When to Use a Resume Template

When to Use a Resume TemplateWhen to Use a Resume TemplateThe cookie-cutter approach is handy to create an initial resume draft, but beware hiring professionals can spot a cut-and-paste resume job a mile away.Ready-made resumes You can get them free from Google Docs and theyre included in major word processors such as Microsoft Word and Apple Pages. You cant argue with the free part. So why would anybody spend three figures on a professional resume makeover?Predictably enough, professional resume writers have a bevy of reasons why job seekers should avoid the cookie-cutter approach of a resume template, and one resume template vendor who spoke to Ladders even agreed with their rationale. But on analysis, its easy to see that both resume templates and the professional resume writers individualized attention are both crucial tools in a job seekers arsenal. First, the reasons why you shouldnt rely solely on a resume templateTemplates shout, I took a shortcutExecutive recruiters and hiri ng managers are all too familiar with the look of resume templates and resume-template services, said Barbara Safani, the owner of Career Solvers a New York career-management firm. They are easy to spot by hiring managers, and it is pretty easy to figure out you took a shortcut, she said. Thats notlage exactly the image you want to convey to hiring managers. The last place you want to look like everyone else, she said, is in a job search where youre trying to stand out from the crowd.Templates are easy to spot because many use outdated formats, styles and hackneyed and clichd phrases that convey personal attributes without proving impact, Safani said.Theyre also readily identifiable because so many people use them. Google, for example, has many different resume templates. But if youre a hiring professional who looks at resumes frequently, youll quickly begin to see that many submitted resumes have the saatkorn format, with the same positioning of content, the same graphical embellis hments and the same fonts.For example, two career management professionals interviewed for this article pointed to the same Microsoft Word template that displays the persons personenname in large type, then switches to a tiny, barely legible 8-point type size for the contact information.The persons name will be 36 or 72 points, and their phone number will be microscopically small, which is stupid because most people in human resources (HR) are 40 years old or older and wont be able to read it without glasses, said Shel Horowitz, the author of books on do-it-yourself marketing.People were using it because it was a template Microsoft had, Safani said of the same example. It was obviously a template because you received 40 resumes that looked the same. Even if youre only somebody who filled a job once every 10 years, they could still tell the person was using a template if 40 resumes looked the same.It says that job seeker isnt creative enough to present their information in a compelli ng way, said Safani. Its not a good strategy in a situation where youre trying to make yourself look different than everybody else.The difficulty of selling yourselfBeyond portraying job seekers as unimaginative and lazy, relying on resume templates also deprives job seekers of the objective view of a professional trained to hone in on their strengths. Horowitz said fewer than 5 percent of the resumes she sees properly highlight the subjects strengths.Its like having a professional do your taxes, she said they have the expertise to know what to look for. An expert will see very quickly, ?Oh, this thing you briefly mention here Lets talk about that That could be big, that could get you the job, she said. Or, ?This other thing youre giving weight to is not doing you a favor. Or, ?This language is not believable with your job title. Those are issues Ive seen with self-written resumes.When to use a templateSusan Ireland is a resume writer and author of The Complete Idiots Guide to the Perfect Resume. She also sells resume templates online starting at $24.95 at Ready-Made Resumes. In spite of that, Ireland highly recommends using the services of a professional resume writer.Distilling everything you know about yourself into a single document can be overwhelming, she said.If youre working with someone whos objective who can ask probing questions, the distilling, the finding of the essence, is the task of the resume writer, she said.So why would anybody use a resume template? First and foremost, Ireland said, the formatting has already been done. If you dont want to start with a leer page, which is overwhelming, and you want to start with something that you go in and replace with your own wording, thats one load off your shoulders, she said.And after all, how bad can templates be, given that professional resume writers themselves use them? I can assure you that professional resume writers are using resume-writing templates, Ireland said. Theyre not starting with a b lank sheet of paper every time.Professional resume writers, however, are experts at using Microsoft Word to add touches here and there, whether its lines or shadings or whatever, she said. Professional resume writers are sharing their tools with job seekers so they can use the resume templates, where indenting is already done, or where there might be bold formatting.Ireland compares templates not to cheating but instead to using a tool, just like youd use your computer.Professional resume writers recommend job seekers use templates as a tool to set up an initial resume that they can then share with a certified professional resume writer who can apply his objective expertise.