So, chronological summary focuses on describing your career path (in reverse chronological order). It is better suited for those who have not changed their field of activity and developed in one company or industry.
The structure of a chronological resume is simple
- Work experience (in reverse chronological order)
The advantages of this resume are its simplicity and familiarity for recruiters. Disadvantages - in such a resume, gaps in your experience and long breaks in work are obvious.
Functional a resume focuses on your key skills and achievements. At the same time, the work experience itself is indicated very briefly. This resume is suitable for those who often changed jobs within the same position or changed their field of activity.
Functional resume structure
- Personal data (full name, age, residence)
- Desired position/desired income
- Key skills and achievements
- Work experience (in reverse chronological order: years of work, name of organization and position)
- Basic and additional education
- Additional information (PC proficiency and foreign languages, availability of rights, etc.)
The advantages of such a resume are that the recruiter immediately understands what the candidate knows and can do. Disadvantages: It is difficult to assess the stages of your career development.
Hybrid (mixed) resume
And finally mixed or hybrid resume, as the name suggests, combines the features of a chronological and functional summary.
Here there is an emphasis on the candidate’s key skills, and one can see the applicant’s development from position to position. Personally, I like the mixed resume type best.
What is a functional resume? When is it better to use it? How can such a resume help in your job search? For which vacancies is it better not to send a functional resume?
Recently, in the article “Types of resumes: choosing the best one,” we talked about different types resume. One of them is a functional resume. This is exactly what I propose to talk about today. The functional resume is not as common as the chronological and hybrid resumes. Moreover, personnel officers and recruiters sometimes “dislike” him. However, there are situations when it is best for the applicant to focus on it. Why? To answer this question, you first need to understand how a functional resume differs from the usual chronological resume.
Two big differences
The main feature of a chronological resume is the description of the candidate's experience in reverse chronological order. At first glance, it is clear what kind of work the candidate performed in lately, what company he worked for, how gradually he moved (if he moved) up the career ladder.
There is also a second “side of the coin”: an experienced personnel officer immediately, literally at first glance, notices the main shortcomings of the candidate. All breaks in the length of service are visible: it can be assumed that after leaving company “A” the candidate could not find a job for six months before he got a job at company “B”, and even with a demotion. It is clear that the candidate’s career was very leisurely, while small companies alternate with larger ones. It is immediately noticeable that over the past year the applicant has already changed jobs twice and is planning to do it again...
Does such transparency help the candidate in this case? The question can be considered rhetorical. But you have to find a job! The thought immediately comes to mind that it would be nice to somehow divert the employer’s attention from your shortcomings. Sending out your resume is, of course, not difficult. But it’s not the process that’s important here, but the result! And now it’s time to remember about the functional resume.
Its main feature is that the candidate’s skills, abilities and achievements are not tied to a specific time and place of work. Moreover, as the name of the resume suggests, it is the candidate’s functionality that occupies a central place in it. This means that the applicant has the opportunity to attract the employer’s attention to his strengths, “catch” the attention of the personnel officer with his responsibilities, tasks, functions and hide shortcomings that would be very noticeable in a chronological resume.
How does a functional resume work?
After indicating your first and last name, the vacancy for which you are applying, as well as contact information, you need to describe your professional skills and abilities.
There are some nuances here: if you already have enough great experience, you can’t “lump” all your professional skills. If you have done a lot different responsibilities, then it’s better not to list them all, but to focus on those that are needed specifically for this vacancy.
If you think that skills from different areas will be useful, divide them into groups. For example, your professional skills in interior design and architectural design experience should be listed separately.
Typically, professional recruiters advise to indicate in a functional resume:
- Your professional achievements.
- Professional skills and abilities.
- Yours strengths.
- Organizational skills, experience leadership work(if there is one).
But does this mean that such a resume does not contain any information about the organizations in which you worked? Most often, such information is still available. But they place it below, after the description of the functions, and they try to present it very concisely (only the most necessary dates are indicated), so that the main “zest” is precisely professional level candidate.
