10 overused resume phrases
July 29, 2009 by Sam NarisiPosted in: Assessing the right candidate, In This Week's E-Newsletter, Latest News & Views
These days candidates receive more training on how to apply for jobs than ever before –- so it’s no surprise you probably see a lot of resumes with the same cliche phrases. Do you hold that against those applicants?
Here are the 10 most common phrases candidates use too often, according to Liz Ryan of Yahoo! HotJobs:
- results-oriented professional
- cross-functional teams
- more than (x) years of progressively responsible experience
- superior communication skills
- strong work ethic
- met or exceeded expectations
- proven track record of success
- works well with all levels of staff
- team player
- bottom-line orientation
You’re probably familiar with some or all of those stock terms. But the question is: Does it make a difference?
Some HR folks worry about candidates who need to fall back on cliches to describe themselves. Others realize they’re overused, but focus on the skills and experience listed instead of the candidates’ inflated self-marketing.
How do you feel? Let us know your opinion in the comments section below.
Tags: cliches, overused phrases, resume phrases
July 29th, 2009 at 7:36 am
“people person” or “people oriented”. It’s especially funny when you interview them and find out they left their last position because of a “conflict with co-worker/manager”.
July 30th, 2009 at 7:54 am
What if you DID lead or work on a cross-functional team, and achieve a very desirable end product? While I agree that many of the phrases are overused, I also feel that several could be used to describe my background. I certainly don’t hold the phrases against applicants, but I do ask questions like “What was the composition of the cross-functional team, what did the team accomplish, and what role did you play?” I might follow up with “What did you take away from that experience?” I feel that almost everything on a resume is fair game for questions, and I like to probe into anything that is a catch phrase or a generic description. That’s my job as the hiring manager!
July 30th, 2009 at 8:39 am
I have never used any of these. I prefer to be “creative” and stand out. I’ve started tracking how many resume’s I have received with certain phrases and then look to see the correlation between what they say and what they really mean.
Ex/ On applications where applicants put “scheduling conflict” under reason for leaving I find that really mean “I don’t come to work” at least that’s been my experience when I check references so technically they aren’t “lying” but I don’t interview them.
July 30th, 2009 at 8:53 am
The “stock terms” are overused, so are most resume terms. Give HR managers some credit; we do not have to rely on resume “page fillers” to access applicants.
July 30th, 2009 at 9:18 am
I love Brian’s comment above. I’ve been in interviews with other managers and had the exact same thing happen and after the interview it’s great for a good laugh. I personally hate to see that garbage. I only care about the jobs they have held with a brief description of their duties, and their accomplishments in those positions. The rest is just noise that has to be filtered out. Most of the time people that have to sell themselves that hard lack anything decent to put on their resume. A good interview and some professional reference checking will usually tell whether those things are true anyway.
July 30th, 2009 at 9:40 am
“Most of the time people that have to sell themselves that hard lack anything decent to put on their resume.”
Amen, brother. Amen
July 30th, 2009 at 9:55 am
Worse when you get a 3 page resume with only 2-3 jobs and a bunch of filler.
Just give me the basics, I can do my interview questions to get the rest on the information.
July 31st, 2009 at 11:12 am
I’ve got to agree with Brian and Jason. Usually you can tell when they are trying TOO hard. I really like the ones who say they have soooo much experience at a position, then you look at their time line and they only worked that job for 2 months. But sometimes, I do enjoy the creative ones. I have a cartoon on my board that reads, “You don’t have much experience, but I’m impressed by how you’ve blown it out of proportion.” LOVE IT!
July 31st, 2009 at 11:44 am
I agree that most of those phrases are overused, however I agree with Mary – many of the phrases do hit the nail on the head in explaining key attributes, but should be backed up with concrete examples. A good resume should show that in the accomplishments, and a good interviewer will pick up on those and ask deeper questions. I would never throw out a resume if I saw those phrases but I would look for much more substantive evidence.
Yes – the ones that kill me are the ones that say they are “detail oriented” and the resume is full of errors – those get pitched!
July 31st, 2009 at 12:30 pm
Over the years, I found that professional ability pales with a deficit in communications skills. To me, the use of trite phrases or “youthful” terminology in a resume or interview indicates a restricted ability to communicate. An impressive array of academic credentials indicates, in most cases, that the applicant has simply “learned how to learn.” Even if there is an indication of an ability to think creatively, those skills often bear less fruit in an atmosphere clouded by a person’s inability to communicate effectively.
July 31st, 2009 at 12:43 pm
We’re a construction company. I don’t care if applicants use tired cliche’s. I’m proud of many of them if they can formulate whole sentences and use those cliche’s properly. Sometimes we see applicants who can barely read and write above a third grade level. Rarely, but it does happen even today, we will have someone come in who doesn’t read and write at all. I would hope that most HR professionals know how to best screen for their industry. What’s appropriate for one level may be detrimental to others.
July 31st, 2009 at 12:59 pm
The catch phrase that I’ve seen so much recently is not on the resume, but on the cover letter, which is addressed to the President or CEO of the company: “I don’t believe that I can receive this type of guidance from your Human Resources Department”. Where do they think the CEO or President sends those – right back to HR. And then what do you suppose happens? Since they didn’t believe HR could help them, guess what – we don’t.
