Follow Us:

Writing and Submitting your Resume — Step by Step (only 4 steps)

First – pick a suitable opportunity

To start with you should only apply for jobs you can do based on education, skills and experience, unless they are training and apprentice jobs. If you are selective, you will have the time to customize your resume, and do follow up. Also, if you’re a fit for the job, you’re more likely to get an interview.

Second – prepare to customize the resume

In this case, our target job is… Executive Producer, Digital Operations & New Media.

I went through the position, in about 2 minutes, and marked it up for key phrases and words that match my education, skills and experience. job ad here with notes

Here is what I picked out of the position description that matches my experience.

  1. LOCAL
  2. MEDIA AND NEW MEDIA PRODUCING EXPERIENCE
  3. INNOVATIVE
  4. MANAGEMENT EXPERIENCE
  5. HANDS-ON DATABASE
  6. CONTENT MANAGEMENT
  7. ANALYTICS
  8. BUILT MOBILE APPS AND WEBSITES, NEW MEDIA & VIDEO
  9. MARKET ENTRY BUSINESS PLANS
  10. LEADING EDGE EMERGING TECHNOLOGY

Third – now it’s time to write the resume

Start with a Powerful Descriptive Tagline, customized for each and every opportunity. Keep it short (15-20 words max) and don’t write down your career objectives. Write down a headline that describes you, specific to the opportunity you are applying for.

Then develop 2-3 “Buckets” of Achievement that categorize your top skills and experience from your career (what you did) with your results. Learn to re-order the buckets and fine tune the information for each opportunity.

  1. Not chronological
  2. Include specific numeric results – Yes! you have numeric results
  3. Eliminate soft language (eg. “team player”)

Followed by the Work Experience section – where & when you did the fantastic things listed above. This is the proof for the claims made in the top section (what you did). Detail the employer’s activities & scope/area of operations. Detail your specific title & what you did in that role3 -5 bullets per role.

Here is the customized Resume for this Job Opportunity:

20 years of Innovation Experience in Business; Web, Tech, Mobile, Media & Marketing

A technology trailblazer in Web, Mobile, Marketing Technology

  • Management, Entrepreneurship & Consulting; start-ups, multi-unit growth & operations, going public, going private, market-entry strategies and implementations, pivots, disruptions, divestitures (and I have the scars to prove it!)
    Results    : a 700% increase in sales over 8 years, many products/services/businesses created, launched and operated.
  • Web, Tech, Mobile, Media & Marketing for Business; a hands-on track record of business operations in the Web and Mobile world. Results: built and launched integrated mobile (iOS and android mobile apps), web, including custom CMS with back-end admin.
  • Target Marketing; Specialist in real-time customer identification at the point of decision, and generating customized 1:1 promotional offers using in-store devices, screens and coupon printers.

Results: high ROI & offer redemption rates over 43% vs. industry average of 12%. Increased store profits by $1,000 per month with a system ROI of just 90 days.

Hands-on Target Marketing

  1. Online Brokerage System; recruited the talent, then led the delivery of a complete, working online brokerage system for a mid-size public brokerage house; content creation, publishing, tools, system, branding, positioning, strategy execution, operations management
    Results:     exacttrade launched without a glitch on Y2K (Dec. 31 ‘99) built in record time of 6 months and at low cost less than $700K.
  2. Sales and CRM Development System – designed and implemented a business development and CRM system that reduces the elapsed time in securing new business, and focuses relationship building at the highest levels only.
    Results:     opens high-value 1:1 relationships with CEOs at a low cost of < $100

Work Experience:

Executive Management, Consultant and Partner
2001-present

Companies and Clients have included QuikTrip, Chase Design, P&G, Governments of Canada & Ontario, Cayman Islands, Medisys, Inc., Mount Real Inc., zenPeak, Fund Monitor, Bell Emergis, Scansave, LLC, Man Financial, Business Development Bank of Canada, Gordian Data, and many others;

Delivered market-entry business consulting to a variety of Clients.
Conceived, designed, project-managed and delivered many data-rich Mobile, Web, in-store, Marketing and Media projects.
Work was usually focused on extending their business on to the Internet.
Led in-store Target Marketing company (Scansave) for 6 years as CEO.

VP Corporate Development, Rampart Mercantile, Inc.
1999-2001 Mid-sized Canadian full-service brokerage.

  •  Led the Online Business unit
    Recruited team of 8 staff
    Developed an online investment/trading service, online investment portal and original research inc. back-end quotations, trading, settlement and accounting systems.

Director Sales & Marketing, Bell Emergis
1997-1999 Tourism Technology Business Unit of Bell Canada

  •  Led the Marketing & Branding; Oracle-based Enterprise Destination Management System for Governments
  • Provided design services, pricing and product positioning for travelinx and other Bell online products

CEO Flying Disc Inc.
1994-1997 OTC Public Company: Database-driven Targeted New Media Marketing Solutions.

  • Delivered new media products and services in the tourism, music, radio and entertainment businesses
  • Produced shrink wrap entertainment products
  • Delivered targeted new media products to Travel Agents and Meeting Planners

Additional Work Experience:

Broker, Investment & Risk Management, ScotiaMcLeod / MidlandWalwyn
1987-1994 Stock and Commodities Broker: Corporations and High Net Worth Investors & Traders

General Manager, Public Optical
1981-1987 Leadership of a fast-growing company of Vision Care Professionals. 120 staff, 20 managers, 15 locations

Education, Licensing etc.

MBA, Rotman School of Business, University of Toronto, 1985
BA, Political Science & Economics, University of Toronto, 1983
Futures, Equities, Equity Options, Insurance & Mutual Funds licensed
Mergers and Acquisition Valuation Course University of Toronto / McGill University, 2000
Professional CRM designation, AARM course, 2003
Expert level: Photoshop, Powerpoint, Project, Visio, Word, Excel, Html, WordPress
Volunteer: assist National Director, Simon Wiesenthal Center, Jazz FM 91.1, mentor in Young Entrepreneurs Program

Fourth – follow up to confirm your application has been received

You need to telephone the organization, get connected to the HR department and ask if your application was received. Just Do It!

You never know the value of a personal call.