Has anyone here successfully 'dumbed-down' your resume?

[Sub Atomic]

Up until 2 years ago, I was a mid-career IT professional on track to move into mid-level management. I've held positions that have been extremely complex and have provided me with a very strong, yet broad, skillset.

A couple of weeks ago a friend of mine suggested I 'dumb down' my resume to see if that will help the phone to start ringing. The problem is that I have absolutely no idea where to start. Do I negate my system architecture experience? Eliminate my Oracle training? Flat out lie to make it sound like I had menial positions?

If anybody here has successfully 'dumbed-down' your resume, I would love to hear what you did and the positive effects it had on getting called back.

Thanks

:hi:

[cbdo2007]

1. Are they calling you in for interviews or not even responding to your resume?

That may make a difference if it's the resume that's the problem or something else. If they aren't even calling you in for interviews, it probably is your resume and when I think of "dumb down" in regards to a resume it probably means it just needs to be simplified and cleaned up to be glanced at rather than read.

I've looked at some resumes that are crazy long...two pages, everything is explained in detail and it all runs together and it's just draining to look at. On the other hand, some resumes just cut right to the point. Clear bullet points pointing to your experience and skills, some concise explanatory words of your prior jobs, etc.

Good luck to you!

[Sub Atomic]

3. I'm not even getting responses any more.

It's disheartening to the point where I'm considering applying for work in Iraq.

My resume is two pages long, and I believe it's pretty clear. Education and skills are a large block on my resume, thus the two pages. If I were to attempt to include those individual skills into each specific job function, it would push it to three pages. But I've found that I have to include that section otherwise my resume doesn't make it through optical screening.

[cbdo2007]

7. I'm sorry to hear that and I do wish you tons of luck.

I'm certainly no expert by any means, but I have done some hiring in the past so I can just pass along my opinion. (and I'm in the IT field as well)

I would definitely try to cut it down to one page or even 1 and 1/4 pages and try to cut out anything that isn't absolutely necessary and applicable to the job you are sending it in for. You may need to change it up specifically for each job you are applying for, to switch out some skills for others just depending on what skills they are requiring. With your education background, just list the biggest, most recent item like if you got a Masters from Harvard just put that on there and nothing else.

Assume the person reading your resume is the HR person at the company and he isn't in your specific field so he won't know all of the complex titles and qualifications you have - therefore, just list the basics with a very short description of each if needed.

Also, one thing I've done is I've actually called a company afterward and spoken to the person who I sent my resume in to and never called me back and I just said flat out, "Can you please give me some constructive criticism of my resume so that I can get calls back? I'm wondering what specifically may have put me in the "do not call" pile?"

I hope this helps.

[LynzM]

2. Just saw this posted....

I know this doesn't specifically answer your questions, but maybe it'll help in some form...

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=105&topic_id=9288142&mesg_id=9288142

Good luck!

[RaleighNCDUer]

4. I haven't had to try it, but one way might be to moderate it down -

instead of saying "9 years experience with..." say "familiar with...". The trick there is that people with weak resumes use those same words to boost themselves - they once read a manual, and had a friend go through some basics with them, and now say they are 'familiar with' whatever.

No idea if that would work, but it's worth considering. The idea, of course, is to not have the prospective employer thinking you are overqualified and therefore likely to bug out at the first better option presented to you.

[Sub Atomic]

6. "the prospective employer thinking you are overqualified"

I've been told that so many times I just want to puke.

Of course I'm overqualified. But that doesn't mean I'm not willing to do the job and commit to an employer.

I have yet to apply for a position that I would not do.

[scorpiogirl]

11. My husband has the same problem

He barely gets phone calls and I think it's because he has some large, well-known companies on his resume.

Wouldn't it be nice if these companies didn't assume that you wouldn't commit to a job that might be beneath you? He's been out of work for over a 1 1/2 years. I also think they think they can't afford to hire him. After living on EDD all this time, we'd take about anything that would cover most of the bills. I completely understand your problem.

[JVS]

5. Nope.

[Forkboy]

8. Like I'd have to.

:)

[notadmblnd]

9. I have that problem too. I only had one job in my life (28yrs in IT)

I applied to work at a gas station midnights. I spoke with the manager, she said she would be doing interviews the following week. Next time I stopped in, she had already done her hiring. I figured I must have been a threat to her job since I have managerial experience along with IT experience. So what skills do I take off my resume?

[cbdo2007]

16. Would have to see your resume....but if you listed more than just some basic skills

in relation to your 28 year job, "dependent and reliable, team worker, enjoy new challenges" then it probably DID intimidate them into not calling.

List the 28 year job - of course. BUT don't go into detail about all of your IT experience in that position and all of the programs you know and complex projects you worked on.

