Create A Brand-Driven Executive Resume to Attract Top Employers Consistently

Job seekers consistently underestimate the power of a personal-brand-driven resume. What would you say if I told you personal-brand-focused resumes outperform standard resumes in financial reward and career opportunities? Would it convince you to give personal branding a more serious look? In today’s article, I’m teaching you how to create a brand-driven executive resume so you can attract top employers consistently.?

Brand-Driven Executive Resume Tip #1: Use a Personal Branding Statement to Create a Polished First Impression

A one-line personal branding statement placed at the top of your executive resume puts your best foot forward. It offers a quick, impactful introduction. It's the first thing an employer reads, so it’s your chance to capture attention and make a polished first impression.

Here’s one of my favorite formulas for creating a one-line personal brand statement for the top of your resume:

[Strength/Expertise] + [Unique Qualifier] = [Impact/Outcome]

Be specific when you write your branding statement. You want a statement that no other job seeker on the market can make.?

When I use this formula, here is what my branding statement sounds like:

Executive resume writer who crafts personal-brand-focused resumes that attract 2X more interviews in 90 days or less.

Don’t be afraid to get specific and add numbers, time frames, percentages, or dollar amounts.?

This is what you DON’T want it to sound like:

Accomplished [Your Profession/Role] with [Number] years of experience, specializing in [Your Specialization/Area of Expertise]. Proven track record of [Specific Achievement/Outcome], enhancing [Industry/Company]’s performance by [Specific Measure].

If you ask ChatGPT, this is what it will spit out, and you will sound like every other generic resume on the internet. Employers see hundreds — if not thousands — of resumes with these exact words. Blending in equals being ignored.?

Brand-Driven Executive Resume Tip #2: Employ Your Greatest Personal Branding Weapon — Differentiation

Differentiation is key to a successful job search in this chaotic job market. It shows employers what makes you valuable and unique, setting you apart from other candidates. Where job seekers struggle is in implementing this strategy into their resume. Here’s where and how you can differentiate yourself on your resume to be more memorable to hiring managers.

1. Articulate your unique value proposition. What can you offer that no other candidate on the market offers?

A rare combination of skills and experience.

A unique perspective.

A set of values that motivates you.

Repetitive accomplishments in a niche area, market, industry, field, or position.

All of these combine to set you apart from other similar candidates. So, it’s important that this information gets conveyed on your resume.?

2. Quantify your achievements. Career experts give this advice all the time, but hear me out. Where I see job seekers get hung up is thinking that quantifying means tying a number to revenue generation. This is not the case for the majority of job seekers.?

You quantify by size, time, capacity, and performance comparison. None of these have anything to do with money.?

Here’s a resume bullet from my husband’s resume to demonstrate what I mean:

?? Transformed and led 200-person Air Force unit fitness program by developing 5X training program that generated continuous improvement of physical fitness. Leadership recognized with lead role in wing formation workout for 2,500 Airmen.

The size of the program and number of people led are shared in quantifiable metrics in this bullet.?

Here’s another example from one of our clients, Carlos Llanes :

? Increased productivity 200% within 90 days at The Home Depot’s largest distribution center. Designed and built 2 Clarks distribution centers.

In this bullet, you see a performance improvement metric (before/after comparison), time frame, and size to add metrics.?

If you’re struggling to quantify a bullet point, ask yourself how much, how many, and how often. You can also ask, “How does my performance compare to last month, last quarter, or last year?” Usually, you can find numbers by asking these questions.?

3. Leverage a distinctive resume design. Yes, content is king, but personal branding is visual, too. A visually distinctive resume can stop an employer dead in their tracks, especially compared to a stack full of look-alikes.?

This doesn't mean going over-the-top with colors and graphics (especially in more conservative industries), but use of design elements like a unique header or a clean, modern layout make all the difference.?

Here’s an example of a modern executive resume format that we designed to help differentiate executives from other clients. You can download this distinctive resume design template and use it when writing your resume.?

4. Incorporate testimonials or quotes. So few job seekers leverage this strategy, but it’s a powerful way to differentiate yourself as a candidate. Add a short, powerful quote or testimonial from previous colleagues, supervisors, or clients that speaks to your skills, values, and achievements. The third-party validation is powerfully persuasive, adding depth to your personal brand and proof of your results.

Brand-Driven Executive Resume Tip #3: Seal the Deal by Showing Alignment with the Employer’s Needs

I say this all the time, and I cannot say it often enough: Employers will not connect the dots for you. You have to do it yourself. By far the most effective resume writing strategy is to align your skills and experience with the needs of the target company and role. Here’s how to do that:

1. Deep-dive research. You need information and lots of it. Start by reviewing the job posting and answering these questions.?

• What hard skills are required for the role??
• What professional, academic, and technical skills are necessary??
• What type of experience is important to the position?

• What values are essential to the company? How do these align with my values?
• Considering the industry and position, what needs does this company have that I can fill?

Go a step further and dive into the company’s website, recent news articles, industry reports, and LinkedIn Company Page to understand their goals, challenges, culture, and the industry trends affecting them.?

Gathering all this information helps you tailor your resume and cover letter to address how your skills and experience meet the needs of the company and role.?

• Add three high-priority hard skills from your research to the top of your resume.?
• Give an example of a result you’ve achieved that aligns with a requirement of the role.

These are how you connect the dots between your skills/experience and the position.

2. Identify high-priority hard skills. Take a highlighter and read the job description to identify the hard skills required for the role. Note the exact professional, academic, or technical skill listed. Make sure you mirror these in your resume. I recommend including three of the most important skills required for the role at the top of your resume, right underneath the job title. It would look like this:

TARGET JOB TITLE

HARD SKILL #1 | HARD SKILL #2 | HARD SKILL #3

This is a succinct way to show the hiring manager you have the required skills for the role. Again, it’s another way to connect those dots.

3. Pair your experience to the requirements for the role. For each required qualification listed in the job description, match it to a specific example from your past experience that demonstrates that qualification.?

Here’s an example of what I mean. A client of mine was applying for a director position at a non-profit that works with military veterans. Experience creating military programs and working with veterans was a requirement for the role. So, we created a bullet point that showed his related experience:

Launched military outreach programs in 5 counties for military veterans, homeless veterans, new recruits, current military members, and families.?

With this bullet, we weren’t just telling the hiring manager he had experience working with veterans and military programs. We showed the specific details, making it tangible and aligning his experience to the needs of the position.?

4. Mirror the language used in the job posting. Use the exact same skills and keywords listed in the job posting on your resume. This is vital with hard skills but not as important with soft skills, as recruiters typically do not conduct searches using soft skills. Mirroring the language in the job description means you’re optimizing your resume for searches whether it’s uploaded in a candidate database/applicant tracking system or being skimmed over by recruiters.?

Several academic studies prove the benefits of personal branding on career outcomes, from increased career satisfaction and confidence to financial rewards and career opportunities. Don’t underestimate the power of personal branding in attracting top employers to you. Over the past 16 years, I’ve seen countless executives’ job searches transformed as candidates go from seeking to sought-after.?

Now that you know how to incorporate personal branding into your resume, what about a visually distinctive resume format that will help you stand out and attract even more employers? You can download my free executive resume template to help you with that.?

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