Are you ready to level-up your career for a spot in the C-Suite? Prepping for this step can feel like making a giant leap into the unknown, but the right resume can help you make the move to the next phase of your career. Here’s what the executive hiring experts at ADAPTURE recommend you focus on to create the ultimate C-Suite resume.
Online Presence
Surprisingly (or maybe not), your first contact with recruiters likely won’t be your resume.
Recruiters spend their time on social media sites like LinkedIn looking for the next best talent to pursue, so use this platform as a powerful marketing tool for yourself. Share articles about your industry and detail what you like or dislike about them. Show off your expertise and build your personal brand by commenting on your connections’ posts.
As you spend time online, your professional network will grow with great new contacts who can help you navigate your next career move and optimize your C-suite resume.
Research Your Target Audience
Choosing a target audience for your C-suite resume helps you eliminate any irrelevant background details that detract from the most important aspects of who you are and what you do.
Research your target company thoroughly, and note pain points you worked through in your current and previous roles. Starting with your executive summary, choose a few relevant experiences demonstrating your expertise at solving those exact problems.
If your expertise won’t fix the problems this company is facing, why would the hiring manager choose you? Filter everything on your resume through your target audience’s priorities.
Show Off Your Skills
As you list out your recent job timeline and skills used, quantify results as often as possible.
You’ve probably heard this advice before, but it’s even more important for executive-level positions where results are crucial. If you’ve managed a budget, built a large team, or worked with multiple locations in one role, you should outline this experience and the ROI you delivered in as detailed a manner as possible.
Remember, numbers can be greatly influential in showing the impact you’ve made in past roles, so quantify your achievements whenever possible with real facts and figures.
Highlight Projects
The numbers aren’t the only important way to demonstrate your value. Dig deep into your process on a successful project and show why or how you made those decisions. Display the unique mental strategy that makes you a good fit for the team.
Don’t just write the end result of the project. According to Forbes, “It is one thing to say, ‘I moved a mountain’ and another to say, ‘Here’s how I moved it and why it was important to the company.’”
Spotlight Leadership
Any executive job listing will require leadership skills, so you need to spotlight your own abilities within very limited space. Consider what makes a good leader and describe how you’ve done those things within your team. You might include phrases like “100% employee retention through the transition” or “improved collaboration” in this area.
A good place to start is the actual job description, which should guide each version of your resume (yes, you should modify your resume for each job). Prove to recruiters that you are the perfect person for the job by tailoring your resume to what the job description says they’re focusing on for that executive seat.
Polishing the Format
As recruiters look to fill a top-level position, they agree that two pages are an acceptable length for your resume. While one-page was all you needed for those entry-level jobs, it’s not enough room for someone to get a good picture of your executive experience.
Remember to lead with the best information, and leave the older, less relevant details (that includes your college degree!) on the second page.
