By Team Cosmogence in Employees —

How to Develop Effective Resumes for Jobs with North American Companies

How to Develop Effective Resumes for Jobs with North American Companies
Photo by João Ferrão / Unsplash

As per the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, there has been a 3.8% decrease in unemployment rates in 2022. But, when the pandemic started, many people lost their jobs, and most companies shifted to remote work.

Currently, 16% of organizations worldwide function 100% remotely and are searching for efficient employees who can perform well as they work from home (Owl Labs).

If you are trying to find remote job opportunities in North America, you must develop an effective resume following North American standards. However, before you create your resume, here are a few things to work on as a start:

  • You have to perform your research and gather information on the job position and company. (Tip: You can find details and the right keywords to use in your resume from the job description itself).
  • You have to analyze your experiences and achievements beforehand. It is best to list them down and shortlist them based on the position you are applying for in North America.
  • As part of creating a resume that resonates the US standards, you should have a quality LinkedIn profile. You can include your custom URL leading to your LinkedIn profile in your resume. A comprehensive LinkedIn profile can lead to 71% higher interview rates, as per a report published in Forbes. Therefore, before you start working on your resume, you need to work on your LinkedIn. Here, having a bare-bones account won’t be beneficial. For creating an excellent LinkedIn profile, you need to add the following:
  • A professional headshot
  • A LinkedIn banner
  • An informative work experience section
  • Having recommendations
  • Maintaining meaningful connections
  • You have to select a resume format, font size, color, and other factors before starting.

Once you have looked into these details, it is time for you to work on creating your professional resume to find remote job opportunities in North America.

In this article, we will walk you through the best practices to incorporate while creating your resume that may help you land a high-paying remote position.

Format Based on the US Standards

While formatting your resume, ensure that you follow the US standards, and most US companies prefer a reverse-chronological format.

In this format, you have to highlight your professional experience first. And, it is best suitable for those who have steady career growth without any employment gaps.

Using this format will be beneficial because, as per Jobvite, 92% of recruiters consider your recent job experience as a hiring factor.

Since research shows that a recruiter doesn’t spend more than 10 seconds on average on a resume, try to maintain a length of 475 to 600 words for your resume. Recruiters state that, on average, 77% of the resumes go either below or above this word count.

Therefore, it is best to stick to this ideal resume length and ensure that it doesn’t go beyond one page.

While formatting your resume, you have to focus on the font size you use. You can maintain it between 12 to 14, and the best suitable fonts are Helvetia, Cambia, and Calibri.

Besides, you have to follow the left alignment for your resume and try to use less than six bullet points for each section.

By following these factors, you can leverage your chances to find remote job opportunities in the USA.

Creation of a Professional Header

A resume header helps recruiters get a glimpse of your profile. Here, you have to include relevant information that will help the recruiters to contact you if they find you a suitable candidate. Here are a few things to include in your header:

  1. Name- It is best to have your name that is the same across your certificates and your social media platforms.
  2. Title- Here, you can have your job title as “Content Writer,” “Pharmacist,” “Graphic Designer.” If you have certification, you can mention it in the title. For example, if you are a certified digital marketer, you can add the same in your title.
  3. Phone Number- You have to include a reachable contact number, as it would be the first way a recruiter would reach out to you.
  4. Email ID- Ensure that you provide a professional email address for the recruiter to contact you.
  5. Others- You may include your LinkedIn URL, link to an online portfolio if you have one, etc.,

Have a Resume Summary and Objective

A resume summary is where you can showcase your hard skills in an active voice with quantitative results.

In a resume objective, you have to introduce your career goals to your hiring manager. It is something to include while finding remote job opportunities in the US.

Here, ensure that you are selling yourself in less than three sentences. While penning down your resume summary and objective, avoid using buzzwords and cliches. Besides, you have to cut short the usage of fluffy content.

Include Your Experience with Measurable Metrics

Failing to include your experiences in measurable metrics is a mistake made by many job seekers.

After adding your position, company name, and employment date, focus on your responsibilities.

Here, you have to describe your experience in bullet points, using action words. Some action words to consider are:

  • Solved
  • Accomplished
  • Created
  • Maximized
  • Executed
  • Spearheaded
  • Connected

Apart from including these words, while writing your description, ensure that you create it as per the job position. As part of bringing in quantifiable metrics, you can follow the XYZ resume bullet point formula

As per this method, you can mention: “Accomplished X as measured by Y, by doing Z.” It is a formula that can help create an outstanding resume.

Add Relevant Skills and Interests

While adding your relevant skills, ensure that you use the right keywords. Here, you can use tools like Word Cloud Generator to find the best suitable keywords from a job description. You have to do this as most companies use the Applicant Tracking System.

When you have the right keywords in your resume, it increases your visibility. However, you have to avoid keyword stuffing and work on having in-demand soft and hard skills in your resume.

Focus on Your Education

In your resume, your education qualification plays a vital role. You can highlight it on top if you lack work experience.

Here, you should include the program name, university, and years attended. In this part, you can focus on any industry-specific courses you have done. Besides, you have to add your latest education qualification on the top.

These are the elements you need to include in your resume to find remote job opportunities in North America.

Along with these details, you can add other sections to your resume. They are certifications, licenses, languages, publications, projects, etc. Including these sections and following the correct standards may enhance your chances of landing on your dream job.