Resume Design and Formatting

 You have carefully selected the Resume Design to highlight your value proposition. (An appropriate layout selection will ensure information flow is logical and cohesive)
 You have ensured that Information is put across in crisp bullet points and not as large blocky texts. (Ideally Bullets should average between 2 to 3 lines and paragraphs should average between 3 to 4 lines)
 You have ensured that White Space in the resume has been assessed and is adequate to ensure that text is easily readable.
 You have ensured that Resume points are not listed in Full Caps or in italics.
 You have ensured that Font Size and Type does not exceed three variations.
 You have ensured that Standards Fonts are used and Sizes do not vary beyond 10 to 12. (Commonly used Fonts are Ariel, Calibri, Time New Roman and Palatino Linotype
 You have ensured that the Design does not result in headers, footers or margins being cut off at the time of printing.
 You have ensured that Ideal Resume Length parameters is adhered to. (An Annexure may be attached for detailed projects in exceptional circumstances)
• 1 page for Entry Level Candidates
• 2 Pages for Mid-Level Candidates
• 3 pages for Senior Candidates

Essential Contact Details & More

 You have checked that Your Name is spelled correctly. (In the age of Application Tracking Systems (ATS), wrong spelling may create problems in duplicacy checks and offer roll-outs)
 You have checked that you have included your Correspondence Address correctly. (There is no need to give two addresses on the Resume)
 You have checked that Phone Number (Mobile and Home) is correct and that you have included the country/ city prefix before the Number.
 You have ensured that the correct Email ID has been included and that the Email ID is Professional and Formal. (Informal id’s eg: coolgal etc do not create the right impression)
 You have checked that your LinkedIn and other Formal Social Media Handle’s are professionally crafted.
 You have ensured that your attached Photograph projects you as a smiling, confident & formally dressed professional.
 You have made sure that the Photograph is atleast passport sized or inline with the format of your choice.
 You have ensured that the resume is not Titled “resume”, “cv”, or “curriculum vitae”. (The hiring manager would know what your document is just by looking at it. If there is any scope for confusion, then the document you have submitted is not a resume)

Dividing the Resume into Legible Sections

 You have ensured that the Introduction section is crisp and well drafted to create an immediate impact.
• For Entry Level Candidates – A carefully drafted Objective should be your Introduction
• For Mid and Senior Level Candidates – Your Professional Summary should be your preferred Introduction
 You have checked that Your Professional Experience has been written in a reverse chronological order. (Please also ensure that you have adequately highlighted your growth in terms of Designation and Responsibility within each Work Experience). Do look at the formats available on www.triedge.in for ideas.
 You have Double-Checked that the month and year of work experience are right and do not overlap. (Please remember that large organisations may consider a wrong month / year on the resume as misrepresentation)
 You have ensured that your Professional Experience includes your achievements. (Please remember that Listing of responsibilities is important but impact created by Achievements is critical)
 You have included a 2-3 line brief to introduce relatively lesser known organizations that you may have worked in.
 You have ensured that Location, Role and Duration of tenure have been clearly highlighted.
 You have checked that the Education Section has been written highlighting Institute, Location, Degree and Specialization and that it is consistent. (The same data points should be shared for each level of education)
 You have included your Scores and explained the Scoring Format eg: 7.9 CGPA. (Please remember that sharing of scores is less important for senior professionals but for entry level candidates it’s absence conveys your hesitation in projecting your academic achievements)
 You have added and substantiated your Additional Skills and Certifications and that these are relevant to the Job Opportunity.
 You have ensured that your Extra Curricular Activities emphasise achievements or competencies and are not just a bland list.
 You have checked that your Extra Curricular Activities are not ancient, but a part of your current/recent lifestyle.
 You have included only relevant Personal Information. (It is not necessary to include Names of Parents)
 You have not included statements like “Available for interview” or “References available upon request” in your resume. (These are extraneous words and add no value)
 You have not included your salary expectations, current salary information or the fact that salary is negotiable in your resume. (Its premature to discuss compensation at the resume stage and in any case compensation is always negotiable)
 You have used numbers wherever possible to describe your past professional, academic and other achievements.

The Resume Content

 You have ensured that the resume is customized to the job opportunity. (Please remember that ONE Resume doesn't FIT ALL)
 You have ensured that your Objectives (if included) and highlighted Skills are relevant to the Job Opportunity.
 You have ensured that the resume content includes key words and phrases which are relevant to the Job Opportunity. (These can be ascertained from the Job Description)
 You have explained or removed little known abbreviations and industry jargon from your resume.
 You have ensured that Numbers are written correctly. (Numbers from 1-9 should be spelled out one, two, three, etc. Numbers 10+ may be written numerically - 11, 12, 13, etc.)
 You have made use of action words to create interest and impact.
 You have avoided being repetitive and have modified bland, boring or tired language.
 You have avoided use of difficult and complex words and overlong sentences. (Sentences should normally not exceed 20 words and the length should vary to create interest)
 You have ensured that the Resume has been written in first person.
 You have ensured that personal pronouns have been used only where essential.
 You have ensured that tenses have been applied consistently, present tense for current profile and past tense for historical profile.
 You have double checked and Cross verified dates to ensure accuracy to avoid conflict between different data points.

Proof-reading the Resume

 You have checked the resume for Spelling Mistakes.
 You have checked the resume for word usage. (Some words may have been incorrectly used due to typos - Remember some words sound similar and do not show up as spelling errors)
 You have checked the resume for Grammatical Errors.
 You have checked the resume for Punctuation Mistakes.
 You have asked another person to review your resume.

The Look & Feel of Paper Resumes

 You have ensured that the paper is A-4 sized.
 You have ensured that the paper quality is heavier, denser and more durable than the average computer or copy paper. (This prevents ripping, tears and a shabby look)
 You have ensured that the color of the paper is conservative such as white, ecru, light gray or a similarly neutral-colored paper.
 You have ensured that the resume being sent is not folded, torn or crushed and the resume being handed over is in a professional folder.

The Accessibility of E-Copy Resumes

 You have ensured that the resume has been saved as .Doc or as PDF. (Avoid saving file as a .docx file, which is the default in the latest versions of Microsoft Word since 2007 but cannot be read by some Application Tracking Systems)
 You have ensured that the file size of the attached resume is not very heavy. (Heavy mails in excess of 20 MB might bounce back or are sent to the recipients junk folder)
 You have ensured that the resume has been named appropriately. (File Name should Ideally be your name underscore role applied for, so as to easily distinguish your application)
 You have ensured that the attached file is virus free.

Hope this helps you create a perfect error free Resume

Sonali Shankar is an MBA from MDI, Gurgoan (1997) & an alumnus of College of Business Studies,
Delhi. Sonali’s career spans diverse roles in HR across myriad sectors such as Power Transmission, Retail, Automobile, ITES and New Age Businesses. She has extensive experience in recruitments from entry level hires to executive search mandates. In her current role at Triedge, Sonali is part of the core team incubating www.triedge.in , an E Platform for HR Services. She is the Chief Resume Officer and also carries the responsibility developing the ELearning Platform.