How Executive Resumes Have Changed – And What Employers Expect

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How To Avoid Ageism On Your Executive Resume

Executive resumes have changed dramatically in recent years. No longer is it acceptable to write a resume that simply lists titles, tenure, and responsibilities. If you are an executive or aspire to become one, you need to know how resumes have changed and what employers are expecting to find in an executive resume today.

What is an Executive Resume Today?

A resume is a summary of a person’s background and qualifications. An executive resume is a summary of a person’s background and qualifications that communicates strategic value, leadership impact, and ability to navigate a complex business environment. If you are seeking a seat in a corporate boardroom, you need to know how to communicate that value to a hiring committee or executive search firm.

What Employers Expect in an Executive Resume

One of the most significant differences in an executive resume is that it is no longer acceptable to list job responsibilities. Why? Because corporate boards and search firms know what a CEO, COO, CFO, or VP does. What they don’t know is how you accomplished it. So what should you highlight in an executive resume?

  • Revenue growth
  • Market expansion
  • Efficiency in operations
  • Turnaround expertise
  • Mergers and acquisitions
  • Transformation of an organization

What this means is that you are not only required to communicate business impact, but also to communicate it in a way that is easily read and understood. If you are a high-performing executive, you know that you are being judged on how you impacted business results. So, it is not surprising that many of the most successful executive resumes are those that tout achievements such as:

“Scaled global revenue from $120M to $450M in four years”
“Led post-merger integration of two Fortune 500 divisions”
“Reduced operational costs by 30% while expanding market share”

The idea is to demonstrate strategic leadership capabilities.

In the context of decision-makers having mere seconds to scan the resume, these results need to be immediately visible.

AI and Applicant Tracking Systems Are Now Part of Executive Hiring

The assumption has been that applicant tracking systems (ATS) are only relevant to the hiring process for mid-level or lower positions. This has not been the case for some time.

In fact, many Fortune 500 companies use AI to screen applicants for executive positions, particularly at the beginning of the hiring process. A recent study done by Gartner found that 74% of enterprise-level companies use AI technology to screen applicants, including those for executive positions.

This means that the executive resume must meet two criteria:

-ATS compatibility
-Human readability

For example, if the resume has too many stylized elements, the AI technology may not be able to read the resume effectively. This has resulted in the majority of executive resumes being:

-Clean and simple
-Having standard section headings
-Having clear bullet points
-Having keyword alignment with the job title

Bullet points are more important than ever (versus large chunks of content), as they allow the reader to quickly identify the candidate’s achievements.

The executive resume must be strategically optimized, yet not look like the work of a robot.

Leadership Branding Is Now Essential

The other significant change in the executive resume has been the development of leadership branding.

For many years, many executives simply relied on their job title to demonstrate their leadership abilities. This has changed, and companies want to know what leadership value the executive candidate will be able to bring to the organization. This is usually done in the executive summary or leadership section at the top of the resume.

An effective executive summary should provide answers to the following types of questions:

-What kind of leader is this person?
-What business problems does this person solve?
-What kind of business or industry does this person specialize in?
-What kind of strategic results does this person deliver?

For example, instead of simply listing “Chief Operating Officer,” today’s executive resume might describe this person as:

“Operational Transformation Leader with expertise in high-growth business scalability, improving enterprise efficiency, and driving global market expansion.”

This executive positioning statement helps hiring teams understand the strategic importance of this person.

Companies Are Looking for Change Leaders

Today’s business environment is more volatile than ever.

Digital disruption, global business, and supply chain volatility are just a few of the factors driving businesses to change and adapt. Because of this new business reality, companies are looking for executives who are flexible and can deliver change leadership.

According to Deloitte’s 2020 Global Human Capital Trends report, 7 out of 10 business leaders report that their core business strategy is being able to move quickly and adapt to change.

Today’s executive resumes should include:

-Digital transformation initiatives
-AI adoption strategies
-Organizational restructuring initiatives
-Culture transformation initiatives
-Innovation leadership skills

Soft Skills and Human Leadership Matter More Than Ever

While business and leadership skills are still essential, today’s business environment is more about human leadership than ever. Companies want to see human leadership skills in their executive resumes.

