Wednesday, October 12, 2011

When Is a Good Resume Like Swiss Cheese?

When is a good resume like Swiss cheese? When it stands strong even if it has a few holes.

Yes, I’m saying sometimes you can openly have holes on your resume that don’t hurt you… as long as you build a strong structure around those holes. Continue reading...

11 comments:

Patricia Frame said...

Great reminder that most of us are not 'perfect' candidates. More important: that if we pay real attention to what the employer needs and what we offer of value to the employer, we can maximize our opportunities!

Susan Ireland said...

Excellent point, Patra. Thank you!

LetBobRecruit4U said...

Susan - Excellent information throghout your site. I hope you don't mind if is share it with the many job seekers I work with daily. I sent out your article about covering the gaps and will use more in my communication to my candidates weekly. Thank you for posting this valuable information. I am sure it helps many that need help. http://www.linkedin.com/in/morrisbob Bob Morris

Buddha said...

Great point about building a strong summary to offset the period of unemployment on a resume. I think periods of unemployment are not as uncommon as they once were, with the state of the job market and the economy. However, it is important to highlight what a candidate can bring to an organization with a strong summary.

Susan Ireland said...

Buddha, I agree.
The Summary needs to be strong and specifically target the job you're after, whenever possible. This means knowing what "holes" the company needs to fill and how your value can fill them.

NCReentry said...

What do you suggest when the "hole" or "holes" involves a period (or more) of incarceration? I didn't note any samples on this. I work in workforce development with the ex-offender population and wondered about your thoughts.

Susan Ireland said...

NCReentry,
I don't have direct experience working with ex-offenders. I would say it depends on how long the person was incarcerated for.

If it was for just a year or two and the rest of the resume strongly supports the job objective, you might simply not mention or explain the gap in work history on the resume.

If the gap is for a long period of time, you'll need to fill it with tasks (hopefully relevant) during incarceration.

If the employment gap is really substantial, a functional resume might be in order.

Susan Ireland said...

NCReentry,
I forgot to ask: What do you usually do to solve this resume problem for the ex-offender population you work with?

NCReentry said...

I usually have them do a functional resume. then, since they have work assignments in prison, have them list those work assignments as party of their work history. I also have them right a letter of explanation where they summarize their charges, take responsibility for their actions, discuss what they did while incarcerated to better themselves, and discuss employer incentives for hiring ex-offenders.

Susan Ireland said...

NCReentry,
Yes, this is the sort of situation for the functional resume. It stands the best chance of holding up despite the big holes.

And, I agree, a strong cover letter is also important.

Thank you!
Susan

Callum said...

Susan, Haha, good analogy. Nobody's cv is completely bullet proof but focusing on the positives and matching this to the employer really makes the difference