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Resume 101: Writing Your Objective Statement

Like our first Resume 101, we’ll cover a section of your resume in this post.

The objective statement of your resume is at the top, just under your contact information, so it’s the first thing most people will read. It consists of three elements:

  1. A career area or “headline”
  2. Your three major strengths
  3. A statement of what you can do for an employer

One. The career area looks something like one of these:

  • Project management
  • Special event coordination
  • Process accounting supervision
  • Plant maintenance
  • Systems planning

Two. Your three major strengths can be things like:

  • Communications
  • Efficiency
  • Empathy
  • Problem solving

Three. Write what you can do for an employer, such as:

  • Save time
  • Create new products
  • Motivate others
  • Maintain production levels
  • Expand sales
  • Develop new customers

Your objective statement allows you make it clear that you will contribute positively to the bottom line.

Here are a few examples of complete objective statements:

Contribute to a printing company’s increased profitability through effective use of human resources.

Contribute to a more rapid and profitable turnaround of varied manufacturing projects through efficient use of existing staff and equipment.

Contribute to increased recovery of assets and reduced losses through the use of proven accounting techniques and methods.

Putting it all together.

Now, combine all three parts into your career objective which is a single, clear statement of what you intend to do in the workplace. Here are a few examples, but make sure that what you write is yours alone!

Objective: Cost estimator, where proven strengths in the areas of perception, problem solving and planning will significantly contribute to a transportation company’s increased profitability through more accurate pricing.

Objective: Construction project management, where proven strengths in the areas of organization, leadership and communication will contribute to a construction company’s increased profitability through effective coordination of people and materials.

Objective: Financial management, where proven strengths in the areas of system design, project planning and cost recovery will improve asset recovery and reduce losses through the use of proven accounting techniques and methods.

We’re here for you. If you have any questions about your resume or other career related issues, Ask The Counselor!

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Resume 101: How To Make Your Resume Even Better Than It Is

Thinking about brushing up your resume? Read this first.

All accomplishment-based resumes should contain:

  1. Contact information
  2. Objective Statement
  3. Specific skills
  4. Measurable achievements and accomplishments
  5. Employment history
  6. Educational background

Communicating well-defined and transferrable accomplishments is where you have the chance to set yourself apart. Writing down your professional accomplishments becomes the answer to, ‘Tell me a few good things you’ve done that would make me want to hire you.’

Each of your professional accomplishments should consist of four parts:

  1. A description of the event
  2. What made it important
  3. What you did to make it happen
  4. The measurable results

Examples:
Created a volunteer group to organize a viable thrift store operation. Scheduled a team of volunteers to better organize donation intake, sorting, pricing, and staging of merchandise for resale. This initiative ensured consistent workflow among 15 trained volunteers and contributed $6,000.00 quarterly to support a variety of beneficial community projects.

Recommended process and updated procedures for quarterly review of a document control database. Discovered omissions and corrected serious duplication errors in original database, thru improving the accuracy and efficiency of the database. As a result, the company improved its customer service reporting capability by 100%.

Remember:
Avoid vague or windy statements such as “resulted in a large savings of time and money,” or “led to increased sales.” If you can claim that sales increased, you must estimate the amount of the increase and make sure it is reasonably accurate and could bear investigation. Sometimes there is simply no way to put a figure on your results. But you can still demonstrate the value of your work to the employer:

Example:
Served as the Treasurer for the local school’s Parent-Teacher Advisory Board. Established a formal accounting system for expenditure records and created a new process for tracking petty cash and receipts. This effort improved the integrity and efficiency of the bookkeeping function and led to 100% accuracy in reconciliation of funds.

Be sure to include as many specific action verbs, such as the ones listed below, in your statements. This will make your writing more descriptive and efficient.

Action verbs:

achieved                       analyzed                      built
conducted                     created                       designated
established                   finalized                     increased
motivated                     negotiated                 obtained
resolved                        tested                         trained
wrote

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The 80-20% rule highlights how job seekers should be using job search time

Spend 80% of your job search time, energy and thought on networking. The other 20% can be spent on “traditional” job search methods like online job boards.
It is a fact that many of the best career opportunities are quietly filled through the intricate mechanisms of the grapevine.

It only makes sense to pursue every avenue, but the frustration that can arise from sending resumes, scouring job openings and trying to fit yourself into the “job description box” can slow down even the most optimistic job seeker. This is because trying to reach a decision maker when responding to general job postings is next to impossible.

Regardless of where you search for opportunities, you will ultimately gain a position only by coming face to face with the people who know about that position. The more people you network with, are referred to, and interview with, the better your chances. If you don’t go out and meet people face to face, your chances are greatly decreased.

When networking, it’s important to remember that everyone knows something that you do not know. Often, beginning networkers think that they are wasting their time by talking to people who may have nothing to offer them. After all, you want to get a new position, and perhaps you need to do so quickly! Veteran networkers know that every person you talk with is valuable to you or knows someone else who could be.

4 networking tips to remember:

  1. When networking, persistence pays. Many of us tend to believe a “no reply” indicates the person we are contacting has no interest in responding to us and we don’t feel comfortable continuing to follow up. Don’t forget – everyone gets busy. Don’t give up; try again, but be respectful of others’ time as well.
  2. If you are interested in talking with someone, there is a reason why. When you approach that person remember to pay a genuine compliment about something specific that person has done. It also goes a long way when you have your face to face meeting or phone conversation to efficiently bridge between your accomplishments and what you appreciate about the other person’s achievements.
  3. After you visit be sure to send a thank you note. Include some specifics that were discussed in your meeting. If appropriate, include that you will follow up to get referrals.
  4. Always include your email and phone number in all of your written communication.

NOTE TO CMI CLIENTS: Remember to stay positive and reach out to any of us at CMI when you need help!

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Founded in 1976, Career Management International, Inc. is a certified Woman Owned Small Business. CMI is a leader in the fields of outplacement, career development, and special purpose training. CMI is headquartered in Houston, with offices throughout the United States and affiliates worldwide.

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