Guide to Managing Your Career | Wharton MBA Career Management

CHAPTER 5: RESUMES

INTRODUCTION ABOUT THIS CHAPTER

This chapter covers resume development and is organized into the following sections:

What is a Resume?
The Basic Parts of a Resume
The Structure of a Resume
Development of an Effective Resume
Resume Revision Process
Conclusion
Appendix

WHAT IS A RESUME?
A resume (curriculum vitae) is a marketing tool with one primary function to get you the interview. It is a brief,
clear representation of what you have to offer to an employer. The function of the resume is to impress the reader so
that he/she wants to learn more about you. A resume also has a secondary function to serve as a basis for
discussion during the interview. To learn more about interview preparation and interviewing see Chapter 7.
A resume should not serve as your autobiography, nor is it simply a chronological listing of your work experience.
Rather, a resume is a focused and targeted document that highlights your experiences in a strategic and forwardlooking manner. To create a forward-looking document, be prepared to write specifically and with intent about
your past experiences in a way that will grab the attention of your anticipated reader. The specific focus and content
of your resume must strategically market you towards the new role you seek. Vital preparation for resume writing
includes conducting the necessary self-assessment (Chapter 2) and market research (Chapter 3) to identify your
target industry/function/position.
While there are many guidelines for creating an effective resume outside of the Wharton template (which is required
for current students) there are few rules. Resumes are subjective you need to focus on the purpose of the resume
and let that steer the resume format and content.
Your resume is a constant work in progress. Regardless of what stage you are in your career, you should always
have an updated resume.

THE BASIC PARTS OF A RESUME

Contact Information Section
The first part of any resume should be your contact information. This includes your name, address, phone number
and email address.
Tips:
1) Use an email address with your name in it (e.g. johndoe@yahoo.com). Avoid using an email address that
could be viewed as inappropriate (e.g. hotchick@yahoo.com)
2) Use a local phone number whenever possible. Most job seekers include only one address and place it in the
middle of the resume (flush left is also acceptable; this is a matter of personal style)
3) If you put your cell phone number on your resume, be careful about answering a call from a hiring manager
at a time or in a location which does not facilitate conversation. Avoid answering the phone if it will be

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hard for a hiring manager to hear you. Let the caller leave a message then find a quiet place with good
cell reception to return the call
Objective/Skill Summary/Summary of Experience Section
Objectives are statements at the beginning of your resume that indicate the kind of position you are seeking.
Effective objectives are short, direct and concise. For example: Senior level position in Brand Management.
Skill summaries, also usually found at the top of the resume under the contact information section, provide a list of
key skills you have to offer an employer. A summary of experience (in paragraph or bullet form) quickly provides
your career to date and usually indicates the number of years in particular fields and areas of focus/expertise.
Although we do not recommend current Wharton students include an objective or skill/experience summary, the use
of these has been debated among career counselors for years. Providing employers with a quick reference of a career
objective or skill set can be an effective way to get employers attention, but that space may be better utilized in
another way.
When to Use an Objective
If you have a very specific employment goal, an objective is a quick and effective way to tell an employer
where your interests lie, particularly if you are a career-changer
Keep in mind that an objective may take you out of the running for other positions. If you are applying for positions
in more than one field and you plan to use an objective, develop more than one resume.
When to Use a Skills Summary or Summary of Experience
Deciding whether or not to include a skills/experience summary is largely a matter of style.
If you have a significant level of experience, it is a helpful way for the hiring manager to quickly understand
your qualifications. This can be particularly useful in contacting executive search firms
If you are changing careers and are afraid that a hiring manager quickly scanning your resume will dismiss you
as unqualified, a skills summary is one way to call attention to your transferable skills
If you decide to include a summary, make sure that it says something of substance about you. It should include
information from your background that is most applicable to the position you seek. Below you will find examples of
effective skills summary sections:
Example 1:
Finance & Strategy Professional
Specialization in financial and risk management with an international emphasis. Direct experience including P&L
responsibility, market strategy, prospective investment evaluation, project management and international business
development. Excellent organization, communication & analytical skills. Wharton MBA, Smith BA.
Example 2:
Senior Marketing Executive experienced with diverse technologies. Innovative strategist with proven ability to
identify, launch and manage products and services in both emerging and established markets. Demonstrated
competence in start-ups and Fortune 500 organizations.

