Ask a Manager

Chances are good that you’re making a few of these common mistakes on your resume. How many are you guilty of? 1. Relying on outdated sources of advice. Resume conventions have changed dramatically in the last 20 years. If you’re reading a book that insists you use an objectiveon your resume or that you can’t […]

If you left a job after just a few months, should you include it on your resume? It depends on why it was short-term. Was it short-term by design, or did you leave under less than ideal circumstances? If the job wasn’t intended to be short-term but ended up that way because you were fired […]

Suzanne Lucas of Evil HR Lady is looking for resumes to publish on BNET, where she and hiring managers/recruiters will critique them … and I’ll be her first guest critic!  If you want your resume reviewed by me/her/other awesome people, you can find more details here: Would you like your resume reviewed by an expert? […]

Another in our series of things that don’t belong on your resume: information about where your kids attend college and what they’re majoring in. I don’t even know what to say about this. But it seems clear that I might have to start traveling around the country in one of those vans outfitted with a […]

Your salary does not belong on your resume. Periodically I receive a resume that lists the salary for each position, alongside title and dates of employment. Don’t do this.

My friend Kat, who’s doing some I.T. recruiting, offers up this PSA about a common mistake people make when posting confidential resumes on online job boards: The omission of people’s city, state and zip in a confidential resume means that they are not searchable once entered into a database. I understand that people like to post […]

There’s an alarming new trend of people sending two resumes within one email message — generally one longer version of the resume and one shorter version, but sometimes one version highlighting one set of skills and one version highlighting another. It’s like they can’t decide which version is better, so they’ll just send them both. […]

A reader writes: When should internships come off your resume? I graduated a year ago and accepted a one-year, post-grad, entry-level position which ended recently and I am onto my second job since graduation. I was fortunate enough to intern with three really well known companies in my field during my undergrad years that are thought of […]

I have spent much of today straining to read the tiny font on resumes and cover letters. I’m talking 9-point in some cases. Yes, yes, perhaps I’m just getting old and can no longer see very well, but 9-point is way too small. Haven’t we agreed as a society that 11-point is a minimum? It […]

A reader writes: I’m having trouble getting interviewed and I feel my resume is to blame, but I think my unique situation may also share some of that trouble. My husband and I own a small construction company. I’m actually majority owner, and we employ between five to 15 employees depending on our job load. My actual duties […]