Resumes are like suits. They need to be tailored to fit you and to appeal to someone you want to impress.
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Preparing your resume is like primping for a blind date. First impressions are everything, and there’s no way to know for sure what the person who will be evaluating you likes best.
Your resume may be the most important presentation you’ll ever make. If the idea of boiling your life down to one or two pages seems overwhelming, consider this: Like a suit, a resume only has to be perfected once, then slightly altered as you go along.
“Too much value is placed on a resume,” said Dan Staringer, a technical recruiter for Upward Mobility Career Placement Services. “Unfortunately, it’s the only thing we have to paint a picture of a potential employee.”
How you tailor your resume depends on your work history and career objectives. Generally, resumes fall into two categories: chronological or functional.
“A resume has to be a self-standing powerful tool,” said Lina Melkonian, assistant director of San Jose State University’s Career Center.
Most common is the chronological format, which arranges work experience by years, with present job at the top. This works best for job-hunters in traditional fields, such as business management and consulting.
But in the past few years, functional resumes have been popping up, especially among people who have taken a few years off and have gaps between working years. This format focuses on types of jobs and skills, usually grouping them under “management” or “sales” or “employee relations.”
“Functional resumes are great for people changing careers, hiding flaws and showing off the qualities they can bring to a new job,” said Lynn Taylor, vice president and director of research at Accountemps.
But resume-writers need to consider what they and the employer will be comfortable with. While recruiters will accept functional resumes, Taylor and Staringer both said many are accustomed to chronological ones.
“I generally prefer chronological,” said Staringer, who looks at about 150 resumes a day. “I don’t mind functional, but the problem is you can’t hire function into a particular company. You need to know qualifications. Sometimes, that relevant information is lost in a functional resume.”
An applicant once sent Taylor a plastic boot filled with M&Ms along with her resume. In an attempt at humor, the job hunter wrote, “If I can get my foot in the door, I can convince you I’m right for the job.”
“Too many people try to stand out and use gimmicks, whether it’s Day-Glo paper or little gifts,” she said. “It’s the cover letter that gets you in the door. The way to get attention is to look at the job opening and demonstrate your skills.”