chapter 10 building a winning résumé the most important document you will develop over the course...
TRANSCRIPT
Chapter 10Building a Winning Résumé
The most important document you will
develop over the course of your career is
your résumé. Whether it’s a one-pager
when you’re getting your career started or
two- to three-pager for grizzled veteran,
your written résumé has to effectively
communicate everything you can bring to
the workplace. It must stand out from a
pile of résumés on the desk of a potential
employer.
Chronological RésuméThe example we just looked at was a chronological
résumé. It’s laid out with the most recent
accomplishments listed first. This is also called
reverse chronological order. The example was based
closely on one of the author’s former students who
now works in the audio post-production industry
(SOUND FOR FILM).
Remember, your professional resume is a marketing
tool designed to secure the next step in the job
acquisition process.
IT IS NOT your autobiography, your life story, nor
must it include every job or volunteer activity
you’ve engaged in. The more directly you can
explain to a prospective employer what you are
seeking with respect to your career, and make the
case for why you are a qualified candidate, the
more likely it is your résumé will result in interviews
and job offers.
Now we’ll look at another style of style of résumé:
The Functional Résumé
A functional résumé enables you to list
accomplishments in the order you feel best
represents your qualifications for a particular career
path. When is the functional résumé appropriate?
Usually, when you either have gaps in your
timeline, or you’re changing careers.
Notice that in the “functional” example, that the
current law job only occupies one space and the
experience more relevant to the job applied for is
more prominent and more abundant.
Important anecdote from the
author on the next page!
“A colleague of mine who is a senior human-
resources executive once shared an interesting fact
with me. I had always been under the impression
that the people who screen résumés, especially at
larger firms, looked for the strongest résumés of
those submitted. I was surprised to learn that it’s
often actually the opposite case. In many larger
companies, a résumé screener’s job is to look for
mistakes: to take as many résumés as they can and
justifiably put them in the shredder. Why? “This one
is full of misspellings.” (Buzzzzzz….. Goes the
shredder.) “This one says she only will work in
A&R.” (Buzzzzzzzzzzz.)
“This one says he wants to be president of the
label.” (Buzzzzz.)
In a large organization, the résumé screener’s job is
not to pick the strongest résumé; it’s to leave a pile
of non-offensive résumés for their supervisor’s
review. That’s why you cannot afford the slightest
error or mistake on your résumé. It can quickly
eliminate you from consideration.”
It’s critically to make sure that your
résumé is read and proofread by
other people, ideally a professional,
such as a career counselor at your
school or college!
Chapter 10 (continued)
Never underestimate the
power of a strong Résumé• A well-crafted résumé is a strong
statement that you are a leading
candidate for a prospective opening.
• It may be the ONLY chance for you to sell
yourself to your potential new boss!
Example: Job offer in New York that you
hear about from your network.
• You call to confirm company is looking for
someone with some of the same
qualifications as you
• They request a résumé
• Your résumé represents:• Your life
• Your skills
• Your net worth
• Your total marketable skills to date that relate to that
job
Will your résumé be the best,
strongest, tightest document
you can create, or a quickie
that you copied out of a
résumé book you picked up
the night before?
Which of the above is destined for the
shredder?
In this same scenario, another
candidate sends only a naked
résumé and you send a well-crafted
one WITH a well-written cover letter.
Which candidate will have a better
chance of avoiding the shredder?
Ans: No-brainer
• What is a “naked résumé?”
• What is a cover letter? (answers on
next page)
A “naked résumé” is one that does not
include a cover letter and is almost as
serious a faux pas as showing up naked for
an interview!
The only time not to include a cover letter is
if a job posting states “résumés only”
which is a vary rare occurrence.
