Job searching in 2021 in this quasi post-pandemic era is unlike any other time. Your executive resume must reflect this new dynamic. If you are still using the same resume you had in 2019, even if you have not changed jobs, you still need to make these changes.
The high impact executive resume demonstrates your results. Too often these resumes are loaded with the tasks and duties of the job. Top management is hired for effectiveness first, competency second. You may have all the experience in the world, but if you can’t show you created value and achieved top results, then that experience really doesn’t matter.
Think about when you are hiring for a high-level position. Would you rather hire 20 years of “experience” or 10 years of stellar performance?
The 20 year veteran might have the same, or even better, results than the 10 year candidate. But if the resume doesn’t show it, then it didn’t happen. And don’t count on your potential employer to just infer experience equals results. Tell them.
At no time is this truer than today!
In the video above, Lisa Rangel of Chameleon Resumesgives you four, high impact tips to make your executive resume stand out from all others.
We really like how she approaches this subject because her four tips are focused on demonstrating value and results.
These are some tips she actually shared back in April and May of 2020. It was when the pandemic had really kicked up and we had a big shift of people working from home almost overnight.
As Lisa points out, a lot of what we’ve experienced in working from home isn’t going to change back to what we were doing before. Many thought leaders are saying that in corporate America remote working is going to remain and likely increase.
That means if your executive resume is still written in the 2019 (or earlier) mindset, it is out of date.
So here are her four tips that we really encourage you to apply…
TIP 1: Demonstrate Your Impact On Revenue Streams
Lisa jumps right into this first tip for executive resume writing in 2021. You need to demonstrate how you either…
- Reinforced revenue streams
- Created new revenue streams, or…
- Reinvented revenue streams
It is important you show your tangible, quantifiable impact on revenue streams in this past year.
Take a look at the sample resume below, courtesy of Career Steering.
Note how this revenue impact is clear, specific, tangible, and in the upper half of the resume.
Frankly, as Lisa points out, any other point in your career where you’ve done any of these three things in a tumultuous time would stand out. However, this is a time like no other in recent business history. Clearly demonstrating that you have that ability to re-envision how business needs to be done makes your stand out from others who can’t articulate that.
Companies want to hire executives that are going to be able to operate without a playbook.
There is still a great deal of uncertainty about how this post-pandemic and vaccination era will play out over the next year. Coupled with some radical new corporate tax proposals, there is no crystal ball that can forecast the business climate for the next 12 to 24 months.
Companies want to hire individuals that are able to roll with the punches. You’re not always going to be able to forecast what’s coming. You have to demonstrate in your resume that you can operate without a manual or a documented forecast.
TIP 2: Demonstrate Your Impact On Margins
Perhaps more important than your impact on revenue is Lisa’s second tip. You want to be able to show how you have creatively cut costs in order to increase those margins.
And don’t just jump into how you cut people and salary. Your future employer wants you want to show creativity.
Innovative executives in these times don’t want to just automatically go to salary cuts. In some cases, when you cut salaries you’re cutting the brainpower of the company. You are cutting the heart of an organization. It is this heart that keeps it going. You need that corporate brainpower so the company can keep reinventing itself as the marketplace changes.
Plus, your sustainability, your consistency in employees helps keep clients happy.
You want to show how leveraged cost-saving measures that involve things like automation. Demonstrate how your existing talent can be reused differently. At the same time, you’re still getting the benefits of work being done efficiently and effectively.
Are there automation tools or remote working tools that you’re putting into place that might save on real estate?
Show creative cost-cutting measures that don’t decrease efficiency, that don’t involve getting rid of people. We all know the incalculable effect this has on morale and we’re already going through a tough time.
Make sure your resume articulates where you have creatively increased margins, but didn’t necessarily cut people. Include how you still got the benefits, the bonuses and the perks for making those changes.
TIP 3: You Have Effectively Managed People Remotely
The third executive resume writing tip for 2021 is you want to be able to show how you have hired, trained, and managed teams remotely. And that you did it well.
Show how your people achieved results and that you even promoted some while working in a remote situation.
Explain how you were able to develop people, even though they were never in the same physical space with you. Show how you reduced attrition by managing them well.
Your executive resume should also demonstrate that you are able to find talent in this new corporate workplace. You likely had to innovate new ways to attract and onboard people. This is not always easy for the employee or the organization in a remote setting. Yet, this is the reality and teams still have to grow and develop.
TIP 4: Show You Can Thrive With Ambiguity
The fourth tip for executive resume writing in 2021 is you want to be able to show that you can operate with uncertainty, with ambiguity. You’re able to thrive in it, not just survive.
This tip is in many ways related to the other three. If you don’t have clear examples you can use of Tips 1, 2, or 3, you can just focus on theming your resume around this idea.
Some examples you can include might be…
- You had closings that were unexpected. So how did you get reopened?
- What creative plays did you put into action to make that reopening happen?
- Were you able to shift from a brick and mortar operation to an online situation?
- Were you able to implement internet marketing tools that were able to increase revenues online because you had to shut down brick and mortar institutions?
- There are so many different ways to demonstrate how you have thrived in this new economy.
Companies want to see people who can plan for, and roll with, the unexpected. This is the balance that you want to have in a resume for your job search process.
Next Steps
So now your work begins. If you are serious about finding a new job, use these tips and start updating your resume now.
Once you have updated it, reshare it with potential employers who may already have your resume. If you have your resume posted somewhere, change it to your new one.
Send us your resume and we will make it searchable to over 1000 executive recruiting firms.
(Your name and contact info will be kept confidential)
Also, comment below about what has been the most beneficial tip for you in this post.
If you know of someone who will benefit from the information in this video, make sure you actually share this post with them. There are lots of information and resources here to make your executive job search successful.
You can also email Lisa at LR@ChameleonResumes.com. I am sure she would enjoy hearing how this video has impacted your job search. She says she reads and responds to every email.