TIPS FOR PREPARING AND WRITING A GREAT RESUME

The Main Purpose of a Resume

The primary purpose of your resume is to motivate a prospective employer to pick up the phone and call you! That is why you must make your resume powerful and easy to read.

Do’s and Don’ts

• Do use bullets to highlight your accomplishments.
• Do have someone proofread your work and use your spell check and grammar check
•  Do save copies in Microsoft Word format.
• Do make sure you have a professional sounding message on your voice mail/answering machine.
• Do make sure your children know how to take a proper message.
• Do make a FAB statement before you begin.
•  Don’t write your experience in paragraph form.
• Don’t list your references on your resume.
•  Don’t include personal information such as age, marital status, religious preference, etc.
•  Don’t send a picture of yourself.
• If you are working with a recruiter on a position, DON’T send your resume  or apply directly to the hiring company.

F.A.B Statements

F.A.B. stands for feature/accomplishment/benefit. Consider this your homework for effective resumes and interviews. It can be useful to refer to or share while interviewing.

Remember; put yourself in employers’ shoes. What will they be looking for? Someone who can impact the bottom-line, has a proven track record of problem identification and problem solving, and can back those claims up with solid numbers.

The following is a brief explanation of each piece of F.A.B.

Feature—Responsibilities and titles you have had in the past. You might also list specialized training or committees you have been on.

Accomplishment—List what you have done in those “features” that you are proud of.

Benefit—Show exactly how those accomplishments effected the institution, department or program. Quantify your accomplishments with dollars, percentages, and/or numbers.

Example:
 

· Development and implementation of successful Level III nursery, resulting in 30% increase in deliveries in 18 months

Resume Format: an example to work from

First and last name

Address

City, ST Zip

Email

Home phone: Cell phone:

Objective:

(This is optional. If you include one, make sure you make it general and concise.)

Professional Experience:

11/01 to present  VICE PRESIDENT Clinical Services (Nursing, Pharmacy, RT)
Some Hospital & Medical Center
Some Town, State

•  JCAHO Accreditation – three with commendation – proven Leadership effectiveness, member corporate JCAHO mock survey team
•  Developed and implemented of successful Level III nursery, resulting in 30% increase in deliveries in 18 months
•  Instituted Recruitment and Retention process for RN’s – lowest turnover rate on Wasatch front
•  Combined and enlarged Medical/Surgical–improving patient satisfaction to 96% per Gallup Poll results
• Chairman of 5 Nurse Executives in Region – goal to accomplish initiatives as promoted by CEO’s – initiated cost savings ideas, quality issues and performance improvement goals

8/98 to 7/01     DIRECTOR, Acute Patient Services

Some Health System, 490 bed tertiary care hospital
Some Town, State

• Education and implementation of new forms and policies resulting in JCAHO commendation
• Reorganized Float Pool improving standards and accountability
•  Organized Surgical unit SWOT team to address issues on unit, improve function, and patient, employee and physician satisfaction

Education:

Weber State University – Bachelor of Science Degree

California Pacific University – Masters Degree/Management

Board Certified Nursing Administrator by ANA, certified 1984 to present

Adjunct Faculty Weber State University – 1984 to 1997

Professional Affiliations/Licensure:

Sigma Theta Tau – Honor Society for Nursing

Texas Organization of Nurse Executives

License/RN – Utah, Texas, Illinois

Weber State University Advisory Board – 1984 to 1997

University of Texas at San Antonio Advisory Board - 1997 to 2001

University of the Incarnate Word Advisory Board - 2001

Honors

Who’s Who American Women – 1979 to present

JCAHO Commendation – 1990, 1993, 1996

Desert Storm Boss Appreciation – 1991

TIPS:

• Begin each bullet with an action verb
• Avoid using statements that do not show some benefit unless you know that a certain skill is extremely marketable on it’s own merit
• Think in terms of what sells you to employers: increased revenues, cost savings, decreased turnover, program development, coming in under budget, improved patient satisfaction, etc.
• This format is easily read by “automatic resume readers” that many companies and recruiters use
• Do not use a header for your contact info as most resume readers will not recognize them
• Include months and years in your employment
• PROOFREAD, SPELL CHECK, and GRAMMAR CHECK!