Resume Tactics For Today's Career Puzzles

Let's face it, life is unpredictable and yes, unforeseen, unplanned events will happen no matter what we do. When we experience the speed bumps in life, it will spill over into the career decisions that we make. Wouldn't it be wonderful to have consistent, progressive work experience with sharp, quantifiable achievements for every job you have ever held?

Okay, now it back to reality. How many of these events have caused you to sidetrack from your career goals?

•Taking time off for a personal sabbatical, volunteer or community work
•Extended experience as an entrepreneur or in a family business
•A change in professional career
•A gap in your career history or job progression
•Old career experience that is marginal to your current career
•Early career experience that is more relevant now that you’re returning to an earlier career

Don't focus on the negative as I will demonstrate a few effective ways to handle these situations without diluting your expertise or deviating from your personal brand / value proposition on your professional resume.

A) Highlight relevant volunteer or community work experience

Paid or unpaid industry experience is still valuable -- especially for career changers. If you have been involved in substantial volunteer or community work, use these resources to demonstrate leadership skills and experience relevant to your new goals.

B) Maximize experience in an entrepreneurial or family-owned business

Whether you have gained leadership or industry experience through large corporations, working side by side with your parents or running your own enterprise, your level of expertise and what you can offer employers is all that matters at the end of the day.

Avoid using lofty titles like "President and CEO" unless you have steady career progression and significant executive management experience that spans more than 15 years. Instead, compare your career track with professionals who have similar career paths to get an idea of what your title would be in the corporate world.

For example, would it be more appropriate to give yourself the title of Regional Sales and Marketing Manager versus President and Founder, Barney Financial Services?

C) Revise existing career experience for a different industry

Make it a priority to keep your professional experience in chronological order, but only emphasize the job responsibilities, achievements and direct work that are relevant to your target position. It is quite acceptable to leave out unrelated tasks or responsibilities.

D) Minimize the effect of an employment gap

If you were laid off or the company you worked for went out of business and it took you some time to get a new position, simply insert a one-line sentence that summarizes your activities. Address the employment gap rather than ignore it, make it brief and concise – the strategy here is to not leave employers and recruiters guessing about what you were doing or where you were during that time period.

Before:

Director of Sales, Rockville, MD (2008-Present)
Sr. Sales Manager, Chicago, IL (2002-2006)

After:

Director of Sales, Rockville, MD (2008-Present)
Actively pursued full-time employment following unexpected company restructuring/downsizing. (2007)
Sr. Sales Manager, Chicago, IL (2002-2006)

If you were involved in consulting projects or highly relevant volunteer work during your "gap," handle it as you would any paid work experience.

E) Summarize early career experience that is marginally relevant

Often your career may have included very exciting, interesting jobs or prominent position titles from your early career that you don't want removed from your resume. However, avoid weighing down the document with extraneous details; here are two ways to handle early career experience on your resume without having to list every position you had since high school:

Option A:

‘Early Company Experience’ section: Delivered significant contributions to company’s revenue growth and production output through Manager of Engineering & Maintenance and Project Engineer positions.

Option B:

‘Early Career’ section: Held series of executive management and leadership roles including VP, Finance/Controller for several national restaurant chains.


About the writer
Abby M. Locke (www.premierwriting.com) is a career marketing strategist and leadership brand coach who partners with 6 figure executives and professional MBA women to help them achieve true career mastery and success through cutting-edge, career branded communications, innovative job search campaigns, and proactive career management tools.