How to layout and format Resume and CV Content

Resume and Curriculum Vitae writing is an art, they say, to the point that many businesses do just that. Resume is your first introduction or impression to people with authority and a certain power over future events. And thus, it has to be good communication, and more than good, it has to be influential.

Part 1: Understanding Requirement

Purpose to present a Resume or a CV usually account for two general conditions, Academic or Professional. These may further be broken down but the base understanding differs in only these two formats. There are other uses, but they can be understood in either of the two ways or both with mixed requirements. It is advised to study the requirement carefully. Further points elaborate on prioritizing and planning the content scheme based on such requirements.

·         Academic

Academic refer to the institutional requirements of the communication and evaluation of say, college admissions, internal selections, and such. The content for these communications is meant to focus more on the learning and growth of a person than on the skills learned. Numerical achievements like scores, ranks, GPAs, etc top the priority list. Next, comes the course works, certifications, experience and co-curricular. The content is taken as a whole but emphasis is given according to priority.

·         Professional

Professional refers to the organizational requirements in work related communication and evaluation as in the case of a job application, or a freelance contract application, where individuals need to be evaluated. The content for these should focus more on the experience, skills, and essential professional-social values. Note that, any in-house joining or internal evaluation resume/CV should emphasize on experience and then, skills in priority. While a third-party or external work (contract acquisition) should emphasize skills, then, experience in the priority. Further content should be prioritized as certifications, achievements, course works, and co-curricular.

·         Miscellaneous

Other requirements can be planned on either or a mixed priority depending on the requirements of the communication. Keep the most relevant part of the content in the highest place followed by closest related content and so on. For example, a professional sports club admission resume should focus more on skills, sports related achievements, prizes and ranks, certifications, co-curricular (sports and activities other than applied for), and course work. Starting off as a professional one but very similar to academic, emphasizing the sport as the education. A good point would be to start with prioritizing skills, experience, learning, and achievements and the remaining content in this order.

Part 2 Understanding Content

The content of a resume/CV is pretty static but has a hidden dynamic with the way it is presented.  The dynamics come out of the proper segregation and inter-linked representation in the document. The basic classification of the content and its value is required to create the overall aura in the documents.

·         Skills

Skills refer to the smaller proficiencies that can be used independently and can account for a scalable undertaking when used together. Skills are of two forms, professional skills, and general skills. The former represents the ability to perform and the latter becomes essential to perform in certain environments and conditions. Their importance differs on the requirements, i.e. working in the office to working from outside, making a group presentation to individual reports, etc.  They emphasize on the proficiency and efficiency of performance.

·         Experience

Experience is the reflection of previous undertakings and learning, and in general, reflects on the proficiency and trust on skills. Any form of undertaking that brings out any skills and/or sharpens them can be counted in the experience, even if they are not directly professional. Like in the case of volunteering experience in organizing a marathon, giving experience in event management, people skills, team work and such. It represents the maturity, understanding, commitment, and much more.

·         Learning

Learning is the set of processes in which skills are picked, tested and approved, knowledge is acquired and credibility is gained. Course works and certifications usually account for the documented learning. However, the field itself is not confined to anything and can be used with every other content in some way or the other and is the primary inter-linking mechanism to connect the content. Any skills that are known but under-development can also be specified safely as learning. These represent traits like consistency, progressive attitude, and awareness and open mindedness.

·         Achievements

Achievements amount to the accomplishment recognized performance, results, scores and such. They are very factual and discreet. They are a direct representation of performance and its outcomes. Depending on the achievement itself, they may represent persistence, hard work, patience and other such traits as well.

·         Elaboration on Inter-Dependency

All the content categories are inter-dependent on each other which should be carefully used to bring the ‘right foot forward’ and make the best impression while clearly conveying the information and the message. On the basic level, Experience brings Learning; Learning generates Skills; Skills produce Achievements. Although it is much more complicated, this flow is one of the best to use. Another flow that can be used is Skills applied in Experience brought Learning and led to Achievement. Similar simple flows can be used to interlink content and emphasize the different aspects of the presentation. These are especially advantageous to represent in the CVs, where descriptive details can be given.

