8 Reasons to Update Your Resume Now! Is your resume still ready for prime time?

In our last post, we offered tips for writing your first resume. But most of us have been working for years, and have resumes. It’s easy to add your most recent experience and education to the resume and leave everything else unchanged. The fact is that this approach won’t serve you well in many situations. Instead, consider reviewing the entire document, and then revising the content and style to address your current needs.

You may want to ask yourself the following questions as you examine your current resume:

1. How old is this resume?
2. Are you making a career change?
3. Has your job target changed?
4. Does the resume need to be “decluttered?”
5. Have you acquired more education?
6. Is the format out-of-date?
7. Will changes in application tracking system (ATS) technology impact my resume?
8. What should be included or excluded now?

It is easy to spot a “quick and dirty” update. You will improve your chances to land an interview when you take the time to follow best practices for updating your document.

The age of the resume matters.

If your existing resume is more than five years old, you should rebuild it from scratch. Most “modern” resume formats are easily identifiable. They may include design accents such as lines and colors that are still compatible with applicant tracking systems.

With regard to substance, a five-year-old resume is usually out-of-date even if you have worked at the same job. Your daily tasks may have changed over time, and more importantly, you probably have added impressive accomplishments that should be on the resume. And, at a minimum, you’ll have to reformat the resume so the new information fits.

Are you changing careers?

Are you switching industries instead of just looking to change jobs? Your previous resume format might not position you as effectively for a new field as completely revamping your resume. In addition, you may want to change the presentation of the content in the resume itself — for example, a resume for a teaching role may present the same information significantly different than a resume for a corporate education position.

An “extreme” example I dealt with several years ago was that of an engineer who went to law school, worked as an attorney, and then went back to electronics engineering. His resume for each field had to be markedly different. Another client, originally a fashion buyer, shifted to an accounts payable role in the construction industry, necessitating a resume revamp.

Has your job target changed?

Usually, the transition you are planning is less dramatic than switching industries or professions. For example, a resume for an entry-level bank teller role is (or should be!) significantly different than a resume for a commercial banker position. So, even a modest change in job target can necessitate a resume revamp.

It might be time to “declutter” your resume.

 It’s common practice for jobseekers to update their resume by simply adding in new roles without considering the “big picture” of the document strategy as a whole. This is especially important for jobseekers with 10-15+ years of experience, as the resume may be approaching a full two pages. Sometimes completely revising the resume provides a better way to organize older experience.

Commonly, we receive resumes that list every position since the jobseeker left college. The resume may even include student activities and jobs. Often, entry-level jobs and student activities are no longer relevant, and should be deleted to “declutter.”

You have more education.

Education is an ongoing process for many of us today. A resume for a new college graduate is significantly different than a resume for someone who now holds a graduate degree with 3-5 years of experience in their field. If your current resume was created as a recent graduate, you’ll want to overhaul it to emphasize experience and include relevant continuing education or advanced degrees.

While employers will focus on your experience in most cases, your market value will increase as a result of additional education and training.

Resume formats have changed.

Sometimes you can look at a resume and just know it’s “old.” That could be due to older fonts used (Times New Roman) or outdated ways of presenting information. In addition, the strategy around how specific sections are used (for example: Summary of Qualifications) has changed over time.

ATS technology changes will impact strategy.

A related issue is formatting resumes so ATS systems can read them.  Newer systems should be more flexible and accept formats that would not have been recognized in the past. But we do not know what system your prospective employer has purchased or subscribed to, so it’s a good idea to be conservative.

Test your resume by displaying it in a simple text editor such as Notepad. Virtually any ATS will read the resume if a text editor can read it.

What to include/exclude has changed.

The first impression your resume makes is important, so avoid certain outdated information. For example, omit a full address in favor of city/state/zip. The ATS does not need your “snail-mail” address—city, state, and zip is enough.

Make certain your current online contact information is on your resume. This includes your cellphone number, email address, preferably Gmail, and your LinkedIn profile address. Employers will contact you via your smartphone, email, or LinkedIn, not through postal mail.  

The most important takeaway for this week is that the resume you used the last time you were downsized or pursued a promotion may need to be rewritten. Simply grafting your latest job or most recent achievements to the top is rarely sufficient because other things have changed, too. Review the entire document and revise it before sending it out.