Telltale Signs of a Terrible Resume
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Telltale Signs of a Terrible Resume
From outright lies to blatant typos, these resumes represent some all-time resume blunders. -
Suspect
77% of survey respondents said they've found a lie in a resume. -
Quick Read
43% said they spend less than a minute looking at a resume, and 24% spend no more than 30 seconds doing so. -
Resume Boosters: Tailor-Made
63% said they'll pay more attention to a resume if it is customized to an open position. -
Resume Boosters: Talent Tally
41% said they pay more attention if skills sets are listed first. -
Resume Boosters: Introduction Opportunity
40% said they pay more attention if a cover letter is included. -
Major Mistakes: Spell Check
An applicant wrote that he had great attention to detail—while misspelling the word, "attention." -
Major Mistakes: Convict Candidate
An applicant claimed he worked at a federal prison, but a background check indicated he was actually incarcerated at one. -
Major Mistakes: Fairy Tale
An applicant stated he had been a prince in a past life. -
Major Mistakes: In a Galaxy Far, Far Away …
An applicant quoted Star Wars in his resume. -
Major Mistakes: Major Motivation
An applicant said he would work harder - if he got paid more. -
Major Mistakes: Nicotine Fix
An applicant listed "smoking" under the category of "hobbies."
As a CIO, you probably think you've seen it all when it comes to bad resumes. But, as they say, you ain't seen nothing yet, judging by the following examples of all-time resume blunders, as compiled by CareerBuilder. They cover everything from ill-conceived flights of fantasy to faulty proofreading to "true confessions" about one's particular vices. While these represent the absolute extreme examples of "truly awful," they underscore more common problems that organizations encounter in reviewing resumes: The majority of hirers, for example, said they've uncovered outright lies in resumes. And far too few of these docs are created in a way that commands attention, by customizing the content for the specific company/position in question, listing skills first and including a well-written cover letter. As a result, job applicants do themselves a disservice, especially given that a great deal of hirers spend less than a single minute reviewing resumes - and many spend less than 30 seconds! More than 2,100 HR managers took part in the CareerBuilder's research, which was conducted by Harris Poll.
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