What makes your cover letter & resume a perfect selling proposition?

As a resume write & editing, I generally receive 8 to 10 resumes everyday. However, I observe most of the resumes are nothing but a summary of job responsibilities. Besides, handful of my clients wants to have a generalized resume made which can be used to apply to variety of jobs. With experience of writing resumes & cover letters, I have realized the following are vital for having that perfect resume in place

1) Cover letter- your face

In most of situations, job applications are not accompanied by cover letter. Cover letter is always customized & is considered to be face of all solicited applications for the following reasons:

1. Candidate can share why he likes a particular employer- it can be its HR practices, work life balance, social initiatives or the brand itself.
2. He can mention why his skill sets are best suited for the role he is applying & how his employment can be a win-win proposition for both.
3. He can also mention particular achievement/competency which is not included in the resume.

          It is of vital importance that resume should always be accompanied by cover letter.

2) Executive summary- the best scoring point

Generally an employer/HR folks do not spend more than 30 seconds on a resume. Therefore the first 3 lines or executive summary is the most important factor for make or break situation. I have seen lot of resumes which does not even have executive/professional summary. Even those who do have section of professional summary just mentions general skills competencies. An executive summary should include your specialized skill set, previous work assignments/experiences & what kind of roles they are seeking. This helps employer to clearly identify a potential fit.

3)Fancy resumes are big turn off

Candidates assumes that fancy resumes with attractive presentation & advanced formatting provides then a better level playing field for getting their career credentials shortlisted. However, this is not true. While interacting with HR folks from different sectors, I was given to understand that employers look for content in resumes which is simple & easy to read & follow. As such such fancy formatting & design actually minimises their chances

4) Crisp & concise content

Clients came to me with excellent background & work experience and wanted that the prospective employers should see their resume showcasing all achievements/accomplishments. This generally meant that they would play with margins, fonts & use single space in the resume to include even small details. As a matter of fact, such resumes looks bloated & employers would not be too keen to go through each & every detail & cleanly evaluate a potential fit. There is no concept of “ one resume fits all”. The resume has to be tailor made to match specific job requirements. It is important to remember that resume should be written with reader in mind

In case you wish to get your resume edited/restructured, please fill up the form & our panel of experts would be happy to assist you in your successful job search.