Ex-Google recruiter's 2 best tips for writing an effective resume: ‘All it needs to focus on is your impact'

When it comes to your resume, there are practices you'll want to weed out. Don't write run-on sentences under your job titles. Don't write general, task-oriented phrases that don't give a sense of what you achieved in the role. Don't include a line stating what role you're applying for.

None of these will help impress upon a recruiter why you're right for the job and why they should move ahead with your candidacy.

But there are phrases you'll want to include that could help you catch a hiring manager's attention. Here's what ex-Google recruiter and current CEO of salary data company FairComp, Nolan Church, recommends.

'All it needs to focus on is your impact'

The No. 1 rule Church would relay to jobseekers is to focus on how they've improved the business. "All it needs to focus on is your impact," he says about your resume. Think about clear and specific accomplishments that outline that.

Some industries make that easier than others. For example, "marketing has core metrics," he says. "And it typically boils down to leads, opportunities, impressions on the website." It lends itself to quantifying your impact by saying, "I helped double impressions on the website," for example. Think about the metrics that measure success in your role, and feature those.

"If you don't have an individual metric, then you need to have a team metric," he says. He gives an example from his own work in management saying he'd write, "my team improved candidate experience by X amount of points."

And make sure to include your best accomplishment at the top. "The first sentence needs to be the most impactful thing that I did," he says.

'You're not allowed to use more than one keyword in a sentence'

Recruiters often talk about using keywords in your resume, or words that appear in the job description and are especially relevant to the role. Use those, says Church, but don't overdo it.

A sentence that has "multiple adjectives and keywords that show up either in LinkedIn searches or on the job description" can ultimately sound like nonsense, or "word salad," he says. You want your resume to reflect your ability to communicate clearly and concisely as well.

For each impact statement you make, "include the most important word," he says as a rule of thumb, adding that "you're not allowed to use more than one keyword in a sentence."

"For example, if we're talking about machine learning" as a skill you excelled in on the job, he says, "you don't need to say 'machine learning', and 'AI' and 'LLM'" all in one sentence. Choose the one that will pack the most punch in describing your accomplishment.

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