Setting your sights on a career path in manufacturing? You must have lots of questions. How do you find the right position? How do you move up the ladder once you gain experience? How can you broaden your skill set? Exciting questions, yes . . . and maybe a little anxiety-provoking. Things aren’t so overwhelming if you start at the beginning - with the resume process. Build the right resume for you Foundations are critical. Do this groundwork at the beginning, and you can build on it as your career grows. The process is not difficult, but it does require putting in some time.

• Know yourself

More than having an idea of your abilities, skills, likes and dislikes, it helps to be emotionally literate: to understand why you feel the way you do and how you respond in situations or to personalities.  Also important is understanding your strengths and weaknesses. Get help with your EQ (emotional quotient) from books such as Daniel Goleman’s Emotional Intelligence; Tom Rath’s Strengthsfinder; and Daniel Keirsey’s Please Understand Me II. Your library might have copies of each.

• Understanding others

Time spent in upping your EQ not only helps you understand yourself but also helps improve your communication skills with others. Communication skills - even body language, a nonverbal skill - are valued in all stages of a career. Find help with this in Joe Navarro’s book.

• What Every Body Is Saying.

Learning to understand yourself, and others, will help you build a resume that truthfully represents you in a manner easily deciphered by others.

• Define short- and long-term career goals

Short-term goals include the next three years, and long-term goals represent three-to-five years and beyond. Since many of today’s manufacturing jobs involve technology, the wider range of technology skills you master, the better. So, both your short and long-term goals may include some learning in technology.

• Compile your resume

While you can look for sample resumes online, remember the only one who can “sell” your skills, attributes, and abilities is you! After all, you just spent valuable time getting to know yourself better and improving your communication skills. If you have only a bit of experience, a one-page resume works best. Most resumes get less than ten seconds of review, so brief and powerful is the way to impress. You need yours to grab attention and get you the interview. Importantly, format your resume to draw the reader’s eye down through the entire page. Use one with indentations and bullet points. Begin with a “Qualifications Summary” or similarly named section before launching into the “Technology Skills” or “Experience” section (whichever of these you deem more beneficial). Put any internships under “Experience.” Use action words such as “lead, operated, performed, handled,” with bullets to describe your responsibilities. Your resume is one document where it’s not only acceptable but good to avoid complete sentences. Also, use quantitative information. Examples are: “saved employer $3 per unit with suggestion,” or “voted by peers to head quality task force.” Put “Education” at the bottom of your resume. If you are a recent graduate, include your grade point average, honors, or other pertinent information like “member of robotics club.” If not, skip those items but include any relevant continued education such as Lean Six Sigma or ASQ certification. At the end, include “Related Information.” This category covers volunteerism, awards, competitions, and the like. Please do not put “References upon request” as that phrase is outdated. Besides, social media connections will likely tell the employer more about you. Don’t overlook the benefit of registering with an agency such as MPS Technical. We have over two decades in building relationships with people just like you to help you make the most of your resume and qualifications. We can help you find your best career fit in the precision manufacturing industry. Let’s talk today.