What message is your resume transmitting?

Many job seekers still base their job search on the practice of churning out resumes to as many prospects as possible. While delivering your resume into the hands of key recruiters is essential to a successful job search, it may also be detrimental if your resume isn't spreading the right message.

If you are being contacted for irrelevant positions or just not being contacted at all, it's time to analyze the message your resume is sending to employers. Take a look at our resume checklist to ensure you are telling hiring managers what they want to know:

State the facts

Your resume is a strategic marketing tool and the product being sold is YOU. Be explicit about who you are and the value you can bring to an organization.

Define your job target and your immediate career goals so you can convince hiring managers that you are the right person for the job.

It's not me, it's you

Instead of starting your executive resume with a self-centered objective statement, use one that is brand-focused and illustrates how employers will benefit from hiring you.

Keep it brief

The simple rule of quality not quantity applies when sharing the depth and scope of your experience and responsibilities with potential employers. Even with many years of experience, you can highlight your key qualifications without being too wordy by carefully selecting descriptive words that summarize your responsibilities.

Are you only telling employers what you are paid to do?

Use a strong value proposition to balance statements which communicate your leadership and management responsibilities to employers. For instance, you may choose to include your revenue objectives, number of reports or the title of your immediate boss. Condense the details into three to five sentences which make good use of active verbs and industry-specific keywords.

Maximize your valuable resume space

For details on important projects, achievements, and other accolades. Which candidate sells their achievements upfront?

Show your stripes

Stand out from your peers by extracting strong statements from your performance evaluations or management feedback reports. These will make an immediate connection with employers and entice them to call you in for a personal interview.

Prove it

Demonstrate your strengths by illustrating with noteworthy achievement statements. However, be sure to communicate the context in which the achievement was made - in other words, saying that you grew revenues 25% in one year sounds fantastic, but if it was already growing at that pace then your actual contribution was minimal.

Review your resume and ensure you're marketing your selling points (qualifications, experience, quantifiable results) and you'll be able to focus on which interview request to receive, instead of who to send your resume to next.