cv\resume advice |
Oracle resume / CV - example of what to include
When looking for a post in the IT sector, it's wise to select a chronological format for your CV / resume. But there's more to writing a successful IT CV / resume than that.
It's very likely that many of your competitors for the Software Developer or Programmer vacancy have similar technical skills to yourself, so you really need to add more to make yourself stand out.
This article should assist you whatever area of IT you are in.
In this article we look at the role of an IT Software Developer / Programmer. We will include Project Manager\Business Analysis advice next month.
Profile section for an IT developer resume / CV
•Clearly, you need to convey your technical expertise and awareness of new IT developments. Don't list everything here (if you know many tools and programs, you can include a Technical Skills section elsewhere), but pick out your major strengths.
•Mention the personal qualities the employer might wish to see. Most employers wish to see high standards in terms of efficiency, thoroughness, attention to detail, etc. If you have good team or project lead experience, mention this.
•Draw attention to the kind of organisations or the sectors you've worked in, if these are relevant to the post you're applying for.
•Do mention the area that you wish to work in, or move into. Be sure that this relates to the advertised vacancy.
•Importantly, remember to support these statements in other areas of your CV.
Achievements section for an IT developer CV / resume
•In selecting achievements to include, consider the benefits your work has brought your department or the company in general in terms of greater efficiency or productivity, and increases in revenue or profit.
•Projects or contracts with specific goals that were successfully met look good in this section, as do successful extensions of, enhancements to, or migrations involving existing systems, whether achieved by you personally or by a team of which you were a member.
•Bring your personal qualities into this section too. Try to show your ability to communicate with other parts of the company, especially if these are sited remotely.
•Also bring in your ability to recognise and respond to the objectives of the organisation you were working for. Business and commercial awareness is an asset to future employers.
•Then there are all the processes involved in technological change within organisations, such as costings, proposal and report writing, meeting deadlines, system testing, training users, etc.
•You should, of course, also mention the technology that you were involved with, but try to avoid dry lists.
Experience section for an IT developer resume / CV
•List your current and previous posts in reverse chronological order, starting with your current post first. Provide the name of each of your employers and your job titles. If your employer isn't well known, give a very brief description of what they do.
•Within your list of duties and responsibilities, state the number of staff you've managed (if relevant).
•Highlight any planning, analysis, design, implementation and testing responsibilities you've held.
•Also include details of the specific architecture, systems, etc.
•If you were a team member, mention the team's achievements as well as your specific contribution.
•List the major projects that you have worked on and state whether the projects were completed on time and within the budget (and also whether you had budgetary responsibility).
•Above all, avoid turning this section into just a list of technical areas. While it's important that the employer is aware of your cutting edge knowledge, they also need to be aware of how you can apply that knowledge as a thoughtful and dedicated employee, whatever your role within the department is.
IT Skills on your CV / resume:
List your major IT skills in a separate section on your IT resume / CV. Only list skills that are current and relevant to the IT positions that you are applying for. When you include Oracle Applications on your CV, be sure to include which modules you are experienced in, for exampleAP Accounts Payable, GL General Leader, OM Order Management, OBIEE Oracle Business Intelligence etc.
Resume buzzwords or keywords - What buzz words should you use in your resume?
When the best jobs are advertised and attract huge numbers of applicants, it's very likely that some of the best will have similar work experience and skill sets.
This is particularly the case with jobs in the IT sector, where similar levels of technical experience and knowledge can be common to many people.
Yet, in many instances, the employers or recruiters will ask one applicant to come to an interview and not another. Why? Just what makes one resume stand out above another?
Resume buzzwords or keywords make you stand out!
Frequently, it comes down to the language and words you use in your resume to describe your experience. We all know that the resume aims to highlight your transferable skills and expertise, while outlining your work experiences and accomplishments. But its functions include more than this: besides saying what you can do, the resume must give the employer a sense of the kind of person you are. Would the employer wish to involve you in their organization? Would you contribute to the team spirit, or be a popular manager as well as an effective one? Can you rise to a challenge? Do you suit the organization's 'culture'? These are the kind of questions that might be in an employer's mind. Therefore, they're the ones you must seek to address through your resume.
With each point you write in your resume, from the Profile and Achievements to the Experience, you need to ask yourself, "What does this say about me?" Each point must sell you in some way, so always mention your strengths. Always make positive statements and include adjectives and adverbs that will strengthen them. It's the way in which you do this, and the words that you include, that can make the difference between getting asked for interview or being overlooked. So you need to ensure that you use resume buzzwords or keywords that will create the right buzz about your resume.
Create a buzz, just by using the right keywords in your resume
Look at this statement, which can be used as a resume's Profile.
"Senior Manager with 10 years experience in marketing, customer service and administrative management, seeking an executive marketing position in the manufacturing sector."
This statement is very clear. It states the applicant's background and says exactly which sector they would like to be employed in. Yet now read the following statement:
"Dynamic Senior Manager with 10 years' solid experience in marketing and customer service, combined with strong administrative management skills, aims to respond to new challenges and contribute to effective marketing in the manufacturing sector."
If these statements were from two different resumes, which person would you prefer to meet?
It would most probably be the second. This is because the second statement makes far more use of powerful adjectives ("solid") and verbs ("contribute"). These resume buzzwords suggest that the applicant wasn't simply a passive member of an organization, but that they were personally active and instrumental in achieving results. So, as you can see, in the second statement the focus is on the personal qualities as well as the career details, rather than on the work experience alone.
Use active resume buzzwords or keywords to create impact
When writing up your Achievements and Career History, be sure to use active vocabulary, but without going over the top. The golden rule is to always make it sound like you made things happen, rather than having had them happen around you. This means starting as many points as possible with an active verb. For instance, write "developed role" rather than "given new responsibilities", and "scheduled work of eight people" rather than "organized rotas".
Strong adverbs will enliven your achievements, as the following examples show. "Met clients' business needs" is more effective when written as "Consistently met clients' business needs". "Negotiated a major contract" becomes more powerful when presented as "Successfully negotiated a major contract".
Above all, avoid being vague. If you start your points with words like "contributed", "assisted" and "supported", the recruiter will be wondering how much or - more pertinently - how little you did. Either explain what exactly it was that you did, or better still, insert an active adverb and then explain. For example, "Effectively contributed to …", "Diligently assisted with …", and "Consistently supported".
If you're not sure about which buzzwords to use, take a look at the job description and see what the employers are asking for.
You can also look at some resumes and resumes on the Internet for ideas.
Good luck
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