For example:

-Building high-performance teams
-Leading through uncertainty and change
-Communicating vision and strategy
-Organizational culture building

Recent studies on the recruiting process indicate that critical thinking skills are the top priority for talent acquisition heads, followed by many technical skills. This change has been necessitated by the fact that, in addition to strategy, the leader must be able to guide the organization through change.

The Modern Executive Resume: What It Should Include

The resume of the modern executive leader must include the following:

-Cross-functional collaboration
-Organizational alignment
-Talent development
-Stakeholder management

This enables the employer to gain an understanding of the complete leadership package and not just the operational capabilities.

The Modern Executive Resume Is Shorter, Sharper, and More Strategic

Another significant change in the resume of the modern executive leader is its structure.

While the executive leader’s career span may be over three decades, the hiring committee does not want to know the entire history of the executive leader’s career. They want a high-level overview of the executive leader’s capabilities.

Today’s Executive Resume Should Include:

-The last 10 to 15 years of leadership experience
-The executive leader’s major strategic accomplishments
-High-impact leadership initiatives
-The executive leader’s responsibilities on the board

This enables the hiring committee to gain an overview of the executive leader’s capabilities and makes the resume sharper and more strategic. In the competitive executive leader’s job market, sometimes simplicity and clarity are more important than complexity.

What Companies Ultimately Want From Executive Candidates

The question the executive leader must ask themselves when crafting their resume is:

“What will the organization gain with the executive leader on board?”

The hiring companies looking to hire the executive leader are looking for individuals with the capabilities to:

-Grow the organization
-Lead the organization through change
-Build high-performance teams
-Innovate and transform the organization
-Make complex decisions with conviction

An executive leader must be able to clearly and strategically communicate these capabilities on their resume to be noticed by hiring committees and executive recruiters.

Final Thoughts

As organizational life responds to the challenges of rapid technological change, global competitive pressures, and changing workforce expectations, the need for organizational leaders who can navigate these complexities and deliver results has created a new imperative.

Executives willing to adapt their resume to the changing realities of the business environment, with its emphasis on results, transformational leadership, and strategic value, will be much more successful in the competitive executive resume market.

For those considering new executive roles, the message is clear:

Your resume must be the narrative of the results you produce, not the jobs you’ve had.

Using LinkedIn to Improve Your Job Hunting Results
While LinkedIn has become extremely popular with businesses and companies, it still seems to be lagging a bit when it comes to those seeking jobs. That’s a shame because it’s one of the easiest and most effective job search tools available today. Many company hiring managers check LinkedIn before looking anywhere else for new employees.
The main reason that LinkedIn isn’t being used as much as it should be by job seekers is because it’s considered a form of social media and that term alone makes people think of it as a leisure activity. Nothing could be further from the truth where LinkedIn is concerned. There are, of course, a variety of ways to use the service and some are naturally better than others.
To start, you want to make sure that your profile is 100% complete. If you aren’t sure how to go about doing this, consider hiring a professional to translate your resume into your LinkedIn profile. Having a completed profile that stands out is a great way to give potential employers a good look at you before the interview process.
It’s also important to note that many companies are asking for your LinkedIn profile when you submit a resume. It has actually become so common that many people just include their LinkedIn URL on their resume to begin with.
LinkedIn can also be used overtly for an active job search. Because thousands of companies have company profiles and use the site for headhunting, many of their job openings are published on the site before, or even instead of, any place else. Once you have a completed profile, you can simply click a button and apply for a multitude of jobs.
Consider updating, or even beginning to use, LinkedIn as a job search tool. It’s a great way to be seen by thousands of companies fast.

