How to create a Star Resume

Ever wondered you shared your CV with someone and never heard back. It could be due to huge number of applications, paucity of time but has it occurred to you was it good enough to stand out from the rest of the lot? Writing a crisp and succinct resume is an art and needs patience, creativity and organizational skills to put haphazard pieces of information together, much like a jigsaw puzzle, into a complete picture.

The terms 'resume', 'curriculum vitae' and 'bio data’, have been used interchangeably since time immemorial. The question is 'what is the big difference?’ The answer is' it doesn't matter'. What matters perhaps is how well we present a summary of our own selves in an objective and eye catching format!

The outlook on how traditional resumes ought to be, have changed over the years. With transformations in so called traditional organizations, and emergence of new age employers, there are actually no rules (and I say it from the perspective of a professional for whom screening resumes have been part of the job). Sometimes the first step in getting the person to read the resume is not your pedigree and experience, but how personable your profile is!

Let's start with a Few Basics for your ease of comprehension-

? Keep it concise-3 pager resume is way too lengthy! I have had a few folks speak in defense what do you expect from someone with a 15 years odd experience! Remember brevity is a key art here. 1 pager is desirable, 2 pager is good!

? Write a strong headline Ditch the lengthy pointers and combine 1-2 lines max as an opening statement summarizing your career objectives. Something like ' A strategic thinking professional with 6+years of experience in managing dynamic and complex Human resource operations in Food & Beverage Industry'. 

? Use LIFO (Last in first out) Method-For each of your work experience , maintain the following sequence

1. Name of the company

2. Duration(month and year)

3. Mention your role instead of designation- For example Brand & Communication Lead rather than Manager -Marketing

4. Mention 3-4 responsibilities -Don't have to get into nitty gritties. Use phrases which begin with action verbs like 'Leading/Partnering'( for your current assignments), 'Demonstrated', 'Initiated', 'Designed processes and SOPS', 'Streamlined', Oversaw', 'Orchestrated'. 'Championed client servicing' -this will need a whole lot of brainstorming and a cup of coffee:-)

5. Follow by 1-2 achievements- Awarded Star Performer for demonstrating excellence in the field of social media hiring and saved 'x' costs/ for going beyond the Call of duty /for living the values of ABC company... etc. Mentioning the award in itself is not enough, you must illustrate why you were awarded and what was the impact. Again brevity is the main key here!

? Use reverse chronological order - For your Alma mater details limit to your Masters/Graduation, unless you have other advanced qualifications and certifications to add. What is important to highlight here is the University Name, the field of study /area of specialization and the year of pass out . No one wants to know your 12th grade marks really, unless for freshers who may mention the CGPA's of their latest academics. 

Now let us come to the Must Haves

? Add a section of your Interests and Hobbies- People want to hire you not just for your knowledge and experience but for the overall value you bring to their organization. Whether you are a multitasker and can take out time to pursue your passion and dreams, speaks volumes about you as a person, and eliminates 90% of the pool who struggle with ;work life balance' as a personal development action. A word of caution, 'Netflix and Chill' isn't really a hobby, unless you follow a particular genre of movies/actor related to your interests! Adding a few non screen hobbies may be good idea. Don't have any. Start cultivating one!

? Add a Candid Photo-Not too casual, not too formal. Just don't wear a hat or sunglass or a mask (just kidding). This can be challenged by a school of thought which may propose leading to biases in selection process. Believe me, if that comes in the way of selection, it's not the organization to join!

? Add a link to your LinkedIn- This gives the opportunity to the recruiter/hiring manager to see your recommendations, your work related post, articles etc. For individuals in creative field, may add a link to their bio, or Insta /twitter handles showcasing their work!

? Current Location- Just the area and city is good enough! No other details are actually needed. This gives an idea on the proximity to the workplace and to consider things like commute especially in cities like Mumbai/Benguluru where travel is a hassle and in companies where WFH may not be an option. 

Lastly the May Nots. I will recommend this as optional and to the best use of one's judgement. I personally don't count this as relevant information!

? Do away with Computer skills - Freshers may mention MS Office skills. For professionals with white collar jobs with years of experience ,you need not list down presentation, word and excel skills exhaustively. It is a given. Instead mention proficiency level of the same, especially when you apply for an operations or business analytics roles or say the office of the CEO, these become important! You could showcase other certifications along with your education details like Taleo, Labour Laws, Any TTT certification etc.

? Eliminate Date of Birth-We apply jobs basis the criteria's defined like experience and skills. Similarly for the recruiter the relevant experience matters which can be mentioned in the overall summary or the headline we mentioned in the beginning!

? Gender- Will leave it you, to ponder is it required?

? Marital Status-This creates far more bias than anything else especially for women! So reserve some facts for your conversations about the family during your interview!

Explore some creativity. No one wants to read 'random data in black and white'. Make it vibrant and colourful like adding company logos or icons for your hobbies -use of airplane for travel, book for reading, and spoon for cooking, or simply adding the google location icon for your address. Add your favourite life quote!

And how will you accomplish this mammoth task! Just block a few hours over the weekend! Try the resume builder option from LinkedIn. It has auto formatting options and all you need to do is feed text on above lines. There are also online FOC templates available in MS Word. You just need to open the application and search resume in the box and select from quite a few options!

Last but not the least, ensure that your fonts and formatting is aligned and run a spellcheck and basic grammatical review. You have MS Office to assist you with that as well! Keep updating your profile as and when changes happen, and always present your resume in a 'pdf'' format!

This article has been inspired by some of the well-crafted resumes I have personally come across ! So it has contributions from a lot of people who have attempted to add a glimpse of their personality in their profiles !

Hope this helps to improve your profile!