How to Write an Impressive Resume

By this time we all are convinced that resume plays a very important role when it comes to putting your steps into a professional world. Irrespective of the fact that you are a fresher or a seasoned professional at some point or the other you surely need a good, well-written resume which portrays you well. Now that we know and understand what a resume is and why it is so important, it’s time to move on to some tips and tricks to write an impressive resume which works:

• First Things First: Before you sit to work on your resume (if you are preparing it on your own), prioritize things in your mind. What is that one thing which is prime important? If a recruiter likes your resume, what is that one information which he/ she will rush to find out? Yes, you are right! It is your contact information which a hiring manager will look for if he/she really find your resume interesting! So, make sure there is no ambiguity in this section.

  Write clearly your Name, contact number, alternate contact number, if any and your email id. Here mentioning residence address is not mandatory as chances are less that a hiring manager will send you a hand written letter and post it to your mailbox. But yes, they do like to know how much far do you stay from your prospective organization. This matters a lot and recruiters know it well.

• An Objective or an Opening Statement: An excellent, concise and definite objective statements should have 3 important things –

  1. What level of work are you looking for – is it the entry level, middle or senior level opportunities that you are aspiring for?

  2. The Second section should clearly state 2-3 functional areas that you want to work in. For example, if you have been working on a sale, marketing profile, the objective line should say 2-3 clear cut areas of work like, “looking for middle-level assignments in Sales/Marketing/Customer Service”.

  3. Now the 3rd part is essential if you have any industry preference. Let’s say you want to work in FMCG/Consumer Durables industry, the third segment of your objective line should say your industry preference if there are any. Though for junior or entry level profiles, we suggest that you should keep the options open without restricting it to any particular industry segment. So, an example for this would be, “looking for middle level opportunities in Sales & Marketing/Customer Service with an organization of repute; preferably in FMCG/Consumer Durable industry”. One thing you need to keep in mind while writing objective statements is that do not state many preferences, else it will be too narrowed down and can give a negative impact to the recruiter as well.

• Gist of the Profile/Profile Summary: Though all the sections are important in a resume, but this particular section needs to be specially taken care of. Since this is the first major section of your resume, it should be impressive. Recruiters should have a broad idea of your profile by going through this section. Even if a recruiter does not go through the whole resume, at least this section will give him a fair idea of why you should be hired?

  This section should include the number of years of overall work experience, current association, highest education if it is relevant to your profile and the target profile, some key skills and few significant accomplishments. Remember, if you are writing something in your summary part, your resume below should somehow justify the same. It should be connected, and the flow of information should be maintained.

• Skills Section: Right after summary part talk about 8-9 core skills which you want the recruiter to focus on. Do not over fill this section as a person cannot be expert at 10-15 things. There might be 6-7 skills which you are proficient at. So, focus on those skills which are transferable and can be utilized in the prospective company as well. Do not go overboard. Think before you mention any skills and once you mention something, the rest of your resume should back it up well. If you do not want to list out your skills in a separate section, there is another way you can highlight them. Your skills can be merged with your work experience section.

  For example, in the work experience section, you can start the heading as Financial Accounting, and under this, you can give 3-4 bullet points that you have done related to accounting. Next heading can be Budgeting/Taxation. All your responsibilities can be categorized under this header. Next could be Human Resource Management, under which you can elaborate few points on the size of team you might have handled, the trainings that were imparted, etc. This is another way of showing your skills, and at the same time, this justifies the skills right then and there.

• Work Experience: This section should contain your work history. You can list out the organizations that you have worked so far. Roles and achievements can be elaborated here. Talk about the projects that you might have undertaken. What were the challenges faced and how did you overcome them?

  Elucidate your achievements as well and quantify them to substantiate your statements. But remember that this section should not be just some bulleted list of a merely job description. It will be monotonous to read lifeless bullet points. So, you need to be cautious while writing this section.

• Education: You do not have to work hard for this section as everything is factual here. So, just mention your educational background, your highest qualification, the name of the institute and the year of passing. You can also mention your academic award and recognition if you have received any. Mention the marks or GPA/CGPA only when it is above and beyond 60-65% score.

• Volunteer Assignments: Do not shy away if you have any voluntary experience. Some people might think that there is no relevance mentioning them. But if you have volunteered, it is worth mentioning. Explain how you added value.

So, these are some short tips and tricks on how to write an effective resume. You can share some more tips if you have practical experience of writing an impressive resume.