What Employers are Looking for in a resume, or not

Most employers are looking for one of two things, whether to screen a resume in, or to screen a candidate out based on what they see in that first review. Most resumes are reviewed in about 1-2 minutes and some sort of conclusion is made on whether the prospective candidate is what they are looking for or not. This can be a good thing if your resume is being screened in, and can cause you to be screened out if your resume does not contain what they are looking for, or has content that gets you screened out.


You may very well have had a great career record, yet haven’t properly portrayed your experience. So, let’s look at must have content, and common factors that can get you screened out.

Must haves in your resume:

•  Accurate, correctly spelled information – double check your phone number and email address 
• An unbroken chronological history of employment – missing dates cause questions
• Key words relative to your industry – If you’ve been in sales, then the word must be in there. Many database programs search for your resume based on keywords
• Quantitative records of accomplishments-List not just what you accomplished, but how much and how broad
• Complete information on the company worked for, division, dates of employment, and title of position, followed by how successful you were in that role
• Education, licenses, and certifications 

So, maybe your resume has been screened in by the database, but now it’s being viewed by someone. What gets you knocked out? What must you avoid?

•  A resume that looks like a job description – In other words, you’ve written what your responsibilities were supposed to be, but have no description of what you actually accomplished
• Confusing or overlapping dates in your chronological history
• A resume that looks like it was “professionally” prepared by someone else, and lists you as an expert in many different areas – We’re not all experts in our field
• Your experience record totally unrelated to the position you are applying for. If it’s not clear somewhere in your resume that you have experience in the field that you are applying for, then it must be explained somewhere, even if that is in a cover letter.

 So, you’ve determined that your resume needs some work? Start by really deeply thinking about what your real objectives were in each of your past experiences, and just what you did to make a contribution or participate in the position’s main objectives. Actually, while you are employed, this can be one of those daily/weekly tasks, to reflect on what you accomplished that day or week. If you felt like you were really doing well towards the job’s objectives, then document it. Quarterly, semi-annual, or annual reporting periods are good times to get the bigger picture review how you are doing. Then write it down. Someday you may need it to add to your resume. It’s best to keep track of this on an ongoing basis, rather than be rushed to update your resume and have to scramble to track down the numbers.