As you apply for a job in today’s world, you must set your mind and put effort into crafting your job search tools. To achieve the results that you desire in your job application, you must exert double time, research, skills, and commitment to present yourself before recruiters. These are crucial to ensure you’ll be able to put your best foot forward as a job candidate and land your target job. With that, what should you put at the top of your resume as you pitch yourself? Ditch your old objective for resume. Instead, write a more defined resume summary.
Now, how can this help you ace your job hunt?
In this blog, we’ll walk you through the trends and tips in writing a resume objective as we start anew and move forward this 2022 and beyond. Read on to know how to build a killer career summary to help you snag your aspired job.
What is a Resume Objective?
Before anything else, let’s first define the terms and look at some key points.
A resume objective or career objective is a short preview of your short-term job search and career goals. It is often placed at the start of a resume to help persuade hiring managers that you’re their best bet for the job post. For you to write a strong resume objective statement, you must know the best traits hiring managers want to see in a candidate. You can start by checking the job requirements and job roles. Hence, the objective statement is not a one-size-fits-all part of a resume. To make it more convincing, tailor it to fit the job you’re applying for.
How the Resume Objective Has Changed Through the Years
Along with the fast advancements in technology, job search trends have also evolved. For instance, instead of screening each resume one by one, most companies, firms, and organizations today use applicant tracking systems (ATS). These software help recruiters and hiring managers filter, sort, and arrange job search tools based on pre-defined standards. This is only one of the many resume trends you must know if you’re planning to enter the current job market. Also, this changes how you, as a job seeker, must craft and update your resume.
A brief sample of this is the change in resume objective writing. Before, this section simply states one’s career goals, like this:
To be employed as a marketing manager in a digital marketing industry.
However, it evolved into a more detailed career statement to fit the current trend:
Creative professional with over five years of experience in marketing management. Seeking employment in a digital marketing industry where I can provide my expertise as marketing manager.
Further, it’s not enough to let recruiters know your job goals to be on top of today’s job market. You must also go the extra mile and provide them a good basis to choose you. How? State your skills in your resume and relevant work experience history to let them know why you make the best fit for the job role.
If you want to learn more about this topic, read this: What Happened to Resume Objectives (and Why Summary Statements are the New Norm)
When to Use Resume Objective
Based on a report from Ladders in 2020, most hiring managers spend 7.4 seconds to scan a single resume. Hence, to make them go on and read the rest of your job search tool, you must add a strong introduction. However, you may be worried that you lack work experience. Fret not! This is when you can use resume objectives. This type of job search tool intro is most helpful for fresh graduates and career shifters.
There’s also another scenario: If you have enough related skills to your desired job post even if you’re a newbie, career experts suggest writing a resume summary instead. This is an extensive version of your objective for resume which is a more impactful intro to use in writing your job search tool.
Transform Your Objective for Resume to a Resume Summary
Now, how do you adapt to the new trend of writing a strong resume summary? Heed these tips and tricks to see how this can improve your resume and overall job application!
Describe your professional title.
Waste no time! Use your 7 seconds of spotlight wisely as recruiters scan your resume. Start to establish your brand right away.
Introduce yourself as a professional and state your years in the field. Highlight your expertise without sounding too boastful. You must also keep in mind that this part will set the tone for the rest of your job search tool, so make it count.
Mention your value offer.
Your value offer comprises your skills and traits that set you apart from the rest. This can include the awards you have received in your past job roles. You can also flaunt here your expertise in the field combined with your good character. Yes, apart from skills, hiring managers also look into one’s personality and attitude.
Translate achievements to numbers.
To support your value offer, you can list your accomplishments.
Hiring managers want to read numbers in one’s resume, so present your achievements in form of percentage, numbers, or sales figures. This helps them see a glimpse of how you can practically contribute at work both as an individual and as part of a team. So, don’t forget to include the fruits of your hard work in your intro.
Sprinkle resume keywords.
In relation to the ATS, career experts strongly advise job seekers like you to add enough proper keywords into their resume summary. Since this section is one of the key parts of a job search tool, it’s most likely to be scanned by the software. This helps increase the odds of having your resume pass the initial screening of job applications.
Sum up and end strong.
After listing all the mentioned elements of a good resume intro, it’s time to weave them together in a compelling statement. As much as possible, keep it concise yet impactful. Condense your intro into a short paragraph, usually one to two sentences only. This allows you to show who you are as a candidate and let recruiters know why they should choose to interview and hire you. Besides, your goal here is to prove you can catch their attention with just a striking snippet through your powerful intro pitch, enough for them to check the entire resume. As a result, you’ve already passed the 7-second test and now have higher chances of getting invited for a job call!
To add, here are some common mistakes to avoid in writing your resume objective or summary:
- Using the same objective for every job you’re applying for
- Being too vague about your goals and skills
- Focusing too much on yourself
Secure a Job Interview Today with a Well-Written Resume
Similar to the factors that play a big part in the job market, job search trends also change. Thus, you must stay abreast and level up your resume writing skills and techniques if you want to snag a spot in today’s tight job competition. Transform your objective for resume into an intro that’s aligned with and will capture your broader career goals and your winning feats. Apply the tips we listed for you and be ready to secure more job calls.
Lastly, we know you only want the best for your job search. So, we suggest that you hire an expert resume writer to be your trusted partner in acing your job search and reaching your career goals. Resume Professional Writers houses trusted specialists dedicated to make your credentials stand out through topnotch resumes and other job search tools. What are you waiting for? Talk to our career experts now and check out our resume writing services today!
