Update Your Résumé Month and BCM’s YouTube channel update

Brand Career Management Newsletter – September 2020

Hello Everyone,   

Many things in the world have changed but one thing you can count on is that September is still Update Your Résumé Month. Even though many people claim that the résumé is dead, I believe it will always be a handy, and sometimes necessary, tool in your career management box. After all, asking for your résumé is a very common question to receive when you are networking for a job search. Speaking of job search, I wrote a blog last month on how job search has changed (and not ) during COVID).

Have you updated your résumé recently? Maybe this issue will inspire you to take a peek? As you can guess, the theme for this month is résumés so all shared posts and the LinkedIn Tip of the Month address this topic.

Finally, I want to share that our new BCM YouTube channel launched successfully this summer. I would like to personally thank all of the supporters who helped us reach 100 YouTube subscribers within 30 days which enabled us to customize the URL to: https://www.youtube.com/c/BrandCareerManagement.

On behalf of BCM, we truly appreciate your help!

Enjoy the Labor Day holiday,

Paula

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LINKED IN – TIP OF THE MONTH

Should you add your résumé to your LinkedIn profile? This is a question that comes up often so let me share my thoughts. My short answer is no. The main reason is customization. If you are using a résumé effectively, you are adapting it (slightly or greatly as appropriate) to each individual opportunity.

If you are applying for mostly accountant type roles, you probably don’t need to make major edits each time. However, you will still want to reflect any specific qualifications. For example, if you don’t normally include your excellent knowledge of Excel on your résumé but one job opening asks for experience with that software, you might want to make a point to add “Advanced skills with Excel” somewhere on that version.

That’s only one example but trust me, you shouldn’t post a résumé on LinkedIn. In case you’re thinking of a workaround, it’s also not a good idea to upload five different versions of your résumé to appeal to as many audiences as possible. That will make you look odd at best, and at worst desperate and confused.

The best strategy is to develop a warm and compelling LinkedIn profile. At minimum this would include: a decent picture, a keyword rich headline, a useful and conversational About/Summary, and ten skills that are on point with some information under experience and education. Your goal is for someone to come across your profile and want to reach out to ask for a résumé. At that point, you can ask more about the opportunity and tailor your résumé accordingly.

There may be some unique situations where it’s helpful to have your résumé on your LinkedIn profile, mainly if you are constantly asked for it. For example, a consultant who is regularly asked last-minute to provide a résumé for a contract or a speaker who is often asked for background information. In those cases, it might be OK (but even then, for branding reasons, I would suggest a landing page on your own website). For most of us professionals, adding a résumé to your profile will only limit your chances of being sought after for an opportunity. So next time you are thinking about it, consider instead adding any type of portfolio work, media, PDFs, videos, or links to content but please, don’t add your résumé to your LinkedIn profile.

NEW LinkedIn Index:  We’re excited to announce that a LinkedIn Tip Index is now available on the BCM website. If you go to this page, you can access all of the LinkedIn Tips without having to dig into archived newsletters. Please let us know if you find this resource useful. 

USEFUL ARTICLES WITH LINKS

The posts below will provide insights and advice on résumé issues such as how long should it be, how to use keywords effectively, and how to adapt your document for specific circumstances.

First off, let’s address the length issue. I have never bought into the myth that a résumé must be one page and neither has Irina Ivanova of cbsnews.com. In fact, this post shares results of a study suggesting that recruiters actually prefer two pages. 

You have probably heard that keywords are essential to any résumé. LinkedIn expert and résumé writer, Donna Svei, shares a tool for parsing keywords from a job posting and explains how to put them to use. 

Another tool for identifying keywords is www.tagcrowd.com. This free site allows you to easily create a word cloud for free by uploading a document. If you create a word cloud from your résumé and then compare it to a word cloud of the job posting, you can see if the most frequently used words align. 

Award-winning résumé writer, Erin Kennedy shares excellent examples of different résumés for many common situations and why each technique was used on job-hunt.org and best-selling author, Martin Yate, offers insights on preparing your résumé during the time of COVID (though his advice is spot on for any thoughtful job search campaign any time).

If you’re feeling adventurous, you might want to consider a video résumé. It’s not for everyone but if you’re interested, check out this 4-minute read by Conrad Benz of Glassdoor on FastCompany.com. He explains the basics of why and how to do it.

EVENTS & ANNOUNCEMENTS

On August 15th, I participated as a panelist for the Esthers Preparation Room Global, a group empowering professional women. We discussed how to understand and refine your personal brand. Here is the recording.

On August 21st, I joined a panel of colleagues who also run career-related businesses for an online event by the Maryland Career Development Association (MCDA) on entrepreneurship and starting a business. 

In case you missed it…

Happy 5th Anniversary to Brand Career Management (BCM)!

BCM now has a YouTube Channel. Check it out here

As mentioned above, the BCM website now has a LinkedIn Tips index. Now it’s easier to find old LinkedIn Tips by going to this page.

Paula Brand – Global Career Coach & Consultant | LinkedIn Expert | Speaker, Trainer, Facilitator |
Founder of Brand Career Management

 

Brand Career Management (BCM) helps professionals strategically manage their careers, apply effective job search techniques, and leverage social media tools to secure their best career options with ease. We provide an array of career services designed to meet your current needs. Write to: paula@brandcareermanagement.com or call me at 443-254-8173.

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