Profitable P&L experience

Managed groups of up to 17 people

Received three promotions in four years

Led two new product launches

Example 3:
Over 10 years as executive in leading investment and retirement services firm with experience in general
management, client services, strategic planning and financial analysis. Extensive work with non-profit clients in
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retirement plan administration. Demonstrated ability to grow business, dramatically increase client loyalty, improve
profitability, define effective competitive strategy, and execute change. Additional experience in mergers and
acquisitions in consultative role.
Example 4:
Senior Consultant with over seven years experience in strategic consulting. Strengths include:
Talent for leading and managing diverse cross-functional teams that produce results
Strong interpersonal skills for developing trusting relationships
Ability to determine problem areas quickly and develop effective solutions
Education Section
The placement of your education section within your resume depends on what part of your prior experiences you
would like to highlight most. As a general rule, when you are no longer a student, it is appropriate to first highlight
your work experience and then follow with your education. This is also in keeping with the typical reverse
chronological order of most resumes. For current Wharton MBA students, the education section is required to be at
the top of the resume.
For the most part, the distance rule is a good guideline for how much information you include in the education
section. If you are a current student or a recent graduate, it is appropriate to (and you should) include extracurricular
activities (specifically those that demonstrate leadership or show passion towards a specific industry/function),
academic honors and group memberships in this section. These can act as signals to employers regarding your areas
of interest and your leadership/teamwork skills. The more experience you have, the less likely a hiring manager is to
be interested in what you did or what you were interested in during school; far more time will be spent reviewing the
employment section of your resume. For the experienced job seeker, indicating the institution, degree, area of study
and graduation date will usually suffice. That said, if you had notable academic honors, it is probably worth
including them regardless of the number of years that have passed.
See below for sample bullets that can be included in the education section.
EDUCATION
THE WHARTON SCHOOL, UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA
Philadelphia, PA
Master of Business Administration, Major in Marketing
20XX
Directors List, Fall 20XX
Elected VP Strategy, Social Impact Club. Coordinated across clubs/faculty to build Whartons social impact
brand, curriculum, and entity
Member of Consulting and Europa clubs
Awarded Omnicom Communication Fellowship. Serving as teaching assistant for 200X-20XX MBA
communications classes
Received Joseph H. Wharton Fellowship for leadership, professional achievement, and academic excellence
KENYON COLLEGE
Gambier, OH
Bachelor of Arts, Dual Major in History and French Studies
20XX
Magna Cum Laude
Named Presidents Scholar awarded $5,000 exploration grant given to top 3% of incoming freshmen
Tips:
1) If your undergraduate institution grants grade point averages, the general rule of thumb is that GPAs of 3.5
and above should be included. You may also want to include any organizations you belong(ed) to that may
have networking potential
2) If you began your undergraduate academic career at an institution other than the one from which you
graduated, you may create a separate section for that institution or simply mention it under the school from
which you graduated
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3) If you have a graduate degree other than Wharton, it should be included in the educational section in
chronological order, as demonstrated below
EDUCATION
THE WHARTON SCHOOL, UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA
MBA Candidate; Major in - - - - -?
Member of Whartons ???? Club,
More details

Philadelphia, PA
200X

UNIVERSITY OF ??
JD? MD? PhD? MA - - - - -; Major in - - - - -?
Active in
More detailsmore detailsmore details.more detailsmore detailsmore
details..

place, place
XXXX

UNIVERSITY OF ??
BA in - - - - -?, Major in - - - - -?
Active in
More detailsmore detailsmore details.more detailsmore detailsmore details..

