Over 50? How to Write a Winning Resume

How should you write your resume when you’re over 50?

You might be tempted to add your last position to an already outdated resume.

But you’ll get a better reaction from employers if you emphasize your personal brand, relevant skills, and ability to meet their needs… making your age a non-issue.

Use these age-proof tips to create a strong over-50 resume strategy for a winning job search:

Align your resume with your executive goal.

Don’t focus solely on your career history! Instead, research job descriptions for your target job, and compare your experience, line by line.

How does your experience stack up against the requirements? What do you offer? Emphasize this value proposition (NOT your age).

Write out answers to these questions as a starting point:

What specific job are you seeking and at what level (C-suite, Board appointment, VP, etc.)?
What ROI will you deliver by meeting or exceeding the jobs described in the postings?
What are the reasons companies should consider you as a viable candidate?
In what ways have you added value in past jobs?

By clarifying your intention and ensuring you’re on the right track, you’re more likely to gain attention for the right job. Your answers to these questions should be used as input to your executive resume and qualifications summary.

Check your goal against job market realities.

Don’t build your over-50 resume (or job goals) in a vacuum.

Instead, talk with recruiters and trusted contacts in your network to gauge the right target job level aligned with your skills.

Stay on top of happenings in your field, including potential hiring trends, by subscribing to industry news or joining trade associations. Contact private equity or investor firms to determine who they’re likely to hire.

Further clarify your goal by reviewing job postings or LinkedIn profiles of competing executives at your level – which will help you gain insight on your marketability and competitive value. You can also review job postings to compare your skills against employer requirements.

If needed, adjust your career goal in light of your findings. Your resume (and job search) should be tuned for the right level the first time.

Document achievements directly aligned with the job you’re pursuing.

The key to a successful over-50 resume? Get close to your own personal brand by interviewing yourself! Answer these questions against the goal you defined in Step #1:

Which of your achievements directly tie into the career goal you’ve defined?
What strategies do you use to influence decisions, motivate teams, or secure new business?
What are the peak cost savings, revenue, operational efficiencies, profit, or sales wins of your career?
Name the skills and business capabilities you’ve demonstrated most often as a leader.

Now, write short success-story bullets for each major career accomplishment – sticking to the major wins that most closely match the jobs you want, and incorporate these statements into your resume.

Build an age-appropriate strategy for your over-50 resume.

How far back should your work history go?

Many resume guides point to 10-15 years, but you’ll also need to be realistic. Most employers expect an executive to possess decades of experience! You need to assess which of your past jobs are relevant.

For example, a CIO might find that earlier IT Manager positions should be listed on the resume, but not junior-level software development jobs. A VP of Operations could show roles dating back to Plant Analyst.

The key, of course, is to put just enough data in front of recruiters without CONCENTRATING on your age.

Don’t forget your Education section. A degree earned 15 years ago is probably relevant, but many college programs lose relevancy after that point. Therefore, you’ll want to drop dates off your degrees as you climb further up the corporate ladder.

Refresh your resume format for a modern, yet classic look.

No matter if you fit the over-50 category or not, many resumes now employ a mix of graphics and other visual elements – and you’ll want to modernize the look of your resume in order to stand out.

By adding even a splash of color or a different border to your resume, you’ll help recruiters distinguish your credentials from others.

Use executive resume samples (keeping in mind that many of these examples were created for candidates of your age and career level) to gain more ideas for a fresh new visual approach.

In short, it’s not the 1990’s anymore!