Thousands of companies around the world float job postings daily and literally millions of people apply. One of the most daunting tasks HR managers have at hand is sorting out piles and piles of resumes to make the best hiring decision. It’s like locating a needle in a haystack. Human psychology has a lot to do in resume making. You might be the king of your skill, but your resume mistakes could ruin your image and your CV would go straight to the dustbin.
Laszlo Bock, Google’s senior VP of people operations has reviewed thousands and thousands of resumes. He lays down some of the basic criterion for the resume and what mistakes could crush any CV.
Your Resume Has Typo(s)
Strange it may sound by a majority of the resumes are riddled with typos. Remember, a single typo in your CV is enough for rejection. You are applying for a job with a CV which is not flawless in language? According to Bock, companies are not here to check your English writing skills, but typos show that you do not have a keen interest, attention to detail and focus, which are the primary driving forces of the modern corporate world.
It’s an Essay, not Resume
You just cannot list down each and every accomplishment you got. One page CV is a rule, but if you have plenty of experience, Bock says that one page for every 10 years is the correct way to opt. If your CV is 3 pages loaded with rants, it has no place except dustbin, ofcourse.
You Shared Your Current, Previous Company’s Secret
Many candidates, in a bid to stand out, list down apparently confidential information of the company they are currently working for. This harbingers that the applicant lacks workplace ethics, has no regard for the contractual bonds he signed the first day. Any decent company would never risk taking such a person on board.
Mashable’s DBA series interviewed hundreds of business leaders, CEO and HR directors, who gave some really useful and crisp reasons for rejecting the CVs. These points clearly show what common mistakes you should avoid.
You Have no Internet Presence
You MUST be searchable on the internet. Companies don’t expect you to be an online superstar, but a name search should list you on LinkedIn, Google+, Twitter.
You Are Still Using Old Email Account Domains
If you are still using AOL or Hotmail email id, this shows you archaic way of dealing things. It may sound offensive, but that’s the way it is. Modern corporate ecosystem wants freshness, tech use and up to date candidates. Using a Gmail ID is useful in this regard, according to the leaders cited by Mashable.
You are not To the Point
No one has time to see your familiarity with business language and your “theories”. Get straight to the point. Tell the reader of your Resume what you sold. No one wants to hear what projects you worked on in your first college semester. Tell people what success you got in the real world. How many websites you helped succeed.
You Don’t Write
This is really important. Your online presence is the key in every modern job. Preferably, you must have your own website, blog apart from social media pages, but if you haven’t, there are several self-publishing platforms like Medium, Quora. You must jot down your thoughts and the business leader must be able to see the real side of YOU.
Image: Mashable