place, place
XXXX

4) Once you are at the graduate degree level, it is no longer appropriate to include your high school on our
resume. If you attended a high school that you feel has networking power, list it under additional
information
Experience Section
The experience section is the heart of your resume the most important section. Regardless of placement, style or
format, it is the section of the resume where employers will spend the most time. The experience section may
include full-time experience for which you have been paid but also applicable volunteer experience, military
experience and internships.
The more experience you have, the less important it is to cover every period of your life on your resume. Avoid
filling your resume with unimportant information just to account for time. While it is appropriate to list your
employers, titles and dates on your resume in chronological order, it is not always necessary to include
accomplishments for each previous job. See the Development of an Effective Resume section of this Chapter for
guidance on crafting experience bullets and for specific examples of effective bullets.
When determining whether or not to eliminate a specific experience/internship from your resume, think about the
following:
What value does the experience/internship add to my resume?
Is the experience/internship relevant to the work I want to do now?
Does the experience/internship work represent skills that are not already on my resume?
While there is not a specific rule, understanding the company, industry or function you are interested in can help
guide you on what to include (also see the Make an Impact on the Hiring Manager section).
Additional Information Section
Most resumes will include a section which details interests, specialized skills (e.g. language proficiency), volunteer
activities, or other personal information (e.g. awards, professional affiliations or certifications, publications, patents,
work authorization (if relevant), computer skills (only necessary if you are applying for a technically-oriented job),
etc. ).

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Below are some specific examples of effective additional information bullets:

Languages: Fluent in French, conversational in Spanish

Licenses & Professional Memberships: Acquired Series 7, 63, 55, and 24 licenses. Member of New York
Society of Security Analysts and Security Traders Association of New York
Interests: Travel hiked to Machu Picchu in Peru; Hip-hop and tap dancing studied at Broadway Dance
Center in NYC for 3 years and took several lessons from Savion Glover; Sailing competing in upcoming
MBA cup in Italy
Completed the Boston Marathon with personal best time of XX:XX:XX
Refurbished a 1880 Victorian home
Organized benefit concert and raised $X,000 for developmentally challenged children (Nov-Jan 200X).
Concertmaster of XXXX Symphony Orchestra (200X). Winner of XXXXX Festival for Solo Violin (19XX)

As you can see from the above examples, the additional information section can be an effective way to send a
message about you, whether it is commitment to excellence, teamwork, well-roundedness, intellectual curiosity or
sophistication. Many hiring managers appreciate this type of information because it gives them easy small talk
items to help start the conversation. In addition there is a chance that you and the hiring manager share a common
interest or experience, which can help start things off on a comfortable note.
Recognize, however, that a hiring manager could interpret your passion for something in three different ways a) I
dont care b) Thats cool, I like that too! or c) I wonder if this passion is going to distract the candidate from
working hard for me? Think carefully about how you utilize this section, and remember that an Additional
Information section is not obligatory; the space may be more effectively used to further describe your work
experience.
NOTE: In the United States it is not appropriate to include your age, sex, marital status or religion on your resume.
This standard, however, varies greatly from culture to culture. If you are seeking a job outside of the United States, a
vital part of your market research is find out what the custom is for resumes and to make sure that you comply. To
do otherwise will only point out your lack of knowledge about the culture.

THE STRUCTURE OF A RESUME

Resume Formats
There are three basic types of resumes (see the following pages for examples of all three formats):
1) Reverse Chronological. Describe your experiences using reverse chronological order of your employment
positions. Reverse chronological resumes are the most common because hiring managers are most familiar with
this format.
2) Functional. Divide your experiences into function/skill/project sets. Functional resumes are useful for people
whose experience is mostly freelance consulting or project-based work because organizing a resume
chronologically by title and firm name can be unwieldy for this type of experience.
3) Hybrid. Describe your experiences in reverse chronological order but using competency or functional headers
within a specific job title or at a specific company. This option allows you to highlight certain skills, expertise
or areas of experience within a particular job. This is useful for career changers who desire to quickly point out
to the recruiter their existing transferable skills. It can also be a helpful way to divide up a resume if you have
been working at one firm for several years.

