Resume Evaluation in Three Words 10172023.pdf

Three ways to evaluate your resume to ensure it conveys your unique value.

1. Resume Evaluation
In Three Words
Presented by Sharla Taylor, CPRW, CCELW
www.writtenbyapro.com
© 2014, 2023 by Sharla Taylor.
All rights reserved.

2. Over the past 20+ years, I’ve read a ton of resumes with a mix of the
good, the bad, and the ugly.
Two common DIY resume writing faults fall at opposite extremes. The
resume is either too wordy or too vague.
In either case, the resume doesn’t paint an accurate picture of the person
and may leave the prospective employer with the wrong impression.
Introduction

3. The wordy job seeker may come across as overbearing, leaving the
employer to question, “Will this person be a team player?”
The vague job seeker may sound hesitant, leaving the employer to
wonder, “Does this person really want the job?”
Resumes that omit information may raise unwarranted red flags in the
employer’s mind. There is a fine balance between telling too much and
telling too little.
Believe it or not, I’ve read some resumes that are wordy AND vague, but
the “baffle-them-with baloney” approach does not work! Wordy and
vague resumes may leave the impression of being disingenuous or
arrogant ─ neither of which wins interviews.
Wordy?Vague? Both?

4. First ImpressionsCount!
Your resume
introduces
you to a
recruiter or
hiring
manager.

5. People involved in
the talent
acquisition process
are overwhelmed
with mountains of
resumes.
How will your
resume get noticed?
Today we are going
to evaluate your
resume to see how
it stacks up.

6. ThreeQualities of EffectiveResumes
Authentic
Purpose-Driven
Focused

7. Synonyms forAuthentic/Authenticated
True
Accurate
Genuine
Real
Valid
Original
Authenticated: Legitimate, above-board,
substantiated, verified

8. Authentic
To put it simply, authenticity means your resume
should sound like YOU, not the resume writer!
Your resume is a marketing tool that introduces you
to your future employer.
It should summarize your knowledge, skills, abilities,
and the value of your workplace achievements.
Resumes that capture the person—not just the job
chronology—gain more interviews.

9. ONE SIZE
DOESN’T FIT ALL!
Resumesarelikeunderwear

10. MayIspeakcandidly?
“Keeping your options open” with a vague resume is a
poor strategy, because your resume won’t contain
enough relevant content to describe who you are and
what you do.
Your resume should draw parallels between your
knowledge, skills, and abilities and the position for
which the company is hiring.

11. Purpose-Driven
Write your resume for a specific job at a certain
company (or, at the very least, a target industry).
Technology has changed the application process. Most
major corporations use an automated applicant
tracking system, or ATS.
Think of the ATS as a digital filing cabinet that stores
the documents you submit.
Keywords used in context, that are aligned with the
position you are applying for, help get your resume
noticed by a recruiter or hiring authority.

12. Applicant Tracking Systems
The ATS is one component of a larger talent management
system that companies use to track employment data for
Equal Employment Opportunity compliance.
According to a research study conducted by Accenture and
Harvard Business School, “An Applicant Tracking System
(ATS) is a workflow-oriented tool that helps organizations
manage and track the pipeline of applicants in each step of
the recruiting process.”
The ATS helps recruiters and hiring managers to work more
efficiently and maximize their productivity.

13. According to the Harvard study, employers can use technology to “initially
filter or rank skills,” “hone-in on candidates using very specific parameters,”
and identify candidates for possible consideration.
Candidates may be screened out for several reasons:
•Not meeting minimum qualifications such as years of experience,
•An employment gap of more than 6 months within the last 10 years, or
•By answering a question or several questions incorrectly in the initial
screening.
Talent acquisition teams have access to all of the files in the ATS to
find suitable candidates to interview.
Remember, people, not computers, hire people.
Sources: *Hidden Workers: Untapped Talent (hbs.edu)*
Equal Employment Opportunity | U.S. Department of Labor (dol.gov)
Network for a Job: Conners, Kathleen: 9781723851377: Amazon.com: Books
Applicant Tracking Systems

14. Purpose-Driven
Resumes that are purpose-driven have a better chance of
catching the recruiter’s and hiring manager’s attention.
Simply stated, you need one resume for one specific job at a
targeted company/department.
If you have experience in related fields such as sales and
marketing, you can probably explain your blended experience
in one resume.
If you have unrelated skill sets (e.g., an accountant who is also
a professional musician), you need two separate resumes to
describe different skill sets to different employers.

