The real purpose of a resume

Before you start revising, or writing your resume, you need to understand a few facts about the purpose of your résumé, and its role in securing your dream job

The first thing you need to understand about resumes, is that:

Résumés are used to SCREEN job candidates OUT, not IN

That is the primary purpose of résumés is to successfully SCREEN OUT candidates, when employers advertise. Since the initial contact with an employer is through your résumé and a résumé is used to screen out candidates, a mediocre, average, or substandard résumé can literally knock you out of contention for positions you might be highly qualified for.

The second point is that your résumé won’t necessarily get read thoroughly

In fact many résumés don’t get read at ALL.   Many employers’ and HR in particular literally scan résumés in order to locate relevant skills and if these are not easily ascertainable on the first read, than the résumé is less likely to get into the interview pile. Alternatively, they are using resume parsing and applicant tracking software, and unless key words and phrases are contained in your resume, it won’t even make it onto an HR desk for review.

Résumés are just one element of the job search process

The third thing you need to understand is that Résumés are just one element of the job search process, albeit as I mentioned before, an important element.

You can have the best resume in the world, but you won’t succeed, unless you avoid the 3 most common failures of job candidates.

The first is:

Unclear goals

In order to undertake an effective job-hunting campaign, you need to know what your goals are and the job and employers you are targeting. Many job seekers make the mistake of generalising their resume, as they don’t know what they want to do, or hope that a more generalised resume will reach a wider audience.

It seems counter intuitive, but the more focused you are about what you want, the more focussed your resume and job search becomes and this almost always results in a shorter job search.

The second most common failing of job candidates is:

Procrastination

Look guys, you can have the greatest résumé on the market place, but unless you get out there and put your résumé in front of the right decision makers, follow up by telephone and recognise that a rejection letter is part of the job search process, then you won’t succeed.

While a great résumé will significantly enhance your chances of getting your foot in the door – without developing sound job search strategies and sending this résumé out to the correct decision-maker, you won’t get that brilliant new job, or promotion.

The third common failing of job candidates is:

Lack of preparation

Without thorough preparation, it is unlikely that you would have tailored résumé that meet the needs of the employer. Even if you get through to the interview, without preparation, it is highly likely that you will bomb at the interview.

Research will enable you to determine your marketable skills, which industries and companies you should target, what are the specific needs of the company or sector and will also provide specific information about the particular organisation that you can use at interview.

One of the pet annoyances of employer’s and the recruiter is candidates who don’t prepare – as it appears that they are more interested in themselves than in the challenges of the job and what the employer faces.

So as you can see, while a resume is vitally important, (as without one, you won’t secure an interview), it is just one part of the jigsaw puzzle in securing your dream job.