ICT Executive Career Guide - CV/RESUME

An Executive looking to make headway in the industry has to take advantage of resources that can be utilized for an efficient and effective career management plan. In many cases, this goes beyond simply creating an up-to-date resume/CV (though your resume/CV is still a major part of your marketing toolkit). Your resume/CV should be part of your branded marketing toolkit and have consistent messaging with the rest of your career documents.

When thinking about your career documents as a full package, makes it easier to submit your candidacy for executive jobs. You can adequately add your cover letter/E-note, bio, and LinkedIn profile to your job submissions when requested, giving executive search consultants and potential employers a much more detailed look at your qualifications and expertise. You could also expand this marketing toolkit further by including a personal website, business cards, a blog, and other self branded online and offline documents.

RESUME/CV 

Many executives suddenly find themselves in need of a new resume/CV, especially if they haven't been thinking about their career strategy or their next opportunity. Do resist the temptation to add your most recent positions and accomplishments to the bottom of an old resume/CV. Take the time and effort to give your resume/CV the refresh it will need to support your job search and career goals.

Writing a CV is all about strategy. A resume/CV writer can look at your experience impartially, analyze any potential hurdles in your search, and create a strategy that highlights your overarching accomplishments without dwelling on your more difficult to explain roles and transitions. He or she can also help you develop your personal brand, which helps keep your resume/CV and job search focused; and brings an objective view that will prevent your resume/CV from being filled with company-specific jargon that others won't understand.

You will need a resume/CV when actively seeking new opportunities, but it's also extremely helpful to have an up-to-date resume/CV during other stages of your executive career. You should update your resume/CV regularly: Anytime you change jobs, receive a promotion, or, at minimum, yearly. A beneficial time to update your resume/CV is before your annual performance review. This can allow you to "kill two birds with one stone" by documenting your recent accomplishments as you prepare for your review at the same time as you add these accomplishments to your resume/CV. 

As you update your resume/CV, you will also take some time to self-assess, which can produce helpful insights to discuss with your boss during your performance review. Your resume/CV shows your current skills, qualifications, and career potential. Identifying a common thread in your experience and accomplishments can help you choose the next step in your career.

Having certifications from over 10 years ago listed on your resume/CV provides little value as things have most likely changed since then in your industry and specialization. As you refresh your resume/CV, look out for old education and certifications and decide if you could present more value by refreshing these or adding newer ones.

BE CONCISE AND RELEVANT

A resume/CV should be focused, which often means two pages is the ideal length. In some cases,

THESE ARE THE NECESSARY THINGS YOU NEED TO INCLUDE IN YOUR RESUME/CV

- Ensure that you have an understandable and descriptive title at the top of your resume/CV.

- Providing a company description can help to further define your role.

- Quantified accomplishment-based statements in the experience section show your value.

- Gmail, Outlook, custom email addresses says that you are up-to-date with technology.

- Listing your LinkedIn profile link allows reader to obtain more info.

- Focus more on accomplishments than job responsibilities - these make you stand out. Keep bulleted lists and paragraphs short.

- The top one- fourth to one-third of your executive resume/CV should highlight major qualifiers such as relevant degrees, years of experience in the target industry, or significant achievements.

OPTIMIZE FOR THE SKIMMERS

Resume/CV design should immediately draw the reader's eyes to the most important parts of your resume/CV. One way to do this is to use bolding strategically to draw the reader to major achievements at first glance.

INCORPORATE KEYWORDS

Your resume/CV needs to include keywords that are relevant to your target roles, the skills required, and the company culture. Keywords are often nouns and can include specific skills, qualifications, industry terms, specialties, etc. To find the right keywords, review the job description, highlight all the keywords listed, and include them throughout your resume/CV in context rather than in one section. You should indicate your top specialties in a short list at the top of your resume; but be careful - too many keywords can look awkward and forced.

FORMAT CORRECTLY

One of the initial decisions you’ll make when writing your resume/CV is how to format the document and how to order your skills and experience on the page. The majority of executives used to find chronological resumes/CVs, which list their key achievements and experiences in order, to be the most effective. This is often not the case in today’s job search market. This kind of resume/CV can make it more difficult for the reader to figure out the value you can bring to their organization. There are three resume/CV layouts: Reverse chronological, functional, and hybrid. Most executive job seekers will realize the most success by using a hybrid layout because it incorporates the best elements of both the reverse chronological and functional layouts. Like the reverse chronological resume/CV, it demonstrates your employment background – j ob titles, companies, dates, key areas of duties, and achievements – things that all search consultants, hiring managers, and HR executives want to identify. And, like the functional, the hybrid begins with a solid presentation of your most notable skills, qualifications, talents, and career highlights in some form of a career summary section.

INTERNATIONALIZE

If you’re interested in finding opportunities abroad, internationalizing your resume/CV is essential. Not doing so can impact your ability to be considered by search consultants and hiring managers. It could also improve your domestic candidacy due to the more globalized marketplace we all live in today. If you are pursuing multinational companies or in-country companies that work broadly across borders, the US/multinational style resume/CV will be perfect for all your requirements. Only if you are targeting smaller companies in your home country will you need a CV in the style that is traditional in your country. If you’re seeking an opportunity in a specific foreign country or region, it would benefit your search to get someone from the region, such as a resume/CV writer, to help you write your resume/CV. In many European and Asian countries, it is standard practice to include a photo along with your date of birth, marital status, number of children, and other personal information at the top of the resume/CV.

TELL YOUR COMPLETE STORY

As an executive, you may incur gaps on your resume/CV from going back to school to get a master’s degree; taking time out to travel or volunteer; deal with a personal or family health issue; raise your children; or numerous other reasons. That’s OK, but you must be able to explain this on your resume/CV and during interviews. Think about this from the search consultant’s or hiring manager’s perspective. When he or she notices gaps in your resume/CV, the search consultant will become curious about what you’ve been doing, which will distract from the information on your resume/CV related to why you’re a great candidate. Depending on the circumstance, explaining your situation on your resume/CV can be as simple as adding a new “Volunteer Work” section or adding a point to your “EICT Executive Career Guide - CV/RESUME Education” section. If the reason was due to a personal related leave, include two lines that say what you were doing (“Sabbatical,” “Family Leave,” etc.) and the dates this occurred. If you were searching for a job, make sure you have other activities that you can include to account for this time period, such as “Contract Assignment,” “Board Leadership,” “Coursework in…,” “Pro Bono Assignment,” etc. Be sure your resume/CV tells the full story, instead of making the reader assume the worst.

REFERENCE

BLUE STEPS : Blue Steps, the executive career management service of Association of Executive Search and Leadership Consultants (AESC), can help you achieve your career goals.