resume – Page 11 – Steven Savage

50 Shades Of Resume #19: The Re-Envisioning

April 25, 2014 by Steven Savage

Some people re-design resumes, or throw the template away and start new. Richard Gonzales isn’t a typical person – he’s a designer as well as a pastor after all – so he didn’t just re-design a resume or toss things out, he sort of re-envisioned the different parts of a resume into a new whole. This resume isn’t one change or another, but several combined.

He leads in with a larger description at normal, graphs his experience in a color-coded time graph that mixes education and job history, then does a separate education graph, and follows up by using circular metaphors for his skills. It’s actually a bit much to take in as it’s so different.

So let’s dig in to what we can learn from this:

Its a nice, clean one page resume that, despite using complex and unusual elements, is very easy to follow.
The opening paragraph is an interesting touch. Normally I discourage opening statements that are long – I prefer a sentence. But somehow this works because the resume is a complete re-interpretation.
The experience graph is clever, interesting, and effective – and space-saving when you look at it. It also helps explain what is a rather complex life. Some people’s lives/careers may just not fit a standard layout (something, sadly, I forget myself)
The education graph is straightforward – and also combines other coursework beyond school. I usually like to break up education versus training – but he combines them.
The Skills section uses size of circles to show years of experience. There’s something I’d never thought of and it’s an interesting, visceral idea.
The resume clearly shows a lot of thought on how to portray himself and portray himself effectively and differently.
This resume, by using these different ways to show information, by having a larger opening than most, really tells me he wants to communicate.

A few thoughts on improving this resume – though it’s a bit hard as he gets radical

I usually prefer skills to go first on a resume. In this case that might break up the more subtle, uncolored end they bring to it – and spoils the lead-in from the larger opening paragraph.
I think the use of the same kind of graph for education as Experience actually doesn’t work so well. The Experience graph explains his background well, but his more straightforward education doesn’t necessarily need this. It might have been fun to see it in another format.
The skills section’s actual skill names are a bit small and hard to read. I’m not sure if they’d be better on top, in the circle, etc.

Not a standard resume, but one to make you think.

Steve’s Summary: This resume would get my attention as it’s both different, clear, and tells me he wants to be understood. There’s a thoughtful communicator behind this.

[“50 Shades of Resume” is an analysis of various interesting resumes to celebrate the launch of the second edition of my book “Fan To Pro” and to give our readers inspiration for their own unique creations.]

– Steven Savage

50 Shades Of Resume #17: The Evolutionary Metaphor

April 23, 2014 by Steven Savage

Jimmy More is a producer who’s had a lot of growth in his career. He decided one day that he really need to show how he evolved . . . by showing how he evolved.

Jimmy’s resume is a take on the classic “March Of Progress” evolutionary pictures we’re all too familiar with. In his case, it describes his journey from student to commercial producer as a kind of evolution. Sure we know all our careers evolve, but he just got out there and showed it.

So of course I wanted to analyze it.

Looking at the Ascent of Jimmy, this stands out

An extremely clever use of a classic image. Instantly you look at this and get what he’s talking about and how he’s grown, and the metaphor helps.
The imagery is very detailed and witty- notice how each character has the trappings of that stage of his evolution. There’s a lot of wit here and it says a lot about him.
It’s a variant from the use of standard graphs to use a different metaphor for growth – which can get attention.
There’s detail at each stage of his growth, providing more information. He’s not just using this to be funny – though it actually is pretty funny.

Now evolution has a few bumps in the road, and there are a few here:

Despite the detail this doesn’t feel to be a “total” resume. I’m not sure it should be, and maybe it needs to be paired with a more standard resume. But it’s not entirely complete.
This metaphor may go good as a smaller part of a larger resume.
The choice of italic font may not be appropriate, it gets a bit hard to read.
The starkness of the resume is nice, but I wanted more detail.
Design-wise, I actually feel it needs a border.

One of the things that stands out here is using a clever metaphor for job growth. This may be something for creative resume-makers to look into because there are doubtlessly others we can find and use. Maybe they’re the whole resume -or a part of it – but there has to be other imagery you can use to up communications and show your design skill.

Also I wonder if this may go well with another style – like the aforementioned book resume, or part of a portfolio (which Jimmy does).

Get to it. Start evolving.

Steve’s Summary: I’d get a laugh out of this resume if it came across my desk, because it’s funny – and clearly the product of a talented person. I’d definitely want to see a full resume or more detail though.

– Steven Savage

50 Shades Of Resume #16: The Colorful And Simple

April 22, 2014 by Steven Savage

Faratiana is a creative person to judge by her many works, but it’s her resume that got my attention. At first glance the colors stand out – but then as you look at it you see how there’s both clever and effective design and a lot of information, all delivered with precision.

Here’s what stands out to me:

The skill section is clever. Each color calls attention to a different skill, and the “rating system” tells you how good she is. There’s many ways this could be used on resumes, but the basic idea is whimsical, colorful, – and effective.
The colorful “stars” detailing each separate section also call attention to them – without being garish or overdone. This is a good use of bright colors effectively.
Every use of color here has an atypical shape – no squares or circles. That further draws attention.
Note that the elements of the resume reinforce each other – the star at the top is made of colorful “teardrops” – which in turn are reflected in the skills. The “star” itself is reflected in the single-color stars later in the resume. This adds a consistent design – and shows great thought.
It’s a nicely complete resume. It’s all here.
The use of different text colors is a useful choice for adding detail and hitting high points. It works well with the use of color.

I have a few critiques:

There’s a bit too much white space, It could be a bit fuller.
The light-colored fonts are just a bit too light colored and look washed out. In addition, some of the smaller fonts are a bit too small.
The use of the white colors in the “skill tears” is good, but a bold may work as they don’t quite carry.
A photo of the artist *might* work here to further personalize it. It might need to be black and white or colorized to fit properly

Overall I’m very fond of this resume, as it’s another one that manages to be a “standard” resume while being creative, and it uses interesting ways to communicate skills – in this case an unusual skill list and a rating system. Finally, it feels very professional.

Steve’s Summary: If I saw this it immediately gets my attention – and then as I look at it I see more detail. I feel I can “get” the creator very easy, and it shows an extremely professional level of work.

– Steven Savage