Have You Heard These Before?
Recruiter: “You would be great for this opportunity! Send over your resume by tomorrow.”
Colleague: “I heard there’s going to be a buyout and they will offer voluntary retirement packages. I’ll probably take it, but I’m also sending my resume out.”
Management: “We will now pay for your Project Management Certification or training course. All we need is your resume with all projects you assisted with or completed.
Outside Company: “We’re looking for speakers for our future events. Please email your resume.”
Friend at Another Company: “I know we’ve worked together and have been knowing each other for years, but you must submit your resume, and through the company website for it to even be considered. Sorry, just formalities.”
And there’s always the chance you’re up for a promotion. These are some common reasons to keep your resume updated at all times. You’ve probably heard the rule of thumb is every six months, once a year, when you get a promotion, start a new job or any one of these. I’d say every six months is good, but more importantly, consistently adding to your resume every time you start or succeed in something is good. Here are some examples:
A project you’ve started, even if it’s not complete. Keep track of any obstacles you’ve faced and how you’ve solved them, whether you’ll be ahead of schedule, the budget you manage and so on.
A fire you put out that saved the company thousands of dollars in loss. You may think you’re just doing your job, but it’s still worth noting.
A new process that you implemented. Whatever value it brought to your team or the company as a whole.
You managed an organizational change during a merger and acquisition. Change management is very important these days.
A new promotion or bonus. Add it while you’re still excited about it. If you wait years to go back to think about it, it may not have the same effect when telling your story. Remember, your resume needs to tell a story.
Don’t wait. As I discuss in the book “Why Your Resume Isn’t Working,” you end up rushing at the last minute trying to piece something together, which usually won’t be very effective. So, add to it on a regular basis. You can always reformat it and trim it down when the time comes to submit your resume. At least keep notes of your accomplishments to make it easier.
I know managers and senior leaders are usually too busy to worry about this. You’ll just hire a resume writer you say? Well, now you have to search for one, a good one too which can take days, and recruiters have deadlines. Better to find a writer ahead of time and keep them in your contacts folder for future updates.
For more resume tips visit my blog at the: BluePrint Executives website: https://blueprintexecutives.com