Want Your Resume to Look Standard? Think Again

Business is learning it. Apple's done it. Ikea and Target have ridden this horse all the way to the bank. What is it? Design. Not as accessory to the brand but integral to it. Roger Martin writes in Fast Company, "Design, in short, is becoming an ever more important engine of corporate profit: It's no longer enough simply to outperform the competition; to thrive in a world of ceaseless and rapid change, businesspeople have to outimagine the competition as well. They must begin to think--to become--more like designers."

What does this signify for job seekers writing their resumes? That it's a good idea to pay attention, not just to content, but to how you get your message across visually. Using a Word template? Hiring authorities have seen thousands of them. Using a traditional style of resume may just fail to capture attention. If you are seeking a $100K+ job, do you think an ordinary design is going to help? Make no mistake, if your resume design looks cheesy, you are not apt to be taken as seriously as someone whose resume conveys, through its design and content, that the person has a sought-after value proposition.

What does a design-driven resume look like? There are as many designs as there are creative people developing them. But one tip is to take a look at how various media present information. I occasionally take a design idea from The Boston Globe or Wired Magazine. For my IT and life sciences clients, I want the look to be fresh and edgy. Sometimes I will follow their leads by using sidebars with pithy short news items listed. It's a great way to get across brand by highlighting key achievements and qualifications. If you look at how Wired Magazine communicates, you'll notice information communicated in visual chunks distinguished by placement, color, and font. You can skip the color and proceed with unusual placement and text blocks.

But make sure your design matches your brand. If you are in a creative field, use the design of your resume to reflect your ability to be creative. If you are an accountant, you might want to err on the side of a conservative design - the resume equivalent of a conservative business suit: original and high-end, but sober and serious.

So, given a choice, would you rather your resume be a Target or a Kohl's? I know my preference.

Posted by Jean Cummings
Cross-posted at Career Management Alliance blog

Comments

[Deb Dib]

Jean, your perspective is absolutely where people need to be if they want to differentiate themselves on paper. Will a candidate's message be read as readily if it's in a traditional or templated resume shell? Probably not.

A resume that draws the reader in and guides the eye to critical information is a well-designed resume. A resume that creates visual buzz (in a good way) is a well-designed resume.

Top performers can easily look "less than" if they use bland, banal resume formats -- especially in these days of "design for the masses" where good design is can be found in even the most mudane items. Of course, resumes to be used on-line must be simplified to be database-friendly, but resumes for human readers can, and should, shine.

Thanks for your insights!

Deb Dib, the CEO Coach for $300K to $1M+ executives.
"Unabashedly passionate about helping visionary, gutsy, fun leaders with a conscience build great careers, mold great companies, and even change the world a bit!"

[Bigg Success]

Love the post, Jean! Your idea to look at media is fantastic! We would add that if you’re not a little uncomfortable with your design, it’s probably not edgy enough to set you apart.

[CrossVirgie32]

I strictly recommend not to hold off until you get enough money to buy all you need! You can just take the personal loans or college loan and feel free