If I repeat myself with certain themes throughout this blog, it’s because I am doing my level best to drill something into your head: your executive resume needs to tell your real story, and show who you genuinely, authentically are. Every post I write regarding resumes will have something to do with this fundamental tenet.
This is important because of a trend I see in executive resumes that clients present to me for evaluation before we delve into their project. Nine times out of ten, their “before” resume will feature achievements and accomplishments that are whittled down to one line of seemingly fantastic numbers:
“Directed a marketing campaign that increased revenue 35%.”
It sure looks great. But wait: what’s the story behind that? Was the marketing campaign your idea? What was particularly innovative about the campaign? Based on what measurables did you arrive on this 35%? And make that 35% significant: is that compared to a projection of 20%? These are just a few questions that a one-line bullet immediately raises.
Your resume needs to answer questions, not generate more questions. I have been a consistently strong proponent of turning that one-line bullet into a complete story with a beginning, middle, and end. And guess what: that does not require endless verbiage that makes your resume the length of a doctoral dissertation. Let’s try this:
“Directed a marketing campaign that elevated the business’ brand, and leveraged new marketing vehicles so that sales reported a 35% increase in revenue.”
Executives, you have a breadth and depth of experience that necessitates more than the typical one line bullet. As long as the information is compelling, employers will take the time to read it.
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