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Example 1: Reverse Chronological Approach

EXPERIENCE
IRRIGATION, INC.,
Santa Monica, CA
2000-2005
International Sales Manager xxxx-xxxx
International Product Manager xxxx-xxxx
Analyzed international markets, set product pricing, and developed yearly sales forecast models. Presented
findings to senior management.
Increased international sales by 29% by designing and implementing new systems and infrastructure to
revitalize flagging international sales and strengthen international distribution network.
Directed six member international sales department generating sales of $8 million.
Created customer partnership programs to reinvigorate customer relationships including over 20 overseas visits
to deepen and personalize relationships.
Led fast track product development project. Efficiency, dedication to aggressive deadlines, and team
commitment resulted in a standard 18 month project being completed in 7 months.
Modeled product line reduction scenarios and implemented optimal solution. Reduced product range by 30%
in six months.
CARPENTER TECHNOLOGY CORPORATION
Santa Monica, CA
Quality Assurance Engineer
1998-2000
Managed nuclear reactor core-channel production projects each valued in excess of $3 million.
Conducted core-channel corrosion testing. Analyzed material corrosion data and gave extensive presentations
and reports to senior management. Analysis used as basis for new product specifications.
Example 2: Functional Approach (not recommended for current Wharton MBA students)

EXPERIENCE
New Product Development
Developed product requirements with clients for a software toolkit that improved design quality by 20%.
Initiated and led software implementation effort.
Identified an innovative database solution to manage design data, presented it to management and deployed it
across three client groups, resulting in 30% increase in efficiency and data reliability.
Project Management and Planning
Analyzed and recommended the outsourcing of $40 million software development to senior management,
resulting in a 20% increase in productivity of design. Coordinated outsourcing with suppliers.
Led five-member cross-functional team in establishing new technique to detect flaws in microprocessors,
resulting in estimated savings of $20 million in avoided product recalls.
Marketing
Developed and delivered presentations to senior management of over 60 companies. Increased consulting
projects by 50% in a six month period.
Bench-marked Intels new processor against competition and recommended product features to designers.
Employment
ABC Consulting Firm, Senior Consultant, San Francisco, CA, xxxx-xxxx
XYZ Computer Corporation, Asst. Product Manager, La Jolla, CA xxxx-xxxx

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Example 3: Hybrid Approach

EXPERIENCE
ARTHUR ANDERSEN & CO. LLP
Chicago, IL
2000-2005
Consultant, Business Economic and Financial Consulting Division
Valuation/Modeling
Created valuation model to determine fair market value for an insurance companys $3 billion real estate loan
portfolio.
Calculated lost profits litigation damage claim for an appliance company resulting in a $100 million gain.
Financial Analysis
Prepared witness outline and demonstrative exhibits relating to property valuation for a chemical companys
lawsuit with two commercial banks.
Produced an expert report to refute $20 million of $30 million in taxes owed by an international grain company.
Due Diligence
Performed detail testing of an insurance companys valuation process including reviewing standard
assumptions, verifying the integrity of the data, and testing the overall accuracy of third partys valuation model
Conducted accounting fraud investigation of subcontractors computer systems on behalf of concerns by real
estate relocation cooperative.
Length
For current students, resumes should be kept to one page. For alumni, if you have 10 or more years of experience
then two pages is acceptable. If you use two pages, however, be sure to put your name and telephone/email address
in the header of page 2 and put Page 2 of 2 in the footer.

DEVELOPMENT OF AN EFFECTIVE RESUME

Crafting a resume which captures the hiring managers attention requires identifying key experiences and
accomplishments as well as understanding the hiring managers needs.
Make an Impact: Your resume is not about you it is about what the hiring manager thinks about your
experiences. This shift in mindset means you must focus on what the reader will think about your resume. The
imperative for the hiring manager is to fill an open position. He/she needs someone with a specific set of skills.
Identify the skills that are required for your desired industry and position (see Chapter 3) and articulate them
within your resume.
Visually Appealing: The format and visual appearance of your resume make a difference. Often times hiring
managers are simply looking for a reason to exclude resumes from their stacks of potential resumes. Make your
resume easy to read; use the correct format, strategic white space and effectively placed words and bullets.
Make an Impact on the Hiring Manager/Create Effective Bullets
Brainstorm your past experiences and identify specific examples where your actions exemplified the skills you need
to highlight. Think of specific action verbs that demonstrate your accomplishments as well as the skills you utilized.
When describing your accomplishments, use the PAR framework (or a similar framework such as the Situation,
Task, Action and Result (STAR) Model).
P = Problem: Write down the problem or project
A = Action: Describe the action you took to solve the problem or complete the project
R = Result: Quantify the result of your action
This framework will help you write accomplishment-focused and results-oriented bullets as well as prepare you for
responding to interview questions (see Chapter 7).

