How to Write a Top-Notch Executive Resume

How to Write a Top-Notch Executive ResumeHow to Write a Top-Notch Executive ResumeIts never easy to write your own resume, and when youre an executive, or want to be, it is even harder. You probably have several things working against you youre short on time, you are focused on the big picture rather than the details and you may not have written a resume in a long time. While the points below can apply to and help anyone writing a resume, this is a breakdown of areas you should specifically focus on as an executive.See 8 Ways Millennials Can Build Leadership Skills.Refine your career profile. This is a summary of you as a leader. It is not an exhaustive list of your accomplishments and skills. If its running a half page, its too long. Even if you have a long and successful career history, youre still expected to be able to summarize it concisely. You must hone in on whats really important. Some common, though by no means exhaustive, areas you should consider highlighting at your leve l are strategy, operations, leadership (of people and teams), innovation, relationship building and change management. Dont date yourself. Some organizations value young leadership and others value the wisdom that comes with experience. No matter your age and what companies espouse, age discrimination is rampant. Therefore, its better to say extensive experience than over 30 years of experience, unless you are confident that the companies and roles you are targeting want that exact number (or more) of years of experience. This same principle extends to other parts of your resume. While in most cases youll include your work history, which will contain years, you do not need to emphasize age by including your graduation dates. See The 8 Stages of a Winning Job Search.Break down the big picture. A lot of senior executive resumes sound the same e.g., youll see general statements about PL (profit and loss) responsibility and management. Ask yourself what you do on a daily basis. Here ar e some questions to get you thinkingWhat types and levels of talent have I hired and developed over the years? What teams or departments do I lead? Who do I report to, what does that interaction look like in practice and how frequent is it? Have I leuchtdiode business transformations or major changes, and if so, what did I do and how did it change the organization? Present results without breaking confidentiality. As an executive, there are a lot of key details you cannot share on paper due to confidentiality agreements, especially when youve been working in a private company. So you need to get creative. Perhaps you cant state sales or revenue numbers, but you may be able to use an estimated percentage growth year over year, or over a number of years. Maybe you grew your team threefold but cant divulge exact numbers thats fine, write that you tripled the size of the team. Also, consider areas youve pioneered or turned around. If a business unit or retail store was underperforming a nd you made it profitable, thats a result that you can point to without divulging a number. See Famous CEOs and Executives Share Their Best Career Advice.Highlight key accomplishments. This is a key section for an executive resume, and it should be just below your profile. Go for quality over quantity. After youve compiled your bullets with results, go through them and select three to five that you are most proud of. You may want to ask a friend or trusted colleague if they agree with your choices, or have any others to suggest. Summarize roles over 10 years old. Its likely that you wont have space for details of jobs over 10 years old, and the truth is, most employers will not take the time to read that anyway. You only need to include your past titles, organizations, locations and years held. If there is anything from that period that you feel is important to expand on, you can do that in an interview. Include awards and media exposure. Awards and select media should be separate s ections. Awards should be listed with titles, organizations and years received. Obviously, if you do not have any awards or media appearances, articles written or interviews, you wont need these sections. If you do, choose five or less media appearances from the past few years, and include a hyperlink on the title. The rest is up to you. If you have space on your two-page resume (yes, it should only be two pages), and have specialized skills, speak foreign languages, participate in volunteer or philanthropic activities or have hobbies, you may want to include those items in another section. These all contribute to your story and show that you are well-rounded outside of your professional accomplishments. 10 Ways to Perfect Your Personal Brand