Highlight key achievements.
Hiring managers do not have much time to look at your resume so make it easy for them to see why you are different than other candidates. Highlighting key achievements by bullet pointing them at the top of your resume or at the beginning of each position section will bring attention to those areas. This does not mean that everything you have accomplished deserves a bullet point, try to pick out 3-5 instances. Achievements that matter are how you made a company money, how you saved a company money, things you did that had a positive outcome and problems you resolved.
A cover letter is your first impression.
Make your cover letter count and if you are emailing your resume, your email body is your cover letter. This is not a time to state an objective or say resume attached. This is a time for you to talk about why you are interested in working for a company, what makes you different from other potential candidates and who you are.
Include and update your contact information.
How is a hiring manager supposed to reach out to you if the phone number you provide doesn't reach you or the email address on your resume is no longer working? As stated before there is not much time allotted to the overall hiring process and you may get turned down if you cannot be reached.
Social Media is your second resume.
Most hiring managers will research you prior to an interview just like you should research a company. All forms of social media will be used to augment your resume and help the hiring manager get a better picture of who you are. Make sure that your LinkedIn profile is up to date and that your Facebook profile will not embarrass you or turn off the hiring manager.
By The Q Works Group
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