When should you use a functional resume?
Most often it is used in the following cases:
- When you want to emphasize the compliance of your knowledge, skills and professional experience with the requirements of the vacancy.
- When it is important to reflect the overall development of the applicant’s professional career and hide some unfortunate details, negative aspects (for example, a long break in work experience, frequent changes of jobs). Or, for example, you have practically nothing to say about your previous place of work.
- A functional resume can be quite useful if you are applying for a position that you have not had in your past experience. For example, you are sure that your actual professional level will allow you to cope with new responsibilities, but you have not formally held the required position. A functional resume allows you to focus on your skills.
- If you are returning to some field of activity after a long break. For example, you have already had such experience in the past, and there is necessary knowledge. But lately you've been doing something else.
- If the formal title of your positions fails to reflect your real career and professional growth.
- In addition, a functional resume may be suitable for recent graduates, retired military personnel, people with varied work experience, professionals who want to return from freelancing to the office, and remote workers.
Cons of a functional resume
But everything is not so rosy; a functional resume also has disadvantages:
- Not only applicants, but also employers know that with the help of such a resume you can hide your shortcomings. For them, this format often looks like a warning. Therefore, many employers are skeptical about a functional resume. The degree of this skepticism varies over a very wide range: from complete rejection of this format to readiness to consider it if the information seems worthy of attention. Therefore, you need to create a functional resume as best as possible.
- Some personnel officers react to such a resume with some irritation, simply because it looks unusual compared to a chronological resume. Therefore, when sending out a functional resume, you need to be prepared for a lower response from employers.
- A functional resume will not be suitable in cases where the company strictly sets its resume format and requires applicants to adhere to it.
- A functional resume is not suitable for those applying for leadership positions: these candidates are expected to be as transparent and consistent as possible. Therefore, a functional resume may turn off an employer.
What conclusions can be drawn? A functional resume has its drawbacks. Therefore, it is not suitable as a single option - for all occasions. Each time you need to analyze your situation, evaluate your pros and cons as a candidate. And understand whether a functional resume will improve your chances, or vice versa.
But you definitely need to remember about this type of resume: in some circumstances it can be of great help. And, of course, we must not forget that a resume is only the first stage of the job search, and then you will have to convince the employer of your value at the interview.
One of the effective job search tools is. And if it is written correctly, this is almost half the success.
There are 3 main types of resumes:
- Chronological (biographical);
- Functional;
- Combined (hybrid).
Chronological resume (biographical)- This is a classic look and is one of the most common types. It differs in that it lists your work history in reverse order, starting with your last place of work, indicating your position, included responsibilities, and organization data.
Pros:
- It is one of the most common types of resumes. Thus, one of the advantages of using this type is that most employers will be familiar with it, and will prefer it;
- A familiar format for many applicants, used in most Internet resources;
- Highlights your career history, thus allowing you to show your experience in this field;
Cons:
- Not suitable at the beginning of a career. For example, if you are a recent college graduate and therefore may not have an extensive work history, then a chronological resume will only highlight your lack of experience;
- It should also be avoided when changing the type of activity (profession). You may have a lot of experience, but it will not meet the requirements of the job you are going to change for, and most employers will refuse if you do not have the proper experience in this field;
- Finally, it should not be used if you have gaps in your work history or have changed it frequently. This summary will mainly highlight these issues.
Functional resume.Unlike a biographical resume, which focuses on the chronological history of work, a functional resume focuses on skills, achievements, how well the candidate understands his position, what new he can offer the employer, and what his goals are.
