Tailoring Your Resume to a Specific Role
You’d be surprised by how many recruiters see the same generic resume continuously.
Some job seekers fail to tailor their resumes to a specific job they are applying for and as a result, recruiters pass on applicants that lack originality.
It’s clear that not every role requires the same skills and experience. A CFO in the manufacturing industry has many different responsibilities from a CFO in a nonprofit organization. Therefore, one generic resume for each CFO role will not suffice.
Here are 4 ways to tailoring your resume to a specific role:
1.) Have a Core Resume
You should have an outline of your resume that includes the basic information about your skills and experience. Some may consider using their LinkedIn profiles as a core resume, since it lists all of your work experience, education, skills and more, regardless of relevancy. Using a core resume or your LinkedIn profile will help you pick and pull different categories that are more relevant to the specific role you’re applying for.
2.) Review the Job Description You’re Applying For
Job descriptions were written for the job applicant’s convenience. You should understand what they are looking for in an employee so that you can match the skills you have with theirs.
3.) Pick and Organize Relevant Experience and Skills
After reviewing the job description, match each point the employer is asking for with a relevant skill or experience you have. Don’t be afraid to use the same adjectives or verbs that they use in the job description either. Identifying and including these keywords and phrases in your resume will also help from getting discarded through screening software and failing the skim test.
4.) Tailor Your Resume
Now that you’ve pinpointed each significant skill and experience the hiring manager is looking for, you are ready to customize your resume. Review your core resume and start editing based on the required skills and keywords. Remember to have a straightforward resume that doesn’t include any experience that is irrelevant to the role you’re seeking.
Hopefully these resume tips help you in your job seeking efforts. You may also find the following articles helpful as well:
7 Reasons Your Resume Should Never Be Outdated
Is Your Resume Failing the Skim Test?
5 Resume Fixes for All Job Seekers