Just_the_Facts

Just the Facts Ma'am
Questions Often Asked About Formatting A Resume and Cover Letter

by Pam Malumphy, Senior Consultant, ExecSearches.com

Perhaps one of the most common questions I am asked has to do with formatting one's resume. And the question goes something like this, 'Is it better to use the more standard chronological format or should I create a resume that is more functional/skill-based?' The difference between these two styles of resume writing is simple: with a chronological resume, you will put your name and contact information at the top (usually centered), then you'll begin the body of your resume by placing a header to the left that says 'Professional Experience.' Under that section, you will list the organization, location, position title and dates of service for every position held. Under that, you will briefly describe the organization and your responsibilities, but will use most of the space available to bullet accomplishments or achievements. I talked about this in last month's newsletter -- the idea that a resume needs to be something more than a re-iteration of one's job history - it must also include data that demonstrates an ability to surpass goals, create unique programs, effectively manage costs, accomplish team objectives, etc. This will indicate to anyone reading your resume that you are motivated, goal-oriented, effective, team-centered, and focused. By excluding achievement-based information, you miss the most important opportunity to tell a deeper, richer story of who you really are.

Okay, now we understand a chronological resume - what about one that is skill-based? This type of resume looks very different from a chronological resume. The individual's name and contact information are still at the top of the first page, but what follows isn't specific information about each job held. Instead, skill-based or functional resumes are characterized by headers that include 'strategic planning skills,' 'team-building experience,' 'leadership qualifications,' etc. Under each of these headings, the job-seeker will then explain, usually in broad and narrative terms, experiences that have honed a specific skill or qualification. These explanations can sometimes last for two to three pages and it will be on page four or five of the resume before the prospective employer reads the job-seeker's actual professional/job experience.

This may be only one recruiter's view, although I do believe that it's shared by many of my colleagues, but I want to see the facts and I want to see them first. Oftentimes, potential employers are not professional recruiters. However, when they need to hire for a position, they are thrust into that intense experience of reading hundreds of resumes and having to make focused decisions about which resumes will go forward in the process and which resumes will be rejected. Reading a plethora of resumes can lead a prospective employer to come to a rather quick conclusion - I want to read the resumes that are clear, concise, well-formatted, easy-to-read, and easy-to-understand. And from my experience, functional-based resumes are usually heavily narrative (not easy to read), too broad (not easy to understand because there is no context….you say you're good at strategic planning but where did you do it and what was the outcome?), poorly formatted (too much text is a turn-off), and not concise.

With functional or skill-based resumes, I can also be left with the impression that the individual writing the resume is trying to camouflage something about their job history. Perhaps the individual has been out of work for a year; or he/she has been working since the early 1960's and may fear that someone will be biased about their age; or their most recent experiences have been volunteer-based and not paid positions; or the person is fresh out of college or graduate school and has limited professional experiences to document. I know these can feel like tough obstacles to clear, but to obscure them won't help. And for the reader, the feeling or impression that is often left after reading these resumes is, 'I don't know very much about the person and because the information is so broad and not specific to any position held, I feel as though anyone could write these things about themselves.'

The same is true of cover letters - they are often written with such a broad brush (providing lots of information about skills learned with no specific examples) that the reader can be left with the impression that they've read just one more cover letter that reads like the last ten they've reviewed. Just as your resume needs to be unique by citing accomplishments, your cover letter is a place to tell anecdotal stories about skills you've learned, where you learned them, and the people who helped you learn them. If you have demonstrated through your resume that you have been an effective manager, then give a specific example of that in your cover letter. If your resume has highlighted your ability to create programs from limited resources, write an anecdote about it. Most important, and getting back to that idea of 'just the facts, ma'am,' your cover letter and the examples used should be congruent with what you understand about the job you're applying for. If a position profile cites budgetary responsibilities as a key component of the job, then provide an example of that in your cover letter.

I am often asked about the length of resumes and cover letters. There was a philosophy beginning some ten years ago that a resume should fit onto one page. I think for most of us, we quickly realized that one page was painfully limiting. It is far more common, today, to see resumes that are two to three pages in length. The point is your resume should be clearly formatted, informative, easy to read, and bulleted and not heavily narrative.

With regard to cover letters: many individuals feel hesitant about their cover letter being more than a paragraph or two. If any of us wants to tell a convincing story about our professional experiences, it is very difficult to do that in one or two paragraphs. If a cover letter goes to a full page or perhaps a little longer, it is certainly acceptable and, in most cases, welcomed. For the prospective employer reading the cover letter, they want to know three things: 1) can this person write; 2) does this person like to write; and 3) what has this person told me about their specific professional experiences that tells me that they understand, on some level, the job that I need to fill.

One last question I am often asked - 'How often should I re-write my resume?' Typically, if a person isn't involved in a job search, they don't update their resume on a regular basis. However, I think it makes sense to periodically review your resume, even when not changing jobs, to see if it still reads well, are there changes that seem appropriate, or additions to consider? Now, for some people, they are asking the above question in the wake of a job-search. How often during the search should they change their resume? My belief is that, if your resume is all of what I've cited above, you shouldn't have to rewrite it at all as you go through your search. The piece that can be modified is your cover letter. You can develop a template for your cover letter - a standard beginning and ending for your but you can tell different stories about your experiences depending on the key responsibilities advertised in the prospective job posting or profile.