An example of professional CV content would be:

ü  XYZ Company, Content Writer, Full-time

ü  Worked on the content for marketing and branding campaigns along with Social Media Engagement. Learned and tested the possibilities of content distribution and linking throughout the internet, and in turn, developed Content Management Skills and Social Media Strategy.

ü  One of the best results was a live Twitter campaign where we engaged the audience around the world for a week and received 20,000 website visits.

It is a short description that covers experience based learning and skill development and further goes on to represent results. The last part, however, is not recommended to be added. Or can be added as, “Specialization in Twitter based live campaigns for directing high volumes of traffic to websites.”

Part 3 Understanding Layout

Basic accepted formats for a resume/CV are of two kinds, Chronological and Functional. Also, there is a third more versatile format which is a combination of both. Each has its own properties and advantages and should be selected accordingly. However, they should be taken as a base reference to build upon and keep content in check.

·         Chronological

The chronological format is the one in which the content is filled in a timeline manner, from recent to older. It is generally preferred for a consistent history and focuses on the experience and professional background. Preferable for professional communications with the similar level of the prospectus as presently held. The format doesn’t highlight progress in general but a persistent nature.

·         Functional

A Functional format is the one focusing on skills or learning giving the experience a sideline as the means to it. It is preferred for academic communications, or for professional prospectus in which the evaluation is to be carried out for a not-directly-related line of work or for the prospectus of upper ranks than currently held. This format highlights versatile nature along with progress.

·         Combinatory

Combinatory formats are custom formats that are a hybrid of both Chronological and Functional and are used to highlight aspects of custom requirements. They are recommended for creative and unconventional prospectus, be it professional or academic in nature.

Part 4 - Final Layout and Design

After considering all the above, it’s time to select a Format, Pick and Prioritize Content, and start laying it out on a template. (You can find some basic templates according to requirements in the source links.)

·         Layout for Resume

Since a resume is a short and non-descriptive document, not exceeding two pages (one preferred), the content cannot be laid out as per previous examples. In a general resume layout in either format, headings and bullet points are used. Depending on the content plan, fill in all the details. You can refer to another WikiHow article in the source links for more details, however, the templates are self-explanatory. The resume itself cannot exceed two pages, thus, make use of every line to compile all related points together, if possible, or categorize accordingly. Do not make complicated sentences.

·         Design for Resume

The design for a resume should be kept simple and easy to understand with no graphical elements except border and tables (optional). Use either of the general fonts, Time New Roman, Arial, Georgia, etc in the font sizes ranging from 10-14 (max).

However, to be graphically more descriptive, as a workaround, a table can be made based on the order of priority. The left column can be filled Experience, Roles, and Responsibilities, Skills Developed, Accomplishments, with the subsequent rows filled in chronological order of experience. The details themselves should be headings and neatly placed for a good clutter free design. Other details may be filled in according to the planned content in general layout as in templates.

An example for a filled column as per a given example will be:

ü  Content Writer, XYZ Company (Experience)

ü  Content aid for Marketing, Branding and Social Media (Roles and Responsibilities)

ü  Content Management, Social Media Strategy (Skills Developed)

ü  High Traffic Volumes via Twitter (Accomplishments)

Layout for CV

Curriculum Vitae is a much more versatile format than the resume and is more expressive. They are especially useful for highlighting the learning process and dedication put into previous works. Thus, the layout can be inspired by a resume template to begin with, with content filled in with more descriptive details. Add a field right after the heading namely “Abstract” or “Personal Profile” or “Introduction” with a short two sentence description of self and goals. Avoid general adjectives. Then, begin with laying out the planned content in properly headed and sub-headed form. Keep sentences simple and minimal. The breakdown in two or more points/paragraphs to emphasize on the profile and undertakings and such points. Do not repeat content. If say, the skills are already described with work profiles, try to bring the remaining in the same field (in a different heading ‘Misc’ maybe) and skip the whole field. Describe only the points that you wish to emphasize upon. Give a minimal description for others.

Design for CV

ü  Design for a CV differs from a resume in a few ways, otherwise, the rest is the same.

ü  Borders should be avoided, and visible or invisible margins should be added.

Always believe in yourself and learn not to say no’, says today's women leaders

Daniel H Pink, the famous American business management author, has said “Satisfaction depends not merely on having goals, but on having the right goals”. And he’s right! Women leaders are contributing new approaches to leadership and transforming power play at work.

