How to Write Effective Bullet Points for Your Resume

How to Write Effective Bullet Points for Your Resume How to Write Effective Bullet Points for Your Resume Of the 250 resumes received on average for each job opening, only 4-6 will garner an interview. This means that 98 percent of applicants are rejected based on their resumes alone.These odds may seem daunting, but Im not trying to scare you. Rather, I only want to demonstrate the importance of writing a resume that stands out. Improving your resume canmake a world of difference for your job search.Defining a Stand-Out ResumeMany people take this concept too literally. They end up using pretty graphics, splashy designs, and colorful templates, thinking this will stand out and grab a recruiters attention. Ive personally worked with dozens of recruiters at top companies, and let me tell you - recruiters hate these kinds of resumesRecruiters are substance over style kind of people. What theyreally care about are your bullet points.Each and every line must be informative and engagin g. Each bullet should further contribute to an employers desire to hire you. This is what we call an effective bullet point.Effective Vs. Ineffective Bullet PointsLets start with anexample of a bullet point that is ineffectiveResponsible for the coordinated management of multiple related projects directed toward strategic geschftlicher umgang and other organizational objectivesThis isthe kindof bullet that many job seekers would use to describe project management experience. Can you identify why its an ineffective bullet?The main problem is that it focuses on the applicants responsibilities instead of their accomplishments. A line like thisis more appropriate for a job descriptionthan a resumeOn your resume, its your job to show recruiters the impact youve had at your previous companies. You can do this by writing accomplishment-oriented bullet points.Here is an example of a significantly more effective bullet point to showcase project management experienceManaged a process-reengine ering project to improve and consolidate end-to-end service processes restructured communication flow among 10 departments and cut down paperwork by 75 percentNotice the difference? This bullet point demonstrates the applicants accomplishments by using1.Action wordslikemanaged and restructured, which demonstrate what the candidate actuallydidrather than what they were responsible for.2. Numbers to quantify results- e.g. cut down paperwork by 75percent. Quantifying your results makes them a whole lot more meaningful, since they show employers how work youve done hasconcretely impacted the company.How to Quantify Accomplishments Even When You Dont Have Access to Hard NumbersEmployers love to see achievements that directly contribute to the companys bottom line. Thus, quantifying your impact in dollars will be most impressive to employers.However, not all of uswork in sales or finance roles where our performance can be easily converted into dollar figures. What should you do in that c ase?Use any metric that is relevant to your job, and then make an educated estimate to convert that metric into dollars. For example, improvements you made to a process may have cut the processs time by 20 hours a week. Twenty hours is equivalent to half of one full-time employees workweek, so you can convert your time savings into an estimated financial impact of half the average full-time employees salary - say, $30,000 a year.There are a ton of other metrics you can use to quantify your results, too How many people or departments did you work with? Did a change you made result in fewer customer support queries? You can even quantify your achievements based on thesize ofa project you ran or the time you saved your team on a weekly basis.- Your job title tells recruiters and hiring managers all they need to know about your responsibilities. Instead of repeating yourself, showcase your results by writing quantified, accomplishment-oriented bullets. This isthe single most effective way to stand out from competitors and be one of the 2 percent of applicants who get an interview.Rohan Mahtani is the founder of Resume Worded.Master the art of closing deals and making placements. Take our Recruiter Certification Program today. Were SHRM certified. Learn at your own pace during this 12-week program. Access over 20 courses. Great for those who want to break into recruiting, or recruiters who want to further their career.