You know that your resume needs to stand out in today’s recruiting environment.
When hiring managers review applications, they’ll usually have several candidates who can do the day-to-day job they’re looking to fill.
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In these cases, applicants who differentiate themselves effectively will beat out those who wrote out a laundry list of what they were “responsible for.”
You should never try to stand out using extravagant formatting features such as colors, graphics, or photos, however.
Recruiters are impressed by quality content – not your ability to assemble a pretty document (unless you’re applying for graphic design roles).
The key to standing out?
Craft achievement-driven bullet points that demonstrate the impact you made on an organization.
By incorporating key metrics and KPIs into your resume, you’ll make your claims more believable and immediately build up credibility in the eyes of hiring managers.
This article discusses 5 metrics that give your resume a competitive advantage.
1) Revenue & Sales Growth
If you’re responsible for improving company revenue or sales, cite specific figures to demonstrate your contribution.
Consider creating a spreadsheet to keep track of notable achievements from each of your roles:
- How much did you increase revenue on a month-over-month or year-over-year basis?
- How many sales did you make?
You’ll also want to put these metrics into context:
- What strategies did you use to increase revenue?
- Were there any headwinds (such as the pandemic) that make this a particularly impressive achievement?
When you leverage specific metrics and explain how you achieved them, you help recruiters envision how you’ll add value to their company.
This approach will leave a stronger impression than a generic statement saying that you were “recognized for consistently achieving sales targets.” Instead, you can explain that you:
“Increased online sales revenue by 20% year-over-year by implementing abandoned cart recovery emails in Shopify, exceeding team sales target by 150%”
2) Cost Reduction & Profitability Improvement
If you’re not in a position that generates revenue, think about quantifying ways in which you decreased costs.
Questions to address include:
- By how much did you decrease operating costs?
- Did you reduce the cost of producing a product or delivering a service? How?
- Are there any other overhead costs you eliminated, such as outsourced contractors or expensive tools?
- By how much did you improve your division’s profitability?
You may have to dig through old dashboards or invoices to gather these metrics, but hiring managers will be impressed by your thinking about ways to improve the company’s bottom line.
If your materials costs decreased because you secured better pricing from suppliers, explain that you:
“Lowered materials cost by 18% in 6 months by renegotiating contracts with 4 suppliers.”
3) Process Optimization
In almost any role, you can improve existing processes – even if it’s not officially part of your job description.
Remember that companies are always looking for ways to increase efficiency.
By putting numbers behind your achievements in this area, you’ll demonstrate how having you on the team will help the company get more done with fewer resources.
- How much time did you save via new processes you created?
- What tools did you leverage to make your work more efficient?
- By how much did you improve efficiency?
- What results did the analysis you conducted yield?
To measure efficiency, think about how long certain tasks used to take you to complete before you implemented new tools or processes.
If preparing month-end financial statements used to take a week and your new Excel models help you get it done in a day, you can write a bullet point such as:
“Reduced time to prepare month-end financials by 80% by creating a new Excel model”
4) People
You can still quantify your achievements if your role primarily involves leading people.
Elevate your bullet points that have to do with recruitment, training, and team leadership by addressing the following questions:
- How many people were on your team? How many direct/indirect reports did you have?
- How many candidates did you interview and for how many positions?
- By how much did you improve team member engagement scores or retention?
- How many training sessions did you deliver? How did they improve team performance?
These metrics help contextualize your role’s scope and impact, giving recruiters a clearer understanding of your leadership ability.
If team performance improved after you launched a new hire training program, you could say that you:
“Developed and rolled out a training program for new analysts that resulted in increased performance scores (+10 points) and on-the-job engagement (+18 points)”
5) Marketing & Partnership Development
If you work in marketing or build partnerships, you’ll have plenty of opportunities to quantify results:
- How many impressions did your marketing initiatives generate?
- Can you calculate the ROI of your marketing campaigns?
- How many deals did you sign? How many partners did you bring on board?
- By how much did you increase conversion rates?
Don’t forget to put your metrics into context by providing year-over-year comparisons or timelines to strengthen your case further:
“Established relationships with 4 investors, resulting in 6 new hotel development deals within two years.”
In Summary
Incorporating metrics into your bullet points will take research and advanced planning, but trust that the extra effort is well worth it.
Once you’re happy with your base content, you can tailor your resume to your target roles to further bolster your chances of landing interviews.
About the Author
Matt Glodz is the Founder of Resume Pilots, an award-winning executive resume writing service. Matt graduated from Cornell University, where he studied business communication with leading professors in the field. He is also a Certified Professional Resume Writer and Certified Professional Career Coach. At Resume Pilots, Matt and his team bring writing excellence, superior service, and market expertise to applicants who are looking for job-search services beyond mere resume assistance.
FAQs: Leveraging Metrics for Success
Q: Why is it important to include metrics on my resume?
A: Including metrics on your resume demonstrates your tangible impact on previous organizations, making your achievements more credible and compelling to hiring managers. It showcases your ability to drive results, giving you a competitive edge.
Q: What types of metrics should I include on my resume?
A: Consider including metrics related to revenue and sales growth, cost reduction and profitability improvement, process optimization, leadership and team development, and marketing and partnership development. Specific figures related to achievements in these areas can significantly strengthen your resume.
Q: How can I quantify achievements if I’m not in a revenue-generating role?
A: You can quantify achievements by detailing cost reductions, process improvements, efficiency gains, team development impacts, and the results of marketing initiatives. Look for ways you’ve contributed to your organization’s bottom line or operational efficiency.
Q: Can incorporating metrics into my resume make a difference in my job search?
A: Absolutely. Metrics provide concrete evidence of your contributions and can set you apart from other candidates who may only list duties or responsibilities. This data-driven approach can catch a recruiter’s eye and increase your chances of landing an interview.
Q: What if I can’t access exact figures or metrics from my previous roles?
A: If you don’t have exact figures, estimate the impact as accurately as possible or describe the scope of your projects and initiatives. You can also mention the methods or strategies you used to achieve results, giving context to your contributions.
Q: How do I make my achievements stand out with metrics?
A: Use clear, concise bullet points to highlight your achievements, including the metric, briefly explaining how you achieved it and the context if necessary. This format makes it easy for hiring managers to see the value you can bring to their team.
Q: Should I tailor the metrics on my resume for each job application?
A: Tailoring your resume’s metrics and achievements to align with the job you’re applying for can further enhance your application. Highlight the metrics and results most relevant to the position to demonstrate your suitability and potential impact.
