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1. Chronological - This is the most traditional, popular and preferred style of resume writing where the education and experience are listed in reverse chronological order beginning with the most recent first.  Ideally, it should show how each job builds upon the former.  By giving a clear picture of where you have worked and what you have accomplished, the chronological resume demonstrates that you have "paid your dues" and you are ready to strategically advance to the next level of responsibility.

Advantages:

-  Past experience is emphasized.

- A straightforward experienced-based approach which helps recruiters make quicker decisions; often expected by employers.

- Effective if progressively moving upward in the same or similar fields with a strong, steady and stable career track record.

- Clearly follows a timeline of experience where job titles, employers and length of employment are impressive.

- Duties, responsibilities, promotions and achievements are connected, related and described with each work experience.

- Best for focused candidates looking for further advancement in the same or similar fields.

- Easiest to prepare, read and interpret by highlighting career growth, current responsibilities and educational credentials.

- Useful for those whose career objectives are aligned with their past work history.

Disadvantages:

- Causes employment gaps, frequent job changes or weak areas to stand out.

-   Does not allow the opportunity to emphasize skill sets.

-  Not good for those trying to change career fields.

- Work dates divulges the candidate's age more quickly.

- May give the impression that you are "over-qualified."

2. Functional/Skills-Based - This type of resume groups a variety of experiences around skill categories (i.e. Administrative, Communication, Customer Service, Financial, Human Resources, Management, Organizational, Sales, Teamwork, Technical, etc.).  These headings come first followed by bullets with an action verb that details your responsibilities and accomplishments.  Next, a category called "Employment," lists work history in reverse chronological order without outlining the duties.  It a resume that's hard to design.

Advantages:

-  Future potential is emphasized while downplaying a lack of direct related experience.

-  A transferrable skills-based approach which draws attention to core competencies and results.

- Useful when past education and experience is diverse and not exactly related, linear, continuous or progressive.

- Good for career changers, stay-at-home parents, ex-offenders, the disabled or those re-entering the job market.

-  Helps conceal age or spotty work record.

- Enables the job searcher to cover education or credentials that are limited, interrupted or irrelevant.

- Best for candidates with past experience that has been coursework, freelance, volunteer, consulting or temporary in nature.

- Flexibility to reorder skill clusters to better match the requirements of each specific job opening.

- Useful if there is no obvious connection between the current job and the current career objective.

Disadvantages:

- Often suspicious and confusing to employers creating a red flag that the candidate is trying to hide something.

-  Can be a struggle for employers trying to make the connection between skills and the places where they were developed.

- May not be acceptable for some online resume posting sites.

- Not good for traditional fields that expect chronological format (i.e. teaching, accounting, politics, etc.).

- Difficult to show a candidate's job progression clearly.

3. Combination/Blend - This format uses the strongest elements of both the chronological and functional styles.  It can focus the reader's attention on one to three skills sets while also detailing education, experience and accomplishments.  It satisfies the employers need to know job titles, employer names and dates.  It is appropriate for anyone desiring a job change in a related career field or to strategically promote their top marketable skills.  It is becoming an increasingly more acceptable style, but does require more preparation time and creativity.

4. Business Card - One way for a candidate to stand out is to have a business card that features the most important points from the resume.  This calling card contains contact information, objective, key work and educational experiences with a section on the back for handwritten notes.  By making the resume completely portable, it can be used at any opportunity or networking event.  With this type, you may find yourself naturally distributing more resumes than with the other styles.  This format requires a great deal of creativity and effort to do it right.

Putting a resume together for some can be a daunting task and a real struggle.  Strong opinions vary widely on which type works the best.  Talk to a professional about your background and particular circumstances.  They can help you more objectively decide which format is going market you successfully.  Remember, the goal of the resume is to generate interviews; the purpose of the interview is to land a job offer.  If your current resume is producing few, if any, interviews, then consider having your resume professionally critiqued or change the style or format. 

© Copyright, Dr. Thomas J. Denham, Careers In Transition LLC - Posted Friday, January 6, 2012

Your resume is one of the most important parts of the job search because it is often the first impression a potential employer has of you. However, with most employers being overwhelmed by resumes, sometimes in the hundreds. Yyou have between 15-30 seconds to capture the recruiter's attention. There are many different ways to construct your resume, but there are some general rules you should follow to avoid blowing this aspect of your job search. By staying away from these common mistakes, your resume will more likely be read by a prospective employer.

Remember the resume does not get you the job. The purpose of the resume is to have it read by someone who can give you an interview. The interview gets you the job. These are my top 10 fastest ways to land your resume in the employer's trash can:

1. Too Long
Keep it concise, taking into account that the top half of your resume is the most critical. It should be one page for every ten years of experience, but leave space between your experiences for easier reading; you don't want it to appear crammed. You can expect to write at least two drafts. If you are having problems fitting it onto one page, then contact a professional career counselor for help.

