Odds are in today’s job market you are competing amongst dozens, if not hundreds, of other qualified applicants, so a quality resume is key to making you stand out amongst the crowd. Unfortunately, many people struggle with putting together a professional resume. Here are some basic pointers to making a visually appealing yet functional resume to set you above the crowd.
Step One: Find a Good Template
For Candidates with prior experience within the field a chronological resume would be best. A chronological resume looks like the example below from myperfectresume.com.
For Candidates with little to no experience within the field a functional resume may be a better choice. You could use a template like the one shown below from Microsoft Office.
Step Two: Personal Information
List your name and contact information. If you go by a nickname you may want to put your legal name on your resume because sometimes employers search based on licensing data bases and other professional websites. Also be sure to put your personal phone number, and if you have multiple email addresses put the one you use most often. Be sure to have your voicemail set up and check your emails daily. If you are planning to relocate to a new area be sure to list the city you will be moving to.
Step Three: Objective/Summary
This is an opportunity to briefly list your skills or experiences and let the employer know what your goals are. For example, If you are applying for a project manager position you could say you are a project manager with 10 years of experience in the security industry. You could then list your experience with time or people management, customer communication, and organization. Then end the paragraph with your objective to find a new position that will challenge your abilities and aide in your professional growth.
Step Four: Work Experience
If you are building a chronological resume this will be the bulk of the information you list. The standard is to list your past ten years of work experience, but if you have worked for one company for a long span of time feel free to go back farther. You will want to list your title, the company name, and the time frame in which you held the position. From there you will want to briefly summarize your duties as well as any products or software’s you used during this position. Be honest when listing your experience. Interviewers can usually tell when you fluff a resume.
Step Five: Education
This is where you will list the high school or college you attended as well as any vocational training you have received.
Step Six: Skills
You will want to list both hard skills and soft skills. Hard skills are things that someone can physically do, for example you may be able to splice fiber optic cables, program a Lenel panel, or operate a boom lift. Soft skills are also called behavioral skills for example, time management, critical thinking, and teamwork.
Step Seven: Certifications
List any professional certifications you have like Certified Alarm Technician (CAT) level I or Certified Residential Fire Alarm Inspector (CRFAI). Be sure to spell out all these certificates because sometimes companies will use recruiters or HR employees who may not be familiar with industry acronyms.
Step Eight: Save Your Resume
Save your resume as a document that cannot be easily edited like a PDF.