Question Proposed on LinkedIn: Does the Resume Get Me the Job?

Others’ Responses:

– A comment I hear frequently from clients is: “I need a resume that will get me a job”. I typically explain that I can’t be of assistance with that. I’m not turning away clients, I’m simply stating a fact.

– In my corporate career, I reviewed hundreds and hundred of resumes. I never made a hiring decision based on that piece of paper. I did, however, make countless decisions to bring candidates in for interviews based on the content and quality of their resume. You see, the resume qualifies you for the interview. The interview gets you the job. Once you’re at the interview, I know that you meet my baseline qualifications for the role. Why else would I spend time, energy and budget to bring you in?

– Your resume must meet several specific criteria. It must be perfect…completely free of any type of errors. The resume is you, presenting your best work to a perspective employer. If your best work has errors, that’s entirely indicative of the quality of the work you would do as an employee. Second, it must tell me exactly how you can meet my business need. I don’t want to know that you’re passionate, results-oriented, driven, or a visionary. Those are strictly your opinions. I need to know how you can help me. How would you know that? It’s right there in the job ad.

– So what am I looking for at the interview? One word. Fit. Will you be a good fit for my company, my department, my team, your future co-workers, and our customers. Will you be a high-maintenance employee? A PITA (pain in the tush), a complainer, and a sulk? Or will you be engaged, inquisitive, pleasant, and collaborative? These are the things I listen for in our interview.

– In this age of carefully scripted, legal-approved interviews, it’s essential that you are likeable. In my career, I never hired someone I didn’t like. Did I miss out on some quality candidates? Probably. And did I make some poor hiring decisions? Absolutely. But the reality is, that I and virtually every hiring manager I’ve ever met, make final hiring decisions based on fit for the organization and fit for their team.

-Write your resume with that in mind. More verbs than adjectives. Quantify your accomplishments. Don’t offer subjective descriptions of your work. A great resume is not about you. Its about your next employer.

My Response:

– Your resume gets you the interview; it’s up to you to get the job. Make sure you are 100% capable of answering every line item under every position. And yes, please make sure your resumes are trump tight.