One big problem with IT resumes is that they are way too technical and complex for just your average person doing the hiring anywhere. Have someone who doesn't know anything about IT besides how to check their email, give you some good feedback on your resume about what they understand and what they don't, etc.

[notadmblnd]

19. I have taken all the years off, now I just put "more than 10"

it's one page and lists personal references also. All my skills are listed in bullet points with a short cover letter.

[Deep13]

10. I used the Martin Yates techniques.

This was in the 1990s before online or electronic resumes. Still, I have to think the principles are still good.

[scubadude]

12. You mean you don't have several versions of your resumé?

That is one of the first things you do. Tailor your resumé for different job types you are going for. Many folks tailor there resume for each submission. The goal is to highlight skill sets that the prospective employer is interested in.

Remember, your target audience is often Human Resources Managers who don't really know the job specific details anyway. Often broad brush strokes and clean presentation is what gains attention. If they find these and are looking for more detail, they will ask for them in an interview...

One thing for certain though, never lie on a resumé.

Here's a link to a very simple formula: http://www.ehow.com/how_2343733_tailor-resume-specific-jobs.html

Best of luck,

Scuba

[tonysam]

14. There is NO way I am going to do that. I am applying for a huge

variety of jobs, although they are all related to my experience in a wide variety of fields.

[scubadude]

17. That is your choice...

Life isn't always easy.

Scuba

[virgdem]

23. Very wise advice..

from one who writes resumes for a living. Targeting your resume with the requisite key words is imperative if you want to get your foot in the door. Tailoring a resume for each position that is applied for is the way to go. And I agree - never lie on a resume. You can embellish your skill set but never lie outright about any position held in the past as it will probably come back to bite you.

[tonysam]

13. It's impossible for me to "dumb" down my resume; however,

I am going to have to completely redo it. Chronological just doesn't cut it for me anymore, especially since I have been unemployed for two years.

I do not want to create a different resume for a different job, but I am going to have to find a way to put the skills up front and then just list the specific companies/positions I have held on the bottom.

[eeyore]

20. As a person who interviews and hires, I must say you are cheating yourself...

Whenever I put out an ad for a job I get as many as 175 resumes in a day to weed through. It is grueling and, unfortunately, I have no choice but to find reasons to disqualify candidates.

Some things you've said on this thread about your resume would put you, at the very least, in my borderline pile.

You said you have a 2 page resume. I will regularly reject candidates who list experience that does not apply specifically to the job I am hiring for. I don't have the time to weed through a resume that lists superfluous qualifications, and I see that as a candidate being too lazy to point me specifically to their skills that qualify them for the job.

Also, you've said you're not willing to dumb it down. Perhaps what your friend was saying was that you need to simplify it. Just make it easier for a screener to read. Again, I get frustrated when someone makes me go through a huge list of qualifications to find the one I'm looking for.

If you're not willing to tailor your resume for each application you will likely not get calls back. You must immediately tell me how you are qualified for THIS job. At the very least you must write a short cover letter that points me to your skills that directly qualify you for this job. If I find no evidence that your resume is responding directly to my ad, I will assume that it wasn't worth your time to try to communicate to me why you are a good fit for this exact job.

Not to be harsh, but your inflexibility will be your downfall. Make it easy on the person doing the hiring. They are going through huge piles of resumes, just trying to make the pile smaller. It's rough, but when I'm doing it I am looking for reasons to put people in the reject pile.

[TwilightGardener]

15. Mine's pretty dumb. Why mess with perfection?

[Berry Cool]

18. I have already taken and applied every bit of modern-day advice out there about resumes.

In seven months, it has resulted in exactly one series of interviews that didn't lead to an offer, and a single phone call asking to see samples of my work that was finally answered with a rejection letter after I sent the samples.

I hate to sound negative, but... :shrug:

[bridgit]

21. Lord knows we can't have IT professionals suggesting they've ever held "menial" jobs...

But if you're taking many more words than "Oracle based design, implementation & operation of system architectures" you're probably taking too long to tell them how special you think you are. Drop the height, weight and color of your eyes stuff. Drop the goals & aspirations - if your previous employer had of cared for those they'd have found a way to keep you on that path

There are other ways to tighten up a narrative, make it read more concisely. Of course if you're unable to point to a time-line of sustained work; a historical or chronological resume form may not be best. My husband's resume covers 40yrs of contiguous work experience that receives hits back all the time. And aside from laying out several skill-sets interwoven with like-minded tangential work experience it remains on one page and reads like stereo instructions

Good Luck! Everything is re-tooling, including the job market. But I'm not convinced 'dumbing down' your resume is the answer in an economy that is requiring so many to dummy up

[hack89]

22. Emphasize any network security experience

if you have any - that seems to be a high demand skill. If you can, tailor a resume that just highlights security, post it and see what happens.

