Work It Podcast: How to write a standout resume
It is possible that your job application may be buried in a sea of others. So how do you catch the hiring manager's eye.
Lim Zhirong, master professional at the Institute for Human Resource Professionals, walks us through the dos and don'ts to get you to the top of the pile.
Here is an excerpt from the conversation:
Tiffany Ang, host:
I read that it takes a hiring manager, on average, 10 seconds to decide if the resume is in the accept pile or the reject stash.
What would you first look at if I were to put an eye tracking software into your eyes? Which content would take up most of your eye time?
Lim Zhirong, master professional at the Institute for Human Resource Professionals:
I will say your last two recent jobs and your time in the role. But first of all, it depends on the hiring company and the nature of the industry. If you're a startup looking to hire, you probably wouldn't be so obsessed with the staying power of an individual. Rather, you'd be more obsessed (if the candidate has) the ability to do something from scratch and scale it up.
On the other hand, if you are applying for a more traditional company, the recruiter might value things like: Did you spend four years in your most recent gig? And was your second most recent gig at least three years?
So, I wouldn't say this is what I look for, but depending on the nature of the industry, recruiters may look at it this way.
Tiffany:
They will still look at the first two jobs, it's just that maybe someone from a startup company might look at what you have achieved, whereas somebody who is in a bigger company, a legacy company, might value longevity, so they might be looking at the duration.
Zhirong:
Anyway, the first page is usually your last two gigs.
Tiffany:
Exactly. But there's always the top part where you write a short little bio of yourself.
Zhirong:
Personally, I don't think it is necessary, but if you still want to include it, I recommend keeping it to two to three sentences. I've seen resumes where the personal bio was almost one third of the first page, and this personal bio is just a self-description of the individual, not substantiated by your achievements or impact at work.
Depending on the interviewer or screener who picks up your resume, they may or may not believe it, right?
Gerald Tan, host:
I think Zhirong mentioned a very important principle, which is that you need to create a resume that is reader-friendly.
You need to put yourself in the shoes of the reader: What are they looking for? What will appeal to them in terms of keywords and important information about you? That way, it makes the whole reading, the whole 10 seconds, more worthwhile.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CNA
23 minutes ago
- CNA
Yishun, Punggol cat deaths likely caused by vehicle accidents; no evidence of deliberate cruelty: NParks
SINGAPORE: Two community cat deaths in Yishun and Punggol were likely caused by vehicle accidents, and there is no evidence to suggest either was a deliberate act of animal cruelty, the National Parks Board (NParks) said on Tuesday (Jun 3). In making its conclusions, NParks took into account its investigation findings, a postmortem examination for the Yishun case and a report from the veterinary clinic in the Punggol case. It also considered the initial locations where both cats were found, said Ms Jessica Kwok, NParks' group director of enforcement and investigation. She also gave updates on two other cats that were found dead in the past week – a second cat in Yishun and another in Tampines. FIRST CAT IN YISHUN A cat was found dead at Yishun Street 51 and NParks was alerted to a case of suspected animal abuse by the police on May 9. During its investigations, NParks interviewed the person who reported the case, located potential witnesses and reviewed the closed-circuit television (CCTV) footage in the area. "Through our investigation, we confirmed that the cat carcass was initially found on the road by a passer-by, who moved it to a nearby void deck," said Ms Kwok. A postmortem examination was carried out on the cat carcass by the Animal and Veterinary Service (AVS). The overall findings were "compatible" with external blunt force trauma, which resulted in injuries, such as fractures of the bones of the pelvis and sternum. There were also multiple areas of bleeding, and its right eye had fallen partially out of place. There was no evidence of penetrating or sharp force injuries or wounds, said Ms Kwok. "When the injuries are considered as a whole, a vehicular impact is the most likely cause of the blunt force traumatic injuries." CAT FOUND DEAD IN PUNGGOL In its statement on Wednesday, NParks also gave further updates on its investigation into the feline that was found injured at the loading and unloading bay near Block 326B Sumang Walk in Punggol. NParks retrieved the injured cat after being notified on the morning of May 12 and sent it to a private veterinary clinic. After the cat's microchip was traced, NParks informed the community cat's caregiver to contact the clinic. At this point, the case was classified as animal rescue as there was no evidence at the initial stages that the cat was abused, NParks' director for enforcement and investigation Joshua Teoh told reporters on Tuesday. He added that an animal welfare group representative had decided to put down the cat on welfare grounds, and it was not sent for a postmortem examination. The cat's body was subsequently collected by another community cat caregiver and cremated. The report from the private veterinary clinic that treated the injured cat noted the cat's condition and injuries "in detail", which included proptosis - abnormal protrusion of one or both eyes - and lesions on the head. The report included the private vet's professional assessment that the lesions and findings are "usually suggestive of blunt trauma" to the head, with a "possible common cause" being a road traffic accident, said Ms Kwok. NParks began investigating the case on May 13 after receiving feedback that the cat may have been abused. It interviewed the person who first found the injured cat and other potential witnesses. Officers also visited the scene and retrieved CCTV footage from multiple cameras in the area, but the CCTV cameras did not capture any footage of how the cat sustained its injuries. "Based on the investigation findings, including taking into account the initial location where the cat was found, NParks assessed that it is likely that the cat had sustained its injuries due to a vehicular accident, and there was no evidence to suggest a deliberate act of animal cruelty," said Ms Kwok. She added: "NParks understands the concerns on cases of alleged animal cruelty, and we would like to assure the public that we take all feedback received from the public on alleged animal cruelty seriously and will investigate them thoroughly, including looking at any new evidence presented." TWO MORE CASES Ms Kwok also gave updates on two other cats that were found dead in the past week, including a second one at Yishun Street 51 with its legs splayed. She said there were no visible external injuries found, based on the preliminary physical examination, and a postmortem examination is being carried out. In another incident, a feline was found dead at a void deck at Tampines Street 81 on May 24. NParks established that Traffic Police officers had attended to a traffic incident involving a car and a community cat earlier that day. "The (Traffic Police) officers moved the cat's body to the void deck as it was likely to pose a safety hazard to other road users and to prevent other vehicles from running over the cat's body," said Ms Kwok. A member of the public later came across the cat's body and reported the case to NParks. No further action will be taken as the car driver had reported the accident to the police within 24 hours. ABUSE CASES REACH 12-YEAR HIGH Speaking to reporters, Mr Teoh said that NParks has seen a "fairly consistent trend" in cases designated as animal abuse or cruelty over the years. Of these, no more than 6 per cent had evidence pointing to animal cruelty. Among the rest, the majority were public disputes or disamenities caused by pet or community animals, and some of these may not be related to cruelty, Mr Teoh added. Some animals may have underlying conditions and could have died due to natural causes. In 2024, the number of cases involving animal cruelty and welfare in Singapore rose to a 12-year high of 961, according to the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA). A total of 2,190 animals were involved in the cases, with cats forming the majority (1,330). The Animals and Birds Act is currently being reviewed to increase penalties – such as fines, jail terms an disqualification orders – to ensure "effective deterrence" against animal welfare offences.
CNA
32 minutes ago
- CNA
FAQ: All you need to know about the findings of the major East-West Line disruption in Sep 2024
SINGAPORE: Investigation findings for the six-day East-West Line disruption in September last year were released on Tuesday (Jun 3), with the Land Transport Authority (LTA) set to impose a S$3 million fine on train operator SMRT. CNA breaks down the key points of the reports released by the Transport Safety Investigation Bureau as well as LTA. What happened in September? Disruptions started on Sep 25 last year when a defective part known as an axle box on a first-generation KHI train dropped onto the tracks, causing a bogie – or an undercarriage with wheels – to come off the running rail between the Dover and Clementi stations. This resulted in extensive damage to the tracks and other equipment, with a total of 46 rail breaks identified in a 2.55km stretch between Dover station and stretching beyond Clementi station, which took days to repair. An estimated 500,000 out of 2.8 million train journeys were affected each day during the disruption, with train services resuming six days later on Oct 1. How did SMRT respond then? SMRT activated free public bus and bridging shuttle bus services immediately when they understood that the train services would take some time to resume. They also took action to limit the affected sector between Buona Vista station and Jurong East station. Shuttle train services with 10-minute intervals operated between Boon Lay and Jurong East stations, as well as between Buona Vista and Queenstown stations. Station staff members and track repair workers were also reported to have gone above and beyond their call of duty – from providing commuters with directions and assistance to coordinating track repairs round the clock. What did further investigations find? The root cause of how the axle box failed could not be determined because key train components involved were too badly burnt and damaged in the incident, LTA said. These parts were: the axle box itself, which secures the wheels to the axle the axle bearings, which reduce friction so the wheels spin smoothly the chevron springs, which contain rubber to absorb shocks to keep the ride smooth The axle box had dislodged from the third carriage of the train, causing extensive damage to the tracks. Although the root cause could not be determined, the report concluded that the likely cause was degraded grease in the axle box, LTA said. The degraded grease could have increased wear and tear on the axle bearings, eventually causing overheating, potentially burning the rubber of the