Why do most executive résumés resemble each other so much that they appear to be products that emanate from a single-source résumé factory? Is it because of the culture of idea acquisition and execution that guides our daily behavior? In other words, did you—a CEO or Board Director—create your résumé with the best of intentions to tell a differentiated story, yet you lost focus because your sequence is to seek definitions, adhere to a structure in wide use, shepherd a product lifecycle with a rapid timeline so you can complete and launch, try to outdo the competition by acting before planning and seek information on how to create a résumé rather than why to or what to incorporate into the content?
I can’t blame you, because I, too, love finding ‘how-to’ do anything bullets that can help me accomplish my goals without getting mired in thoughts so deep that I don’t actually roll out my product. Résumés that are successful are not created to hang on museum walls but are invested with purpose and meaning to reach and attract the market.
If you only ask yourself “What is a good example of an executive résumé?” then the likely answer will be one that relates to length, sections, bullets, and design. And then the pain begins, because my tracking tells me that even if you reach a desirable market you won’t be able to make a strong case for why you should be chosen to lead over your competition.
Would you prefer to let go of some old, tired ideas and stretch your concepts?
Here are some initial questions you must ask yourself to anchor your content and shape your résumé product into something more innovative and successful in its application. By the way, you already knew that content sells as a primary factor in the decision-making process, right?
> In the last 2-3 years, did you lead or advise your company across the blue ocean?
> Did you reverse-engineer the mentoring of a staff member to increase diversity, age and gender impact?
> Under your executive leadership, were you credited with dreaming of, creating and monetizing a great product that mattered?
> If a CEO, did you hire board directors who were not all accountants or in your direct network?
There are more than 5 criteria for great résumé content, and maybe 100+ types of stories that need no justification for inclusion.
Not only will I be speaking on this topic in 2009, but I also look forward to working with some new executive clients exclusively on what these ideas mean to your careers and how they can get real results.
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