Resume Workshop - The Very Basics

I have posted a good number of links and articles on writing and improving resumes, and certainly will continue to do so. All of these offer various levels of good advice, but I find that many of my candidates are still not sure where to start. And, I understand. Most of you can work miracles with engineering design, implement successful lean manufacturing plans, increase quality while decreasing costs, and show stunning bottom-line savings for production, plant operations and more. Yet, when it comes to sitting down at a piece of paper that is supposed to sell yourself, the creative writing and compilation process isn't what you excel at.

We work with marketing professionals for consumer goods / CPG manufacturing, and they have stunning resumes - but even marketing professionals can have the critical mistakes of too long of a resume, not enough keyword strength at the top, and losing the reader in the two minute review.

So, here is a start of my own Resume Workshop series - focused on more practical resume writing and improvement suggestions geared for the manufacturing professional. I'll try to post a few tips or how-to's frequently each month.

To begin with, the very basics. Start with pulling out your existing resume. For starters, let's look at:

How many pages?
If your resume is on more than 2 pages, start slashing. Even a senior executive in the manufacturing sector shouldn't have more than two pages. Some tips on how to accomplish this:

• Margins. Look at your document margins - are they greater than 1/2 inch all around? If yes, then move them out - .5" to 1.0" is acceptable, and anything greater than 1.0" is excess page space lost. Now, once this is accomplished, review the results. Are you on 2 pages now? Do you still have text spilling on to a 3rd page?


• Education. How many lines do you use to list your education? Your college, degree major and other pertinent information can be listed on one line, rather than the 2 to 3 lines I often see.


• Unnecessary Information. Do you still have hobbies listed on your resume? Do you have "interests" on your resume? Do you have the "References Available Upon Request" line on your document? If yes, get rid of it all. Hobbies and personal interests are commonly agreed to be unnecessary, and even a negative on resumes today. The line about references available is also unnecessary. It is commonly understood that if you are interested in a position, you will be providing references in the interview and background check process.


• Personal Information. If you have any personal information, beyond your contact information, then remove it. Not only is it a waste of valuable space on the paper, it is considered inappropriate by most hiring authorities and must be completely ignored in following all laws regarding discrimination, equal opportunity and others. Your age, marital status, and other personal information should not appear on a resume.

How are you doing with your resume now? While these are basics, I find that many of the resumes I read would be reduced from 3 to 2 pages with just these simple steps.

Next week, I'll continue with adding steps on how to decrease the volume of your resume body while increasing your resume's "sell-ability". Stay tuned.

The Second Time Out

I had a great conversation today with an earlier career mechanical engineer. She graduated with her BSME from a well respected engineering school, and landed a solid first job after school. She’s ready to spread her wings and, enthusiastically taking on her job search, she submitted her resume to a few dozen prospective employers - with no results.

In our conversation, she relayed her surprise and disappointment at the lack of results – after all, when she was searching for her current job, she had immediate and almost overwhelming response. Shouldn’t she be just as marketable now that she has some actual experience under her belt?

Like many early career professionals, she is finding out that the job search a few years after college is different than right out of college. Are you more marketable as a new grad, or as a recent grad with some years of work experience?

The answer is different with every employer, and even the individual hiring manager and position within the organization. Yes! In my experience, you are very marketable with a few years experience, but you will have to work at a job search, versus the contacts you receive from employers who actively recruit college grads.

So, here is basic advice, the "3 R's" I would give candidates in this stage of a job search:

• Read up on how to conduct a job search – you will need the advice and tips of those who have the experience.


• Redo your resume – completely. Start fresh. Most college grad resumes are filled with details of internships, summer programs, class projects, etc, which can be essential to a college grad landing their first position, but now considered a professional and not a “grad”, you’ll need to remove much of that information. Many resume experts recommend removing anything that is considered personal, school projects and hobby related.


• Research the industry you are targeting, and specific companies you are interested in working for. Check out their employment section, and if possible read all the jobs posted online - even if you are not interested in the current jobs and/or locations. Create resumes that are specific for these employers, drawing from your research. Use the keywords they used in their descriptions and highlight any applicable experience you have that is similar to their process, product or service.

