The Case for Visual Resumes
Like you, I know a thing or two about resumes.
Upon graduating college, I submitted “normal” resumes and cover letters to more jobs than I could count. Then, I sat on the other side of the desk. Back in my HR days, I did a decent amount of recruiting for both CapitalOne and at Merck.
It’s No Longer 1998
Today, though, I’m not a big fan of traditional resumes. The way that I see it, my body of work is much larger than a three-page, text-laden document that lists my work experience, qualifications, and skills. To me, they just show that I can follow rules.
Traditional resumes emphasize conformity, not creativity
It turns out that there are plenty of über-creative folks who share my thoughts about old-school CVs. As I mentioned in a recent story for Fortune, it behooves applicants to illustrate their experiences in a much more visual–and I’d argue more interesting–way.
To this end, check out this fascinating Pinterest board of visual resumes. Maybe it’s the Breaking Bad fan in me, but I love the chemistry-based theme of this one:
Simon Says
I can tell you that a resume like the one above stands out from the others, especially if recruiting for any type of position requiring design skills and creativity. Although a cool CV alone rarely gets a person a job or interview by itself, it would certainly warrant a second look from many recruiters. And, when you think about it, isn’t that exactly what a resume is supposed to do?
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What say you?
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