By Lisa Rangel

The executive recruiter calls with a job that sounds as if it was written just for you.  The more the recruiter describes the position, the more excited you get. Then she ends the call with, “Great!  Send me your resume and I’ll submit it to the company.”

Duh!!!

That’s the moment you realize that you haven’t updated your resume…What do you do?

Here are six actions you can take to update your executive resume pronto: 

1. Ask the recruiter what are the top three achievements the prospective employer wants the next hire to do. Next be sure you have measurable achievements listed that demonstrate how you either have done these accomplishments already or show how you are positioned to do these wins as next steps in your career.  Speak to what the employer needs and what the recruiter says is important in the form of achievement-based bullets in your resume. Here are a few tips to do that include focusing on CAR or STAR formats.  CAR stands for Context, Action, Result. The objective is to introduce a problem that you solved by providing the story behind it. STAR (Situation, Task, Action, Result) is similar in so far as you are also telling a story and highlighting how you are the hero in a situation: https://chameleonresumes.com/how-write-achievement-based-executive-resume-bullet/
2. Make sure your contact information is updated. Current phone number (mobile) and email. You won’t need to include your physical address to send your resume to a third party recruiter in most cases. Be sure to include your LinkedIn profile vanity URL.  Here are instructions on how to create your Vanity LinkedIn URL: https://www.linkedin.com/help/linkedin/answer/87/customizing-your-public-profile-url?lang=en
3. Ensure the target position you just discussed with the recruiter is reflected in the title of your resume.  Don’t start this summary section with the word “summary” or “objective.”  Use the title as the title. This will visually reinforce to the reader that you want to do what they need.
4. Freshen up the font.  Gravitate towards a font more modern while still conveying an executive feel, such as Calibri or Arial Narrow.
5. Update the visual element to your resume. Include subtle touches of color in the form of a separator line between sections. Refrain from using graphs and tables. Keep the layout simple, yet elegant, when doing your resume yourself.
6. Employ the use of white space in your resume. Break up blocks of information and use short sentences with numeric- and results-driven content. Know that readers digest reading your resume in 6 second increments, so you want to write digestible morsels to keep them reading and motivated to call.

Ideally, you want to be ready with a resume BEFORE that recruiter call comes. But let’s face it, most of us will do it under pressure after the call comes.  So these steps above will have you updating your resume and sending it over to the recruiter in no time! Also, remember companies that specialize in executive resume writing and consulting can be a big help when it comes to updating a resume quickly.  You never have to do it alone.

ABOUT LISA RANGEL

Lisa Rangel, Founder and Managing Director of www.ChameleonResumes.com, LLC (a Forbes Top 100 Career Website), is a Certified Professional Resume Writer, Job Landing Consultant & 13-year Recruiter. She’s been featured on CNN Business, Fast Company, Business Insider, Forbes, LinkedIn, CNBC, Time Money, BBC, Newsweek, Crain’s New York, Chicago Tribune, eFinancialCareers, CIO Magazine, Monster, US News & World Report, Good Morning America, Fox Business News, New York Post, and other reputable media outlets.