The Resume.Com Guide to Writing Unbeatable Resumes (29 page)

Although the headline above is quite strong and could stand alone, you can bolster a headline with additional strengths and traits, including areas of expertise or skill:

Do not place a period at the end of the headline.

The Summary of Qualifications section follows the headline and highlights your top five to eight selling points in bulleted statements. This section can include years of experience, number of employees you manage, industry awards and recognition, special training, technical skills, network users you support, and “soft skills” (communication skills, organizational skills, etc.).

As most hirers spend only 10 seconds reviewing a resume, your resume stands a good chance of being rejected if it does not impress them. Therefore, a strong Summary of Qualifications must encapsulate your most attractive traits and accomplishments.

For IT professionals the Summary of Qualifications should contain a mix of technical knowledge and soft skills, providing a hirer with a well-rounded picture of an applicant’s qualifications. To convey to an employer that you’re too valuable to pass by, show precisely how your previous experience affected the company’s bottom line, using quantifiable results if possible. Some areas to emphasize can include the following:

✓
Specific industry expertise:

Exceptional background in diverse facets of IT and MIS, including software development, database administration, and application development.

✓
Certifications and training:

Extensive professional development includes Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer (MCSE) and Microsoft Certified Professional (MCP).

✓
Projects you’ve completed:

Created and implemented database to catalog and track evidence for Atlanta Police Department, virtually eliminating lost and stolen items.

✓
Planning and implementation results:

Developed migration plan to move over 100 databases from FoxPro to SQL Server 6.5, improving SQL architecture capacity and increasing available current records.

✓
Systems or applications you’ve developed to streamline operations:

Developed automated real-time pricing tools for sales force, creating centralized system with no downtime from remote sites.

✓
Employee training:

Taught staff dBase and Visual FoxPro during company acquisition.

For an in-depth explanation of the Summary of Qualifications, review Chapter 6.

The following are a few ground rules to follow in developing your Summary of Qualifications:

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Prioritize your selling points in order of importance.
Specific and quantifiable skills (10 years of experience) and certifications should precede soft skills (communication skills).

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Always end your bullets with periods.
Although fragments are acceptable in a resume, a period at the end of the bullet helps contain the information you are highlighting. If your spell checker indicates that your bullets are fragments, don’t worry: Using fragments is a common way to write professional resumes.

S
UMMARY OF
Q
UALIFICATIONS

• Over 12 years of quality assurance experience, specializing in telecommunications industry.

• Significant troubleshooting and debugging background.

• Possess extensive Java development experience. Skilled in Linux and HTML.

• Expert knowledge of developing and implementing patches to ensure seamless operation for company and end users.

• Highly successful background in testing extensive databases and writing new code to execute daily fixes.

• Excellent communication, interpersonal, and presentation skills.

SUMMARY OF QUALIFICATIONS

□
More than 14 years of progressive experience in software development.

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Solid understanding of all aspects of management information systems, obtained through aggressive formal and independent studies.

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In-depth comprehension of cutting-edge technologies and methodologies, implementing business, scientific, and technical applications on private, corporate, and global levels.

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Recognized for outstanding analytical abilities in resolving complex issues, exhibiting sharp aptitude for “out-of-box” theories, as well as unprecedented vision and foresight in seeing completed project from conception to completion.

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Able to build strong, working relationships with clientele, managers, and employees.

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Fluent in German, with basic comprehension of French.

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Results-oriented with superb interpersonal, organizational, and communication skills.

SUMMARY OF QUALIFICATIONS

■
Five years of experience in networking systems and infrastructure management.

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Diverse professional development in systems setup, administration, support and training.

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Strong troubleshooting, installation and configuration skills.

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Strategic thinker and planner; adept at effectively overseeing the design and execution of systems, projects and solutions.

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Exceptional focus and follow-through abilities, with track record of efficiency and productivity.

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Detail-oriented multitasker, with strong organizational and managerial abilities.

In the IT industry your computer skills will play a dominant role in the decision-making process. Your languages, applications, networking tools, and platforms are great assets, and we recommend listing them in a clear location on your resume after the Summary of Qualifications or Professional Experience section.

