One of the first things people ask me when they start looking for a new career opportunity is "What do employers look for on a resume?" The simple answer is; company names, dates, and career position. For the most part we as recruiters, do not typically read the an entire resume at first. But fear not, your accomplishments do not go unnoticed. The details may not get you recognized immediately; but they can, and will, move you to the back of the line. Employers do not want to see a list of responsibilities in your previous position. Unless you are making a lateral move between job fields, chances are your responsibilities in your previous role were similar in nature to the role you are currently applying for. So listing that you were responsible for cash handling when you apply for a front office position, is useless and unimaginative. Instead, you want to show potential employers that you can truly impact their company and bring worth and value to their team. Here are a few ways to show impact on a resume.
Save Money - Regardless of the field you are applying in, hospitality or housing, all employers like to save money on operations. If you have an ability to save a company money, whether it is via reduction in turn over and training cost or supplier negotiation, highlight it!! People often forget a company is in business simply to turn a profit. If you can directly impact that profit, you will become instantly more attractive to potential employers.
Time Saved - One of the most precious resources a company has is time. The old adage "Time is Money" is completely true in the eyes of an employer. If you have implemented time saving processes in previous positions, whether it was for the employees of a company or their clients, list it boldly on your resume. Like money saved, time saved will certainly make you more appealing to potential employers.
Revenue Generated - Revenue generation is the reason why a company is in business, regardless of what business it is. Positions are not created in today's market if they do not directly or indirectly affect the creation of revenue for a company. So if you cannot or do not feature the ways in which you have generated revenue, you are doing yourself a tremendous disservice. Many recruiters will bypass a resume that does not show concrete growth in revenue creation.
Awards and Recognition - The location of Awards and Recognition on a resume is often a point of contention among recruiters and resume writers; however, the one thing we can all agree on is that your resume is your chance to shine. Industry accolades are a fantastic way to show off accomplishments; but, they are also a great way to show off trust and back up claims of success. So post them proudly... at the bottom of your resume!
The final thing to keep in mind is word count. Your resume should be a way to introduce your qualifications which can be explained in greater detail during interview conversations. It is recommended to keep your resume between 1 and 2 pages in length and only covering the past 10 to 15 years of work experience. After all, there thousands of resumes posted daily and we only have a limited amount of time.
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