My conclusion, after reading all of these articles on resumes, is that resumes and cover letters suck. It just seems that we have to put sop much work into these documents, and it seems almost pointless. After reading the articles from the recruitment managers it seems like you have to make a perfect resume for these people. You put so much work into a resume just for it to be glanced at for maybe a max of one minute. It just does not seem fair that we have to put all of this time and effort into producing an effective resume for it to be discarded at the whim of the recruiter.
I am also completely sick of all of these resume tips that everyone seems to have. Even after reading all of these articles and receiving all of these resume tips I still really have no idea of how to make an effective and useful resume. It seems to me that each recruiter has their own personal preferences as to how a resume should be formatted. The objective part of the resume is a good example. Most official resume reviewers like the CCO will tell you that the objective is a very important part of the resume, but I have also heard from family members and friends that have resumes that the objective portion of the resume is never really even read.
What I have gathered from these articles and readings is that when I make my resume I should be aware of any key words and make sure to incorporate them into my resume. I should try to create a unique format for my resume. What I do not know is what sections should absolutely be included in my resume besides job experiences. I think there needs to be some sort of standard that everyone has to follow no matter what. This would clear up all the confusion and just make everything easier.
One Common Point
It's hard to decide what the truth is when all of these articles tell us different things, but I think that they all stress the importance of focusing on the layout, your education, and your job history. I think that all of us are getting mixed signals on things like the objective statement, but what's the big deal? It's only been a line or two on most of the resumes I've seen, so is it really that hard to include one? It's called an objective statement for a reason. Make it objective. Tell the employer what you want and how your skills will benefit the company. If they read it, great! If not, then oh well. Your education and job history will tell them much more about you anyway. If the statement were taking up half the page, then I'd reconsider, but I think that I can sacrifice two lines of space.
Yeah... They Suck
I feel like everyone in our situation agrees with your opinion. For lack of better words, resumes and cover letters do suck. I’ve been telling myself that ever since I jumped into the market. And I understand when you say that there are way too many suggestions out there. And one of the effects of it is further confusion and paranoia.
All of these tips and recommendations are built on one idea: a resume represent your professional potential. This is one of the most important steps of your life. And in order to get it right, there are an unlimited amount of questions that need to be answered. And after all, to land a career you only have one chance to impress company representatives. It is easy to become more intimidated after reading these articles. I am guilty of that as well. But it is important to look at it as valuable advice.
Think it out
It seems that the only way to make a perfect resume is to ask the person who will be reading it what they look for in one. Of course if you got to know them beforehand you would have a much better chance at getting the job.
All of the tips from the people who read resumes would not help that much as they conflicted with each other. The other tips were more like a guide of what to do. In the end you should just gather all of the opinions together and choose the best ones. Think it out and do not write anything that would make you seem like a bad choice for their company.
Jeff
Objective Statements
All you can attempt to do is tailor your resume and cover letter to the employer your creating it for. Whether or not you believe the Objective statement will be read, why not error on the side of making it as good as it can be anyway? Surely no employer will throw your resume out simply because you included one. I do agree that using the job ad's own keywords will be a key factor in "making the cut", and hopefully will get your resume a second look. After this point its up to other things such as your portfolio and your performance in an interview as to whether or not you land the job.
A glimpse and a bad piece of advice
Your comment got me thinking. Just because one person says he doesn't look at a section doesn't mean you shouldn't include it for someone else. HR people are scanning for some stuff and managers may be looking for other stuff. So throw some bait to both of them, even though one will probably ignore the other's bait thinking it's useless.
That brings me to "A glimpse and a hook." For the most part, the writer put some great advice out there for those who know how to take it. I do think, however, that he put one piece of really bad advice on there: not to include cover letters. His justification is that he doesn't read them and they aren't passed along to him. For him, they make no difference, good or bad, because he never sees them. So it's not like it hurts you to have one, even in his eyes. And he doesn't mention whether or not HR uses the cover letters, he just knows they don't give them to him. So what does he know?! My advice: forget about that guy and use a cover letter.
Agreed
I am in almost complete agreement with you on this stuff. I particularly liked the Douglas Richardson article; it seemed to be a big whine fest about him not wanting to to his job and read resumes. It seems like there is too much emphasis on the reasons why people shouldn't read your resume. At the same time, no effort was made to establish any sort of standard for resume formatting or content. This leaves us with, simply, one choice-to list several key words in the beginning of the resume much like some people do on Youtube videos so they can get more hits. That way their resume scans will give positive feedback and no one even has to read through the rest of the document!