5 Ways to Make Your Resume Stand Out in 2024

Now is an excellent opportunity to revamp and refresh your resume for 2024, whether or not you are actively job searching. Here are five strategies that can make yours stand out:

Start by outlining your achievements. Provide details of your work experience such as title and company, start and end dates, key responsibilities and achievements.

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1. Highlight Your Accomplishments

Accomplishments are the key to impressing recruiters, showing them you can do more than fulfill your job duties. In fact, listing achievements rather than duties is much better since achievements can be measured more precisely and will more closely relate to the role you're applying for.

Sample CV's: 

Your accomplishments can either be included as part of the experience section, or you could include them under awards and honors specifically, which is an effective way of drawing attention to them. In either instance, quantify your achievements by providing specific figures like money saved, number of people trained or speed of project completion.

Sample CV -2

Even if you aren't currently job searching, updating your resume regularly is always wise. With the proper strategies in place, your resume could stand out from competition and help to give you an advantage when searching for great new opportunities in 2024 - for instance by including your certifications and licenses in its skills section.

2. Use a Compelling Summary or Profile

Professional summary (also referred to as resume profiles or biographies) are an integral component of any resume that can make or break its chances of landing an interview. They highlight your key skills, accomplishments and qualifications in an accessible paragraph format - providing an ideal opportunity for tailoring it specifically to each job you apply for.

Sample CV 3

Integrate keywords from the job description into your professional summary, to improve your ATS ranking and make it easier for hiring managers to locate you.

Avoid using generic phrases; focus instead on providing hard numbers that demonstrate how far reaching and effective your efforts were in previous roles, including numbers such as data, percentages, length of time or dollar amounts.

Your summary should start off strong by engaging the reader immediately with an eye-catching opening line that makes them want to continue reading - for instance, this could include your mission or career trajectory statement or overview. Next, showcase what makes you unique compared to other candidates: for instance if you possess knowledge in different management styles or are transitioning into an industry for which quick learning ability is crucial - be sure to highlight these features.

3. Focus on Skill-Based Hiring

Employers are increasingly turning to skills-based hiring strategies, forgoing diplomas and job histories in favor of assessments and evaluations to find candidates who will thrive within their company and meet its future business needs.

Make your resume stand out in 2024 by emphasizing tangible achievements rather than listing job responsibilities alone. Instead of listing "managed a team", use phrases like "led a team that increased department productivity by 20%." This allows recruiters to quickly recognize your value.

Add relevant projects to your work experience section that demonstrate creativity and problem-solving ability, along with volunteerism as a way to show self-motivation and willingness to go the extra mile.

Make sure to incorporate keywords and industry-specific language in an organic manner when writing your resume, as overdoing this could make it appear unnatural and possibly be flagged by advanced ATS systems. Instead, focus on including them where they fit seamlessly with your experiences and align with specific roles you are applying to.

4. Highlight Your Remote Work Experience

Remote work has become more prevalent than ever, offering employees an ideal way to avoid commutes, save money on office costs and gain flexibility in their schedules. If you have experience telecommuting from home or working from home remotely, make sure your resume includes this experience to make yourself stand out against competition.

Consider listing previous jobs under "Remote Job Experience." This will demonstrate to hiring managers that you possess the requisite skills needed to perform remote work with confidence and demonstrate your dedication and professionalism in doing it.

Based on your industry, it may also be useful to include a video resume as part of your application to showcase your personality and communication abilities. However, ensure the video remains short and professional.

5. Use a Simple Design

Your resume's design should be equally important to its content. Employing simple design elements like making bold important information, using an easily legible font size and maintaining consistency can make your resume easier to read. Furthermore, eliminating distracting or overused words from work experience bullet points can make a major impactful statement about yourself; and swapping passive voice for active language makes your resume more dynamic and direct.

Add specific, measurable achievements to your resume to show employers what you have accomplished and demonstrate why you are the ideal candidate for their role. For instance, when applying as a marketing manager, emphasize any social media campaigns which resulted in either an increase in brand followers by 50% or a 10x conversion increase rate.

When applying to management positions, include your ability to lead and motivate teams as an accomplishment. Furthermore, include relevant details in separate sections of your resume such as scholarships, awards or volunteer experiences if they apply to the role you're applying for. It is important to remember that such additions should only be included if they add something important.