Structure of a functional resume format:
- Goal (desired position);
- Education (name of educational institution/s, specialty, start and end date). You must also remember to indicate additional education - courses, seminars, trainings, internships, etc.;
- Skills (write at least three skills that are applicable to the job you are applying for, for example: language proficiency, confident PC user, ability to organize work, etc.);
- Professional achievements (you need to indicate specific victories, initiative and results, for example: won a tender for road construction; increased sales by 30% due to a change in strategy; retained all clients during a crisis)
- Brief information about work experience (name of organization, position, terms of work);
- Additional information (tell us about yourself, hobbies, entertainment, etc.).
Pros:
- A functional resume is suitable for those who are just starting their career, or do not have enough work experience in their profession, namely: those who had a long break from work, who decided to change their occupation, graduates educational institutions. A functional resume will help you focus on what you offer as a whole, rather than focusing on chronology.
Cons:
- Possible probability of refusal by the HR manager. Therefore, it is very important to ensure that the advantages outweigh the disadvantages before choosing this format;
- Not suitable for those professions that require a fairly high level of experience.
Combined or hybrid resume. The most effective in our opinion, it combines a chronological and functional resume format, it not only demonstrates your qualifications and achievements, but also allows you to get an expressive vision of the chronology of your work history. Typically this type of resume is 1-2 pages long.
Structure of the combined resume format:
- Personal data and contact information(full name, date of birth, place of residence, telephone number, email address);
- Purpose (vacancy name);
- Qualifications (briefly indicate the most significant information for a potential employer about your professional skills, strengths and achievements);
- Work experience (starting from the last place of work, usually over the last 10 years, using the following scheme: name of the company; direction of the company; time of work; position; official duties; professional skills and achievements), when describing achievements, use words such as: developed, increased or reduced, saved;
- If your work had a connection with projects (designer, programmer), then list your projects and their description if they lasted more than one month;
- Education (name of educational institution/s, specialty, start and end date). You must also remember to indicate additional education - courses, seminars, trainings, internships, etc.
- Additional information: language or computer skills, driver’s license, hobby (if it is closely related to the desired job);
- Recommendations (if possible to provide).
Pros:
- It is convenient if you belong to one of the following categories: you want to change your profession and want to emphasize your communication skills and qualifications, and not any specific professional duties that you performed at your previous job;
- This type of resume will allow you to draw the reader's attention from the very beginning to your real achievements, as well as the professional skills and experience that you can offer;
- At correct drafting will show the candidate in the most favorable light.
Cons:
- If you do not have sufficient experience in writing a resume, then this risks the fact that it will be large, thereby not attractive. The resume should be concise (without unnecessary details), and at the same time informational;
- Not suitable for applicants with little work experience.
Conclusion
What should we choose? To decide which resume form is best for you, you need to ask yourself the following questions:
- Did you move smoothly from one job to another, or did you move with inconsistency and contradiction? In the first case, a chronological form will be most optimal; in the second, it is better to choose a functional one, which will highlight the winning moments in your career;
- I work successfully in this area. But the question is, do I want to further develop in this direction, or radically change my occupation?
- If you want to continue your career in this field, a chronological resume form is suitable because it shows a stable progression along the career ladder;
- If we are talking about a radical career change, it is better to use a functional form - it will allow you to smoothly transition from one type of activity to another.
Therefore, you should approach your choice depending on your goals, work experience, education, areas of activity and, first of all, the employer’s requirements.
Almost every employer requires a resume for the purpose of reviewing and selecting candidates for interview. The main purpose of a resume is to provide to a potential employer comfortable and effective opportunity quickly determine whether the applicant meets the requirements presented in the description of the presented position.
Modern dictionaries give various definitions concept of "resume". According to the Large Explanatory Dictionary of the Russian Language, edited by S.A. Kuznetsov, a resume is information about one’s education, professional skills, experience, etc., which is provided by an applicant for a job. The dictionary of linguistic terms by T.V. Matveeva defines a resume as a modern genre of official business style: a written text with brief information about yourself, compiled job seekers for further proposal to the employer.
A resume (“resume”) is a brief description of what a candidate can offer to a potential employer. The first impression of possible future management about the applicant depends on how the document is drawn up.
