Monday, August 28, 2023
By Kathryn Troutman, Federal Career Coach®,
Author, Federal Resume Guidebook, 7th Ed.
August 28th, 2023
“I Didn’t Know Resumix Is Gone!”
No More Big Block Resumes!
RESUMIX IS GONE !
USAJOBS AND HUMAN RESOURCES REVIEWS
OF FEDERAL RESUMES IS HERE !
Even though it has been eleven years since the HR system changeover, employees at DOD agencies are still using the BIG BLOCK resume format. They still think that Resumix is being used to scan for keywords. NOT…. “Human” Human Resources Specialists are reading resumes with their eyes…. looking for specialized experience, evidence of KSAs, and accomplishments. DOD employees do not know that the RESUMIX system was gone from Army and Navy civilian jobs and the BIG BLOCK IS NOT A GOOD FORMAT FOR TODAY’S HR SPECIALISTS AND MANAGERS!
Back in 2012, I brought a cake to my Ten Steps certification class that said BYE BYE CPOL RESUMIX. My Ten Steps classes celebrated the ending of the two important keyword resume systems for almost all DOD job applications. CPOL Resumix and US Navy CHART Resumix systems started in 2000 and ended in 2012!
Even though it has been ELEVEN years since the HR system changeover, employees at DOD agencies are still using the BIG BLOCK resume format.
THE BIG BLOCK IS GONE: Previously, Resumix provided artificial intelligence and a database of words that DOD created for keywords. Now with USAJOBS, the keywords are read by Human Resources specialists-real humans.
THE BIG BLOCK FORMAT WAS ONE GIANT PARAGRAPH: It was up to 3,000 characters in length that included all of the duties, responsibilities, and accomplishments. Paulina Chen’s article, Help Me Hire a Minion, shows you the difference between the Big Block and the Outline Format, which is much easier to read and is preferred by Human Resources specialists.
THE NEW OUTLINE FORMAT IS 5 TO 7 SMALL PARAGRAPHS: The HR specialists do not want to read one large paragraph. They need and want the resume to feature the specialized experience and keywords from the job announcement.
EACH SMALL PARAGRAPH INCLUDES HEADLINES WITH KEYWORDS: The headlines are keywords from the vacancy announcement. Each vacancy announcement has a different set of keywords that the HR specialist will want to see quickly in your resume.
MAKE YOUR ACCOMPLISHMENTS STAND OUT: Supervisors want to read specific examples. For your most recent positions, after your duties and responsibilities, highlight and feature two or three of your accomplishments, up to five total accomplishments.
Want Professional Writing Help with your Federal Resume?
GET A FEDERAL RESUME QUOTE
Send your current, up-to-date resume, and a sample job announcement for an assessment of your resume…
We want to help you get Best Qualified and Referred to a manager.
Kathryn Troutman is the Founder and President of Resume Place, Inc., a Federal Career Consulting business located in Baltimore, MD. Her firm specializes in writing and designing professional federal resumes, as well as consulting, coaching and education on the federal hiring process. She is the author of many best-selling federal career books, including the Federal Resume Guidebook, 7th Ed. See the books at https://resume-place.com/books/
Troutman is an enthusiastic and knowledgeable media guest, appearing on Beverly Jones’s Jazzed about Work on NPR’s WOUB, Carol Fishman Cohen’s 3, 2, 1 iRelaunch (Relaunching Your Career), Mark Miller’s Repurpose Your Career, and numerous times on Mike Causey’s Your Turn show on Federal News Network. Her business, The Resume Place, had been featured in The Washington Post. To hear interviews of this top federal jobs expert, click here.