Yet the question remains – will this translate into an advantageous situation for all women employees allowing them to make their way higher in the corporate hierarchy? Here’s what some women holding top positions in leading corporates in India have to say about achieving success in a challenging business environment.

Rosita Rabindra, chief people officer, NIIT Technologies, shares her take on pursuing a successful career, “My mantra for motivation to pursue a professional career is to be able to keep evolving and learning new things. I believe in giving my 100%, deriving joy from everything I do, be it professional or personal. The overall work environment, trustworthy leadership and the impact that I am able to have on the organisation are also important factors which keep me going at work.”

Anisha Motwani, director & chief marketing officer, Max Life Insurance, is driven by passion and advises female leaders to follow their instincts to make it big in the corporate world. “Passion is what should energise and propel you to get things done effortlessly. You do not feel burdened or stressed because you are focused in doing things that excite you. That way, you’ll be able to define success in your own terms and create a life you are proud of,” says Motwani.

“My mantra for motivation is powered by three aspects self-belief, touching lives of others around you and being a role model. We women see more inflection points in life than men do and so it becomes necessary for us to prioritise tasks,” says Srimathi Shivashankar – AVP diversity & sustainability, HCL Technologies.

“The question to be asked here is how can you as a woman reasonably accommodate your family into the fabric of decision- making and then prioritise accordingly,” she says. Rachna Mukherjee, chief human resources of ficer, Schneider Electric India advises young female leaders to be strong.

“It’s important for every woman to be self-reliant and emotionally strong. We, as women, manage not only our homes and professions but also a myriad of emotions involved in both spheres. Therefore, it is essential that we have a strong head on our shoulders,” she says.

The Most Unconventional Tips to Crack A Telephonic Interview

Months on end of searching for a source of income, job or freelance, while working on a series of small projects, I stumbled across a few really neat hacks for social interactions, especially on the smarter-than-thou-phone.

And it so happened, a lot of job prospectus from the web, email, and self-discovered resume (which took 4 days to make, more on this sometime, maybe) caught a few eyes and got my number dialed (and at the most convenient hours with me in the most inconvenient conditions). And made the struggle really real!

Never did I mess up a call (pro tip: you are almost always out of network) but it took a while for the converted calls to become an offer. Mostly freelance, and finally, a job. The funny part is, I am working in the same industry now which I was trying to make work for myself, Recruitment.
(It's really hard to control the urge of hashtagging Throwback)

Enough of small talks, let's get down to the point. After a lot of telephonic conversations, almost always manipulatively turned into an interview and further led on to personal interviews, here are my few cents (left) from it.

On a serious note, telephonic interviews lack direct human connection because of which a lot of aspects are overlooked. I stumbled upon this hack cause it can't be ever devised cause of being the most subtle and deeply influencing of all the hacks.

Looking at the mirror, at yourself, brings a sense of presence or company and subconsciously imparts a certain discipline. Also, actively looking at self and listening to the voices, yours and the interviewer’s can help analyze post-interview, better body language, and expression, which will eventually show in interpersonal interactions.

Also, often our (bad) emotions like nervousness, frown, anger (if ever) can only be identified through facial expression by self and can be controlled in time to eventually evade any negative impact on the impression we impart. Looking at a smiling self-image also helps in boosting confidence.

If you are not convinced, read it again and notice the seriousness and to-the-point approach to convey this one point. There are many more subtle positives with sitting in front of the mirror while on phone.

The Mathematics of the Equation

So, with all the hacks combined to give the best shot to a telephonic interview, you'll find yourself sitting in a lotus position, in front of the mirror talking to a stranger and smiling at yourself! If I may add, share these with your roommates, parents, or whoever you live with. Do I really have to tell you why!

BEST FORMAL DRESSING TIPS FOR AN INTERVIEW

After going through those rigorous process of tests of different nature, finally the call arrives, Interview. And preparing for the interview is an examination in itself with no syllabus to refer to. Taking those extra careful steps to finally enter the dream job, there always seems to be something overlooked.

Checklist: Preparation and Knowledge Base - Check; Resume and Layout - Check; Language and Communication Skills - Check; Attire - Check

Yet, there is a chance that with everything in line, it would still feel incomplete. So, what is it that still needs a check?