The following requirements for a resume are distinguished:
1) the professional skills of the candidate described in the resume should arouse the interest of the employer;
2) the information contained in the resume must convince the employer that he should deal with this particular candidate;
3) the resume must be written in such a way that, after reading, the employer invites the candidate for an interview and ultimately hires him.
Chronological summary
Chronological resumes are often called “obituary resumes”, since they indicate all past work, study and other activities. This type is the most preferred and most often used; it is a description of the candidate’s experience and work achievements in reverse chronological order, usually over the last 10-15 years.
Generally, chronological resumes are suitable for people with little work experience. The main part of the document briefly describes the candidate’s professional experience without emphasizing the applicant’s achievements, skills and abilities. A chronological resume has certain advantages and disadvantages. The advantage is simplicity and ease of writing. Among the disadvantages, the following can be noted: this type of resume clearly reflects little work experience, and periods of time when the applicant was not working are also obvious. This format The resume does not focus on the job-related skills, abilities and talents of the candidate. The chronological type of resume is ineffective when moving up the career ladder.
Functional resume
A functional type resume demonstrates the candidate’s professional skills, experience and achievements, rather than a specific list of work that had to be done at various stages of your career.
A functional resume differs in structure from a chronological type. Attention is focused on the qualifications, skills and talents acquired by the applicant in certain professional fields, but the dates, position and abilities of the applicant are often ignored. All parts of a functional resume are closely interconnected by a single goal: to highlight the most noteworthy qualities. This type is suitable in the absence of large length of service or, if the candidate wishes, highlight his own specific professional skills. This type of resume allows all abilities and skills to be listed, even if some of them were not used in the job. labor activity. Among the negative qualities of a functional resume, one can note the complexity of the organization of the text, possible inconsistency in the presentation of the material, or neglect of the main significant facts of work experience in favor of describing a variety of details that are little related to the work.
Depending on how your career has developed, you can choose one of the two most common types of resumes - chronological or functional.
Chronological summary
A chronological resume is a list of places of work with a list professional responsibilities, which is presented in reverse chronological order - from present to past. This type of resume is most suitable for demonstrating professional advancement in a certain field or career growth in one company. The main difference in the structure of this resume is that the organizations in which work experience was gained are arranged in sequential order (last place of work listed first) and each item is accompanied by brief description the main responsibilities you perform.
The chronological type of resume is recommended if you have already accumulated significant work experience; if career growth is observed in a certain professional field; the direction of your activity has not changed or changed rarely; job changes occurred infrequently; You are not planning to change areas professional activity.
The main advantage of a chronological resume is its simplicity and ease of reading and comprehension. The downside is that when presented in chronological order, any jumps or breaks in your career (if any) are very obvious. In addition, this type of resume does not work well for you if you are changing your area of professional interests, since it does not allow you to highlight the skills and knowledge you have accumulated that can be used in another field.
Functional resume
A functional resume focuses on professional skills and achievements. This format allows you to focus the employer’s attention not on where you worked and what positions you held, but on what you did. Information about companies and positions held is presented quite briefly. The structure of a functional resume is: responsibilities, achievements and professional qualities are arranged by category - sales, personnel management, planning, etc. Each category is accompanied by a description of your responsibilities and your achievements. At the end there is a chronological list of places of work.
It is recommended to use the functional type of resume if you have decided to change your professional activity; are looking for a job after a long break; often changed place of work or direction of activity; you have little or no work experience. The main advantage of this type of resume is that it allows you to focus on the most interesting and important points Your career, on your skills, and not on the place and time of their acquisition. In order to create a functional resume, it is important to rethink your professional experience and present it in a structured manner. Since this type of resume focuses on the applicant's skills and abilities, you need to be clear about the position you want to apply for and select from your experience only what will be important for your future responsibilities.
Of course, dividing a resume into types is conditional, and if you wish, you can develop your own format or use a mixed type that combines elements of chronological and functional
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