What should you put in a resume? What do I see in a lot of resumes?
I just helped conduct training for a group of unemployed graduates sponsored by Permodalan Nasional Berhad. During the tea-breaks, some of the participants asked me to have a look at their resumes. Here is a list of things that I don’t want to see in your resume:-
1) Your photo. I am not hiring you based on your looks. I want to know if you can add value to my organization. Note: some people included a photo which was over 1MB. It jams up my email on my blackberry and doesn’t impress.
2) 2-3 pages of resume. Most of the key information should be summarized into one page. If you have less than 10 years of working experience the key achievements can be summarized into one page. I don’t need to know that you were a girl guide or cadet in Form 1. Keep it Short and Straight to the point!
3) Repetition. Why do we want to know that you are female 3 times. Some people put their full name with a binti. They also put in Gender : Female and Sex : Female. A resume is a short and sweet summary of your achievements and how you will add value to the organization. Don’t waste space by repetition!
What I would like to see more of:
1) Value proposition. Your resume should highlight key achievements and what it means to the employer. E.g. Member of St Johns Ambulance. vs My membership in St Johns Ambulance taught me teamwork and co-operation which I intend to continue at [name of organization].
2) So what? I would like to see more resumes where the applicant showed that they thought out what they wanted to put in the resume. Look at everything in the resume and ask yourself “so what?”. What does this mean to the interviewer? How will this help my value proposition?
All the best with your resume writing. You may also want to refer to this website for more tips.