Well, the answer is "Integrity."

Integrity here, refers to the overall aura and personality represented by you and your checklist items. The goal is to make them all demonstrate in-line, the same message, in the same tone, and in the same manner as the job requires. So let us begin!

 Understand Your Profile and Opportunity

Your profile and the opportunity you are seeking should be the go to factor to define your presentation. Profile covers your Education, Training and other general norms, Experience (if any, relevant or not), other aspects of your growth, everything represented in a single format of a proper resume (alongwith documents). Opportunity refers to the Job Prospectus, Work Requirements, Growth Prospects, Employer (Company) and so on. Getting a general understanding of either is essential to decide on the dress up.

 Factors to Consider

The primary factors from your resume to consider while dressing up for the interview are; the educational background, position being offered, experience (any), and persona. Let's take it one by one.

Education: If your education (alongside your age) is on the intermediate to lower end, dressing strictly formal but not over dressing is the safest bet (general formal attire, solid white, very light blue, very light grey shirt or the gender/cultural comtemporary clothing for upper body, dark pants/contemporary clothing accordingly for the lower part).

On the higher side of education, a suit jacket or a proper suit must do (or the gender/cultural counterpart). Formal shoes, and well managed hair (especially if non-conservative in length and cut) can never be overlooked. It reflects sincerety at the least, if not 'the expected' maturity.

Position: The level of the position offered is a big factor in this regard. Dress as a person would if they are two ranks above your offered position. Anything over it is not recommended. As a simple fact, any interview is conducted by a person at least 3-4 ranks above the offered position, and thus, a well balanced progressive attitude can be maintained by dressing.

Thus, a clerical bank job interview can be dressed for in simple formals, while an operation's engineer (junior operation's manager) should be given in a simple suit, anything above should be dressed for sharply and much more conservatively. Reflects upon the professional attitude towards work and environment, also, understanding and presence of mind.

Experience: Experience is the one factor that brings complication in both the resume formatting and personal presentation. Without experience, the former rules are the ones that apply. With experience, it further complicates to your previous position held, company profile, work culture attended; these factors were independent of the current. It is best to dress somewhere in between of the expected and required.

Say you were in a corporate culture before at a lower-mid level position; dress like a corporate mid-senior level employee (well tailored suit) if the position remains similar; unless you are expected of better dressing in the new workplace. With experience, one is expected to know how to present themselves well.

Employer: Your attire and the respect for the position and the company is probably the strongest sign of sincerety. Always research well on the employer's profile and dress accordingly alongwith the above factors in consideration. However, if the employer maintains a casual environment in their workplace, casual formals is the minimum sincerety to show.

 The Formula

Recruitment process is more about your understanding and proficiency of the job you are being tested for. And as a rule of thumb, Experience and Previous Employer's Profile trumps all other factors. Also, candidate with experience are expected to understand these matters as well.

Unless the experience is added with higher education, it remains the sole representator of your profile with respectful weightage to your education and past records. In the former case (experience enhanced with further education), taking things a little over would not harm, under-dressing will though. However, consulting your professor or an experienced individual is always the best bet.

If there is no prior experience or something that reflects on similar grounds on a cultural side, go for the better of the dressing as pointed out by taking your education and position in the account.

Career Counseling and Why We Should Get It?

A counselor is a professional, expert in helping and guiding individuals or a group of, by understanding them and their requirements. Now add to it your career, professional life, and educational needs, a counsel is somewhat of a real requirement.

Career counselors, good ones, are often themselves recruitment industry experts or consultants and are aware of the industry and economic trends in general. From government jobs, industry specific requirements to international opportunities, it is their profession to keep tabs on it all.

But why should you seek a counsel (for yourself or someone you care for)?

Well, the answer lies in the fact that most of the developing countries and growing economies are experiencing an awareness gap between industries and education. Also, talent identification and development has long been eclipsed by the general bias towards educational pursuits.

Add to it the constantly changing industrial and commercial environment due to technology; it becomes very complicated to look into.

Professionals involved in career management are aware of all these trends and changes. And most importantly, they understand the individual needs and capabilities first before providing any information, like an intelligent custom job search system.