15. How do you find the right keywords
to include in your resume?
Puzzled?

16. KeywordIdentification
Print out 5-10 job postings for positions you are confident that
you are qualified to do.
Take a highlighter and mark important qualifications and
requirements section of the job posting.
Make a list of the commonalities.
Judiciously place common keywords, where applicable,
throughout your resume.
Does the insertion of the keyword(s) make sense in context?
If not, don’t use the term or phrase merely for the sake of
adding keywords.

17. A Few Websites for Job Seekers
Government
Publications:
Occupational Outlook
Handbook
Dictionary of
Occupational Titles
Set job alerts on:
LinkedIn
Indeed
Zippia
Monster
Career Builder
The Ladders

18. FreeKeywordIdentificationResources
Here are a few free online resources to help
you identify keywords for your industry.
Onetonline.org
Wordclouds.com
Linkedin.github.io/career-explorer
Linkedin Resume Builder

19. UsingO*NetKeywordIdentification
To find the O*Net job description for a specific position:
Visit O*NET OnLine (onetonline.org)
Enter your job title in the occupation keyword search field.
Click on details. You will find job-specific or industry-specific
keywords found in the O*Net job description as well as an
outline of the skills, technologies, and economic outlook of the
job.
Consider using relevant keywords in appropriate sections of
your resume.

20. Wordle&KeywordIdentification
Use a free word cloud generator like wordclouds.com to
create a visual display of appropriate keywords.
 Copy and paste the job description into the word cloud
program to see which words show up most frequently.
The words that show up the largest give you hints about
words to include in your resume.
There is no substitute for human judgment.
Think like the employer. What skills are essential for
optimum performance in this role? Bingo! You’ve just hit
the keyword jackpot!

21. CustomizeYour Resume
Customize the top 1/4 to 1/3 of your resume for each
position with a career summary that demonstrates the
value you bring to the specific role.
In the experience section, your dates of employment and
employment history won’t change.
The functions you choose to highlight in your work history
may or may not change, depending on which skills you
want to highlight.
Be truthful. Never lie about your education or expertise.
State verifiable facts.

22. In Texas history,
the only things branded were cattle!
So, I’m trying to wrap my mind around this
personal branding concept . . .
We’ve all heard the
term “personal
branding.”
I have to admit, I
dislike that term.
I grew up in Texas,
and Texans are
pragmatic people.

23. I have a weird imagination, and this is what
I think of when someone says, “Create your
personal brand.” I wonder, “Is there an
app for that?”
?
?
?

24. I’m thinking, “Do I really
want to sell myself like a
household product like
bathroom cleaner?”
No, but you probably
remember the TV
commercial featuring the
little animated bubbles
with brush bristles on their
undersides. I’ll bet you can
name the brand.
The lesson for job seekers
is: market yourself wisely
to prospective employers.
You are not a product; you
are a person who wants to
be remembered as the best
candidate for the job.
Branding works!

25. I prefer to think of a
personal branding as a
statement of the value
you bring to your next
employer.
Your personal brand
conveys your authenticity
and purpose. It is the
“wow” factor in the first
two or three lines of your
resume. It’s what makes
you memorable.
What are you known
for? How do you make a
difference in your
workplace? Individual
and team contributions
count.

26. Headline +
Tagline
Start your resume
with a title, a
headline stating what
you do in your
professional role.
Follow with a
subtitle, a tagline
with your statement
of authenticity and
purpose—a one-liner
describing your:
⧫differentiation,
⧫marketability, and
⧫value.
ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE / AGRICULTURAL
MACHINERY & EQUIPMENT
Provide leading edge technologies to help farmers
grow and sustain healthy crops.
Demonstrate you understand the overall mission of
your business. This sales rep isn’t selling irrigation
systems, he is helping farmers!
Okay, that example was kind of muddy, but you get the
picture. Write with authenticity and purpose.