2. Too Poorly Organized
Chose your categories carefully. If there is no logical order or arrangement, it will be hard to follow and difficult to read. List your education first unless you have been out of school for many years. Center the heading at the top in size 14 font, list dates on the right side, and "frame" it with .5" margins. Don't list references; save them for a separate page to submit to employers upon their request.

3. Too Poorly Typed or Printed
One of the best ways to blow your resume is to use one of those computerized cookie cutter resume writing programs. A one size fits all program will not properly align or center your resume, giving it a very unprofessional look. Don't forget to laser print it with standard size fonts between 10-12 and traditional fonts such as Arial or Times New Roman in Microsoft Word.

4. Too Poorly Written
Building a resume takes time and careful preparation. At all costs, you should avoid salary expectations, verbose language, poor grammar, spelling errors, typos, overuse of same adjectives or verbs, as well as unclear proper names or acronyms. Stay away from poor sentence structure such as phrases beginning with: "Responsible for..." or "Worked at...". Omit articles like "a" and "the."

5. Too Unclear of a Career Objective
If the reader might have trouble figuring out what you want, then you need a one line objective. Be sure that it is not too long or too general, and it more clearly defines your focus to the particular company.

6. Too Incomplete Description of Experiences
Qualify and quantify what you offer. "Last semester I did an internship" is not specific enough in your description of your various experiences. Instead, use action verbs to highlight your accomplishments such as edited, organized, reviewed, designed, coordinated, developed etc.

7. Too Much Irrelevant Personal Information
You do not need to include everything about you on the resume, only the important information for the job or particular employer that will get you the interview. Be sure you focus on your internships and relevant experience. Avoid including personal information such as your height, weight, marital status, date of birth, religion, race, national origin, or photos etc.

8. Too Slick
Don't print your resume on exotic or colored paper or use fancy typesetting, binders or photographs. Stick with conventional 25% bonded off-white resume paper available at any office store.

9. Too Poorly Presented
Too many resumes arrive on an employer's desk unrequested and with little or no apparent connections to the organization. Be sure to craft a well tailored cover letter to avoid this mistake. When you send it, use a large envelope so that when it arrives, it will sit flat on a recruiter's desk without any creases.

10. Too Boastful
The resume is about you, but it is for someone else's eyes. Be honest and keep it employer centered. Never lie, "pad" or stretch the truth about your job duties and accomplishments. Be prepared to back up all items on the resume in an interview. Employers will often follow up and check your sources for accuracy. If you are hired and a company finds out about your inaccuracies on your resume, you will most likely be fired immediately. Don't blow it.

A resume is very important in the job search.  It is the first impression a potential employer has of you.  It sells your unique package of education and experience.  The purpose of the resume is to get an interview.  There is no right or wrong way to write a resume.  However, many employers are overwhelmed by resumes, so you have between 15-30 seconds to capture their attention.  Despite many conflicting opinions on resume writing, follow these major "rules."

Resume DOs

• DO center the heading at the top.
• DO use an "Objective" if the reader can't figure out your focus.
• DO list education first unless you have been out of school for many years.
• DO describe your experiences with action verbs.
• DO list dates on the right side.
• DO use standard fonts like "Times New Roman."
• DO laser print on 25% bonded paper.
• DO use ivory or off-white paper; never gray or blue.
• DO keep it concise with 1 page for every 10 years of experience.
• DO leave space between experiences for easy reading.
• DO write it with the employer's needs in mind.
• DO back up all items on the resume in an interview.
• DO qualify and quantify your resume experiences.
• DO "frame" it on paper with either .5" or .75" margins.
• DO tailor it to your purposes.
• DO expect to write at least 2 drafts.
• DO spell check and proofread it carefully.
• DO have it critiqued by a professional
• DO bring extra copies to the interview.

Resume DONT's

• DON'T include everything on your resume.
• DON'T provide any personal information (e.g. race, age, religion, etc.)
• DON'T state salary expectations.
• DON'T "pad" or lie on your resume.
• DON'T list professional references.
• DON'T have any typos or misspellings.
• DON'T guess at dates; be accurate! (Employers will often check.)
• DON'T use any computerized resume programs.

Updating your resume annually should be part of your long-term career development.  Consider meeting with a career development professional, a mentor, or anyone that would be willing to give an objective critique.  Resume building takes time and careful preparation.  Analyzing it annually will make you competitive in the marketplace.  If you have any thoughts or questions feel free to email me.

Keep Climbing,
Dr. Tom

Copyright 2011, Dr. Thomas J. Denham, Careers In Transition LLC - Albany.com - Friday, January 28, 2011