IT Resume Resources

Having the right resume can be a baffling and daunting task. As there are so many different styles of IT resumes, there is literally no right or wrong and everyone has a different opinion on them. Some hiring managers like technical skills tables, some hate them. Some people recommend including personal interests, other don’t.

Ultimately a resume has one purpose – to secure an interview. Your resume is probably the only thing that will exclude you from an interview, so you owe it to yourself to give it the attention it deserves.

Your resume is how you present yourself to both recruiters and potential hiring managers. Both make split second decisions while reading your resume. So keep it short, simple and impactful.

Top tips for a successful IT resume

• Keep it simple & error free
• Be personal – it’s all about you
• Sell yourself. Be proud of your achievements
• Be accurate. Don’t over exaggerate
• Don’t write a novel
• Keep it current
• Use social media to your advantage
• Don’t skip any essentials
• Plan your strategy for references

Download a resume template.

Keep it simple & error free

When writing your resume don’t use fancy fonts, backgrounds, layouts or designs. Stick to the basics, like Times New Roman or Arial. Often resumes are skim-read, so keep the format uncluttered and easy-to-read. Use bullet points effectively.

Proof read it! Give it to others to review and then proof read it again. Spell check and in particular make sure you have spelt the technologies correctly. You would be amazed how many people can’t spell the technologies they are an expert in!

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Be personal – it’s all about you
Make your resume professional but personal. Use first person (use the word “I”) rather than the more formal third person (John Smith). Make sure you are accurate on what you were responsible and accountable for and what you achieved.

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Sell yourself. Be proud of your achievements
Show relevance and evidence of your skills and experience to convince the reader that you are the right person for the job, that you have thought about it, and that you can solve their problems.

Use lots of action words – achieved, initiated, prepared, developed, managed etc. Avoid using clichés – these do little to distinguish you from other job seekers.

Quantify your experience wherever you can. Cite improvements, technical achievements and outcomes. Use concrete examples to demonstrate accomplishments within the organisation that were directly attributable to your work.

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Be accurate. Don’t over exaggerate
Make sure every sentence you write is specific to you and your skills – don’t over exaggerate what you can and can’t do. If your resume is incorrect or misleading, your application won’t be successful.

Many employers have formal background checks that cover the last 10 years of employment. Technical testing is used by employers to verify skills and experience. Larger employers have sophisticated application tracking systems and recruiters have increasingly sophisticated knowledge management systems as well as closer integration with social media. One small ‘over exaggeration’ could really impact your integrity and future reputation.

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Don’t write a novel
Include all the essential information, but keep it concise. We recommend resumes should be no longer than 5 pages in total. The emphasis should be on the last 3-5 years of employment. Hiring managers are hiring you for your current skills more than what you used to do.

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Keep it current
Try to update your resume every 6-12 months. You never know when you’ll be looking for another job. It’s much easier to accurately remember what you’ve done in the last 12 months than trying to think about what you achieved three years ago.

When updating your resume don’t just add you most recent job. Read your whole resume through from the beginning to avoid any gaps or inconsistencies. Check certifications and professional memberships are up-to-date. Look for places where you might have information listed in more than one place, such as in the summary or a skills table.

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Use social media to your advantage
Social media sites can help or hinder your chances of a job.

LinkedIn profiles provide great opportunities for skills exposure and may be the resume of the future. Ensure your LinkedIn profile is up-to-date and that it matches what you say about yourself elsewhere.

Connecting to Spark’s corporate LinkedIn profile is a great way of networking other IT professionals and finding out about potential jobs.

But also beware that social media can also make information that you consider private to actually be very public. Do a quick online search to check what information is publicly available. Consider what your Facebook page might say about you to a potential employer? Not all employers will research you online but it’s worth adjusting settings on Facebook and other social media sites in order to protect your privacy.

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Don't skip any essentials
Not sure what to include in your resume? We’ve outlined the resume essentials so you don’t miss out anything important.

Page 1 A brief summary which introduces you at a glance. This should include:

• Personal details (name & contact details)
• Skill summary (simple bullet points/paragraph)
• Objective (be clear & ensure it is relevant to the role you are applying for)
• Education
• Qualifications/industry certifications
• Professional memberships
• Interpersonal traits

Page 2 An overview of your career in chronological order.

Include the organisation you worked for, what it does, a description of your role and your achievements. Make sure your skills and accomplishments scream out of the document. Don’t forget to include any employer awards you received.

Always put the month and year you started and finished. Only revealing the year could be read as some sort of deception. 2003-2004 could cover two years or two months.

For technical positions, some people recommend including a technical summary or competency matrix, listing the skill set, level achieved and years experience. This should be updated regularly. Be proud of your achievements, but avoid overselling your skills.

We recommend that you include detail of the technical environment in your overview of the role/projects and then evidence of where and when you used the technology. This helps the reader to understand your skills better than a shopping list of technologies that typically end up being out of date.

Download a resume template

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Plan your strategy for references
Your references deserve careful consideration. They should be up-to-date and relevant to the role you are applying for. Check with referees before including their details on your resume. Employers prefer references from previous managers and often won’t accept personal references.

It is perfectly acceptable to write “Referees are available on request” on your resume. 

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