A cover letter enables you to highlight key
points on your résumé and shows you
have done your research on the company
Important Elements - Résumé
Identity
• Literally who you are
• Name at top – slightly larger font
• 14 to 18 point type if body of résumé is 10 -
12
• No fancy fonts – résumés often scanned – a
fancy font may wind up being unreadable
after scanning
• Exception would be for graphic designer job
» Still need to be a bit conservative
Résumé Elements - continuedJob Objective
Example: To obtain an entry-level position at
a music publishing company to learn more
about the publishing industry.
Good statement above: remember, you can
adapt your job objective statement for
different situations without necessarily
having to change your résumé.
Résumé Elements - continued
Another example: To land an entry-level
position at an established recording studio
to expand my recording knowledge and
skills.
Above example is for a candidate that wants
to be in the studio business and is not sure
in what capacity. Even though it is generic,
it still shows a potential employer that the
candidate has a goal in mind.
Résumé Elements - continued
Experience
• Where you can detail accomplishments
• Many intimidated about listing accomplishments
• Rule of thumb – emphasize strongest
accomplishments regardless of where you were
employed!
• As your career evolves, your résumé will reflect
more industry experience.
Résumé Elements - continuedEducation
How important is it in the music industry?
More and more as the industry changes!
• Hundreds of schools and colleges that
offer training in the workings of the music
industry, covering:• Basics of industry, common practices, copyright law,
artist management, record label operations, and
many other facets of the industry
Résumé Elements - continued
Education (continued)
• Studios, labels, management companies,
and many other industry entities that hire
entry-level staff rely on music industry
programs to provide candidates with
rudimentary skills and knowledge of the
industry.
• Most of these programs include required
internships before graduation – great way
to gain skills
Résumé Elements - continued
Education (continued)
• No music industry education?
• Still important to list any educational
background including high school
• Took music industry courses but didn’t graduate?
• List the relevant courses you completed
• Far too many résumés don’t list education at all
which is a big mistake
• Prospective employers want to know that you
are literate.
Résumé Elements - continuedBackground and interests
Why include these on your résumé?
• Potential rapport builder – interviewer might
share an interest – great ice-breaker
• Example – you have an extensive record
collection of a particular genre. While you are
researching jobs you find a label that specializes
in the same genre. Listing it on your résumé
could be very helpful
Résumé Elements - continuedBackground and interests (continued)
• Avoid mentioning controversial, highly charged,
religious or political interests
• Do not PAD your résumé with any untruths! It will
almost always come back to haunt and
embarrass you – you will also lose all credibility –
there have been CEOs who lost their jobs when it
was discovered that they lied on their résumé.
Résumé Elements - continuedReferences
Not usually done – common practice is
to list: References available on
request
If you state the above, you need to make sure that
you have secured some references ahead of time
in case a prospective employer requests them!
Résumé Elements - continued
• References (continued)
Who to get references from?
• Anyone you have worked with in a
professional capacity
• If you are a student, you could ask one of
your instructors
Résumé Elements - continued
References (continued)
Asking family is taboo, especially if potential
employer finds out.
Important Point (not in book):
What have you done to deserve a
recommendation?
Do you think someone should recommend
you when it could jeopardize their
credibility?
Progressive Career Growth
As your career grows, so should your
résumé.
After you have had some work experience
and you are hopefully progressing up the
career ladder, that fact should be
represented in your résumé. Potential
employers are sharp enough to look for
positive career growth on your résumé and
if they don’t see it, Buzzzzzzz goes you
know what!
PresentationPresentation is extremely important
including:
• Clear clean and uncluttered
• Easy to read – leave some white
space
• Stick with white paper and
conservative fonts
• Proof read – have someone else proof
read!
Final Thoughts on Résumé Editing Students often ask, “should I revise or edit
my résumé for each job opportunity?”
Short answer is no! You may wind up losing the
essence of a carefully crafted document in the
process. The job objective should definitely be
changed to fit the particular job you are seeking
and the cover letter should always reflect the fact
that you are knowledgeable about the company
you are applying to and pointing out ways you
would be valuable.