How to Construct a Dynamite Resume

by Neil Clark

Most managers in the Electronic Security and Fire Industry are flat out!

They don’t have time to read long and complex resumes. They just want the relevant facts so they can make a decision about who to bring in for an interview. Lets face it, the manager is probably doing his job and the job of the person he is about to hire!

If all you get out of this article is the fact that you should write your resume from this viewpoint, you stand a much better chance of landing an interview!

Resume Myths

• The most fancy resumes with lots of formatting gimmicks and graphics get the best attention from employers.
• WRONG. Managers want the facts, clear and simple. As long as it’s neat and easy to read, that’s the main criteria.
• Resumes with lots of detail give the employer more information on which to base their decision, in fact, 10 pages is a good length.
• WRONG. As stated above, managers in this industry don’t have time to wade through volumes of material. They will quickly conclude that you can’t organise your thoughts well.
• Including all your personal activities and interests will give the employer a good overall picture of you and increase your chances of getting interviewed.
• WRONG. It’s more likely to give your prospective employer the impression that your personal interests might conflict with your job.
• Devoting several paragraphs stating how good you are will create a favourable impression and get you ahead of the other applicants.
• WRONG. Such “PR” statements in resumes are normally skipped over with an inward groan. Let your accomplishments speak for you (see later).

OK, so having cleared that up, what should you include and how should it be presented?

The Basic Elements

In essence, a resume (or “CV”) is simply a clear description of your knowledge and experience, highlighted with specific things you have achieved – results!

An employer is not going to hire someone based on their resume. It’s not the purpose of a resume to get you a job.

The purpose of a resume is simply to get you a job interview!

1. So, here is a checklist of things to include in your resume:
2. Your basic contact details: home address, phone & mobile, email address.
3. A net statement of your career so far; two sentences or so. For example: “I have worked in the Electronic Security Industry for 4 years, progressing from Installer to Senior Technician. My experience has mainly been in small to medium commercial installations.”.
4. Since this is a highly technical industry, include a clear list of the types of equipment you have worked with and your level of competence. If you are a Technician, contact U-MAN for a copy of our “Technical Skills Register”. This is a tabular format and lists the panels you have worked on and your skill level on each.
5. If you have relevant professional qualifications or Security/Fire Industry Licences, list these briefly.
6. Your employment history, which should start with your current (or most recent) job and work backwards in time to your first job. Include the following for each job:
   
   • Date started and finished.
   • Employer.
   • Job Title.
   • Brief list of responsibilities.
7. Your major accomplishments (read “results achieved”) are the biggest selling point in your resume. Having the right skills background means your resume gets read. Providing examples of the results you have achieved can put you into the interview chair. (More on this later.)
8. Finally, don’t list people who can give you a reference. Just make a statement at the end, like: “References available upon request.” Your recruiter will obtain the references when the time comes.

Ten Resume Keys

To help you construct a better, more powerful resume, here are ten overall considerations in regard to your resume’s content and presentation:

1. Job Titles in the Employment History section should give a clear picture of what you were doing. If necessary, follow the job title with a brief explanation.
2. Clarity of dates and place. Document your work history accurately. Don’t leave the reader guessing where you were employed, or for how long.
3. Detail. Don’t get too detailed, but don’t leave out essential information. If you have some skills that are rare in the industry, make sure you highlight these.
4. Proportion. Give appropriate attention to jobs or educational credentials according to their importance to the reader. For example, if you are applying for a Service Manager’s role, make sure you give enough information on similar jobs you’ve held in the past, rather than filling up the resume with your experience as an Installer.
5. Relevancy. Confine your curriculum vitae to that which is job-related or clearly demonstrates a pattern of success. For example, nobody really cares that your hobby is spear fishing, or that you weigh 90 KG, or that you belong to an activist youth group. Concentrate on the subject matter that addresses the needs of the employer.
6. Explicitness. Leave nothing to the imagination. If you are a Sales Executive for a manufacturer, state exactly what equipment you were selling.
7. Length. Fill up only two or three pages, if possible. If you write much more than this, it sends a signal to the reader that you can’t organise your thoughts, or you’re trying too hard to make a good impression. If your content is strong, you won’t need more than a few pages.
8. Spelling, grammar, and punctuation. Create an error-free document. Typographical errors and misspellings are annoying to an employer. They distract from the data you are trying to convey. And, even though nobody expects a Technician to produce an English Classic, the least you can do is spell check it before you send it off!
9. Readability. Organise your thoughts in a clear, concise manner. Avoid writing in a style that’s either fragmented or long-winded. No resume ever won a Nobel Prize for literature; however, an unreadable resume will virtually assure you of starting at the back of the line.
10. Overall appearance and presentation. Don’t get too fancy. Don’t use too many different fonts. Just create a neat, easily readable document. Frantically busy Managers don’t have time to be impressed with fancy layouts. Just give them the facts!

Building a Stronger Case

To get the most mileage out of your resume, you’ll want to emphasise certain aspects of your background. By doing so, you’ll present your qualifications in the most favourable light and help give the employer a better understanding of your potential value to his or her organisation.

You can build a stronger case for your candidacy, by highlighting the results you have achieved.

Ask yourself the following questions:

• What have I done in my career that I am really proud of?
• What results have I achieved that had a significant impact on the area I was responsible for?
• Did I handle certain areas of my job far better than my colleagues?

Making a bald statement that you were the best Sales Executive in your previous company will be met with a bored yawn... Don’t waste the readers time.

But, if you point out that you over-achieved your sales budget by 50% in the first year and 70% in the second and that you were recognised as the top producer in your team, you’ll immediately grab their interest.

If you are a Technician, you might highlight the fact that you have an excellent track record with integrated systems. If you illustrate this with the statement that you commissioned a 200 door Integrated Access Control System with 150 cameras that worked flawlessly from day one, that would make the point!

The point is, if you can come up with some specific answers to the questions above, give a brief illustration of each and put them under the heading such as “Results Achieved”.

When your resume is being read by a prospective employer, you are just one of a bunch of “nonentities”. You have to make some points that will grab the attention of the reader and cause your resume to be placed in the “possibles” pile.

There are probably several others in the pile who have similar experience and skills. What makes you stand out is what you achieved with that experience and with those skills.

It all comes down to what can be verified. Look at it from the employing manager’s viewpoint. If he or she reads something like, “advanced skills with Concept 3000/4000”, that’s an opinion. It may be true, but as it stands, it’s simply your opinion of yourself.

But suppose you said, “Five years experience with Concept 3000/4000. Was often brought in to fault-find on major customer sites when assigned technician was unable to cope.” Now, here are two facts that can be verified. The manager may or may not go to the trouble of verifying – that’s not the point. The point is, you have given actual achievements – results. And that speaks volumes.

Good people are hard to find. Make sure you present your resume in such a way that the hiring manager can see your achievements. This will ensure your “good” points will stand out.