No matter your current job situation – employed, unemployed, on the lookout or about to be let go through downsizing – you should ALWAYS keep your resume up-to-date. Always! That cannot be stressed enough. Because as many folks have already learned, you never know what job changes lurk around the corner. The excerpt from the article below discusses the importance of keeping your resume current and tips on bridging gaps due to unexpected changes. From MSN Careers:
“You have to be ready to submit your résumé on short notice,” says Dustin DeVries, senior director of Lead Dawg, a job search consulting firm. “Candidates who have taken time to update their résumé may be passed over for another candidate of similar caliber that is ready to go now. You just never know when that opportunity may land in your lap and you have to be ready to act.”
Updating one’s résumé today, however, may not be as easy as it once was. As job losses and layoffs continue to swell, people have to do more with less to enhance their résumés. Job seekers are unsure how to deal with lack of employment, gaps between work, title demotions, fewer duties and shortened job spans when updating their résumés.
…Continued from MSN Careers. Tips to stay current include:
1. Keep up with trends
“Keep up-to-date with current trends for résumés and online profiles. Be sure that you are highlighting how you stand out and emphasizing what makes you special,” Salpeter says.2. Keep a brag book
DeVries suggests keeping a log of your performance reviews, coaching reports from managers, sales reports, goal assessments and the like to use as content for your résumé.“You’re going to be measured against someone else in most any position you may hold,” he says. “Update this list each time you receive an e-mail from your manager or a report from your company. Include achievements applicable to the position to which you’re submitting your résumé.”
Additionally, Salpeter suggests keeping a file of any nice things that supervisors, clients and colleagues say about you, and asking for recommendations on social networking sites like LinkedIn.
3. List more than job duties
“Listing job duties on your résumé is OK, but include the metrics you were held accountable for and your performance to those goals,” DeVries says. “Many people just list the duty but don’t include the scale of their accountability and how they performed.”4. Always ask for feedback
Never stop asking for feedback or critique from colleagues, friends and experts. “You never know what someone may see in your résumé that needs further enhancement or may just need to be eliminated,” DeVries says.5. Keep lists
In order to keep your résumé up-to-date, you need to keep a running list of your accomplishments and things you’ve done in the workplace, and add to it regularly, Salpeter says. Keep track of your digital profile, too, and recognize that your digital footprint is an important part of your professional presentation and job search.
View the full article here. If Bradley Resume can assist you with sharpening your resume, contact us today.
