How should a resume for an executive be different?

Answer 1

msoexpert'sActually, an executive's resume, which I've prepared many times, is not really different from anybody else's. The only real difference is in the level of responsibility.

An executive is considered to be at a higher level and more directly responsible for things. So the main focus is on areas like: leadership, managerial style, sales and marketing, budgeting, etc.

Non-executives don't have as much direct responsibility and are more in supportative roles. But a resume is basically a resume! They all should focus on what that candidate has and is capable of doing. An executive's resume is more geared for the managerial-side of things rather than the support-side.

As for length, they're not always longer! It all depends on how much experience that executive happens to have and the resume writer. I've put together ones that are 1 page and others that are longer. And in some businesses, being concise and to the point is what they want to see.

For example, someone who's been a Sales Manger for 5 years and now wants to apply for Vice President of Sales won't necessarily have a 2 page resume. But someone who's been working for 25 years, in different industries and/or jobs, may need a longer resume. Not necessarily, but perhaps due to more experience.

There's no rule other than it really shouldn't go over 2 pages long. But other than that, it's open to opinion. The most important thing with any resume is making sure it looks professional and says the right things! Length is secondary.

Here are a few tips from Resume Edge, an online consulting group that frequently optimizes executive resumes:

• An executive resume is almost always more than one page.

• Just because an executive resume is long, doesn't mean it should be wordy. Because the number of applicants for an executive position is generally not as large as for lower-level positions, every word of an executive's resume will be read many times before a decision is made.

• As a general rule, executive resumes should be conservative in style.

For more advice on how to write an executive resume, including format, samples, etc., click on the link.