The New Resume

Posted by Nancy Anderson • May 5, 2015

If you are searching for a job, it's essential to have a resume that captures attention quickly. Many employers are now eschewing traditional resumes in favor of new resume formats. If you haven't been getting many responses to your job applications, try creating a modern resume to make a great impression on recruiters. Follow these tips to put together your new resume with minimal frustration.

Recruiters spend an average of five to seven seconds reviewing each resume. That means you have very little time to capture their interest and make them want to learn more about you. Putting an objective statement at the top of your resume is an outdated practice, and it takes up valuable space in a prime location. When you create your new resume, remove the objective and use the top of the page to list your professional skills or achievements. This information is more likely to convince a recruiter to give you further consideration for the job.

Many companies still want applicants to submit paper resumes, but a growing number of employers are open to accepting video resumes. In fact, 89 percent of employers surveyed by Career Enlightenment said they would watch a video resume. If you decide to turn your new resume into a video resume, be professional. Don't submit a video that has shots of you lounging in the pool or playing soccer. Instead, dress professionally and provide the same information you would provide in a traditional resume: the reason you want the job, a list of your skills and information about your past jobs.

Another way to create a modern resume is to turn your traditional resume into an infographic. An infographic communicates important information in a visually appealing manner. Infographics typically contain bullet points and numbered lists instead of complete sentences, making them ideal for sharing the most important information about your background. An infographic resume is ideal if you want to share specific achievements, such as cutting expenses by 25 percent or reducing waste by 40 percent, with potential employers. If you go the infographic route, make sure your new resume has a visually appealing color scheme and design.

Your new resume must also include keywords relevant to your career. Recruiters use keywords to find applicants with specific skills or educational backgrounds. If your new resume doesn't have the right keywords, it isn't going to show up in this type of search. Include keywords related to your technical skills, soft skills, job history and certifications. If you are an IT professional, for example, include keywords such as "user support," "A+ certification," "systems engineering" or "database management."

Traditional resumes are still valuable for people in conservative industries, but many employers want something different. If you need a new resume, try creating an infographic or shooting a video. These modern formats make it easier to share your personality and convince recruiters you are a good fit for each job opening.

Photo courtesy of David Castillo Dominici at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Nancy Anderson • Oct 2, 2015

@Damian thanks again for your comments. As for a photo, a professional one would be better but I know it costs money. So get one of your friends to take a good photo of you. For the background - how about just a plain wall - devoid of pictures, etc. And you only need to show your face or the top part of your body. You don't need a full on photo for your resume. We see all kinds.... pics at the beach in a bikini and so on. Crazy. Professional should be your goal. And Damian, work is work whether temp or perm. Most employers know that we are taking what we can get and will give you kudos for continuing to find work instead of being on unemployment. So don't stop working... take those temp jobs because you never know when they will land you a permanent gig. Best of luck.

Damian T. • Oct 1, 2015

Thank you, Nancy, your clarification on videos vs. photos is much appreciated. The paid trial run w/ a major parcel carrier is 3 mo. The benefits pkg. is incremental before a full pkg. is implemented. Learning recently that what one could expect for a cap is around $22K. This may not be the career path for me w/ hours part-time and tough physical labor. My healthy work out is a benefit, but the weekly bread earned may be worth 1/2 a loaf. Any further advice to share to those of us in this common scenario: (bachelor's, prior work experience, gainful employment is scarce less you want >1 part-time job, to ditch the current job seems risky after a number of months of unemployment). This was what I could find given my current work experience. Temp. jobs earlier got bad reviews b/c they were temporary. What would you wish to see in details in order to consider a profile pic to be deemed serious? The beach is out. That's clear and I'm trying to put myself into the hiring manager's shoes, but am I just reading minds? Your replies are most helpful and much appreciated. Thanks again and have a great day.

Nancy Anderson • Sep 30, 2015

@Damian thanks for your comments. While it is true that a video may take up more space on the company's servers, some companies appreciate the opportunity to get a firsthand look at you from your overall appearance and demeanor to the way you carry yourself to your speech. But videos are not as widespread as say adding a photo to your resume. Videos should only be used if they are asked for or if you did you research and find that the prospective company is receptive to receiving them. Adding a photo to your resume is more common. For instance, here on Beyond, when you created your account, you have the opportunity to add a photo. A professional photo, not one from the beach this summer. They don't take up much more space than your resume does when it comes to the space the company has on their servers or in the cloud. As for doing a trial period with a company; the jury is still out on this. If you are going to be doing a trial run with a company, make sure that you are being paid. Don't do it for free. I think that doing a trial at a company is really a good idea because it lets the company really see who you are and how you operate. But, while you are doing a trial run at company a, you could be missing out on an opportunity from company b. Make sure that there is a real possibility for future employment before you offer to do a trial run with any company. We wish you all the best.