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Tips:
1) If you are having a difficult time identifying your accomplishments, look through the sample action verbs
(See Appendix of this Chapter for sample action verbs). This may help you remember significant actions
you took in the past
2) When thinking about your past experiences, focus on the actions you took, not the positions you held. This
will help you move away from listing a job description and move toward creating accomplishment
statements. Accomplishment statements articulate your unique contribution to your department or
organization rather than the intended contribution of your position
3) Review past performance reviews and speak with former colleagues for ideas on your major
accomplishments and skill set
Accomplishment-focused and results-oriented bullets create a match between your skills and the companys needs,
articulate the impact/contribution you made to former employers and communicate content clearly.
1) Create a match between you and the company industry
Craft your past experience in such a way that it is valuable to the hiring manager. Research and understand the skills
and accomplishments required to be successful in the company, industry and/or function you are targeting (see
Chapter 3 on market research). In many cases, even as a career switcher, you have demonstrated the required skills
for a future position in your current/prior work experience. These skills are called transferrable skills.
Tips:
1) Think about the decisions you made in the past which had a positive impact on the organization. Did any of
those decisions exhibit use of the skills required for the new company, industry or function of interest?
2) Think about problems that you encountered in different jobs and how you solved them. Did the skills you
used to solve the problems exhibit use of the skills required for the company, industry or function of
interest?
When selecting accomplishments to include on your resume, only highlight prior experiences that showcase the
skills that are valued by the new company, industry and/or function you are targeting. Major accomplishments in
your past may be excluded from your resume as a result. Eliminating these accomplishments can be emotionally
difficult, but remember that your resume is not about what is valuable to you (or to your coworkers, friends or
family members), but rather what is valuable to the hiring manager.
2) Write results-oriented bullets
Demonstrating that you made a positive impact on a former employers organization or that your work achieved
positive results is crucial. Resumes that are filled with job descriptions (a listing of what your tasks were in the past)
are not compelling to a hiring manager. Bullets that do not demonstrate results are meaningless because they lack
context. To give your resume meaningful context, you must identify the key actions you took in particular
circumstances that led to unique accomplishments. Communicate the result or impact of your actions. Quantifying
the result(s) of an action you took is one of the best ways to explain your success because it can be easily understood
by a hiring manager.
Creating results-oriented bullets that share specific details is often the most difficult part of the resume writing
process. However, this is what distinguishes average resumes from great resumes and grabs the attention of the
hiring manager.
Tips:
1) When writing/reviewing a bullet, ask yourself, Could somebody else who had the same job/title as I did
write the same bullet? If so your bullet is a job description and you need to re-work it
2) If you are having a difficult time identifying the impact or result of your actions, try to compare yourself to
others. Did you do something better than someone else, or faster than it was done before? Think about the
reason you did the task and how the result was utilized. What was the impact of your work? Saying that
you increased sales, reduced cost or decreased the amount of time a procedure took by 10%, 20%, etc over
a certain period of time immediately makes the result clear to the reader
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3) If something happened several years ago, and you know there was a quantifiable result but you cannot
remember it, describe it in a general way such as, reduced processing time by more than half or try to
reconnect with former colleagues and ask them about the specific end-result of your efforts
4) Using context is a good way to communicate that something you did was significant or to communicate the
relative impact of your actions particularly when the reader might not be familiar with the circumstances.
Saying that you managed the ABC product line, representing $$ of the firms sales makes more of an
impact than saying managed the ABC product line. If you only say that you reduced processing time by
20%, how does the reader know that this is a significant accomplishment unless you provide context that all
other years the processing time was reduced by only 10% percent?
Below are several examples of effective, accomplishment-focused and results-oriented bullets:
Example 1: Quantitative Impact Sample Bullets