Overwhelmed by LinkedIn? Simple Steps to Create Your Profile and Start Using It

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Have you wanted to sign up with LinkedIn but thought it sounded too complicated to begin? Just another profile to maintain? Oh, no. I’m here to tell ya–LinkedIn is a wonderful job search tool and (hopefully) here to stay.
You need to get around your hesitations in order to get your resume to the right people. One way to do that is to register with LinkedIn and develop a well crafted online business profile. If you’re not registered on LinkedIn yet, you are missing an excellent opportunity to get your name out. After you’ve registered, invite all of your friends and colleagues. The more connections you have there, your chances of forming an extended business network of your closest friends and associates rises – including their first and secondary connections.
Once you have your LinkedIn account set up and established some connections, use the search feature to try and learn as much about the different HR managers or corporate recruiters information. You can use the drop down menu to search for people and then type in the company name. Go through the results in order to find the people located in HR or people in leadership roles that you can befriend.
Start contacting these people through the following methods:

  • If you see someone that’s a secondary connection (one of your friends is friends with them through a first degree LinkedIn connection), click “Get introduced through a connection” and add this person as a connection. This allows your personal friend to send a message to that person. Also, you can send your resume to your friend and have them forward it on to their first degree connections. Make sure you ask them to put in a good word for you.
  • One option is to upgrade your LinkedIn subscription in order to send HR managers or recruiters a LinkedIn “Inmessage”. The cost is relative compared to the insider level it provides.
  • See if you can find the HR manager’s email address through Google by searching their name and the company name through Google’s robust search features. If their contact information comes up in the search findings, you can contact them that way. Their information may be listed in a directory so it may take some time.
  • If you can not find a valid email address, and the job requires that you apply by emailing a certain name, such as John Smith at jsmith@bigbiz.com, then you all ready know what the email address will look like. So if you’re trying to email Kate Clayton at the same company, then the email address is likely kclayton@bigbiz.com. Use this and send them a personal email with your resume attached.

Another option is to call the company and ask to speak with the HR manager by getting their name and information from LinkedIn. If the information is not available on LinkedIn, then the switchboard operator at the company may provide the email address and phone number.


For those of you who have talked to me, you know that I unabashedly love LinkedIn. As social networking goes for professionals, it’s my favorite.  LinkedIn has a much cleaner interface than other sites such as MySpace, Plaxo or Facebook. Setting up a profile on LinkedIn can put your name at the top of the Google search rankings and can help you get connected and ‘be found’  in ways you might not have imagined.
LinkedIn is one of the best social networking sites to help you increase your online visibility. Because of its popularity among millions of people, the site has gained a significant presence in Google page rankings. Typically this means that when people search for your name specifically, they can find your LinkedIn profile as one of the first results. If you have a particularly common name, like mine, there are a couple of ways to help further boost your profile in Google searches.  Specifically, you should include your LinkedIn profile link in each signature you use from discussion boards to blogs to other social networking sites. You can also use your actual name in the URL you select for your profile. Or, you can differentiate yourself by what you do. My LinkedIn name is: erinkennedycprw. The “cprw” stands for Certified Professional Resume Writer and also sets me apart from the other 212 Erin Kennedy’s. Ideally, for SEO purposes, you really want to have just your name, but if it is already taken, like mine was, you have to figure out something else that will work for you.

Once you have built your profile and included your job history and experience, you can start networking. Chances are that you will find many of your colleagues, classmates, and former university instructors. You can even branch out to the people who are connected to those in your existing network. For example, if you live in Austin and your spouse’s job is requiring that you relocate to Denver, you might not have contacts there. In this case, you can tap into your network to see with whom they’re connected. Chances are that somewhere among your connections, you’ll find someone who lives and works in Denver to forward your resume.
The most important aspect of networking on LinkedIn is building that network well before you need it. Usually, the “pay it forward” concept works here – give out help before you need it yourself. Always make yourself available for LinkedIn recommendations as well as a good word toward HR when a contact wants to apply for a job at your company. By doing this, you highly increase your chances of getting your own recommendations when you need them.
There is another way to use LinkedIn to your advantage. If you know your interviewer’s name in advance, you can look up his or her profile to get an idea of what to talk about during the interview. If you find something that the two of you have in common, such as the same university or previous job, you can bring it up during the interview.  However, this should be done carefully. Only you can determine whether the tone of the interview is somewhat light or very strict. While talking about the things you have in common can help set a lighter tone, this tactic should be approached with caution.
Learning the basics of how to use LinkedIn for networking will help you maximize your networking potential. When you make yourself more visible in Google, make connections with your contacts’ networks and use LinkedIn for research, you can find your way to the next big opportunity.