3 Ways to Sell Yourself in Your Executive Resume

3 Ways to Sell Yourself in Your Executive Resume 3 Ways to Sell Yourself in Your Executive Resume I see it all the time high-level, super-talented executives earningsix-figure salaries, leading large organizations, and making major financial impacts with mediocre (at best) resumes.Sigh.It doesnt have to be this way. Your resume should be just as impressive as your actual career. After all, it is a representation of your professional life.Mediocre resumes happen to the best of us especially if we never take time out of our professional journeys to reflect exactly on what makes us great.But thats no excuse, especially not for executives. Today, it is vital to have a branded executive resume that sells your value. The job market is definitely not what it was when you first started your career and worked your way up the corporate ladder. Itsa dog-eat-dog world out there.Okay, maybe Im being a bit dramatic but if you dont know how to play the game, youre dead in the water.There are a m ultitude of ways to brand your executive resume and really sell yourself. Here are a few tips on the topic from a certified resume expert1. Pinpoint Your UniquenessThink about it When youre hiring, yourelooking for someone special.You want that purple squirrel with aproven track record and a specific set of skills that will positively impact the business.Well, now the tables have turned. You need to be that someone special in a hiring managers life.Funny, isnt it?Start by taking inventory of what youve done for your past employers. Look for trends in your career history. Perhaps youre the go-to guy (or gal) for realigning and reenergizing disjointed kollektivs. Maybe youre thepartie who can integrate technology into business operations to maximize profits.Whatever it is, its your unique story. Once you figure it out, tie it back to what your future bosses will be looking for in a candidate. Then, infuse this message into your resume.Master this, and everything else should fall into place. Your resume will morph into a value-based, highly focused document that sells you like hot cakes2. Quantify Your AchievementsDont be afraid to add a few numbers here and there or, screw it, everywhereNo, seriously Try to incorporate performance metrics into every bullet.Tell the reader how much money you saved, how many new clients you secured, how much revenue you generated, how many team members you led, how much you improved productivity,how many states were in your territory, how many cups of coffee you drank every day oops. Sorry. I got carried away for a second.The point is, quantifying your achievements validates your claims of being agreat leader. Heres a quick example Instead of writing, Led team of engineers in the integration of multiple process-improvement initiatives, you can dig deeper and get more specific Led team of 60 engineers in the integration of 12 large-scale process-improvement initiatives with combined budget of $25M.This gives the readera better id ea of the scope of what you did while offering them an opportunity to determine if the position at hand is a good fit for you. Surely you wouldnt want to go from a team of 60 to a team of 5? You likely want to move upward and onward to increasingly challenging roles. This is a great way for the recruiter to understandyour level and how it aligns with the open position.3. Add a Graph or Chart That Highlights Your AccomplishmentsYou only have an average of six seconds to impress a recruiter with your resume. Whats the best way to grab their attention in such a short period of time?Recruiters arent going to dig through dense paragraphs to find your achievements. Why should they? They dont have the time to play detective and search through your resume to figure out why youre special. Make it crystal clear.A graph or chart that showcases how much you grew productivity or how you led sales to explode 300 percent in one year conveys the message much faster than a buried sentence could.Furt hermore, a chart or graph can break up the monotony for recruiters, who look at hundreds of resumes day in and day out. fruchtwein are pretty lackluster. Furtherdifferentiating yourself by putting forth a professional, butexciting document that makes you stand out thatis the name of the game.I know Your expertise is in generating revenue for your company, not writing about yourself. Still, these tips should help you get off to a good start. And if youre not sure that you can do this on your own, you can always look for help from a credentialed executive resume writer.Melanie L. Denny is president of Resume-Evolution.Master the art of closing deals and making placements. Take our Recruiter Certification Program today. Were SHRM certified. Learn at your own pace during this 12-week program. Access over 20 courses. Great for those who want to break into recruiting, or recruiters who want to further their career.