Analyzed efficiency of automated phone unit; recommendations were adopted by vendor and reduced dropped
calls by 15%
Structured marketing strategy for credit card offers by analyzing customer data and performing competitive
research. Recommended mail packages and mailing frequency that minimized cost per responder, increasing
marketing efficiency by 25%
Developed valuation model for real-time over limit authorizations, which reduced losses by $21MM annually.
Led five-member cross-functional team to create product and marketing strategy for new customer segment.
Analyzed customer data/market research, built statistical model to forecast profitability. Increased profits by
96%, accounts booked by 167%
Guided multi-regional teams to design and staff new innovation department for $10B global CPG company.
Defined roles and responsibilities, recommended reporting structure, and facilitated buy-in from different
regions. This resulted in one-time 20% cost savings and 5% annual savings from efficiency gains

Example 2: Context Sample Bullets

Achieved 6-month project goal of increasing production from 1.6M units to 2.4M units with existing resources
through operational redesign and method improvement
Represented Harris Group, a sales and marketing services provider, in $75 M sale of three subsidiaries.
Prepared company marketing materials and managed transaction process involving over 120 potential buyers
Earned three promotions in two years by leading six-person staff in growing depth and quality of student
services to match those of university 25 times larger

Example 3: Qualitative Impact Sample Bullets

Presented multiple organizational seminars attended by 40+ executives from major Japanese companies to
improve problem-solving skills and to promote project reengineering effort
Selected by Managing Director to help start equity private placement group after eight months with the firm.
Created groups valuation templates, marketing materials and infrastructure
Identified incremental revenue opportunities for Product A in new and existing markets. Developed and
presented short and long term brand strategies in those markets. Initiated execution of advised strategy
Transformed department into fully digital, information-rich environment by implementing smart card program
and training staff on software. Efficiencies created by system led to decrease in accounting labor hours and
increase in guest revenue

Do not misrepresent your experiences, accomplishments or results. It is dishonest and can damage your reputation as
well as result in the loss of a job. To create a results-oriented resume and compete with others, it can be tempting to
cross the line of accuracy. However, the risks of being caught exaggerating your experiences far outweigh the
benefits of an impressive-sounding bullet, and may negatively impact your chances of being offered a job at
multiple employers (because information regarding candidates lack of honesty is frequently shared across firms).
Your reputation for integrity is something you will need throughout your professional life and is not easily
repairable once damaged. Please also be advised that in the relatively small world of MBA graduates a negative
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reputation can migrate from one firm to another as recruiters, business line professionals, and others (fellow
students, professors, etc.) take on new responsibilities and exert influence in their respective organizations.
Employers often conduct background checks on students they have hired and the company reserves the right to
rescind your job offer due to inaccuracies on your resume.
3) Communicate the content clearly
Write your bullets so that the hiring manager can understand you. Streamline your bullets and make them easy to
read. Think critically about the action verbs you use at the beginning of each bullet. These action verbs should
quickly provide the hiring manager with an understanding of your core skill set.
Tips:
1) Make sure that each bullet actually says what you think it says. Ask someone to read your bullets quickly
and ask them what main skills are communicated in the bullet. If the answer is not what you are looking
for, the bullet might need to be rewritten
2) Avoid words like successfully or very which are ineffective because they are ambiguous. Successful by
whose standards? What does very refer to, or again, by whose standards?
3) Avoid the phrases like responsible for, which do not show the hiring manager what you did, only what
you were obligated to do
4) Avoid repeating the same action verb at the beginning of each bullet. It is understandable that you may
repeat action verbs within your resume. However, you want to present a variety of experiences that relate to
the skills/attributes the hiring manager is seeking. If you must repeat an action verb, try not to use it in
consecutive bullets
5) Avoid excessive or complicated lingo, abbreviations and jargon. Consider replacing a technical or industry
specific term with a laymans term and then placing the technical information in parentheses immediately
following the term. This way the hiring manager can read the technical information but will not be
distracted by it when learning about your skills
6) Place the most relevant part of what you are trying to communicate at the front of the bullet. The first three
or four words of a bullet are critical because that is usually what the hiring manager glances at when he/she
skims through resumes. For example, it may be more powerful to say, Increased revenue 25% by
analyzing pricing and evaluating target customer versus Analyzed pricing and evaluated target customer
which led to a 25% increase in revenue
7) Order your bullets within each section of your resume by what is most relevant to the hiring manager rather
than by what you spent the most time on or what your prior employer found to be the most helpful
8) Limit your bullets to four lines. Four lines should be the maximum, but even that is often too long. A good
rule of thumb is having not more than 1 to 2 skills per bullet and 3 to 4 lines per bullet. You need to
effectively communicate the key information you want the reader to grasp and you can fill in the details
during the interview
9) Use sentence fragments, not complete sentences. This is a marketing document designed to deliver key
information to the reader in a very short amount of time in order to get that reader to ask you to interview.
Sentence fragments in a resume do not need the extraneous/filler words (e.g. a, the) found in complete
sentences. Fragments are intended to deliver key information much quicker and more effectively
10) Avoid the use of I (and other personal pronouns) in your resume. I is a superfluous word that can takes
up space on a resume and distracts the reader from the important information. It is standard practice with
resumes to avoid use of pronouns as the resume, by definition, is about you. Consequently, it is clear you
are the one who has done all of the things you describe
Make your Resume Visually Appealing
It has been well documented that most hiring managers spend less than 20 seconds reviewing a resume.
Additionally, 60% of employers form an opinion on resume appearance alone. To attract (and retain) the attention of
hiring managers, make your document visually appealing.
Tips:
1) Strategically allow ample white space. White space is critical to a professional resume. It lets the reader
breathe while looking at your bullets, makes the entire resume easier to read and guides the readers eye
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2)

