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Different Types of Content Focused Resume Decision Matrix

The document outlines different types of resumes, including chronological, functional, combination, and targeted resumes, each with specific use cases and advantages. Chronological resumes highlight work history, functional resumes focus on skills, combination resumes blend both, and targeted resumes are customized for specific job applications. The author emphasizes the importance of tailoring resumes to present the best career narrative and increase chances of being noticed by employers.

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zahin1127
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8 views2 pages

Different Types of Content Focused Resume Decision Matrix

The document outlines different types of resumes, including chronological, functional, combination, and targeted resumes, each with specific use cases and advantages. Chronological resumes highlight work history, functional resumes focus on skills, combination resumes blend both, and targeted resumes are customized for specific job applications. The author emphasizes the importance of tailoring resumes to present the best career narrative and increase chances of being noticed by employers.

Uploaded by

zahin1127
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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BUILDING A COMPELLING RESUME OR CV: SECTION 2

DIFFERENT TYPES OF CONTENT FOCUSED RESUME


DECISION MATRIX
Now even though I focus most of this course on combination resumes, most of the styles out
there just reassemble the parts I encourage you to include. As you well know, one size does not
fit all when it comes to resumes and CVs. For this reason, I wanted to provide you a document
to help you determine the type of resume that will likely place your career in the best light:

CHRONOLOGICAL RESUMES

1. Chronological resumes are the classic resume format. They start by listing work history
in reverse chronological order, beginning with your most recent job down. This resume
has been classically preferred by most employers because it provides a quick snapshot
of work history, with most recent positions up front. However, it often makes it hard to
see relevant details and career highlights and lacks any real content focus. So it doesn’t
work for everyone.
2. Who should use it? If you have a solid work history, your experience is aligned with the
job you are applying to, and you have no lapses between employment, this format will
help put the focus on your strong and continued work history. However, I still
recommend beginning with a tagline and profile to address the lack of focus that can
make a long list of jobs a bit intimidating to decipher quickly.

FUNCTIONAL RESUMES

1. Unlike chronological resumes, functional resumes focus on your skills and experience
first. This type of resume de-emphasizes the dates in which you have worked.
Employment history is secondary, and is listed under the details of your skills.
2. Who should use it? If you have lapses in employment, are in the middle of a career
transition, are a recent college grad with limited work experience, or have a diverse
background with no clear career path, this is can be a very effective type of resume.
Remember, instead of just hiding what you don’t want them to see (like little experience
or a lapse), give them something relevant to think about as you focus your resume up
front. Again, I recommend a tag line and profile as well as an achievements/
competencies section to start things off if you have relevant information to talk about.
Avoid using these sections as filler, use them strategically when you have information
you don’t want missed. If you don’t have enough for an achievements/competencies
section, it’s better to leave it out and have more impressive work history.

COMBINATION RESUMES

1. Combination resumes let you detail both your skills and experience, while also backing
this up with a chronological listing of work history. Flexible in nature, the combination
resume lets you tailor to the prospective job opening and tell hiring managers a story.
Because it has all the elements I find important of both functional and chronological
resumes, I typically recommend this to my clients.
2. Who should use it? I find most clients can benefit from “combining” the useful parts of
other resume formats to build one that works best for them. So use this resume if you
want to detail work experience to show hiring managers the type of employee you are.
If you really want to have that professional history the focus, remove competencies and
have 1 – 3 short bullets about your biggest, best career wins. This will motivate them to
learn more about these wins by moving to your professional history to discover more.
Thus focusing their reading with a purpose and helping to control the way they skim and
reasons they skip lines when they are in a hurry.

TARGETED RESUMES

1. Targeted resumes are customized in detail to the prospective job you are seeking.
Everything from your objective, your qualifications to educational experience mirrors
the job requirements. In my opinion, this is not a separate type of resume, though I list
it as such as some of you likely have heard of it as different from combination and
functional resumes. My experience has taught me that targeting a resume is the best
way you can cut through the noise of all those other applications to ensure you get
noticed. So I want you to think about it as a “targeted chronological resume” or a
“targeted combination resume” instead of one or the other. I encourage every one of
you to use a targeted approach as I discuss in the course.
2. Who should use it? Yes, these resumes are the most time-consuming, but ask around.
You’ll find I’m right when I tell you they can generate the best results as the
qualifications and experience you outline mirror the prospective job opening closely. I
believe the combination resume gives great opportunity to quickly customize your
resume to target it to a new employer. By swapping in key skills, terms, and roles from
each new listing into the same spots in your resume, you’ll develop strong skills to
quickly target any resume or CV to a new position. Again, I recommend everyone try to
implement some targeting techniques in their resume/CV.

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