Resume Tips for the Job Market – Creating a Straight-Forward Resume

Searching, getting interviews, and being presented with a job is harder than ever these days.  Jobs are becoming more competitive and you are mass producing resumes to find an opening.  What is going to work for the time being is applying for jobs you have the greatest experience in.  Due to mass lay-offs, you will encounter competition in applicants that have a lot more experience than you do.  Therefore, when applying for jobs, assure that you have the experience and talent to succeed in a specific field or, even better, that specific position. 

With employers having their pick in a wide range of applicants, have your resume be straight-forward and simple.  If an employer has a hundred or more resumes to go through, the recruiter may not have the time to read through the whole resume on the first run.  The first step is removing those who are not qualified.  Therefore, place an "Overview of Qualifications" towards the top of your resume to make it through the first pass.  In the qualifications, you are going to place the qualifications you possess that the company specifically asked for in their advertisement.  So, you will have to constantly change this category for the job you are applying for.  This assures that if they were skimming through the resumes that you are an applicant that matches what they are looking for to fill that position.

Work experience is counting for everything these days, so place "Professional Experience" next on your resume.  Do the three most recent employers by including the years (example: 2007-present), title held, and a description of your responsibilities, software you are familiar with, and accomplishments in that position.  If you possessed a general retail position, like cashier, do not state the obvious.  Employers are aware you operated a cash register and did customer service.  Writing what recognition you received and award accomplishments would hold more value.

Here's an overall example for a warehouse position:

(2000-2006)  Target Distribution Center  - Fridley, Minnesota

Packing Department Trainer

• Interviewed, trained, and/or coached new hires and packing employees.  Assisted supervisor in employee module scheduling, recognition programs, initiated shift start-up meetings, and initiated work-related projects that emphasized in production, employee satisfaction, and leadership.  Operated stand-up and sit-down Toyota forklifts and Crown order pickers.  Familiar with Pack-To-Light operations.  Productivity reviews have been exceptional.  Grew a passion and became a dedicated volunteer in external events.

Lastly, place your educational experiences.  Once again, rewards and recognition given is a plus.  If you've been in the workforce for 30+ years, place your degree in qualifications and have "Accomplishments" at the bottom.

Your resume should be one page, if possible.  Please do not use abbreviations, correct grammatical errors, and don't copy online cover letters.  Carry your resume with you at all times, you never know who will ask for it or where you will need to refer to it.

Don't be discouraged, it's a hard job market out there.  Just realize that you do have something to offer and the opportunity just has not presented itself yet.  Be patient and have that resume ready.  Good luck!

Hope this blog post was helpful to you, "Resume Tips for the Job Market - Creating a Straight-Forward Resume"

Spunky Jones.

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