Why The Traditional Resume Is On Its Way Out

And what the “personal branding” trend means for job seekers

Does anyone even read your resume?

Everyone says that the best time to look for a new job is while you still have your current job. It takes some of the pressure off; you can apply casually or you can send your resume en masse and wait for a hiring manager to get in touch. But it’s not always so simple. Anyone who has looked for a job before knows how hard it can be to get their resume in front of a set of human eyes.

And worse: if your resume ever makes it past the applicant tracking system’s filters and into the hands of a recruiter or a hiring manager, data suggests that they will spend an average of 6 seconds looking at it before deciding whether to keep it or toss it.

Yes — six seconds.

A recent survey of over 3,000 job seekers found that 85% of them had gotten their current job through networking, not through blindly submitting resumes and hoping that someone would read them.

What is the purpose of a resume?

Resumes tell potential employers what you have done in the past, and allow them to speculate about what you could accomplish in the future. If you’re lucky enough to put your resume directly into the hands of a recruiter or hiring manager…