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Crandall
Associates, Inc |
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Listen Carefully During An Interview |
You can drown it. but it won't die. The Myth Of The One Page Resume You can expose it as fraud, but people will buy it anyway. And, there is nothing you can do to make it disappear. We're talking about the myth of the one-page resume. Believers of the myth have shown some contorted creativity. Some resumes come with half-inch margins or less, some expand to legal size paper, and others appear with smaller type . . . and in these days of computers, less space between the lines They are cute solutions, but they don't win any brass rings Just two perpetuates the myth? They're the authors of books, writers for consumer magazines, well-meaning resume experts, and others who have rarely, or should I say, never hired anyone in their lives. In Direct Marketing and Telemarketing writing a resume poses a unique problem: In more than any other industry, employers look for a "benefit resume." To market themselves effectively, candidates looking for options have a dual task: 1. They must communicate their accomplishments and 2. do so in such a way that employers believe they will personally benefit by hiring them. The more benefits employers perceive, the more likely they are to respond to the resume. Perhaps in other disciplines, the one-page resume is demanded or has intrinsic value. We doubt it, but we really can't talk about other disciplines. We can pontifically pronounce this: Bury the myth . . . and pour two feet of concrete over it. This horrendous myth will result in many lost opportunities. Myths Linger On For example, we know that an important factor in separating the good resume from the bad is resume length. But how many of us are plagued by the misconception that our resumes must be a one pager? Somewhere in our past, we remember reading horror story about how busy executives spend an average of 30 seconds on each resume they receive. When a company places an advertisement, they usually receive hundreds of resumes from candidates - qualified and unqualified - who want the job. Imagine yourself as an employer in this situation. Resumes are pouring into your mailbox. You are relieved . . . and panicked . . . by the overwhelming response to the ad. A lot of what you receive is too wordy or badly organized. You want to hire someone, but your ability to identify the right candidate is diminishing with each resume you read. You try to establish a screening process, but sheer volume forces you to eliminate those resumes which do not quickly and easily communicate what you need to know. How Long Should A Resume Be? When we, as recruiters, phone and explore an opportunity with potential candidates, and we ask them to prepare a resume for our interview and our clients, the question invariably arises: How long should it be? How long should a resume be? The Answer is simple: As long as it takes As long as you remember that it's a resume and not a biography. Keep in mind your resume is not intended to be a comprehensive, detailed history, but a summary of your experience, qualifications and skills. Always remember that the employer first reviews the resume for critical words or knowledge. When you think of all the elements that should go into a resume, it's incredible that it can be done in two pages, or even three. But it can be done, and done well. One page is fine, but acceptable resume length varies with the extent of your background. The Direct Marketing rule applies: Your resume should be long enough to cover your background adequately and short enough to retain interest. If you have years of experience, your resume might require two or even three pages in order to succinctly state your skills, abilities and accomplishments. If you are having trouble fitting what you have to say into this number of pages, you are probably trying to say too much. Try again. It can be done. Just remember . . . well-qualified people often do not get the chance to interview for good positions because of resumes which are poorly organized. In Direct Marketing and Telemarketing - disciplines that respect quantification - a resume can be worthless without numbers and percent increases when listing your accomplishments. Since we talk of qualification, let's now quantify this article: Based on our most recent 100 recruitments, here are the figures: 18% of candidates we recruited had one-page resumes. Generally, their career was limited to one company, and showed progressive positions. In most cases, these people were recruited for lower management positions. 67% of those hired had two-page resumes and were focused in middle management. 15% of the candidates who were hired through our searches had three-page resumes, or four. These professionals with longer resumes generally had longer careers that required a greater degree of amplification. Unless you are working with a recruiter - who can expand upon your experience, fill in gaps, possibly reopen a closed door - you will only get one shot. Writing a successful resume requires the organization of all pertinent personal, professional and educational data in a way that will be clear, and pleasing to the eye of the reader. Eye Appeal counts Resumes are highly personal and it is not possible to copy your brother's, or your boss's, or to select on from a book. However, most employers expect job seekers to structure their resumes into a familiar, standard format, rather than ones which are outlandish or too "imaginative". There are several accepted resume formats, but the one which is undoubtedly the most useful to an employer is the chronological resume. This type of resume expresses your work history in terms of specific employers, in chronological order, beginning with you most recent experience. Through the use of dates, displayed prominently, the chronological resume is an excellent way to quickly communicate your professional direction, skills, accomplishments and promotion record. It lets employers know that you have spent your years in a productive manner. Out of the Normal As Executive Recruiters, we are often asked by candidates how to handle situations which arise when preparing a chronological resume. Since you are probably plagued by one or more of these questions, here are some answers: Career Change: If you have been employed in a field other than the job you are currently seeking, do not omit this from your resume. Large gaps in time will make a prospective employer think that you have something to hide. Short Gaps: Explain during an interview. do not feel obliged to eliminate the gaps by extending the dates of the positions that you held before and after the gap. An employer is bound to discover that you have stretched the truth. Short Term Jobs: Sometimes a short term job is not the fault of the candidate. Companies fold up, or they merge or new management might dictate a cut in personnel. In this case, mention the reason. |
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© Copyright Crandall Associates, Inc., 2007. All Rights Reserved. |
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