself. It's a solid "leave-behind" or "go-before" message. It's like a product brochure that demonstrates your competence. It tells about your "features" and indicates the "benefits" of hiring you.
A resume should be easy to understand, dramatically worded and appealing to potential employers. In it, you present a word picture of your abilities. Make it concise-don't try to cover your entire experience and all of your abilities. Target it to your potential employer, position and industry.
Employers frequently receive hundreds of resumes for positions they have open. (You may have faced a foot-high stack of resumes yourself!)
When employers are deluged by that kind of response, they may look at an individual resume for only a second or two. They look to see: 1) if the resume writer has the qualifications, background and experience for the position; and 2) if there's anything about the resume that suggests they should investigate its writer more closely. They sort the resumes into piles of "probably interested," "possibly interested," and "not interested." If your resume lands in the "possibly interested" or "not interested" piles, it will be filed in that round mailbox on the floor, and will never see the light of day again. You probably won't hear that your resume was received, let alone that the firm isn't interested in you.
When you send letters and resumes as a prospecting device, the screening process is likely to be a little different. The person who receives the resume considers: 1) do I have a need for someone with these qualifications; and 2) is the person worth spending my time interviewing?
How do potential employers read resumes? The same way you read a newspaper story or a lightweight novel. You look at the headline or title, and the beginning paragraph or paragraphs. If this looks interesting, you may read the rest of the article or story. If it's not interesting, you don't continue. Resumes are read the same way. The reader looks at the job title, the job objective or job summary, then skims briefly over the rest of the resume to get an overall impression of the applicant. If the impression is a poor one-the resume isn't well prepared, is poorly typed, has glaring spelling errors or is ungrammatical (these have a way of jumping off the page and hitting the looker in the eye!), or shows obvious lack of organizational skill-the resume is not read further. But if the initial impression is good, the reader goes back to the beginning and reads the resume more carefully. Point: Your resume must make a strong initial impression.
Will you need to write all of these resumes? Perhaps. You'll certainly need more than one if you are looking for and would accept more than one kind of job. Begin by learning how to write the different kinds of statements and resume sections that you will need to use to put together any resume. Let's begin with achievement statements. Writing them will force you to take a hard look at what you really accomplished. These will help you to see that yes, you really did do some valuable work in your previous work life. For some, writing these statements, then putting them into the achievement resume format is the start back from depression and doubt.