Thoughts of Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving! I wish each of you a warm and memorable day, whatever your traditions may be. For most of us, it probably involves a great meal, whether special dishes carefully prepared, or if you and your loved ones get together to share a meal at a restaurant.

One of my favorite things about any holiday is what children say and get excited over. Here are some great "Thanksgiving Recipes" I found at the Teachers.Net Gazette.

Ivette - Banana Pie
You buy some bananas and crust. Then you mash them up and put them in the pie. Then you eat it.

Geremy - Turkey
You buy the turkey and take the paper off. Then you put it in the refrigerator and take it back out and cut it with a knife and make sure all the wires are out and take out the neck and heart. Then you put it in a big pan and cook it for half an hour at 80 degrees. Then you invite people over and eat.

Shelby - Applesauce
Go to the store and buy some apples, and then you squish them up. Then you put them in a jar that says, "Applesauce." Then you eat it.

Meghan - Turkey
You cut it into 16 pieces and then you leave it in the oven for 15 minutes and 4 degrees. You take it out and let it cool and then after 5 minutes, you eat it.

Christa - Cookies
Buy some dough and smash it and cut them out. Then put them in the oven for 2 hours at 100 degrees. Then take them out and dry them off. Then it's time to eat them.

Moriah - Turkey
First you cut the bones out. Then you put it in the oven for 10 hours at 600 degrees. Then you put it on the table and eat it.

Vincent - Turkey
You cut and put sauce on it. Then you cook it for 18 minutes at 19 degrees. Then you eat it with stuffing.

Grace - Turkey
First you add some salt. Then you put it in a bowl. Then you put brown sugar on it. Then you mix it all together with a spoon and then you add some milk and mix it again. And then you put it in a pan. Then you put it in the oven for 15 minutes and 16 degrees. Then you take it out of the oven and then you eat it.

Alan - Turkey
First you shoot it and then you cut it. And then you put it in the oven and cook it for 10 minutes and 20 degrees. You put it on plates and then you eat it.

Jordan Si. - Chocolate Pudding
Buy some chocolate pudding mix. Then you add the milk. Then you add the pudding mix. Then you stir it. Then you put it in the refrigerator and wait for it to get hard. Then you eat it.

Jason - Chicken Pie
Put the chicken in the pot and put the salad and cheese and mustard and then you mix it all together. Then put chicken sauce and stir it all around again. Then you cook it for 5 minutes at 9 degrees. Then you eat it.

Christopher - Pumpkin Pie
First you buy a pumpkin and smash it. Then it is all done. And you cook it in the oven for 12 minutes and 4 degrees. Then you eat it.

Jordan - Cranberry Pie
Put cranberry juice in it. Then you put berries in it. Then you put dough in it. Then you bake it. Then you eat it.

Joplyn - Apple Pie
Take some apples, mash them up. Take some bread and make a pie with it. Get some dough and squish it. Shape the dough into a pie shape. Put the apples in it. Then bake it at 9 degrees for 15 minutes.

Isabelle - Spaghetti
Put those red things in it. Then put the spaghetti in it. Then cook it in the oven for 2 minutes at 8 degrees.

Nicholas - White and Brown Pudding
First you read the wrapper. Get a piece of water. Stir. Then you eat it.

Lauren - Turkey
First you find a turkey and kill it. Cut it open. Put it in a pan. Pour milk in the pan. Put a little chicken with it. Put salsa on it. Take out of pan. Put it on the board. Cut into little pieces. Put on a rack. Put in the oven for 7 minutes at 10 degrees. Take out of the oven and put eensy weensy bit of sugar on it. Put a little more salsa on it. Then you eat it.

Olivia - Corn
Get hot water and put on stove. Wait for 8 minutes. Put corn in. Then put it on a plate. Then eat.

Siera - Pumpkin Pie
Get some pumpkin and dough for the crust. Get pumpkin pie cinnamon. Cook it for 20 minutes at 10 degrees.

Kayla - Turkey
Buy it. Take it home. Then you cook it. Put it in the oven for 1 hour. Take it out of the oven. Put it on a plate. Then you eat it.

