Resume question

[emor]

I am updating my resume and have a question regarding the capitalization of a business name.
I would especially appreciate the opinions of those who have experience hiring personnel and reviewing resumes.

I have done some work with a husband and wife art and design team which goes by the surnames of the couple. (For the sake of example let's call them Smith and Jones).

For aesthetic reasons, they use all lower case letters on all of their printed and web materials and documents, as well as "+" instead of "and" or "&." (smith + jones).

If I want to maintain consistency with their aesthetic, I would list their business as "smith + jones;" however on my resume it may appear as a typo, or at least an unexplained inconsistency with the rest of the form of my resume.

Jobs that I will be applying for in all probability will not be familiar with this particular business.

Should I go ahead and list the business as "Smith + Jones," or use their preferred "smith + jones?"

Thanks.

[L-A]

Use the way they name their business. If the rest of your resume is constant, it will be easy to see that this is an exception.

And the + is a good clue that they use non-standard naming.

[emor]

L-A:

Thanks for your response.
That is my inclination as well. But it just looks a little weird.

I have also heard that some companies use software to cull electronically submitted resumes with typos, use of keywords, etc., before any human actually looks at them, and I have a concern that it may get flagged. (I have no personal experience with this, so I may be off base with my assumption).

[Fishheadjoe]

As I have been an Executive Recruiter for the last 25 years, I would say that I have some experience here...
Firstly, I would capitalize and properly, according to common business practices, denote these things on my resume. I wouldn't expect an individual within a company to research your current employer, before requesting a meeting. So they may be put off by you not capitalizing etc...
Most large companies have a database they hold resumes in. Many use a time/date stamp and hold resume for a pre-determined period, say 6 month or 12 months. Many companies advertise positions as being available, when in reality, they are simply keeping their resume count at a predetermined number. When a resume "ages", it is disgarded and they need to replentish those numbers... so in a nut shell, not all opportunities are actually open... and it does not cost a company anything to advertise positions on their web site, or any of the online job boards, as they already pay an annual fee.
The key thing that most people neglect in their resume is discussing their ACCOMPLISHMENTS! These are the things you are actually being hired to do... most people only talk about day to day duties. You are not paid to peform a "duty", you are paid to accomplish a task, that requires you to perform a duty. If you talk about your accomplishments, you will separate yourself from your competition. The reader will think to themselves, wow, if this person could accomplish that for that employer, they should be able to do the same for us... I need to meet them! When that happens, the goal of the resume submission has been met... to secure an interview.
Accomplishments can be defined in the following way...
1. Things that you did that helped save your employer time
2. Things that you did that saved your employer process
3. Things that you did that saved your employer money
Conversely... you may be able to talk to the prospective employer about things that you did that made money for your employer....
Don't put an objective on your resume... it may restrict your application to only one position within that company, when in reality, there are a number available, but you won't be considered, based on your "objective"
Always follow up every resume submission with a phone call. Separate your self from the crowd.
Those who wait, well, will wait... those who ask stand a much better chance of getting... it a common thread in life.
If I can be of any other help, let me know!
Fishheadjoe

[kasanovakarl]

I would capitalize their name and use the "&" instead of the "+" symbol. Even though their name may be "smith + jones" on their letter, it looks incorrect, regardless of how it may be. I would definately use "Smith & Jones" on your resume.

I agree with Fishheadjoe, he basically said it all and has a lot of good points. I'd listen to him if I were you.

[LiquidMidnight]

Originally Posted by Fishheadjoe

As I have been an Executive Recruiter for the last 25 years, I would say that I have some experience here...
Firstly, I would capitalize and properly, according to common business practices, denote these things on my resume. I wouldn't expect an individual within a company to research your current employer, before requesting a meeting. So they may be put off by you not capitalizing etc...
Most large companies have a database they hold resumes in. Many use a time/date stamp and hold resume for a pre-determined period, say 6 month or 12 months. Many companies advertise positions as being available, when in reality, they are simply keeping their resume count at a predetermined number. When a resume "ages", it is disgarded and they need to replentish those numbers... so in a nut shell, not all opportunities are actually open... and it does not cost a company anything to advertise positions on their web site, or any of the online job boards, as they already pay an annual fee.
The key thing that most people neglect in their resume is discussing their ACCOMPLISHMENTS! These are the things you are actually being hired to do... most people only talk about day to day duties. You are not paid to peform a "duty", you are paid to accomplish a task, that requires you to perform a duty. If you talk about your accomplishments, you will separate yourself from your competition. The reader will think to themselves, wow, if this person could accomplish that for that employer, they should be able to do the same for us... I need to meet them! When that happens, the goal of the resume submission has been met... to secure an interview.
Accomplishments can be defined in the following way...
1. Things that you did that helped save your employer time
2. Things that you did that saved your employer process
3. Things that you did that saved your employer money
Conversely... you may be able to talk to the prospective employer about things that you did that made money for your employer....
Don't put an objective on your resume... it may restrict your application to only one position within that company, when in reality, there are a number available, but you won't be considered, based on your "objective"
Always follow up every resume submission with a phone call. Separate your self from the crowd.
Those who wait, well, will wait... those who ask stand a much better chance of getting... it a common thread in life.
If I can be of any other help, let me know!
Fishheadjoe

yes, Yes, YEs, YES!!!!!!!

