If you didn’t read our post on resumes for general job boards, start here! And if you missed the beginning of our series on coronavirus unemployment start here.
Once you’ve perfected your LinkedIn profile and created solid job board resumes its time to really start targeting specific jobs and companies that appeal to you. This is both the easiest, and most time consuming part of your job search. As a career counselor I LOVE and hate when candidates are creating a resume for a specific job.
Why do I love it?
It’s the open book exam of resume writing. Instead of taking your best guess about what will appeal to the broadest possible cross section of employers, you know exactly what the company wants. A job posting is more or less a checklist. You can tailor your position descriptions and skills section to check as many boxes as possible and demonstrate how your accomplishments match up. There’s no weighing of priorities, this project or that one, should I mention this certificate or does it take up too much room. You can base everything entirely on what the job description prioritizes.
Why do I hate it?
Creating a resume for a specific job is just as time consuming as any other resume, with considerably less bang for the buck. No matter how perfectly your resume aligns with a job there is just no way to guarantee your application makes it out of the black hole that is most company HR sites. I don’t want that to come across as overly cynical or negative, it’s just a fact that in most job searches the response rate for submitted applications is very low.
Many companies have “rolling openings” or job postings that are always up, whether they’re hiring for those positions actively or not. It gives the company a constant pipeline of applicants for high turnover positions, or just positions they have a lot of, like sales or IT support. Most of the time those rolling positions will look just like any other, so you won’t know if a role is really actively interviewing when you submit. Most companies are also required by law or policy to post their positions for a certain amount of time, even if the role is going to be filled externally or has already identified a candidate through a hiring manager's network or an external search firm.
That doesn’t mean there isn’t a point in doing those applications, it just means you shouldn’t make it a central component of your job search. Make a list of 10-15 target companies, places you’d love to work for, and check their HR site once a week. Beyond that, my professional opinion is that your time is better spent focusing on networking, outreach, and making frequent updates on platforms that get more eyeballs.
So how do you write this resume without wasting TOO much time?
Mirror the company’s language as much as possible. Borrow heavily from their stated values and priorities, especially in your summary statement. Yes, the example below is a REALLY close match, but that’s the whole point. Show the company you’ve both read and align with their values and priorities.
Job Description: You’ll be part of a big group of makers, breakers, doers and disruptors, who love to solve real problems and meet real customer needs.
Candidate Summary: Focused on doing, disrupting, and making sites that solve real problems and meet customer needs.
Treat the skills list as a checklist. At some point in every job description there is a list of desired skills and abilities. Make sure to include as many as possible in your skills section. Of COURSE you shouldn’t include anything you truly don’t know or have experience with, but if the job description listed it and you’d be comfortable talking about it in an interview - include it.
Position Description: You’ll bring solid experience in emerging and traditional technologies such as: node.js, Java, AngularJS, React, Python, REST, JSON, XML, Ruby, HTML / HTML5, CSS
Skills Section: Python, JavaScript, Java, SQL, Ruby, C++, Angular/React.js, Node.js, REST, JSON, Ruby, HTML/HTML5
Use your most recent position to provide evidence for your capabilities. Almost every position description has a list of “You Will”s or “Position Responsibilities”. You want to use your bullet points to demonstrate you can and have done as many things on that list as possible.
Position Description: Work with product owners to understand desired application capabilities and testing scenarios
Bullet Point: Collaborated with the sales team to develop and test the backend features of a new client landing page. Primarily completed in Python and Pandas, data collection features reduced data entry time and increased sales by 25%
To see this resume and job posting side by side check out the video here.