Tips for Resume
With layoffs afflicting thousands of financial-services professionals, and post-bonus job hunting on the horizon for many others, now is the time to update your resume. You’ve probably been told countless times that a resume must highlight achievements and not just list the mundane tasks of your various jobs. But what are the best ways of showing off your career feats within the confines of a CV? Here is some advice from resume experts.
1) Name your numbers
It’s no good just mentioning that you reduced costs or made money – give a figure to support yourself. “An accomplishment statement that does not convey the benefit to the company will appear generic and lose credibility,” says Gavin Redelman, managing director of Sydney consultancy RedStarResume. “A hiring manager wants factual information – numbers, percentages etc – which proves how you added value to your previous employers.”
2) Take credit for teamwork
If you’re a manager, show how you lead your team to success, says Dr John Taccori, a Sydney career counselor and founder of careersdoctor.net. He says the following example is ideal: “I was responsible for overseeing the work of 20 staff on my team. I had to keep motivating the team towards sales targets through innovative and inexpensive reward programmes. This resulted in increased sales of 9 percent every quarter over a two-year period.”
3) If times were tough, say so
It you achieved success during challenging business conditions – within your company or the broader economy – be sure to shout about it, says Naishadh Gadani, a career advisor at Melbourne-based consultancy Nabenet. “Granting the reader an insight into obstacles that you encountered can enhance your resume’s performance.”
Gadani once advised an Australian finance manager whose CV stated that he “saved $1.3m in exchange fluctuations.” He didn’t mention that this happened at the height of the global financial crisis. Gadani changed the statement to read: “Skillfully steered the
1) Name your numbers
It’s no good just mentioning that you reduced costs or made money – give a figure to support yourself. “An accomplishment statement that does not convey the benefit to the company will appear generic and lose credibility,” says Gavin Redelman, managing director of Sydney consultancy RedStarResume. “A hiring manager wants factual information – numbers, percentages etc – which proves how you added value to your previous employers.”
2) Take credit for teamwork
If you’re a manager, show how you lead your team to success, says Dr John Taccori, a Sydney career counselor and founder of careersdoctor.net. He says the following example is ideal: “I was responsible for overseeing the work of 20 staff on my team. I had to keep motivating the team towards sales targets through innovative and inexpensive reward programmes. This resulted in increased sales of 9 percent every quarter over a two-year period.”
3) If times were tough, say so
It you achieved success during challenging business conditions – within your company or the broader economy – be sure to shout about it, says Naishadh Gadani, a career advisor at Melbourne-based consultancy Nabenet. “Granting the reader an insight into obstacles that you encountered can enhance your resume’s performance.”
Gadani once advised an Australian finance manager whose CV stated that he “saved $1.3m in exchange fluctuations.” He didn’t mention that this happened at the height of the global financial crisis. Gadani changed the statement to read: “Skillfully steered the