27. Headline/Tagline
of authenticity
and purpose
for a pediatrician
who is
transitioning out
of private practice
into recruiting
healthcare
volunteers for a
global
humanitarian aid
group
PAMELAPEDIATRICIAN
MD,FAAP
City, StateUSA⧫123.456.7890⧫[email protected]
Physician Coordinator for
Doctors Without Borders
Recruiting healthcare professionals with a
passion for bringing hope and healing to
children in developing nations

28. Here’s another
example:
ACCOUNT EXECUTIVE
TELECOMMUNICATIONS
Growing Revenues in a Highly
Competitive Market

29. Professional
Profile
I could spend an entire day teaching you how
to write your professional profile or career
summary.
Suffice it to say, in this section of 3-to-5 bullet
points of no more than 2 lines each, hit the
highlights of your career as it relates to the
job you are seeking. What knowledge, skills,
and abilities do you possess that would be
beneficial in this line of work? What
transferable skills do you have?
(More on this in a minute, so hold that
thought.)
Put yourself in the employer’s shoes. What
would you want to know about the job seeker?
That’s what you write in the top ¼ to 1/3 of
the first page of your resume.

30. Core
Competencies
Describe your
strengths.
Use a noun-based
keywords related to
your field of
expertise.
These are a few of the core competencies
the farm equipment salesman might list.
7YearsofSales/MarketingExperience:
Knowledge of Agribusiness • 3
rd
Generation Farmer
Sales Prospecting • Lead Generation • Sales Presentations
Consultative Sales • Agribusiness Solutions
Contract Negotiation & Closing • Market Research & Analysis
Territory Expansion • Business Relationship Building
Key Account Management • Trade Show Management
New Product Introductions • Equipment Demonstrations
Incentive Development • New Business Development
Revenue Generation

31. Authentic and Purpose-Driven
Do you remember the third word?
Okay, we’ve talked about
two words:

32. I’ll giveyoua hint.

33. Focused
Narrow your focus. Think like an employer who is
trying to fill a specific job with the right candidate
who fits into the corporate culture. How can you fill a
need or solve a problem for the employer?
Focus on accomplishments, not job duties. Be
specific. It is not enough to have qualitative data
supporting your achievements; you need quantitative
descriptions of selected accomplishments and the
value of the accomplishments to the employer.

34. Quantify YourAchievements
Quantify cost savings and increased revenues in dollar
amounts. Quantify improved productivity in percentages.
Quantify streamlining processes in time saved (which
ultimately equates to dollars saved).
If you don’t have exact data, use the word “approximate.”
Keep it real; don’t exaggerate.
Everyone has achievements. Few of us achieve goals entirely
alone. It is okay to say “contributed to (name the project)
which resulted in (describe the project results in terms of
benefits to the employer).”

35. You can use AI to score your resume:
Skillsyncer.com
TealHQ.com
JobScan.co
( N o t a t y p o . I t i s . c o )
OnceYourResumeisWritten

36. Evaluating Your Score
•If your resume scored 70% or above, congratulations! You
have a strong keyword match rate.
•It is nearly impossible to reach a score of 100% because you
cannot be certain which keywords will be entered by the
recruiter as search terms.

37. Is your resume authentic, purpose-driven, and focused?
LitmusTestforQualityContent

38. If you choose to write a DIY resume, read and study how-to guides before
sitting down to your keyboard to compose your resume.
If you choose to hire a professional writer, there are certain qualities you
should look for in the person with whom you will be collaborating.
It’sdifficulttowriteaboutyourself.

39. At www.writtenbyapro.com, we offer editorial reviews for people who want advice on how to improve
their documents. If you would like an objective-but-kind evaluation of your DIY resume, the DIY
service is for you.
We also offer done-for-your resume writing services that include a new graphic design and new
resume content.
All service options and prices are posted on our website. You know exactly what is included in the cost
of the service you purchased before you place your order.
Questions? Here’s a link to my calendar to find out which service would best meet your needs:
https://www.calendly.com/writtenbyapro
Thanks for reading this presentation!
DIY ResumeReview