Why Functional Resumes Will Kill Your Job Search
June 18, 2019 / Written by Phil Graves (President of 1-Day Resume - 20+ years in business and 18,500+ resumes written providing Professional Resume, Cover Letter, and LinkedIn Profile Writing Services - www.1dayresume.com)
Sometime in your career, you have probably heard that there are several resume styles from which to choose. Although technically this is true, there is one style that you should avoid at all costs, unless you want your new resume to end up being deleted from the computer screen of every hiring manager. So before you decide on the best style for your resume – no matter who has “sold” you on a functional format – avoid it at all costs!
If you are not familiar with the functional resume, it begins with a long professional summary covering almost the entire first page that lists primary functional skills, such as administration, sales leadership, operations management, engineering, etc. This is followed by skills and significant achievements for each of the primary functional skill sets. Next is a simple listing of your work history with no achievements listed under the jobs.
The functional resume concept is thought to be a good idea because it focuses on your accomplishments and minimizes your work history. Job seekers are told to use a functional format to hide gaps in their employment record or to take the focus off of some issues with why they have been out of the workforce. The problem is, all hiring managers know this and so these resumes will generally be quickly deleted. One of the other problems has to do with how functional resumes are interpreted by Applicant Tracking Systems. The resume can be searched for key words, but the database system cannot match up the achievements with the dates because the functional format has the accomplishments listed in a section other than under the specific job.
The best format choice is a combination format, which includes a brief summary to highlight some of your most significant accomplishments and core competencies that match those mentioned for the types of positions you will be pursuing. Followed by your work history listed in a reverse chronological format with each job focusing primarily on achievements, awards, and recognition while minimizing a list of responsibilities and tasks. You want your job descriptions to tell a quick story about what was going when you were hired into the role and some significant accomplishments that made an impact on the success of the company regarding improvements in efficiency, time saving, cost control, organization, profitability, process improvement, revenue growth, etc.
When asked about functional resumes, a senior level hiring director with a Fortune 500 company said, “I always delete functional resumes because it looks like the job seeker is hiding something, and usually he/she is. Plus, it is difficult to see where the achievements happened because they are not listed under the jobs. In a way, a functional resume is very good; it tells the recipient that the candidate should not be considered.”
We have been successful in helping job seekers transition back into the workforce after being out for several years, so having gaps in your employment is not a deal breaker. But trying to hide those gaps in a functional resume will torpedo your job search. Instead, use a combination resume, address the gaps in your work history, focus on accomplishments, optimize your resume with key words every time you apply to an new opportunity, and spend 80% of your job search time networking on LinkedIn and with people you know.
Sometime in your career, you have probably heard that there are several resume styles from which to choose. Although technically this is true, there is one style that you should avoid at all costs, unless you want your new resume to end up being deleted from the computer screen of every hiring manager. So before you decide on the best style for your resume – no matter who has “sold” you on a functional format – avoid it at all costs!
If you are not familiar with the functional resume, it begins with a long professional summary covering almost the entire first page that lists primary functional skills, such as administration, sales leadership, operations management, engineering, etc. This is followed by skills and significant achievements for each of the primary functional skill sets. Next is a simple listing of your work history with no achievements listed under the jobs.
The functional resume concept is thought to be a good idea because it focuses on your accomplishments and minimizes your work history. Job seekers are told to use a functional format to hide gaps in their employment record or to take the focus off of some issues with why they have been out of the workforce. The problem is, all hiring managers know this and so these resumes will generally be quickly deleted. One of the other problems has to do with how functional resumes are interpreted by Applicant Tracking Systems. The resume can be searched for key words, but the database system cannot match up the achievements with the dates because the functional format has the accomplishments listed in a section other than under the specific job.
The best format choice is a combination format, which includes a brief summary to highlight some of your most significant accomplishments and core competencies that match those mentioned for the types of positions you will be pursuing. Followed by your work history listed in a reverse chronological format with each job focusing primarily on achievements, awards, and recognition while minimizing a list of responsibilities and tasks. You want your job descriptions to tell a quick story about what was going when you were hired into the role and some significant accomplishments that made an impact on the success of the company regarding improvements in efficiency, time saving, cost control, organization, profitability, process improvement, revenue growth, etc.
When asked about functional resumes, a senior level hiring director with a Fortune 500 company said, “I always delete functional resumes because it looks like the job seeker is hiding something, and usually he/she is. Plus, it is difficult to see where the achievements happened because they are not listed under the jobs. In a way, a functional resume is very good; it tells the recipient that the candidate should not be considered.”
We have been successful in helping job seekers transition back into the workforce after being out for several years, so having gaps in your employment is not a deal breaker. But trying to hide those gaps in a functional resume will torpedo your job search. Instead, use a combination resume, address the gaps in your work history, focus on accomplishments, optimize your resume with key words every time you apply to an new opportunity, and spend 80% of your job search time networking on LinkedIn and with people you know.
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