Your resume is your first point of contact with a hiring manager, and it is the one document that will decide whether or not they contact you for an interview. As such, it has a big job to do: It must present your skills and accomplishments in a focused, compelling way.

With so much at stake, it’s easy to get carried away with descriptions of your accomplishments. It’s even easier if you believe the myth that everyone fudges the truth on their resumes. In fact, energy sector hiring managers can spot most exaggerations a mile away – and if they can’t, a quick conversation with your references will reveal the rest.

Here’s why you should fact-check your resume before you hit “send”:

  1. Hiring managers talk to your references. Fudged facts about when exactly you worked for an employer, what your job title was, and what role you played in certain key projects will immediately be revealed as fabrications once the hiring manager talks to your reference from a particular job. Even talking to a former boss from an unrelated position might reveal unsettling truths: If your resume says you worked at Company X from “2009 to 2011,” but your former boss at Company Y says you started there in April 2011, the hiring manager is going to question not only your dates for Company X, but everything else on your resume as well.
  2. Hiring managers talk to one another. The energy industry is highly specialized. Its professionals communicate with one another regularly at professional conferences, via LinkedIn, and in other venues. If you’ve sent resumes to multiple companies, each with a different version of the truth, you run the risk that hiring managers will catch on – and send your resume to the circular file. Instead, tailor your resume to mention the accomplishments that fit best with each job posting, but leave employers, job titles, dates, and your education section the same.
  3. An exaggerated or erroneous resume sets you up for an interview disaster. Whether facts on your resume are fuzzy due to your own changes or through a simple error, they can easily trip you up during an interview. If you list skills you don’t actually have, you may be asked to speak about those skills in-depth – leaving you with nothing to say. If you altered a job title or the name of your degree slightly, you may find yourself embarrassed when you refer to your actual job title or degree while answering a question. Double-check your resume for accuracy to help yourself sail through your interview with ease.

At FootBridge Energy Services, your staffing partner can help you present an accurate and compelling resume to hiring managers, improving your chances of landing the energy industry job of your dreams. Contact us today to learn more.