The Professional Touch: Maximizing Computer Skills with Specifics

by Darlene Zambruski, ResumeEdge.com Managing Editor, CPRW

All too often data in resumes is presented quite vaguely, leaving the hiring manager to wonder what the candidate really knows, and what skills they actually have. This is especially true in regards to Computer Skills, whether the applicant is an office worker or an IT professional.

For example, an office worker may feel it’s enough to list skills in this manner:

Technically proficient in Microsoft Office and other software.

After reading the above, the hiring manager may very well wonder what other software? What part of Microsoft Office – all or only Word & Excel? And what version?

When your data raises more questions than it answers, it’s no longer effective. To maximize your information, include specifics. For example, the previous statement should read like this:

Technically proficient in Microsoft Office (Premium 2000), including Word, Excel, Outlook, Publisher, Access, PowerPoint, Front Page, and Photo Draw. Additional expertise in Word Perfect, Quicken, Peachtree Accounting, Lexis-Nexus, and Westlaw.

At a glance, the above provides instant and specific data to a hiring manager.

However, a candidate – especially in the IT field – should go one step further and provide years or months of experience.

A Word About Including Years (or Months) of Experience for Technical Skills

In today’s competitive job market, hiring managers demand that information on resumes be well-prioritized and specific. It’s not enough to state that you have proficiency in Microsoft Word. You must state how many months or years of experience you have or your level of expertise, whether it’s beginner, intermediate, or advanced. Hiring managers will not call you in for an interview, nor will they test your skills unless they are first provided this essential data.

Presenting Technical Skills for IT Professionals

The nature of IT is ever-evolving. Therefore, an IT professional should showcase relevant skills as specifically and completely as possible.

This includes organizing technical data into subheadings, which include:

1. Software
2. Hardware
3. Operating Systems
4. Programming Languages
5. Software Packages
6. Databases
7. Any other technical proficiencies

One way to present this data would be a simple listing. For example:

Computer Skills

- LAN Administration: Windows 2000 Server, Windows NT 3.51/4.0, Novell 3.12/4.1.
- Operating Systems: Windows 2000/NT/XP, Windows 98/95, Macintosh OS.
- Software: Microsoft SQL, SNA, SMS , Site Server & IIS, CA XCOM, SAS, Microsoft Visual Studio, Source Safe, Cognos Enterprise Server, Lotus Notes, Microsoft Exchange, AS/400-Windows Connectivity Applications, cc:Mail , Multiple Windows Communications Applications.
- Productivity Software: Microsoft Office Suite including Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Access, Project.
- Hardware: PCs, Compaq Servers, HP NetServers, IBM NetFinity Servers, AS400 20, SCO Unix OpenServer, Macintosh.
- Certifications: Candidate for MCDBA, Candidate for CCNA/CCDA, Candidate for MCSE, Microsoft Certified System Administrator, Novell Certified Administrator, Novell Certified Engineer.


A more effective way to maximize technical data is to provide specific information in an easy-to-read format. For example:

Technical Skills

Databases:

Oracle 8/8i/9i, 4 years
SQL Server 6.5/7.0/2000, 6 years
Microsoft Access, 6 years
MySQL, 6 months

Operating Systems:

UNIX , 4 years
LINUX, 4 years
Windows Operating Systems, 12 years
DOS, 12 years
Macintosh, 4 years

Programming Languages:

ShellScript, 3 years
PL/SQL, 4 years
ASP, 5 years
JAVA/JSP, 1 year
JavaScript, 5 years
DHTML, 3 years

Oracle Utilities:

SQL Navigator, 4 years
TOAD, 2 years
Oracle *Net, 4 years
Import/Export, 3 years
SQL *Loader, 3 years
Enterprise Manager, 3 years
Performance Manager, 2 years

The above example has easily obtainable and understood data that is specific and enhances an applicant’s candidacy.

Another way to maximize technical information is to include projects in which expertise was applied. For example, a Senior Infrastructure Consultant had this experience:

Representative Projects:

Multi-protocol LAN. Designed and launched $2 million, multi-protocol, multi-domain LAN for 5000 employees, focusing on speed, fault-tolerance, and redundancy. Implemented array of Cisco 6509 switches, Cisco 3600 and 7000 routers, and Cisco PIX firewalls. Configured WAN protocols (FrameRelay, ISDN), routing and encapsulation protocols (STP, HSRP, EtherChanneling, EIGRP, OSPF, IGRP, BGP), and routed protocols (IP, IPX, Vines, and DLSw).

Upgrade from legacy LAN. Developed and implemented a layer-3 switched LAN to upgrade existing network for 1200 employees, targeting improved performance and security. Installed/configured collapsed backbone, using Cisco 6509 Catalyst core switches and Cisco Catalyst 4006 edge switches (multi-homed to core). Re-designed IP schema to optimize communication and routing. Created per-floor VLANs. Implemented Cisco PIX 520 Firewalls (including fail-over) to segment public, private, and DMZ networks and provide VPN access. Installed/configured Cisco 3600 routers, using FrameRelay (ISDN as backup). Configured WAN protocols (FrameRelay, ISDN), routing protocols (HSRP, EIGRP, OSFP), and routed protocols (IP, IPX, DLSw).