Also, lack of general awareness (among youngsters and their parents especially) often leaves job seekers with complications in going through, for example, a simpler process like that of bank jobs and exams.

When should you seek career counseling?

As soon as possible, especially if the counsel sought out for a student looking into higher studies or in the initiating stages of professional life. During the professional life, any period of transitions, job switch, promotions, and such will be the times to get some.

Any alternative?

Well yes, since career counselors keep a whole repository of knowledge and understanding, it can be developed for us as well, say through the online articles by career management services. Either way, it is the application of the said knowledge that matters.

So, whichever option you choose to go for, it is about making informed decisions and working towards a continuous growth. And our best wishes for yours!

Work-life integration is the new mantra

The demonetization drive has had many organisations worrying about their employees having to waste time queuing up to withdraw cash from banks. Many of them are in talks with banks to ensure that ATMs close to or in the office premises are well stocked. They are also working out arrangements with banks to set up kiosks. Many have also set up concierge desks that ensure that all credit card bills, travel bookings etc are managed by dedicated staff so that employees save on their precious personal time. 

Work-life integration, unlike work life balance, is all about employees designing their own work schedule and not about clocking in a certain number of fixed hours. It is more to do with how well and how fast you accomplish a task from home or anywhere in the world rather than the number of hours you spend in the office. 

Progressive companies taking pro-employee steps, especially now when a large number of millennials are joining the workforce, are the ones that have more engaged employees who feel they lead the perfect mix of work and life.

According to the book, Bring work to life by bringing life to work by Tracy Brower, companies that have introduced this concept are more engaged, healthy and happier as it helps people bring their best selves to work every single day. It enhances employee engagement, satisfaction, retention and health and yields better company results. When employees have minimal distractions between work and life, they can bring their best selves to the office, she says in her book.
Companies are launching work-life support systems at the workplace by creating a pool of volunteers who can be on call if an employee has an emergency to attend. Some are simply declaring a week off at the end of the year for employees to enjoy and begin the new year with a fresh mind.

How they structure the way they lead their life at work and at home depends on employees. They can come in early to beat the traffic rush and go home early – it depends entirely on them to decide. 

“For companies it is a way to engage with employees, sending out a message that you trust them”, says SV Nathan, chief talent officer, Deloitte. “For us, it is about creatively structuring holidays for our employees. We as an organisation have decided to declare the last week of the year as a holiday. Three days are contributed by the company, two by the employee and the remaining two make up the weekend. We have realised that it is important for our people to take a pause and start afresh next year,” Nathan says.

Companies have started contributing their bit by ensuring that mid-career professionals whose parents need attention can spend some hours in the office and the rest at home. Others are providing medical insurance not only for parents but also parents-in-law. 

“If your programme can fit into an employee’s life, contracting a certain number of hours, people will work better. Organisations have to find ways to plug the gaps, it has to draw a line between where work stops and life begins, start respecting people and their priorities and get them to feel comfortable. And much of it depends on their reporting managers and their contribution in making the lives of employees less stressful,” he says. 

All of this leads to increased commitment, productivity and engagement. Increased productivity leads to profitability and attrition goes down considerably. Rakesh Deshmukh, CEO, Indus OS, says that more and more companies will eventually start implementing work-life integration measures to resonate with the desires and expectations of the existing millennial talent in the country. His company does not count the number of hours an employee puts in office but prioritises the tasks completed. “Creating happy employees benefits us in the long run as they are more than happy to stay back during weekends or during times when there is excessive work,” he says.

Richard Lobo, SVP and head HR, Infosys, says that people choose to integrate work and personal time as it helps them seamlessly move between these two worlds at any point. “The beginning of work-life integration need not necessarily spell the death of work-life balance, as it remains a personal choice,” he says.

Dr Moorthy K Uppaluri, MD and CEO, Randstad India, is of the opinion that most progressive employers are embracing the concept and that is the future of workplaces. Now there are mechanisms in place to monitor the value employees have added at the workplace. 
The design of the work should be such that employees should be able to check in and check out at different places and across global teams and time 
zones, he says.

At Lenovo, managers have been sensitised about what works for people and what does not. “We do not have a swipe in, swipe out the system in our offices. We understand people need to be flexible and as long as their mind is free of worries, they are able to put in their best at work,” says Rohit Sandal, HR director, Lenovo India.