[hfojvt]

24. I did

I left my master's degree off of it, because they might use that as an excuse to not hire me.

[librechik]

25. tailor your resume to the job you are applying for

sending out blind gen res apps is for losers. Pick out the place (or places) where you want to work, find out what they need, and aim for that. Take any job to get into the place you want to work. Don't accept a no as the permanent answer. Be polite, cheerful and persistent. Entry level is fine, right? (if it's the place you want to work--once they get to know you maybe you can move up.)

Don't be distracted by unimportant considerations like your pride or previous payscales. Work is whoredom, plain and simple. You can do that with a smile. If you want to pay the bills.

If you need to get a fast food job or something else outside your field, just stick w the high school diploma or maybe 2 yrs college and say where you worked, not what you did. If they press harder, just say you have other experience, but it's not relevant to the position you're applying for. I have done this, and it worked. The boss is tired of hiring idiots, he might hire somebody who might be overqualified. There's a big turnover in those jobs anyway, so they don't care.

[GoCubsGo]

26. No, but....

I did have my resume sent to an intern position, when I had applied for a "Scientist/Senior Scientist" position. I am qualified for the "Senior" level there. Why they thought someone with a Masters degree and 20+ years of experience would want an internship is beyond me. I found that out from my neighbor, who knows people in the HR department of the company where I applied. Don't know if they have incompetents working in their HR department, or if the person dealing with it had a less qualified friend who was interested in the job. They did the same to a friend of mine. This is how it has been for me for going on 3 years. I would give up, but since I have to make a living somehow, I can't do that.

[ShamelessHussy]

27. I recommend TARGETING your resume to the job you are applying for

Being in an IT career one can go on an on about all the skills they have gained over the years, but I find it more effective to TARGET the resume at the job.

That doesn't mean leaving out any skills, but maybe just including them in a list form, and then in the areas where you should talk about successful projects, only talk about the ones pertaining to the job you are applying for. Make sure the headings and titles focus on what they are looking for.

In my case, I am a web developer with experience on both the front and back ends, but when i am applying for a front end position i will focus and elaborate on only those skill sets, and vice versa if it is more of a back end position.

the other thing to consider no matter what the position is to make sure your resume LOOKS good, image is everything, and people are drawn to beautiful things, so in order to help your resume stand out from the STACK take the extra time to make sure it looks good. and that doesn't mean the contents, just the look-n-feel of it.

best of luck to you! :toast:

[Habibi]

28. There's some good advice in this thread.

I'd also recommend the resume articles written by Liz Ryan: http://www.asklizryan.com/library/lizsarticles.html

[JPZenger]

29. Don't dumb it down, but customize it

Create one very long resume, and then delete and re-order things to emphasize the particular job opening. I would never dumb down an IT resume - people want flexibility in experience.

[RobinA]

30. I Go With

one long resume and then I collapse certain portions. Being 52 and a serial career changer, I put the unrelated jobs simply as places and dates so they know I wasn't goofing off for 20 years. Then I customize my in-field experience for the specific job. I would dumb down in a minute if I had to, take the Masters right off. I was told flat out I was overqualified once, but then I went to the public sector and they were happy to hire me overqualified. I very quickly became not overqualified, which is one advantage to aiming low to get in the door.

[Trailrider1951]

31. There are many great suggestions here for you, and I was in your place

when I found my present position four years ago at age 54. Here are two magic words that will help tremendously: "Salary negotiable". I mean it.

I am a geologist. I, too, had a laundry list of education, skills and qualifications after 25 years in the petroleum and engineering industries. I looked great on paper. I also looked expensive. People these days are looking for bargains. So, I let my company know in a subtle way that they could afford me. They wanted my knowledge and skills, and hired me at a salary not too far below my previous earnings, and then proceeded to adjust my salary upward for the next 3 years when they knew that I was perfect for the job. So, tailor your resume to fit the position your applying for, and let them know they may just get the perfect employee for a price they can afford. Good Luck!!!

[Berry Cool]

32. Are you kidding?? "Salary negotiable" is no longer an acceptable statement.

Four years ago I'm sure it still was, but not anymore. Employers want a dollar figure and they want a firm one. That way they can either reject you for wanting too much (you think you're so good we can afford to pay you THAT????), or reject you for undervaluing yourself (you must not be worth much if you're willing to accept THAT!!!!). Either way, you lose. But there are some online applications you fill out today that have no "negotiable" option for stating a desired salary. They will kick back the form as uncompleted until you fill in an dollar amount. What should you fill in? Who knows?

[Jonathan_Collins]

33. Customize

should you not be customizing your resume for different opportunities? have you tried that?