Damian T. • Sep 29, 2015

Nancy, got a question for you. If I understood correctly that the video or picture on your resume is supposed to be a gain for the employer. How? They will pay for more space in storing you're documentation. More terabytes due to video and pic files which could cut the training costs allocated in the company's budget affecting lower hiring. This can also make the hiring process ever more competitive as the employer has "X" amount to spend in time and training. What's your take on the idea of trial periods for those who've applied and seem most worthy of the company's investment via time and money for training? This way they see who performed and how to decide where to place the new hire or offer a temp. status until an opening may appear. This way no loss of effort from any personnel currently employed, the effects of overworking could be avoided, new skill development has greater implementation in turn a more well versed staff when time is needed for that function(s). Possibly, an additional revenue source for the company as hours must be kept within a range of 20 -30hrs? Income levels may be retained for profits and salaries.

"A picture is worth a thousand words", right? Hence, the video resume, but some employers are less receptive to the idea and don't see the full potential. Requires research of employers. Employers less receptive to new resume style(s) might land on your "B" list. The New Resume, short and sweet calls for very selective words to use because of subjectivity to interpretation. The words: opportunity, leadership, teamwork, strategy sound good and crave deeper scrutiny or even a Pandora's box or questions you must be prepared for. There's give and take by who's seeking what from the opportunity and how so? Leadership, how will it be defined by the interviewer vs. the interviewee? Similarly w/ teamwork and strategy. Ex. Take work at a worldwide parcel delivery company, how will suggestion of you being all about teamwork and strategy come across to the team you work with via ref. or how you fit into the position applied for and how would managers receive the idea that your strategy may be better than theirs? You are just starting and could this suggest unintentionally that you are somewhat obnoxious? Depends on the person reading your resume. Being very selective is crucial because how the word's use impacts our reputation positively and/or negatively. Suppose you read through this entire comment and do the terms "long-winded", "wordy", "confusing" even come to mind? Maybe / maybe not, but doubtful that "brief", "simplicity" ever came to mind. Perhaps, it caused you to think of "editorial"? Hope this helped you in the end. The face-to-face interview by demonstrating initiative through picking up the phone to ask helps along w/ networking w/ others in the fields of interest.

Brittany R. • May 19, 2015

Thank you for your advice! I think I might try to find out about the goodwill and see if that helps!

Nancy A. • May 19, 2015

@David - it's a brave new world in job hunting today. Some companies want your resume in 140 characters or less. Others want to see you in action - thus the video resume. They just want to see how you would present yourself, how you speak, your composure under pressure. Can it cause discrimination? Yes it probably can but is it better to have the company base their decision on your resume only to meet you in person and find out that you are not what they are looking for? As for the photo, more and more companies are requiring that you include a photo on your resume or at least on your social media sites. Employers today will search out your social media pages before they contact you for the first possible interview. They want to know who they are getting - not just the persona you try to display on your resume. So, if you do a video resume, they already know a lot about you before you come in for an interview. So I guess it's a catch-22 and the answer is that it depends.

David D. • May 18, 2015

Can you explain to me why submitting a video "resume" is considered appropriate for the application process but submitting a photo on your resume is not? I would never dream of placing a photo on my resume and a video is the same exact thing. How are you doing yourself any favors by creating a video? A "paper" resume will allow the potential employer to look at a background and translate how that will work in their environment in much less time than it takes for someone to speak a few sentences. A video is a soliloquy where the creator is guessing the intentions of the viewer.

Cynthia Maria DiBiasio • May 12, 2015

Thanks for the advice Nancy-good information to know!! 😉

Charlene L. • May 11, 2015

I did not know that Goodwill would help people with their resumes?
Charlene Largent

Jeanne L. • May 8, 2015

I went to Goodwill and they created a resume that I obtain tons of compliments on! The service is free for all!

Nancy Anderson • May 7, 2015

@Brittany it certainly can be frustrating to apply and not hear anything back. Maybe it is your resume. Get someone else to read through your resume and give you feedback. If you went to college, you could even try your career services center for some assistance. There may be other resources to use in your local area such as the library. We here at Beyond offer a resume writing service also. The bottom line is that many times we think that our resume is great until someone else reads it and comments on it. Worth a shot. Wish you all the best.

Brittany R. • May 6, 2015

I feel like my resume is getting me nowhere! Frustrating

The New Resume

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