How to Create an Effective Tech Resume

“The challenge of life, I have found, is to build a resume that doesn’t simply tell a story about what you want to be, but it’s a story about who you want to be.”

In the above quote by Oprah Gill Winfrey, American media executive & philanthropist, often ranked as the most influential woman in the world, tries to capture the importance of a resume in the corporate world.  A resume is not just a document but a deed that decides our future prospects. Gone are the days, when recruiters believed every word of your CV. This modern age has fashioned recruiters into sharp-witted, discerning and  rational beings who know the difference between ‘hard work’  and ‘smart work.’  As per the report published by ‘The Ladders’ recruiters spend just 6 seconds in screeing a resume before they make the initial  “fit/no fit” decision. This puts pressure on candidates to make their resume best out of all.  The tech industry works differently. Tech recruiters focus on skills rather than qualities. 

Tech professionals need to prioritize essential information in their resume. We have shortlisted some features which will help you to land a job in top tech/product companies. BigShyft understands your efforts and tries to keep you updated with the latest job openings. 

A good resume reflects facts. Tech recruiters look for technical skills. Your resume should be one page long  (unless it needs to be longer.) It is highly advisable to list all your professional & tech skills in the initial part of your CV to capture the recruiter’s attention.  

Passion

Hardworking people live for work but successful people are passionate about work. Show your passion for coding and tech in your resume. Every company big or small wants to hire employees who are passionate and enthusiastic about work and people who could raise the standard of work & hiring in the company. As Jeff Bezos believes “One of the mottoes was that every time we hired someone, he or she should raise the bar for the next hire. So that the overall talent pool was always improving….” You may add below-given points to attract the recruiter’s attention; 

• Add links to your GitHub and StackOverflow profile

• Give a link to your LinkedIn profile (You may add your LinkedIn profile in the cover letter as well)

• Refer to your technical blogs/articles (If you have written any)

• Mention your participation in Programming competitions

Work Projects 

The key to describe your work projects is Enhancement.  Often times, recruiters view resumes that describe the work projects in a few sentences. For example; 

“Worked on the mobile application of X product in Y company.  I learned A, B and C skill during my tenure in the Y company” 

Merely giving details of your role will not help you in the interview.  Give the link to the mobile/web-based product you worked on. Along with the links, include some interesting facts like; 

• The application is a top leader in the ‘I’ industry. 

• ‘N’ number of downloads in the initial month or year. 

• ‘N’ number of visits per month. 

• Any other fact which is worth mentioning. 

Personal Projects 

Mention some personal projects you worked on for fun or in your pastime (which was of use to society)  along with your job. This may show your passion for your profile. For example; 

“In my free time, when I recently graduated from X university, I created a product that will help in searching for a specific word in a screenshot. The product is still in its beta phase. I will soon re-work on it” 

Listing Your Technological Proficiency 

This is the main and most complicated part of a tech resume. Most people make the mistake here by overloading their resume by every skill they know (basic or advanced).  Instead of that, only mention those skills in your resume, which you feel confident about and have superior knowledge.  

Don’t forget to update your resume timely as your technological knowledge change and grow. 

Remove the Unnecessary Details 

Unnecessary details in a resume are of no interest to a recruiter. He/She looks for specific attributes in a resume and it is your professional responsibility to get straight to the point. Don’t use flashy colors or designs. Make it simple yet classy. Don’t use additional tables or headings like; 

• Personal Information

• Used Technologies 

• Date of Employment 

No recruiter is interested in knowing that ‘you love reading books or watching movies.’ Mentioning hobbies in a resume are a BIG No. Instead of writing your date of birth, simply mention your age.  Giving details about your family is also the worst move for a tech professional. It’s also not essential to put your photo in a resume. Your ‘Portrait’ on GitHub will be of more interest to a recruiter than your photo. 

Summary 

There are two options, either don’t include the summary or else write the most innovative and awestruck summary.  Have a look at ‘How NOT to write summary’ 

“I am 25 years old senior android developer with 3 years of commercial experience in designing, developing, testing and maintaining Android applications. A focused, savvy and goal-oriented team player with a spirit to learn & execute.“ 

Now, let’s take the same information and craft it in a more innovative way; 

“I’m a passionate, result-oriented 25 years old, an agile-minded software developer who is sedulous of details. Developed love for Java through ‘Thinking in Java’, I almost worship Bruce Eckel. I’ve been totally devoted to Android programming for the last 3 years. I am a big fan of memory-management and multithreading and I believe TDD will change the world for the better” 

Resume File Format 

One of the basic rules in the job world is your resume should be in PDF format by default. Unless any other format is asked by the recruiter or its mentioned on the job post. 

No CV Title 

Did you ever regret after sending your resume due to the personalized and non-professional CV titles? For example; while you were editing your resume, it autosaved as ‘xxx 1’ and you didn’t care to rename it.  Don’t give specific or unique titles to your CV, use your name instead. 

Wrapping Up 

There is not a single CV on the recruiter’s table. You need to modify your CV and cover letter as per the profile and company. Access the situation and take into account all the information related to a company, you are applying to. 

We hope these tips will help you to find your dream job. If you are looking for vacancies in top product/tech companies, register here and get a job in no time. 

Frequently Asked Questions

Is it important to put a picture in a resume?

No. It is completely irrelevant to put a picture in a resume. Remove all the unnecessary details.

Do the LinkedIn profile works like a resume?

Yes. LinkedIn profile works like a resume. You may give the link in a cover letter but don’t replace the resume with the LinkedIn profile.