chevron springs. The chevron springs could have then progressively dropped off and eventually caused the axle box to dislodge, LTA added. The sequence of events was further substantiated by the Hotbox system, which is set up along the tracks on both the East-West Line and North-South Line. The system has been in place since 2014 and consists of a trackside infrared sensor. When a train runs by, the sensor measures the temperature of each axle box. It is an extra monitoring tool put in place by SMRT and not a requirement set by LTA. The system had detected higher temperatures on one of the axle boxes of the affected train before the incident. However, on the incident day, even though a warning was displayed in the maintenance engineering centre, the train identification number or train ID was not detected due to a system error. Instead, a 'Null ID' was indicated. This led the controller monitoring the system to believe the warning was a false one and no follow-up action was taken. How much of a factor was maintenance? The train in the incident was among 66 in SMRT's first-generation KHI fleet that were rolled out in the late 1980s. They are progressively being replaced by new Movia trains. Initially, 66 Movia trains were to be handed over to SMRT by March 2024, with the first fleet in October 2021. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, there was a delay of 1.5 years and the first Movia train was handed over only in May 2023. Upon receiving the first fleet of the new trains, SMRT began decommissioning the KHI trains. In the meantime, SMRT was required to continue carrying out regular maintenance for the KHI trains still in service, including preventive works and overhaul, which refers to a complete tear-down and rebuild to restore trains to a condition "as good as new". By the time of the incident on Sep 25, 18 KHI trains had been overhauled, but the incident train was not among them. The stipulated interval for an overhaul was 500,000km, but SMRT twice extended the interval – first to 575,000km in August 2022 and then to 750,000km in August 2024. At the time of the incident, the train had logged 690,000km since its last overhaul in 2018. The extensions were carried out based on SMRT's internal procedures, LTA said. The authority also noted that since axle-box failures were not common, SMRT did not undertake a detailed engineering risk assessment on extending the overhaul interval for the axle box. Speaking to the media on Tuesday, Mr Lam Sheau Kai who is president of SMRT Trains said the operator's overhaul regime has served it well over the past 38 years. 'What may have caught us off-guard this time was the convergence of factors – delays in new train deliveries due to COVID-19, our efforts to balance and adjust overhaul schedules, and the lag in receiving critical spare parts.' What penalties were imposed? SMRT was fined S$3 million by LTA, an amount that was 'proportionate" to the incident's circumstances, the authority said. In determining the fine, LTA said it took into consideration that SMRT had borne the cost of repairs as well as provided free bridging buses, regular bus services and shuttle train services at the affected stations. SMRT also provided free travel to passengers alighting at Jurong East and Buona Vista stations during the six days of disruption. The total cost of SMRT's service recovery amounted to more than S$10 million. The financial penalty collected by LTA will go to the Public Transport Fund, which helps lower-income families with the spending on public transport fares. SMRT will have the opportunity to appeal the fine to the transport minister. What follow-up actions have SMRT and LTA taken since then? After the incident, SMRT pre-emptively withdrew all KHI trains that had exceeded 500,000km mileage since their last overhaul from service to undergo overhaul activities for axle boxes before they were put back into service. In consultation with LTA, SMRT has also starting using data analytics for earlier detection of abnormal axle-box temperatures, so that pre-emptive action can be taken. SMRT has also worked with the Hotbox system maker to rectify the Null ID indication issue. It now requires its maintenance engineering centre to share system warnings with the operations control centre. SMRT has also instituted that the withdrawal of trains back to the depot under such scenarios should occur at a slower speed of 35kmh to limit the potential damage to the tracks and trackside equipment. LTA was not involved in and did not review SMRT's proposed extensions to the overhaul intervals of the trains. The authority said that as an asset owner, it has since strengthened its oversight of operators' management of assets, including their internal procedures to adjust maintenance schedules. 'LTA and operators will work together for future overhaul decisions,' it added. Mr Lam from SMRT said that for 'rare, black swan events like COVID-19', it is important that SMRT the operator and LTA the asset owner come together to 'reassess collectively'. 'In hindsight, we could perhaps have exercised greater caution in how we managed the transition and decommissioning of the older trains,' he added.
CNA
36 minutes ago
- CNA
SATS managing ongoing trade uncertainty by focusing on its customers: CEO Kerry Mok
As trade tensions continue to cast a shadow on the air freight industry, SATS CEO Kerry Mok said the Singapore-based cargo handling company is staying nimble and focusing on customers. He was speaking on the sidelines of the Air Cargo Europe trade fair in Munich. SATS — the world's biggest provider of air cargo handling services — plans to invest S$250 million to expand capacity and upgrade its fleet over the next five years. Ross Cullen reports.