July 31st, 2009 at 2:06 pm
The other day I recieved a letter from an applicant with the first sentence stating: “I urge you not to hire someone until we’ve met.” Guess what – we will NOT be meeting you – you sound too pushy!!
August 4th, 2009 at 7:22 pm
I may agree with the author, as Liz Ryan has a point here , however, in my experience, a ‘professionally written’ resume that was done for my friend by an advertised ‘resume specialist’ used all 10 of the common phrases, go figure….
August 5th, 2009 at 10:30 am
There are professionals – and there are “profeshanals.” Unfortunately, there are no educational or licensing requirements for “resume writers.” Most are hacks, who have enough writing skills to graduate from high school.
The measure of good resume writer is how many of his clients got the jobs they were looking for.
August 5th, 2009 at 6:55 pm
I would have have to disagree with you in regards to the measure of a good resume writer. A well written resume will only get you an interview. It’s entirely up to the individual to sell themselves in order to get the job.
August 7th, 2009 at 1:36 pm
There are so many resume writing software programs available. Most of them use many if not all of these phrases as “suggestions”. I tend to look more heavily on the application itself first, word syntex, sentence structure, spelling, etc. We have a questionaire with ours. If I like the application, I give the resume a closer look because it will often flesh out the work history. Of course, sometimes they turn in the application a week after sending me their resume and they don’t match, especially where and or how long they worked there. hmmm…………….
August 7th, 2009 at 3:22 pm
As long as the applicant has gone to the trouble to make his/her resume look professional (no coffee stains, resume quality paper, no typos, formatted in a way that’s easy to find the key facts and information, and for goodness sakes, keep it to one page please!!) I am less affected by the choice of cliche catch phrases on the resume, and more interested in what they actually have to say about their experiences once they get in the door. I have to agree with Rob, the resume is the ticket into the interview, but it’s up to the candidate to give the performance of a lifetime, win over the audience and get the job! Oh one more thing, do NOT let me catch you in a full blown lie, semi or half truth…on the resume or in the interview. Not so good!
August 10th, 2009 at 9:49 am
More and more I see 2 page resumes and it used to bother me a lot! Now, it depends on what the resume says. Especially if they format it so you can easily see education, special certifcates etc. Some times it just can’t be done on one page. WEhat I hat is an overblown cover letter! I received one that was 2 full pages and apparently was the equivalent of the 2nd coming for the position we had open. I didn’t even bother to read his resume because I couldn’t see this person being the right fit personality wise with the group the position is in. I like cover letters that are short and sweet but don’t have a problem with 2 page resumes if its not overblown to take up space!
August 14th, 2009 at 12:32 pm
As an H.R. Hiring Manager, the resume is simply a tool for “weeding” perspective applicants. For some applicants, the resume can simply be an exercise in creative writing. The individual’s personality, tone of speech and body language tells me much more about the candidate than a resume. As with many hiring managers I use the resume as a preliminary introduction for how well the applicant will likely fit into the desired position. If you have a department that is working well, you want to avoid disturbing the balance and harmony. If the opposite is true, you actively seek candidates that will ultimatetly bring balance and harmony. Of course, this may very well lead to a “bit” of reshuffling of human capital however, designing the most creative, resourceful and productive workforce is essential in acheiving a healthyand satisfying work environment.
August 28th, 2009 at 10:25 am
So…let me get this straight; stay away from catchphrases meant to woo the HR hiring manager or recruiter, but then we’re bombarded constantly by resume writers and recruiting professionals who say we must have an eye-catching, polished resume (white space just so and italics properly placed in lieu of bolding, etc) with all the right buzz words inserted for our experience or the resume will be tossed. What about recruiting software that seeks out those “buzz words” we’re not supposed to use because hiring personnel are tired of seeing them? This seems to have become more of a problem since the job market and economy has tanked and thousands more applicants are looking for jobs. A job opening that once received hundreds of resumes now receives thousands. So hiring managers and recruiters are weary of seeing the same phrases over and over. What is an experienced, motivated, A-player looking for a job to do? I’m talking about the person who has not lied on their resume and has a great background, but who has had their resume redone by the “professionals” because they are told that’s what they should do? By the way, some people with educational credentials have gotten the education to better themselves, not to demonstrate they have “learned to learn”. For the time commitment and sacrifice it takes to earn an advanced degree, I doubt many people do it solely for the exercise.
September 8th, 2009 at 4:25 am
Whats killing me lately are how many people are pending, preparing, in process and or a candidate for a certification(s). Clearly these people are only putting these entries on their resume for a keyword search but if they have been in the business for 5-10 years and they dont have a single cert yet or no tests in way of a 4-5 test certification then what part is pending, in process or being prepared for? Seems like this is a common applicants education section now days for the IT field.
• CCNA (Pending)
• CCNP (In progress)
• CCIE (Planned)
• Bar exam, should have by April 2011
• PHD (Candidate)
• High school GED
• MCP test king test prep on order
• Numerous anger management classes
• Several time management classes
• 200 hours of community service
• Numerous professional training courses on sexual harassment
Where does it end!