3)

4)

5)

to the important content on your resume. It is often difficult to notice the important things in an
overcrowded resume
Focus on proper alignment by ensuring all of your bullets and headings are aligned correctly. While this
may seem obvious, many people fail to complete this step. Misaligned bullets speak poorly of your
attention to detail
Maintain consistent format and style throughout your resume (including your headings, bullet formats and
section titles, font choice, font sizing, etc). Do not indent key aspects of one section and not indent the next.
If you use semicolons at the end of your bullets then use semicolons in every location do not use periods
in some places and semicolons in others. If you use bold headings, bold them the same way in every
section. Be careful with capitalizing or bolding words within bullets
Limit font style to one font, and be judicious about font sizes. It is a good idea to use formatting to direct
the readers eyes to the relevant content. However, use formatting cautiously and make sure it creates a
resume that is easier to read versus a resume that is difficult to read. Limit (or eliminate) the use of italics
unless grammatically required
Check and re-check your resume for typos and grammatical mistakes

RESUME REVISION PROCESS

After writing your resume bullets, which highlight your experiences, skills and results, take time to carefully re-read
each bullet and ask yourself the following questions:
So what? Explore in your mind what was special, unique, challenging, and meaningful about that particular
project or experience. If your bullet does not clearly answer the so what question, then you need to re-write it
Is the bullet easy to read? Make sure you have clearly expressed what you want the hiring manager to know
about you or your skills
If a person reads the bullet quickly, will he/she understand that you exhibit the skills you are trying to
communicate? Make sure the bullets can impress the hiring manager in a very short period of time
Is the skill communicated in this bullet a skill that your target employer is looking for? Make sure you can
articulate the skill highlighted in each of your bullets
After you make revisions, utilize colleagues and friends to help you review/edit your resume. People who know your
work (skills and accomplishments) can help you craft the bullets. People who know very little about your
background (and ideally have experience in the industry you want to go into) can provide feedback on how a hiring
manager would view your document. For these people, ask them to skim your resume and/or read each bullet
quickly and see what conclusions they draw. Then ask them:
Is the resume boring or vague?
Is the resume easy to read? Clear format and layout?
What skills are evident in each bullet? Does the resume have a clear focus?
Have you communicated the skills that are valuable in that particular industry? Does the resume have irrelevant
information?
Is it clear that I have the skills/passion to go into my desired industry?
Are you, the reader, confident that I have exemplified these skills based on the impact I made?
If the answers to these questions are not sufficient, then revise your bullets accordingly. Then repeat the above
process until the answers you receive indicate your resume meets the needs of your target hiring managers.

