Fatal Resume Errors

At Legacy MedSearch, we see a LOT of resumes. On average in 2007, our office received 400+ emails each day and 75+ new candidate resumes. Our recruiters have a goal of speaking with 50 candidates each day – not including calls to “passive” candidates who are happy in their current positions.  

Because we work exclusively in the emerging medical industry, we make it our jobs to be knowledgeable about industry leaders and up and comers. Cumulatively, we’ve talked to over 40,000 people over the years and do our best to carefully control our expansive database. But YOU can keep your credentials fresh and current by avoiding the most common faux pas:

• Not listing “keywords” or failing to use “industry specific terms” If you’re a “Solidworks” expert, say so. If your back ground is MIS, haptics, spine, drug eluding stents, AIMDs, ISO 13485 or TKA, use the terms explicitly. Keywords are the lifeblood of how recruiters search resumes so make yours rich with verbiage that makes you “bubble to the top.” Some smart candidates even include “Keywords” or “Skills Summary” in their cover letters to us. We LOVE that… as Jerry McGuire once said “Help us help you.”
• Clichés and “grand” phrasing. Leave out any phrases that could be used in a middle school student council election: “Super,” “Enthusiastic,” “Unbelievable” “Miracle Worker,” “Doesn’t take no for an answer” etc. Exclamation points, too, are not a good idea!!! (At Legacy MedSearch, we have a sense of humor, and couldn’t resist the punctuation).
• Poor grammar, typos, misspellings, etc. A sloppy resume says you're careless. Use a simple font (Arial, Times Roman, Century Gothic) that is easy to read for us “over 40 year old” eyes.
• Overkill. Anything over a two pages is too long. If you have less that 5 years experience, consider a single page.
• Vagueness. Quantify your results. Don't state: "Responsible for supervising 300 employees." Instead say: "Managed the Cardiovascular Marketing department, which increased revenues 82 percent in a four-year period." Don't write a job description; list what you have accomplished.
• Plagiarism. Avoid patterning your resume after the same examples everyone else uses. Hiring authorities get bored with look-alike resumes. Be creative and different-but only to a point.
• Colored paper. Any color other than white is unacceptable. Colored paper does not copy well-your resume will be distributed to multiple people.
• Colored font. Any color other than black is unacceptable. Leave out the graphics, too, since some candidate database software will mis-format graphics, icons, lines, etc.
• Clichés and buzzwords. Don't use words that you think should sound "smart." Hiring authorities are not impressed with "utilize," "flexible," "team player," and "seeking an opportunity for me to grow and develop."
• Tiresome details. If you're well into your career, skip those college summer jobs. As you advance in age and up the corporate ladder, pare down your resume. Nobody really cares that you worked your way through college waiting tables, especially when you're applying for a Senior VP position with a publicly traded medical company.
• Indeterminate gender. If you're Pat, Lynn, or Lee, don't keep 'em guessing. With certain names use Mr. or Ms. as a prefix.
• Lying. First, you don't lie because it's wrong. Second, you don't lie because if you get caught, you won't get the job.
• Omitting your job objective. State clearly what you're looking for. Ambiguity indicates you lack direction and focus.
• Listing your job objective. Note that this contradicts the previous point. Some headhunters think a job objective limits the candidate. If the exact position isn't available within the organization, the candidate automatically eliminates himself from a job. Do your homework in advance to be sure your objective coincides with an open position before including it in the resume. If there are several positions that interest you, do not include your objective.

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