How to Increase your Salary with a winning resume

Oftentimes, we think that we have to master some Jedi-level mind-controlling tactics to negotiate our salary. But the truth is, it’s far easier than that because one of the key factors that do the heavy lifting in salary negotiation for you is your resume. Having a winning resume puts you as a favourable candidate and gives you an edge during the negotiation process. 

What then is a winning resume? I have reviewed countless resumes and the key difference between a winning resume and a so-so resume which even senior professionals don’t include is:  – Quantifiable Results! 

Here’s an example from a resume of someone who has over 5 years of industry experience and managed a team. 

Resume #1

• Collaborated with management and subject matter experts to identify their learning objectives, content development or procurement, and delivery of proposed training.
• Created exercises, instructional activities and training assessments that reinforced learning.
• Conducted Operator Specific Skill (OSS) training for operators on the assigned workstation according to the standardised Work Sequence. 
• Delivered new hire training and other departmental training programs; provided creative, effective classroom instruction throughout the organization.

What does this resume tell you about the candidate?

Absolutely nothing!

It looks like any random resume that you would find in a pile 100s of resumes with no competitive advantage. 

Let’s take a look at another example.

This person worked at the same company, with less than 3 years of industry experience and managed no one :

Resume #2

• Facilitated technical and soft skills training to 600+ FTE in a traditional classroom and virtual setting.
• Travelled to key locations across 15 global offices to implement continuous improvement initiatives and systemised process standards, resulting in 80% improvement in process compliance.
• Designed e-learning curriculum and courses with a learning management system for 4000+ people with a successful course completion rate of 98%.
• Conducted detailed training needs analysis and collaborated with business units to design functional competency framework and skill matrixes and proposed training & non-training solutions (coaching, mentoring, job shadowing) in bridging the training gaps, which enhanced training effectiveness by 35%.

Imagine you are the hiring manager, and if these two resumes were submitted for the same open position, who would you hire?

If it was me, I would shortlist Resume #2 for an interview. 

Resume #1 looks like any of the thousands of bland resumes which merely states their previous job descriptions with no results to show for. 

Remember, companies hire candidates because they have a problem and they think you have the matching skillsets which could help them solve that problem. So, if you don’t demonstrate your ability in Quantifiable Results, most likely your resume will be skipped. 

Now with the new knowledge, how can you apply them to your resume?

By using the Show, not Tell formula.

The Show, not Tell Formula

A verb (Kata Kerja) + your experience + quantifiable results (in numbers, percentages, figures)

This super-simple formula will help you showcase your experience and achievements in an effective way that will separate you from the majority of applicants.

Preferably, you would want to match your work experience with the job description (JD) listed in the job ad you are applying for. 

Here are some examples:

If the JD states, “help manage yearly advertising budget,” your resume should be like this:

Managed (Verb, Kata Kerja) RM 1 million of advertising and promotional budgets by creating targeted radio advertisements and roadshows (your experience), which resulted in a 35% increase in revenue (quantifiable results).

If the description says, “drive revenue growth for existing accounts,” you could say:

Implemented (Verb, Kata Kerja) a new strategy involving X & Y (your experience) which led to an increase of 12% across the lipstick sales business and resulted in beating my quota by 21% (quantifiable results).

The Show, not Tell formula quantifies the value that you have achieved and will be in a better position to be noticed by hiring managers. And if you have been practising keeping track and documenting your achievements, it won’t be hard for you to construct your new resume with the Show, not Tell formula. 

The formula also comes in handy during salary negotiation as you have demonstrated your past records and the value you bring to the table and confidently ask for a raise. 

Start implementing this formula in your resume and see the magic happen!