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5 Data Points for the Top of Your Resume

Job seekers and recruiters can both be frustrated with the job search process. At times we blame technology, but often it’s the data we provide the technology that can be a big part of the problem.

The old adage of “garbage in, garbage out” applies to job search just as it does to more technical endeavors. On a recent social media conversation a hiring manager who reviews many cleared resumes — specifically cleared technical resumes — shared his frustration with receiving resumes without contact information. It’s difficult to get an interview, let alone a job, if the recruiter can’t find you!

Complete Contact Information on Your Resume

It may seem obvious, but to be clear this is what we’re talking about:

First line: Name.

Second line: Address or city where you live.

Third line: Phone number. Be forewarned, you will receive a phone call and not a text!

Fourth line: Email address.  Your email address says a lot about you. You’re in a job search so it’s time to be professional. Use an email address that is your name or your name with numbers added if you have a common name. Save the Beerchugger47 email address you’ve been using for your friends.

Fifth line: Security Clearance. Don’t bury this information on a cleared resume. It’s one of the first data points a recruiter is looking for.

If you include these 5 simple pieces of information you’ll be ahead of the game.

And just as too little information is an issue, don’t provide too much information. Multiple email addresses or phone numbers are confusing. Provide one email address and one phone number. That’s it.

Simple is Beautiful

Not only does your contact information need to be provided, it needs to be provided in a simple format.

Too many times job seekers still believe that they need to make their resume look attractive or pretty to stand out. That may mean italics, fancy fonts or lines and other graphic treatments.

Always assume that your resume will be scanned at some point in the process. And that scanner may well turn your fancy font or other graphics into an unreadable mess.

Go for simple, clean and legible, with plenty of white space and bullet points.

In a job search world where recruiters may only take 6 seconds to review a resume, if the first part of your resume is a mess or doesn’t include simple contact data, you have lost out on the opportunity even before the recruiter has the chance to look at your qualifications.