Co-Lo High-Availability. Engineered fully redundant, fault-tolerant, high-availability network. Researched and advised on co location site and T-3-leasing (two T-3 connections from separate ISPs). Installed/configured Cisco 6509 switches to segment VLANs and provide gigabit throughput to dual-homed server farms. Provisioned A/19 address space and AS number. Implemented Cisco 7000 routers, providing full BGP routing tables and peering with ISP routers. Installed Cisco PIX 525 firewalls (load-balanced and fail-over) to control ingress/egress traffic and provide VPN access for technical staff.

The Professional Touch - Objectives

by Darlene Zambruski, ResumeEdge.com Managing Editor, CPRW

In today’s competitive job market, Objectives have mostly been replaced by the far more effective Tag Line, which is your professional title or goal, and Skill Set, which lists your qualifications to fill the job. Each should provide concise and specific data to the hiring manager in terms that emphasize what you can do for the targeted company.

However, there are times when an Objective should be included in a Summary of Qualifications, or even be showcased in the Tag Line.

When to Include Objective Statements Within a Summary of Qualifications

1. You are transitioning from one career to another and want to make clear to a hiring manager that you are currently seeking a position in the new field. That statement is your objective.

2. You are using the resume to seek admission into a graduate program (i.e. MBA).

3. You have specific needs that you want to address. This would include that you would prefer a telecommuting position or part-time versus full-time employment.

When to Showcase Your Objective in a Tag Line

1. If you are entering a new career field and have an academic, rather than a professional background in that industry. In that case, use of the word “Candidate” before the Professional Title in the Tag Line quickly tells a hiring manager your Objective.

A word about Tag Lines:

By using a professional title at the opening of your resume, you will be stating who you are and what you want in terms of your career.

Tag lines can be:

Specific: Telecommunications CEO
Generic: Accounting Professional
Showcase an Objective: Candidate: MBA Program; Candidate: First Grade Teacher

A word about your Skill Set:

This would include specific qualifications that you have and which are required in the job posting.

An example for an Accountant might include:

Accounts Payable/Receivable ~ Audits ~ General Ledger ~ Reconciliations

An example for a Teacher might include:

Grades K-5 ~ CBEST & MSAT Certified ~ Clear Multiple Subject Teaching Credential

By including your Skill Set directly beneath your Tag Line at the beginning of your resume, you’ll be providing the hiring manager with invaluable data.

Objective Statements to Avoid

- Ones that demand a certain salary.

- Ones that address your needs – i.e. “Seeking an interesting position in the Accounting field with great growth potential.”

- Vague statements that fail to target specific industries or jobs – i.e. “A full-time position with benefits.”

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Question: If I’m applying for a specific position, shouldn’t the hiring manager know that the job opening is my objective? Why do I have to provide anything other than my educational and professional history?

Answer: In the past decade, resumes have evolved from a simple listing of candidate’s expectations and qualifications to savvy marketing pieces that showcase what you can do for the targeted company. If a hiring manager has to guess at what you can do for them or where you might fit into their organization, you won’t be called in for an interview. An additional consideration is that many large companies have numerous openings. If you want to be considered for the one that best fits your background, it’s wise to include who you are (Tag Line) and what you can do (Skill Set), which is far stronger than an ordinary Objective.

Question: Isn’t it redundant to write an Objective that addresses what I can do for a company, when all of that information is already in my Professional Experience?

Answer: Not at all when you consider that a hiring manager might not get that far. Remember, you have less than 10 seconds to capture a hiring manager’s interest. You do this by prioritizing data, and by addressing the needs of the position as they relate to your unique qualifications. A modern resume can be likened to a news story – the hiring manager wants to know who, what, where, when, and why at the outset. Once you secure the reader’s interest, then you provide details in the Career Accomplishments, Professional Experience, and Education sections of the document.

Question: Since I don’t have any experience, as yet, in my chosen career won’t using the word “Candidate” really make this stand out and hurt my chances?

Answer: Although “Candidate” may not be a perfect word when it comes to a job search, it’s far stronger than the use of the term “entry-level” even though it indicates the same thing. One trick to minimize any entry-level thinking on the hiring manager’s part is to include a strong skill set that showcases those skills you do have that will meet the qualifications for the job.

Question: I want to apply for numerous positions that are not at all similar. Do I have to tailor the opening of each resume for these jobs?

Answer: No one ever said getting the job you want would be easy, so the answer is an unequivocal yes. Within each job posting are keywords that should be peppered throughout the opening of your resume. Keywords for an accountant might be AP/AR, audits, reconciliations, etc. By employing these in your Skill Set and Summary of Qualifications paragraph and by using a Tag Line that is similar or identical to the job that’s being posted, you’re showing the hiring manager that you are the ideal candidate for this position.