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Monday 9 July 2012

Don't Use Resume Writers. Keep It Simple.

By Beckie Foltz


Recently, I received a call coming from a friend that is a financial planner. He likes to be described as a real mover and shaker in the local world of business, so I can be expecting a lunch invitation a few times every twelve months. (I'm low on the totem pole for the local business scene.) More often than not, the lunch will feature a couple people from related market sectors that my friend is hoping to cross network. I always go. In my business, I don't commonly do a lot locally, nevertheless it's free food.

This occasion, I arrive at a pleasant, sun-drenched seafood restaurant on the beach to discover my friend sitting with some guy in a suit who he then introduces as a resume writer. The guy in the suit quickly tries to rebrand himself as a career coach, although after a few questions, it turns out that the majority of his business is just selling people on the concept that they need a professionally developed resume.

Ostensibly, the concept would be that there may well be some working synergy between a recruiter and a resume writer. I can't fault my buddy for that logic, seems reasonable. Since of course, both manage people during profession change. However, reality is that this couldn't be more distant from reality.

The resume writer perpetuates the fable that the resume gets an interview. Further more, they offer the concept that a fancy (high-priced) resume does a much better job. As a recruiter, we detest that brand of belief.

As soon as we begin working with a candidate, we work with a method of focus. The most marketable feats from their work history as it pertains to the job being sought and isolated. These tend to be specific illustrations with numbers. The rest is then minimized, and these success stories are shoved to the front and sold.

Amongst other factors, this means that at our direction, the resumes are normally rewritten. Flowery language and jargon is cut. Padding and embellishment is eliminated. The resume is changed into a uncomplicated chronological road map which leads from one success to another. It is a snap to follow hoping that it's going to lead an interviewer into dealing with the best things the job candidate possesses.

Our moral for this story would be that recruiters don't believe in complex resumes. The resume ought to be simple, easy and straightforward highlighting achievements which are very specific. Resumes are tools for use inside of an interview, not to get an interview. Don't buy into the myth of a $500 resume. It provides no real advantage.




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