Anyone looking for a Senior Executive Service (SES) position needs to take the time to refine his or her resume. This is a chance to find a highly-coveted management position with the Federal Government. Individuals with extensive management and leadership skills should look for such jobs. However, this is a competitive field. A resume has to be polished and must directly highlight strengths, experiences and skills that make the applicant qualified for the job. In just a few moments, one’s fate is decided. A resume is a powerful marketing tool for anyone looking for SES positions. The following are some tips for how to write a memorable SES resume fit for the job.
Understand the Executive Core Qualifications (ECQs)
Before refining a resume and applying for any SES position, it is important to understand the necessary qualifications. A resume should touch on the five characteristics if they want to be competitive for such jobs. The five necessary skills the Federal Government looks for are leading people, the ability to inspire or lead change, understanding how to go about building coalitions or partnerships, being results driven and having a healthy dose of business acumen. Experienced supervisors should understand how to lead and inspire staff and understand how to create meaningful partnerships. This is a chance to improve different departments and projects.
Work Experience
Only the most impressive and relevant job positions should be highlighted in an SES resume. This is a chance to not only explain one’s career but explain why it relates to a senior position with a federal agency or group. When describing one’s work experience, it is important to be specific and clear about all duties, accomplishments and the focus of the position and group. Using statistics about increased profits, cost cutting and projects specifically showcases applicants’ skills.
Length of the SES Resume
Resume length depends on a person’s experience and the position they are applying for. SES positions are looking for experienced professionals who understand the management world. Thus, it makes sense that there would be more experiences, skills and accomplishments to explain. SES resumes are usually two or three pages long. However, one should never pad such a document. Instead, it is important to be clear, specific and concise about one’s strengths and accomplishments.
Describe Past Employers
When explaining past work experience, it is important to convey key characteristics about the different organizations. This is more than listing the business location or its name and focus. Instead, it means explaining the number of employees such a group has on board, the position one had and how the applicant affected the group’s success. It is important to be direct when conveying key information about any projects one spearheaded. Every word should count.
Detail Is Important
An SES resume should go into detail about the growth and success a group found with the applicants’ leadership. A typical resume is short and includes bullets. This is not the case for an SES resume. Instead, such documents should go into detail about the projects, duties and mission of a former employer and one’s duties and performance there.
Pay Attention to Wording
The key to a successful SES resume is understanding how to convey key accomplishments. This is a chance to explain how a person implemented technology into the office, increased profits by cutting marketing costs and guided a company’s culture. Keeping the big picture in mind is important when describing one’s experiences and shaping the language in an SES resume.
Understand Readers
The average resume reader looks at this document for half a minute or less. In this 30 seconds, the reader decides if they are interested, if the applicants is qualified and if they will keep reading or move on to the cover letter. Thus, the layout of the resume should make it easy to identify key information about work experience, qualifications, skills and professional memberships. Additionally, a skilled SES resume will contain sharp sentences full of rich language: active verbs, accurate descriptions and more.
Education and Training
Towards the end of the SES resume, applicants should include some basic information about their education, honors, and training. Most executives have been in the workforce for quite some time, so it makes sense that schooling will come towards the end of the resume. This section is a great chance to highlight any honors or awards.
A successful SES resume highlights a person’s sharp management skills. This is a chance to explain past employment in a specific, direct and memorable manner. The best resumes use specific language and date to highlight past successes and show readers that the applicant is an effective communicator who understands how to get results. Fleshing out key experiences and understanding how to accurately describe accomplishments is sure to get a person noticed.
