functional resume

I'm in the process of updating my resume & I'm thinking of doing a functional resume. I'm changing careers so I really don't have any IT experience. I did, however, complete the Cisco Networking Academy courses & earn my CCNA.

I'm wondering how employers/hiring managers feel about functional resumes. Anyone have any idea?

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sprkymrk

Never heard of one. What is it?

MQuinn6

Basically, a functional resume is used to highlight transferable skills rather than the types of positions held. Here's an example of the basic layout:

John Doe

30 Cottage Lane Chico, CA 95926 (555)555-5555 jdoe@jdoe.com

SUMMARY OF QUALIFICATIONS

- 9 years' successful experience in marketing and promotions.
- Effective in budgeting and long-term planning.
- Successful in implementing new programs.
- Proven record for maintaining schedules; multi-task oriented.
- Excellent at follow-up and detail; extremely dependable.
- Exceptional communication and interpersonal skills.

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Marketing and Promotions

- Developed and implemented highly successful marketing campaigns for individual services to promote surgery center.
- Established and maintained network relations with referring physicians and their staff to improve communication and resolve problems, resulting in increased referrals.
- Successfully wrote Requests for Proposals, (RFP's) for a $5000,000 software tracking application system.

Budgeting and Financial Management

- Administered annual budget of $70,000 for 5 years.
- Developed and managed annual budget in EXCEL spreadsheet.
- Submitted quarterly financial status statements.
- Identified potential cost overruns and collaborated with Director to resolve problem.

Program Administration and Training

- Collaborated with companies throughout the country to develop and implement successful marketing programs.
- Set up a special in-house database tracking system for call inquires.
- Created and maintained a database of lead generations, prospects and clients.
- Developed marketing plans: set goals; targeted special problems requiring attention; set up schedule of appointments.

Computer Skills

- Extensive knowledge of software applications including ACT, WORD, EXCEL, Page Maker and CorelDraw.

WORK HISTORY

Marketing/Promotions, Western Baseball League, Chico, CA 1999-1999
Marketing /Public Relations, Center for Sight, Redding, CA 1994-1998
Marketing/Event Coordinator, Multimedia Productions, Redding CA 1993-1994
Marketing/Event Coordinator, SD&G Healthcare Systems, Inc., Santa Clara, CA 1990-1993

EDUCATION

B.A., Information and Communication Studies; Minor, Sociology
California State University, Chico, CA
A. A., Sociology - De Anza Junior College, Cupertino, CA

Olajuwon

sprkymrk wrote:

Never heard of one. What is it?

Why ask when google has the answer? You won't believe how smart google can make you look on the Internet.

JDMurray

What will you do when a prospective employer asks for your work history? They will want to see where and when you have worked even though your former jobs may have nothing to do with IT. You work history isn't just a record of experience, but also an indication of how stable you have been in your employment.

MQuinn6

MQuinn6 wrote:

WORK HISTORY
Marketing/Promotions, Western Baseball League, Chico, CA 1999-1999
Marketing /Public Relations, Center for Sight, Redding, CA 1994-1998
Marketing/Event Coordinator, Multimedia Productions, Redding CA 1993-1994
Marketing/Event Coordinator, SD&G Healthcare Systems, Inc., Santa Clara, CA 1990-1993

It's listed at the bottom.

BubbaJ

Personally, it doesn't look like you are trying to sell yourself. A prospective employer may think you are either being lazy or you are trying to hide something (lack of IT experience?). HR is a very conservative profession, and I don't think rocking the boat will do you any favors. You do hear occasional stories about someone that took a real chance and got noticed in a positive light and hired for doing something different, but I think the stories that you never hear (about the resumes that ended up in the trash can because of that) far exceed the good stories.

Your first goal is to get hired. Once you are hired, you can try to stand out.

Danman32

I used to have a skillset supplement with my resume, since the resume didn't specify what technologies/products I have experience in. It worked well, especially for headhunters. Unfortunately, most of what was on it has become outdated, and I also lost it.

keenon

i guess i refer to my resume as a functional technical resume...

very detailed, well thought out and carefully worded.. when doing resumes this is very important

sprkymrk

Olajuwon wrote:

sprkymrk wrote:

Never heard of one. What is it?

Why ask when google has the answer? You won't believe how smart google can make you look on the Internet.

Why didn't he google it instead of asking us how effective it is?
Why did you bother answering me with a non-answer?
Don't do that to me before my third cup of coffee. I get grouchy.

MQuinn6

I did Google functional resumes, but I was looking for some personal opinions from folks already in the IT field.
Oh, and I'm a she. :P

JDMurray

I suggest you run this resume format by a few professional headhunters and see what they say. It's likely the more you deviate from the standard, expected resume formats the less likely you will be seriously considered.

Badger95

If you don't have much experience and are changing careers then a functional resume is the way you should go. Sell your skill sets that are transferable. It is used to get your foot in the door for entry level type jobs. HR will pick up on that, but that doesn’t mean its a bad thing. You have stability, it should not be an issue of, can you keep a job or not. The real issue is experience and showing the employer you are worth the investment.
Put your strongest IT skills at the top. Start with most relevant and work down from there. Try to put some kind of IT twist on what you did.

Just a couple of pointers, on your bullets. Expand on the data base you wrote, and the excel project. Did you write functions , share the stuff you made with others. How did they benefit. Do you have computer hobbies, do you provide computer support unofficially, do people ask you for advice on IT matters. You can work all kinds of things like that into a resume.

Badger95

If you need to get some experience quickly, think about temp agencies. Tell them you are only interested in computer type jobs. It might only be a 10 day job installing some printers, or a couple of days assisting someone, but hay it is a way to gain some kind of experience. A job may even last a couple of months. The other good thing about this is, you meet people and you get started on networking. Could even led to a permanent job.

drpower555

Well MQuinn6 and guys, most of the guys here frowned on my res a few weeks ago as it is 3.5 pages and rambles on like an drunk performance report. It was a combo resume which you might want to check out. One guy was going to pay 50k and picked a passage right in the middle of the ramble showing me he read every word of every page.
The job I took pays 65k with the guys who run the .net portion. (figure it out) My new boss says it looks great, but your not going to do ANY of this here. I will babysit a certain, "process". I say your res is a little too simple, a little too to the point MQuinn6. Fill it out a little more add some fluff. Get your foot in the door and go from there. Good luck on the transition. And welcome to the paradise we call IT.

MQuinn6

Thanks for all the suggestions! The resume I posted isn't actually mine, but once I get mine cleaned up, I'll post it on here for critiquing.

drpower555 - I'll have to go search out your resume & take a look at it.

sprkymrk

MQuinn6 wrote:

I did Google functional resumes, but I was looking for some personal opinions from folks already in the IT field.
Oh, and I'm a she. :P

My apologies MQ. I forget that there are about half a dozen geek girls on this forum along with all us geek guys.

My comment about googling was for Olajuwon, and just a friendly jab back at him - he's a good enough guy as far as I can tell. (If you are reading this Olajuwon I meant "Great Guy"

).

Re a functional resume - I have mixed feelings. It looks good, but it also looks like someone may be trying to hide something, which is true in a sense, you are trying to minimise the fact that you have no IT experience. So I think I would go with JDs comment about not straying from the norm. However, I wonder if a bastardized version combining the best of both resume types is possible?

drpower555

There are three primary resume types. Crono, functional, and combination. Crono+func=combo. nice huh. Whatever you choose go ahead and put it in three formats; ASCII, Word, and PDF. I also use HTM but that doesnt impress anyone these days.