As I stated in another recent thread, I'm nearing the completition of a Master's in Labor Relations/HR, and I conduct interviews for training purposes at my university's career services center.

The things that Fishheadjoe mentioned are completely true. Many people list duties on their resumes. Do you know how many people list that they counted money at the end of the night or that they cleaned tables as part of their previous jobs? *yawn* My favorite is that people learned "How to work in a fast-paced environment." What's that even mean? It's astounding how many people don't actually qualify any accomplishments. How did you add value to your organization? That's what I want to know. Granted, most of the people I interview have worked typical jobs of people their age: Waitstaff, pumping gas, sales associate. Any experience in their professional career choice may have been garnered with an internship and that's it. They can't really talk yet about scoring that huge account that brought $250,000 profit to their company. But that's alright; you can still show how you added value to your organization if you worked low-key jobs:

"Waited on customers" can be "Established friendly and helpful rapport with patrons which faciliated repeat business"

"Managed cleaning crew" can be "Managed clearning crew as a transformational leader through goal setting and meeting established high expectations"

That's showing how you added value to the organization. I'd rather see that than see that one of your skills is that you can use Microsoft Office. By looking at a resume, I'm looking for items that have predictive/criterion validy and can show that you are bringing unique skills and abilities to the organization.

Sorry, I got off on a tangent and red herring. My suggestion is to capitalized the name of the business.

[emor]

Thanks to all for such thoughtful responses.
Some very good suggestions.

[Bob Lee (QSC)]

Originally Posted by emor

I am updating my resume and have a question regarding the capitalization of a business name.
I would especially appreciate the opinions of those who have experience hiring personnel and reviewing resumes.

I have done some work with a husband and wife art and design team which goes by the surnames of the couple. (For the sake of example let's call them Smith and Jones).

For aesthetic reasons, they use all lower case letters on all of their printed and web materials and documents, as well as "+" instead of "and" or "&." (smith + jones).

If I want to maintain consistency with their aesthetic, I would list their business as "smith + jones;" however on my resume it may appear as a typo, or at least an unexplained inconsistency with the rest of the form of my resume.

Jobs that I will be applying for in all probability will not be familiar with this particular business.

Should I go ahead and list the business as "Smith + Jones," or use their preferred "smith + jones?"

Thanks.

It depends on the industry you're in and who might be looking at your résumé.

Creative industries may tend to be more flexible and knowledgeable about creative and non-standard uses of capitalization, punctuation, etc. If that describes your situation, and you can distinguish firm names in text in some other way, like boldface, then try it out and see how it looks. Some companies have developed their own corporate style in their identity, etc., and it may help to show that you understand that.

For example, my wife used to work some years ago as an editor creating various catalogs at J. C. Penney Co. in New York. But "J. C. Penney Co." isn't on her résumé; "JCPenney" is, because that's what the company's corporate identity is.

[VroomVroom]

Many good points above. FWIW, as a hiring manager, one of the things I look for on a resume is consistency. I'd factor this in to your decision....what do the other company names you have look like on paper? On my personal resume, I put the employer/company name in italics and my job title there in bold. Using your example, I believe I'd choose to use the more "proper" and/or "formal" (i.e. Smith & Jones) context. If nothing else, maybe this could be a conversation piece during the interview.

Tangent...not sure how many fellow dot-bomb veterans there are here, but the same dilemma applied to all of the silly startup companies. I very nearly had to list "gig.com" on my resume as a company name.

[LSquared]

Originally Posted by kasanovakarl

I would capitalize their name and use the "&" instead of the "+" symbol. Even though their name may be "smith + jones" on their letter, it looks incorrect, regardless of how it may be. I would definately use "Smith & Jones" on your resume.

I agree with Fishheadjoe, he basically said it all and has a lot of good points. I'd listen to him if I were you.

+1,

I am a hiring manager for my office. Here's a couple of thoughts:


I'd consider "smith + jones" as a logo. Put it as "Smith & Jones"

When applying for a specific position, make sure that your resume reflects that position. I get LOTS of resumes, and I'm not looking for employees who are "projects". I want to know what you bring to the table now, what SPECIFIC to my opening.

Here's a hint:
If you are applying for a full time position that does not have anything to do with "development of wireless products and / or high speed digital systems", dont start your resume with:

- - - - - - - - -
OBJECTIVE
Seeking a position related to the development of wireless products and / or high-speed digital systems. A contract position is preferred but not required.
- - - - - - - - -

Cause I just filed your resume in the trash.



Also, don't tell me about your hobbies. I may love your posts here at TB, but in my role as hiring manager, I don't care that you play bass. I also don't care if you "enjoy chess and word puzzles" (from another recent resume). Keep it focused on the opportunity, don't bother me with fluff.