Are you looking to get an edge on other candidates for those top tech jobs? Look no further! We aggregated feedback from HR team members at some of the best tech companies out there and put them in the most TLDR format we could think of. Keep these tips in mind when you are crafting your web developer resume or any resume for that matter to go to the top of the stack.
From Googles Former VP of People, Laszlo Bock
- No Typos! -- Check out Grammarly, definitely one of the best spell checks/writing assistants out there.
- Length - One Page for every 10 years experience MAX.
- Formatting - Send as a PDF, not Word, Google Doc, or Pages. 10 point+ font, ½ inch margins, white background with black type. Make it easy to read and resistant to accidental formatting changes, hence PDF.
- Don’t share confidential information -- Most consulting engagements have NDA's associated with them. If you have consulted for a company and want to add that experience to your resume, make sure you have legal permission first.
- Don’t Lie! -- It's way too easy to look at your GitHub repositories or ask your references if you are telling the truth. Recruiting professionals in communities talk too, so a lie can haunt you.
From Facebook’s Vice President of HR, Janelle Gale
- Skills over experience - highlight your skills front and center.
- Represent your authentic self.
- Prove you are a “Builder” (Facebook’s term for strong problem solver)
From Amazon Recruiting Manager, Celeste Joy Diaz
- Ground your accomplishments in Data -- Tie work to the quantitative achievement of business goals (ideally that apply to the responsibilities in the job you are applying for). Diaz recommends you approach line items under each past in your resume with this template, as quoted in Business Insider:
"I created a solution for X amount of customers and it saved X amount of money, using X skill."
From Microsoft Recruiter, Amy Ala
- Do not send a generic resume, tailor every resume you send to the particular job description.
- Match responsibilities in the JD with examples of successes from the past. Make it easy to see why you are a great fit for what they listed in the job description.
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Pro Tip -- You have to also consider the “robots” that do the processing of each web developer resume today in the applicant tracking systems (ATS).
Most resumes today are scanned by HR AI before they are presented to humans. These AI's scan the resume and do quantitative sentiment analysis to match keywords, look for spelling errors, and determine experience level. We won't go into full detail, because you can just check out this article from The Muse for a full writeup on what to do and not to do.
We hope that with these tips in mind, you can craft the best web developer resume and land the job of your dreams at that company you've had your eye on. If need a hand finding the best company to work, we can help! Either use the chat on this post or you can contact us here.
Here at BWBacon Group, we know and live what you are experiencing as an employer or job seeker in Denver, Boulder, Dallas, San Francisco, New York City or any of the other cities we work in. We believe great recruiting starts and ends with understanding people.
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