Resume Writing Tips for Administrative Resumes

Resume Writing Tips for Administrative & Office Positions

Many clerical staff are given duties beyond their job titles. For example, a receptionist may actually manage front office procedures; an office manager may manage division or branch operations; or a bookkeeper may manage both the office and a full clerical staff. When writing a resume, weak job titles often cause many job seekers problems because they feel like they are exaggerating or overdoing it if they relabel their duties with stronger descriptions.

For example, if the receptionist wants to move into office management she will be much better off using a heading like Front Office Administration; the office manager who wants to move into a mid-management position will be better off using a heading like Branch or Division Management; and the bookkeeper who wants to manage a larger accounting staff will be better off using headings like Accounting & Branch Management and Supervision of Accounting Staff.

For job seekers wanting to maximize their clerical skills and land higher paying jobs with more responsibility it’s imperative that they market their highest level skills in this way.

$9,000 Salary Increase
The first resume workshop in this site shows how Fran's after resume resulted in a $9,000 salary increase. Fran wanted a $33,000 Corporate Customer Representative job but her resume created an image of her being at a $20,000 to 24,000 salary level -- that's $9,000 to $13,000 beneath her goal.

What Level Does Your Resume Market You At?
If you are curious to see what level your resume is marketing you at … then be sure to read and use the graphing techniques in my first workshop. By graphing the job titles used in Fran's resume it's easy to see why her resume failed … and once you understand this … you will understand why the majority of resumes fail. You'll then understand how to analyze your job titles and see if you are better off using them or replacing them with skill headings that market you more effectively.

Most People Have Job Titles that Weaken Their Image
I estimate that at least 85% of all job seekers have job titles unrelated to their current career goals … and that they are much better off using skill headings rather than job titles to land higher salaries and double and triple their interview rates.

For example, Fran had been a Directory Operator but in most people's minds that doesn't sound like she's at the level of a Corporate Customer Representative making $33,000 … that's because most people don't view directory operators as providing true customer service. Most people say that Directory Operator sounds like someone making only $20,000. However, by using the 12 Questions in my Proven Resumes Series, Fran wrote a new description of her duties as a Directory Operator that described her being selected out of 100 Directory Operators to provide specialized Customer Service to the Governor's Office and Political Dignitaries in the Washington State Capitol … now that information begins to change our image of Fran doesn't it? That makes her sound much more like someone being able to command $33,000.

Which sounds like a better match for the $33,000 Corporate Customer Service Representative goal… her old job title of Directory Operator … or a skill heading like Customer Service Representative to State of Washington Account. In Fran's actual resume we used the heading of Customer Service Representative but you can see how you can play with skill headings to control and elevate your image … this is one strategy I explain in detail with examples throughout my book, Proven Resumes: Strategies That Have Increased Salaries, and one of the strongest things I can offer you as a resume writer … just in case you don't have the time or patience to write your own.

Going from 0% to 100% Interview Rate
By using skill headings that matched her goal, Fran went from a 0% interview rate to a 100% interview rate -- meaning none of her prior resumes had landed an interview but her new resume landed an interview for each position she applied for.

Click here to learn other ways we improved Fran's resume and landed her a job paying $9,000 more click here to read my first set of resume workshops! If you've entered my site via this page, be sure to go to my home page for an overview of more than 60 Free Resume & Job Search Workshops that include tons of Resume Tips for 45 Career Fields, Job Search, Electronic Resume, Cover Letter, Interviewing, Networking and Confidence Building strategies.

The testimonials at the top of this page and throughout my site describe salary increases ranging from $10,000 to $30,000 and more. Here's one of my most recent ones:

Regina, the resume you wrote caught the attention of the world's leading software manufacturer. Thanks for helping inspire me through your thoughtful questions and objective interpretation of my work history.

I'm sure it made a big difference in my ability to be recognized in a competitive environment and cross the $100,000 threshold. By the way, the offer I accepted was an increase of $25K annually (21% increase).

Rachel Pizarro, Senior Sales Account Executive / Operations Manager

Receptionist to Office Management
Frank had been a receptionist, CRT Specialist and an Accounts Receivable Clerk. He wanted to use these skills to land an office management, executive support or bookkeeping position. Below, you’ll see a few lines from his before resume. What salary range do you think Frank looks qualified for?

Receptionist
Handled phones for management and sales staff.
Prepared correspondence and contracts.

CRT Specialist
Worked with customers, taking and inputting account data.
Coordinated with sales staff in the field.

A/R Clerk
Maintained bookkeeping and accounts receivable.
Worked with customers to set payment schedules.

You’ll see a small section from the new resume Frank created. Does his new resume present him at a much higher salary level? Do you now believe he can handle more responsibility?

Front Office Administration / Executive Support
Managed front office administration to support a staff of 15.
Provided secretarial support to President and Sales staff.

Account Management
Managed 1,500 computerized customer accounts.
Coordinated with 20 field agents to process up to 200 claims daily.

Bookkeeping
Maintained bookkeeping for 1,200 A/R accounts.
Negotiated payment schedules and authorized credit to $2,500.

Frank was able to develop these new headings by using my booklet, Proven Resumes: Strategies That Have Increased Salaries and Changed Lives!. It includes over 2,500 skills and sample sentence lists for 22 industries including a skill and sample sentence list for Administrative positions. Since many job seekers have held a variety of jobs from diverse industries, almost every job seeker finds at least 2 skill lists that match their backgrounds. Also included in the booklet are 12 Questions that I’ve developed to help job seekers create powerful content--as Frank’s new resume illustrates. The booklet provides worksheets that guide job seekers in listing their skills and using ads and job descriptions to identify key words that will grab the employer’s attention. I recommend this booklet as an excellent resource for those wanting to advance to a higher level, moving from general office, reception, secretary or office management into higher positions in the $20,000 to $70,000 range. It contains dozens of examples written for these positions and shows you how to maximize the best of the skills you've gained and use them to land higher paying positions.

In Summary
As you work on your resume, always keep in mind the salary and responsibility level of the job you want. Then make sure that every job title, skill heading and statement in your resume portrays that image. This is critical to generating the maximum number of interviews along with higher salary offers.

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