resume

50 Shades Of Resume #14: The Google-Alike

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Resume 14

Chris Liu is someone you might search for online if you were looking for a creative person. He’s one-upped that and made a resume last year that looks like a Google Search. He’s even got his own logo variant. It’s one of those web pages where you have to go “wait, what” and then you realize what it is.

Of course I had to analyze this.

Chris’ resume has some standout traits:

  • It’s close enough to a past Google search that the shock is kind of impressive – when you realize what it is, it’s a tad jarring. That’s pretty clever – it’s a “finisher” move without having to have an interview.
  • It shows serious attention to detail to get this to look right. That’s testimony to personal traits and skills without having to actually say anything.
  • His use of the “search results” to show all sorts of different things, from his blog to his LinkedIn profile is clever and shows a lot of diverse things people can look at.
  • The inclusion of various photos of himself is good for establishing some personality – as if duplicating Google results doesn’t say enough.

There’s a few limits on this resume:

  • It’s so close a Google search that you might not “get it” right away, and the minimalism is a bit too minimal.
  • It’s going to be a total pain to update.
  • I’d have a regular resume easily noted, visible, and available for download.
  • His “personal info box” should have more skills in it – it undersells him.
  • There are “blank” links that could probably be replaced with actual links.

Steve’s Summary: If an applicant pointed me to this resume, I’d like the cleverness and the varied links – if I’m interested in them, it lets me know them better. I’d definitely want a standard resume easily available.

[“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 #13: The Simple And Classy

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Resume 13

Krissy Marheine’s resume is almost surprisingly simple for a graphic designer – it looks more like a minimalist piece of modern art than a resume. It’s simple, almost soothingly so – almost a contrast to busier and denser resumes. It’s extremely professional, but not the kind that yells out how much the author can do – it’s restraint speaks volume.

Looking it over, theres are the high points and lessons learned:

  • The red band is brilliant. It’s simple, but really adds a nice divider for content and draws the eye to the center of the resume – and the creator’s name.
  • The use of the cream/parchment background is a good choice, it keeps the red from looking to garish.
  • Despite being artistic and creative, it’s a resume that should be scannable and is quite readable.
  • The restraint of the resume, mixing the creative and the practical, really stands out and speaks well of the reactor.
  • The use of different text color and font sizes is nice and effective, creating a sense of division without being overly aggressive.

There are issues with the resume, but they’re comparatively minor:

  • Too much blank space – I think a somewhat larger font would fill the space nicely. Not too much.
  • I’d make the artists name larger to make it stand out, though that might require expanding the middle line or altering how the name is presented.
  • I’d like to see more skills listed, I think it undersells her.
  • The contact information might be better at the top.
  • I’d like some personal details, like hobbies and so forth. The minimalism of the resume is great, but it may not convey a sense of personality.
  • The minimal design may or may not give a full sense of her skills because it is a deliberately limited design. Breadth of skills needs to be shown appropriately – if paired with a portfolio that was wild and crazy it might contrast oddly.

This is also another resume that could be “themed” with a portfolio and web page of similar design. It’d be easy to implement a similar theme in the various components of job search and personal branding – if a bit tough to update.

A good, solid resume.

Steve’s Summary: If this resume got handed to me, I’d be impressed – effective, creative, clear, precise. A lot of thought went into it, and that tells me this might be someone I’d think of interviewing.

[“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 #12: The Juice Box

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Resume 12

Joshua Omondi doesn’t think outside of the box – he thinks of how to make a better box. In this case, he made his resume into a juice box. Yes, a juice box, complete with labels, ingredients, contents, and so on. It’s printable for folding purposes or to just show off.

He wanted to do something different and he certainly did.

So when I look over this resume, I see these high points:

  • It’s just plain clever. It’s a juice box resume, and he keeps the design consistent with what you’d expect of, well, an actual juice box.
  • There’s also a sense of humor to this obviously. Again . . . juice box.
  • He includes a lot of information on a “stunt” resume There’s quite a bit of detail here – he doesn’t rely on the “stunt” to speak for him.
  • The skill descriptions are clever to – using percentages to communicate his ability. A good example of translating one metaphor to another.
  • The use of the icons on the side to describe himself is a nice touch – making it look not only like a product, but further adding detail and communicating from more than just text.
  • The inclusion of a personal picture is, as always, a good humanizing touch. It’s also a good picture, calm and dignified, which is an interesting contrast to the whimsy – and that may keep this from seeming silly.
  • People’s reactions to this resume will tell the creator if he’d fit in with them.
  • It’s also a good testimony to not just his design skills but product design skills – which is its own skill-set. it says he’s not just an artist, but a person that can really design something – that backs up his listing Packaging Design as a skill.

Now as you may guess a resume this unusual has some limitations:

  • This is a stunt resume. It’s definitely going to need to be paired with a regular resume and portfolio.
  • Not everyone may get this – though I suspect if they don’t, then they’re not the kind of person he’d want to work for.
  • The small text may not be for everyone.
  • Updating this must be a colossal pain in the backside.

An unusual resume with limits, but clever.

Steve’s Summary: I’d get a kick out of this resume – as long as it was wrapped around a juice box and with a regular resume. It’d want the full experience – because I imagine seeing this in context, in 3D, is a powerful statement of talent. I’d also have something to share with people to say “look how clever this is!”

Also I’d get free juice.

[“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