At PRI, we are looking forward to having Thanksgiving Day to get together with our family and friends and take a break from the rush of normal life. I would encourage you to take a well needed break from your careers and job search and enjoy the holiday break. Note that our office will be closed on November 22nd and 23rd for the holiday.

Get Your Household On Board

Here is a bit of how my day went today recruiting candidates:

Call #1, reached a voice mail, the message was rude and indicated that they didn’t want to accept calls from anyone they didn’t know personally.

Call #2, reached a spouse who took a message, and after identifying himself as the spouse, proceeded to ask me many questions, including “what would she be doing in this job?”, and “what is the address of the location – I want to be sure it is within commuting distance from both our home and the kids’ school”. Not exactly appropriate for the person who is NOT the candidate.

Call #3, reached a very young child, who, in setting the phone down to get a pencil, hung up on me. I redialed the number, hoping to get to the voice mail this time, and instead a gentleman answered the phone. After leaving a message, he asked me “where is this job? Because if this job isn’t here, then he’s not interested, and I’m not giving him the message.” Wow – this person didn’t even identify himself – I had no idea if I was dealing with a family member or a babysitter!

Call #4, left a voice message at the home number, and a few hours later received a call back from the candidate’s wife who informed me that her husband was not interested in that job – it wasn’t going to pay enough. Funny, I had received an email from the candidate within an hour of leaving the message that confirmed he was interested in the position and wanted to proceed with the client interview process! I politely thanked the spouse for her concern and explained that I wasn’t at liberty to discuss much of the job with her at this point, and then emailed the candidate that I had received a phone call from his wife – perhaps he should check with her first?

Well, those calls weren’t all in row, but this type of “message leaving” with household members does occur on a regular basis. When you are conducting a professional job search and provide a home phone number for communication, make sure your entire household is on board with your search, and understands the etiquette of taking a message and the fact that job details are discussed between candidate and recruiter and/or hiring manager – not with the spouse or other household members.

Round Up: Resumes

Resource Round Up: Recently Published Tips and Advice on Creating and Improving Your Resume

How To Construct a Killer Resume, From Start to Finish

Resumes Are a lot Like Halloween Costumes

Critical Resume Mistakes

Walk The Line?

This blog post saddens me to write. The story is simple enough. A top notch candidate, with all the right experience, in-depth industry knowledge, education, leadership abilities and people skills. The candidate aced the interview, sold the senior management on his abilities and was going to get the offer. He was thrilled, and he should have been – he did a great job and the employer was going to extend a strong offer.

A routine background check was conducted, and during that process it was discovered that the candidate did not have the degree he claimed on his resume. The same degree he listed, along with a graduation date, on several other employment and application forms.

When questioned, the candidate answered that he was just a few credits short from graduating, but thought he was close enough to the degree and had the applicable credits for the degree secured. We countered – it was falsifying his resume. The employer wouldn’t hire someone who had lied on his resume, or on any other their employment forms. How could they trust a senior manager within their organization who started off their relationship on a false premise?

The irony is that this is one of the rare clients that actually would have hired the candidate without the degree – his experience and talents were what they were seeking and the degree wasn’t a firm requirement in their organization. I am sure the candidate (and many readers) would counter that he would not have reached the interview stages without that line item listing his degree on his resume. Perhaps this is true, perhaps not.

What is certainly the case now is that the candidate is out of a job, and we cannot represent him anywhere else. If he had been truthful with us at the beginning of the interview process, we may still have been able to redeem the situation.

I’ve read articles and blogs that indicate a “little truth stretching” on your resume is okay. That you can and should tweak things to show you in a better light. I agree that you can, and should highlight your skills and experience to the best light possible, but all within the truth. Intentionally misrepresenting any information on your resume, cover or thank you letters and any applications, questionnaires, etc., is lying and will come around to bite you. If you get the job, sooner or later your new employer is bound to find out.

My opinion is to stay truthful in all that you do. Here are links to others opinions – on both sides of the fence. And, what is your opinion? I would welcome your comments on this post.

Six people who were caught lying on their resumes

Lying on Your Resume

Lying Up, Hiring Down

Most Common Resume Lies

The fine line between boasting on a resume and lying

High Profile Cases of People Caught Lying on Their Resumes