CONCLUSION
After reading this chapter (as well as Chapter 2 on self-assessment and Chapter 3 on market research) you should be
ready to start drafting your resume. Once you have created your resume, you are ready to leverage the information
you gathered (the needs of your target employers and your skills and accomplishments) to start writing cover letters
(see Chapter 6) and preparing for interviews (see Chapter 7).

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Remember your resume is never complete it is an evolving marketing document that changes as you develop
new skills, accomplish new things and refine your areas of interest/passion. Keep it up-to-date you never know
when you will want/need to share it someone.

APPENDIX
Recommended Reading
Asher's Bible of Executive Resumes and How to Write Them (Donald Asher)
Effective Resume Writing: A Guide to Successful Employment (James E. Neal)
Encyclopedia of Job-winning Resumes (Myra Fournier and Jeffrey Spin)
Resumes That Get Jobs (Jean Reed and Ray Potter)
The Ultimate CV: Win Senior Managerial Positions With an Outstanding Resume (Rachel Bishop-Firth)
Write a Great CV (Paul McGee)
Websites and Online Subscriptions
Career Resumes (www.career-resumes.com)
Quint Careers (www.quintcareers.com)
Resume Edge (www.resumeedge.com)
On the Wharton MBA Career Management Website
Vault Career Library
Wet Feet Insider Resources
Wharton Resume Books (Resume Book Archive) search fellow student resumes by keyword and other criteria
Wharton Resume Guidelines
Wharton Resume Template(s) quick start for developing your resume
Sample Action Verbs
Clerical or Detail Work:
Approved
Arranged
Catalogued
Classified
Collected
Compiled
Dispatched
Executed

Generated
Implemented
Inspected
Monitored
Operated
Organized
Prepared
Processed

Purchased
Recorded
Retrieved
Screened
Specified
Systematized
Tabulated
Validated

Communication Skills:
Addressed
Arbitrated
Arranged
Authored
Corresponded
Directed
Drafted
Edited

Enlisted
Formulated
Influenced
Interpreted
Lectured
Moderated
Motivated
Negotiated

Persuaded
Presented
Promoted
Publicized
Recruited
Translated
Wrote

Creative Skills:
Acted
Concentrated
Created
Designed
Developed

Fashioned
Founded
Illustrated
Instituted
Integrated

Originated
Performed
Planned
Revitalized
Shaped

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Guide to Managing Your Career | Wharton MBA Career Management

Directed
Established

Introduced
Invented

Financial Skills:
Administered
Allocated
Analyzed
Appraised
Audited

Balanced
Calculated
Computed
Developed
Forecast

Managed
Marketed
Planned
Projected
Researched

Helping Skills:
Assessed
Assisted
Clarified
Coached
Counseled

Demonstrated
Diagnosed
Educated
Expedited
Facilitated

Familiarized
Guided
Referred
Rehabilitated
Represented

Management Skills:
Administered
Analyzed
Assigned
Attained
Chaired
Contracted
Consolidated
Coordinated
Delegated

Developed
Directed
Enhanced
Evaluated
Executed
Improved
Increased
Organized
Oversaw

Planned
Prioritized
Produced
Recommended
Reviewed
Scheduled
Strengthened
Supervised

Research Skills:
Clarified
Collected
Critiqued
Determined
Diagnosed
Evaluated

Examined
Extracted
Inspected
Interpreted
Interviewed
Investigated

Organized
Reviewed
Summarized
Surveyed
Systematized

Teaching Skills:
Adapted
Advised
Clarified
Coached
Communicated
Coordinated
Developed

Enabled
Encouraged
Evaluated
Explained
Facilitated
Guided
Informed

Initiated
Instructed
Persuaded
Stimulated

Technical Skills:
Assembled
Built
Calculated
Computed
Designed
Devised

Engineered
Fabricated
Maintained
Operated
Overhauled
Programmed

Remodeled
Repaired
Solved
Trained
Upgraded

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