Directi recently had its bank replenish the ATM in its premises so that employees did not have to stand in long queues and save on time. It also has a concierge desk that helps employees book tickets, pay credit card bills, deposit cheques so that they save on personal time and not take a half day off or miss work to run personal errands, says Margaret D ‘Souza, HR head, Directi.

Lean and Smart HR – Transforming Work

India is at an interesting cusp as the wave of digitization changes the work and workforce dynamics of the country. There is a new generation of companies coming up which is changing the way work is perceived or performed. From 9-5 desk jobs to part time jobs and multiple employments, this “Uberisation” of work will have a significant impact on the Human Resources function. As the HR function calliberates its processes and practices to the changing business needs , Lean & Smart HR (HR shared services and Technology) are going to be the game changers. With this is in mind National HRD Network organized its 4th National Summit on Workforce Technology and Shared Services, on 11th -12th Feb, at Leela Ambience, Gurgaon on the theme “Lean and Smart HR – Transforming Work”.

This one and a half day event saw over 20 Business Leaders who shared their views on how the world of work will change and what role Lean & Smart HR will play in this journey. The event was spread across 6sessions which covered various aspects of the theme.Emphasizing on the increased need for such summits in the country, the Summit Director, Pankaj Bansal, Regional President-North, NHRDN, and Co-Founder and CEO, PeopleStrong highlighted, “While 70-80% of HR oriented events in the United States and Europe focus on HR Shared Services and HR technology, Indian platforms need to increasingly discuss and learn from the experiences of latest and proven HR transformations. Especially now when India has an opportunity to be HR capital of the world lot more focus needs to come up.” The event saw Manoj Kohli, Chairman, Softbank as the Key note speaker, who shared how work has transformed in the past decade and how will it take up a new face all together in future. He shared that an organization has only 2 goals : Profitability and Happiness , achieving both requires a combination of Art and Science and HR needs maintain a golden balance in order to so.

Same were the thoughts of eminent business leaders who were part of the interesting deliberations which happened in the 6 sessions. Speakers included Anurag Malik, Partner, People & Organisation Advisory Services, EY, Sandeep Banerjee, CEO, Compass group, Abhijit Bhaduri, Chief Learning Officer, Wipro, Ester Matrinez, CEO & Editor-in-Chief, People Matters, Sandeep Sinha, Co-Founder & Managing Partner, Lumis Partners, Rajeshwar Triptahi, Chief People Officer, Automotive & Farm Equipment Sector, Mahindra & Mahindra, Mr. Mr. Biplob Banerjee, Exec Vice President HR and CSR, Jubilant Foodworks, G Kalaiselvan, Head-Technology Transformation, BPCL, Srinivas Yelandur, Director & Digital Advisory Leader, EY, Anand Subbaraman, Vice President HCM Cloud Product Strategy, Oracle, B Srikanth,CHRO, Airtel, ShubhroBhaduri,CHRO, ABFSG, Sukhjit Pasricha, Vice President-HR, IndiGo

Workforce technology and Shared Services have a major role to play in the coming days to establish Lean & Smart HR structures and NHRDN’s summit was successful in projecting this in the minds of over future HR jobs in the country.

NHRDN, the national apex body of professionals committed to promoting the HRD movement in the country organized this event in partnership with Shine.com as Lead Sponsor, PeopleStrong - the HR Technology & Summit Partner, EY - The Knowledge Partner, Tata Sons as a Co-Sponsor, BIMTECH, Jaipuria Institute of Management and IFIM as the B-School Partners, , Edenred as an Associate Sponsor, People Matters as a Magazine partner, Gifts were sponsored by GIFT XOXO and Design and Communication partner was Fulki. The first national summit on HRSS was held at Mumbai in 2013, 2nd season in Bangalore in 2014 and 3rd Season in Mumbai last year. Speaking on the occasion Kamal Singh, Director General, National HRD Network shared that NHRDN has always tried to bring to focus the pressing needs of HR and help the next gen HR leaders in preparing for future. Such summits provide opportunity to the budding HR professionals to learn from the HR leaders and we are glad that people are increasingly catching this opportunity. That’s why the prospects of HR jobs in India are wide an open.