Recently the career experts blog at UBC weighed in about the usefulness of functional style resumes vs. chronological resumes. Historically functional style resumes have been recommended for first time university/college graduates and for career changers. According to one commenter on the career experts blog the functional resume had it’s heyday in the 70s as a clever way to display one’s skillset. Now they are seen as a ‘bluffing tactic’ a way to distract an employer from undesirable information such as gaps in work history. And it’s not unusual for that type of resume to end up in the shredder!
Blue Sky Resumes has some pretty good suggestions for career changers , using online portfolios, networking and blogging as a way to extend one’s traditional portfolio. Secondary and post-secondary institutions are encouraging students to start developing their career development portfolios early with project/work samples, multimedia (such as video and flash presentations) as well as a section for personal reflections. The idea being that if you do you’re own personal PR work effectively you can tap into that 85% hidden job market. And in fact I know of a number of colleagues/university students that have gotten job offers this way. However, a number of organizations are unionized and still work under traditional guidelines for advertising positions, human resources procedures and resumes. I wonder what how individuals with little experience or career changers would approach this situation?
I have a couple of questions here for both hiring managers and successful jobseekers to consider:
- Is there still any use for functional resumes?
- What would you suggest for graduates with little experience and career changers?
- What new strategies should be considered in this arena?
Weigh in!
October 23rd, 2006 at 2:29 pm
Yes, functional resumes are exceptional when done correctly. Specify ALL the information, make resumes detailed not summaries and ensure you focus on the key points YOU are responsible for, not your team.
October 23rd, 2006 at 4:53 pm
Hi Ed! Are you speaking from a hiring manager’s perspective?
October 23rd, 2006 at 5:10 pm
Interesting blog site…and even more interesting topic. Got this link through UBC trek
October 23rd, 2006 at 9:40 pm
I’ve never used functional resumes for myself, and never had a need for them. Chronological, or rather “mixed” resume style worked for me from the very beginning: obective, highlights, skills, professional experience, education, and the extra stuff like the Languages, ineterest, etc.
October 25th, 2006 at 10:13 am
I think it also depends on the industry. In my line of work (and my skillset) a functional resume seems to work better, and get a better response. I have a wide range of experience in photography, TV production, marketing, and business. I tie my acheivements and experience to specific work examples in the resume. I’m definately going more multimedia in my new resumes too…why just stick with sheets of paper? In this day and age, it’s all about promoting your personal brand.
October 28th, 2006 at 9:24 am
I think that Warwick has a good point. For job types that are more project oriented it may be wise to decontruct what we traditionally think of as a resume and start to think about creative ways to showcase your work history as pertaining to your industry.
Something to think about.