Extensive computer skills should always be categorized and prioritized according to the specialty or field you are pursuing. For example, if you are a programmer, you should list your programming languages at the top of your computer skills list. Popular ways to prioritize technical skills include listing separate categories for hardware, software, programming languages, and operating systems. Depending on your expertise, you may want to merge categories or include more distinct sections.

The most important aspect of the technical skills section is to delineate your proficiencies in a manner immediately recognizable to prospective employers.

Be sure to spell your technical proficiencies correctly. You would be surprised how often this section is overlooked by IT professionals. Typos are one of the most common mistakes people make when writing resumes, and spelling errors are a primary reason why employers reject resumes. Double-check the spelling of all technical proficiencies; if you are not certain about the spelling, there are many online resources that can provide the right answer in seconds. We recommend
www.RefDesk.com
for spelling and definitions; it is especially helpful if you are unsure about which category you should use to list a specific computer skill.

COMPUTER SKILLS

TECHNICAL EXPERTISE

OPERATING SYSTEMS:

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MS-DOS

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Windows 3.X, 9.X, NT 4.0 Workstation, 2000

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Windows NT 4.0 Server, 2000 Server, 2000 Advanced Server

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Novell Netware 5.0

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ZEN works

NETWORKING:

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Windows NT Administration

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Windows NT to Windows 2000 Migration (certified)

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Installation and configuration of multiple network hardware, including:

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Routers, Hubs, Cat 5 Cable, Fiber Optics, Ethernet Cards

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Configuration troubleshooting and maintenance of:

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TCP/IP, WINS/DNS, IPX/SPX, NAT, ICS, RIP, OSPF, subnetting

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Routing & Remote Access Administration

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Remote Installation Services

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Knowledge of security protocols:

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PPTP, L2TP, IPSec, MPE, MSCHAP

HARDWARE:

Repaired and upgraded numerous computers, replacing motherboards, HD, memory, video cards, network interface cards and drives.

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X86i-based machines from 286 to Pentium IV, including Celeron and AMD CPUs

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Installation and configuration of various wireless Ethercards, including:

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3com, Lynksys, SMC

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Installation and configuration of various ISA/PCI/AGP cards

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Cat 5 and fiber optic cabling

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Print server configuration and maintenance

SOFTWARE:

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Microsoft Office XP/2000/97

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Microsoft Outlook XP/2000/98

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Adobe PhotoShop 6

Your certifications should be listed as a separate category, as it is vital to draw added attention to valuable selling points in a competitive industry. For all certifications, list the full name as well as the acronym and the date you received the certification.

C
ERTIFICATIONS

• Microsoft Certified Professional (MCP), 2002

• Cisco Systems Administrator (CSA), 2001

• Microsoft Certified System Administrator (MCSA), 2000

CERTIFICATIONS

• Microsoft Certified System Engineer (MCSE), 1997

• CompTIA A+, 1997

• Microsoft Certified System Administrator (MCSA), 1997

• Certified Novell Administrator (CAN), 1996

The Professional Experience section makes up the bulk of your resume and informs a potential employer about your accomplishments, capabilities, and professional duties. If you are using the chronological format, organize your background by employer and date. For functional resumes, your professional experience is divided into skill sets, followed by a work history section consisting of your employers, job titles, and dates of employment (see Chapter 3).

As with the Summary of Qualifications, the key to creating an effective Professional Experience section is to prioritize your bullets according to your most important skills and achievements.

As with all professional resumes, the Professional Experience section of an IT resume combines job responsibilities with accomplishment statements. The difference between the two is that a responsibility statement explains your day-to-day duties and an accomplishment statement describes the specific
results you achieved. These results can be in the form of increased efficiency, productivity, and revenues or decreased expenditures, downtime, and waste. A good tip for creating effective responsibility statements is to begin your sentence with “Responsible for” and complete that statement with a list of your general duties. Another good way to distinguish the two is to write the responsibility statement in paragraph form and the accomplishment statements in the form of bullets, making those significant achievements stand out on your resume.