Everything in today’s world is fast-paced, including the people who review resumes. If you want your executive resume to get noticed, something has to stand out immediately. The key to writing an effective resume is to ensure the reader finds exactly what they’re looking for in less than five seconds. A resume requiring more attention than that will likely be passed over. This is really the truth. I’ve talked with a few of my recruiter friends, and they said they just glance at it and don’t give it more than 15 seconds. By following these simple tips, you’ll be able to make your executive resume stand out in the modern job hunting world.
Capture the Reader’s Attention
Sometimes the best way to capture your reader’s attention is by making subtle changes to the standard resume. You could use a different font, as long as it’s still professional. You can use a bit of color, a graph, a chart, etc. to make it stand out. They’ve come a long way since I started out 17 years ago and all we could use was Times New Roman, 12 pt. Font. The top rated resume writing services can suggest different ways to make your resume pop, but these are just a couple of simple ideas to get you started.
Make Your Achievements Stand Out
Many people who review resumes start reading at the top of the page. They’ll generally skim down to find keywords or important phrases that meet their requirements. If you want to help them out, you could consider using bold or italics in those areas to make sure they grab the reader’s attention.
Eliminate fluff to avoid making your resume too lengthy. If a recruiter is looking for a particular skill set, they want to find it in your resume immediately. Otherwise, they will quickly lose interest and move on to the next candidate, even if you are perfectly qualified for the job. Crisp and concise are the goals here.
Keywords Are Critical
This could be the same or different from the words you bolded in your resume. Since the vast majority of resumes are submitted online, companies will run them through software to find the keywords they’re looking for. If yours doesn’t have the words they want to see, you don’t stand a chance at getting an interview.
When writing an effective resume, you need to ensure you use recognizable keywords. Depending on the type of executive job you’re applying for, the keywords you use may vary. Avoid using generic terms and phrases and you’ll stand a better chance of at least getting a human to look at your resume.
The modern executive job market has never been more competitive. It’s critical to formulate the perfect resume to get any sort of recognition. Writing your resume is a critical first step in landing an interview so remember to refer to these tips when you get started.