Lead with Relevant Results in Your Executive Resume

Think about the last time you were completely enraptured by a story. What was it about the story that had you on the edge of your seat wanting to know more?

I’m willing to bet it’s because the storyteller started off with an impressive statement. A statement that let you know something great had happened and you wanted to know HOW it happened. The story was both relatable and included relevant results. It hooked you right in.

Your resume should be no different. 

A strong executive resume needs to be more than just tailored content that highlights what you have accomplished in your career. It needs relevant facts to back up your claims of your strengths, abilities, and accomplishments. What your resume needs are impressive statements that let people know that something great happened. It has a hook to reel you in.

We do that by creating statements that lead with results. 

Which of the following statements would get your attention faster? 

Increased sales 250% in 13 months by identifying and pursuing new market area designed to serve emerging need for increased legislation in care facilities. 

Or 

Identified and pursued new market niche to address emerging need for increased legislation in care facilities, which secured new contracts.

The two statements above come from the very same experience, they are just positioned in different ways. 

When we lead with relevant results, we create a more impactful experience for the reader by creating a strong impression, building excitement, and connecting the dots. Spoonfeed the reader what they want, first. You are answering questions before they ask them and you align proof points with position requirements. 

Results are often measurable details or metrics that address: How many? How much? How often? 

Brainstorm measurements or metrics:

Did you direct teams? List the size of the largest team: Teams of 500. 

Managed budgets? Quantify the largest amount: Budgets of $50M. 

Drove revenue growth? Show the value over time: $45M revenue expansion in 2 years. 

Expanded territory? Quantify details over what time:  Reached 25 new markets in 18 months. 

Saved money? How much over what time: $150K annually.

Improved processes/efficiency/employee or customer satisfaction? Find a way to measure the result, think: %, #, or $

Now take any identified measurements or metrics and transfer them onto your resume, building in context and actions to show how you made good things happen around these numbers. Share details that matter to the reader by customizing both what you share and how you share it in the file.

How to Lead with Relevant Results in Your Executive Resume

I find many of my clients struggle to lead with results. To help them get there, I lead the conversation through Situation – Action – Result. Once we have hammered out all the facts, I build tailored statements and work to position the result near the front of a statement. 

Situation-Action-Result Brainstorming

Situation: Inventory management system was outdated, often showed errors, and stock volume was lagging, end-users often complained about the current system. 

Action: Conducted RFP for new SAAS inventory management platforms that would run more efficiently and be more cost-effective. Evaluated 6 potential vendors. Presented to Board with final selection. 

Result: Negotiated new vendor on a 3-year contract, resulting in an increase of $17M in sales over those first 3 initial years, saving 25% of fee for a multi-year contract. 

To work the above details into a suitable front-loaded statement for your resume, first determine what is the key skill and metric in that scenario that would matter to your target employer, and then start writing with the result first. 

Front-loaded Executive Resume Statement 

• Added $17M in sales over 3 years by securing new SAAS inventory management platform that increased product visibility in real-time for end-users. 

The above statement assumes the most impactful point is the increase in sales. However, if the role you are going after requires strong negotiation skills, then perhaps shifting the focus of your statement to show the cost savings as a result of your negotiation skills:

• Negotiated 25% cost saving with new SAAS inventory management platform with a multi-year deal to replace existing outdated and costly system. 

See the impact? Notice the difference in positioning what is relevant to the reader? 

Leading with relevant results helps you to create a powerful story about what you have accomplished in your career. Keep these details front and centre, right where the reader can’t miss them. The only question they will have at the end is “When can I talk to this person?” 

Looking for more ways to improve the performance of your executive resume? Read:

Executive Resume Trends for 2021

Add Pandemic Career Wins to Your Executive Resume

Amplify Your Career Story in Your Executive Resume