Objective vs. Summary vs. Headline

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Discussion:

Hi Jennifer,

I appreciate your emphasis on personalizing oneâ€™s career-marketing collateral. You said it best â€“ â€œâ€¦A cover letter specifically written to each individual employer is more professional.â€ Of course, the same is true for resumes, as they too should be tailored for specific positions. This raises an interesting question about the purpose of the summary or objective section of a resume and how it should be usedâ€¦with or without a cover letter. But before we dive into that question, consider this:

- Cover letters were â€œinventedâ€ years ago when resumes were not so easy to adapt because they were typed with a typewriter. Cover letters served as the personalized document that supplemented these static resumes so the job seeker did not have to retype the resume.

- Twenty years ago, recruiters had a bit more time to read documents because most people submitted resumes via fax, mail, or in-person. Today, technology has changed everything and most jobs are advertised online, which makes it easy for hundreds or even thousands of resumes to be submitted to the employer at the click of a button. That is why, on average, very few recruiters actually read documents anymoreâ€¦they just scan them. The latest research indicates that 6 seconds is the average amount of time recruiters will spend scanning your resume.

- Applicant Tracking Systems (ATSâ€™s) perform most of the screening functions for employers and less than 10% of cover letters are scanned by these systems. Additionally, more than 80% of HR staff (hiring managers and recruiters) read the resume first.

Considering all of this information, the summary or objective section of a resume is important because it contributes to the readerâ€™s first impression when scanning a resume. It is not merely a section that indicates for which position the candidate is applying, but also an opportunity to market oneâ€™s brand and highlight oneâ€™s most marketable features that pertain to the job. If a candidate thinks that this is unnecessary because a cover letter has been submitted, then he/she is assuming that it is guaranteed that the cover letter will be read. This would be a fundamental mistake.

Robert Starks Jr.

Hi Jennifer, I appreciate your emphasis on personalizing oneâ€™s career-marketing collateral. You said it best â€“ â€œâ€¦A cover letter specifically written to each individual employer is more professional.â€ Of course, the same is true for resumes, as they too should be tailored for specific positions. This raises an interesting question about the purpose of the summary or objective section of a resume and how it should be usedâ€¦with or without a cover letter. But before we dive into that question, consider this: - Cover letters were â€œinventedâ€ years ago when resumes were not so easy to adapt because they were typed with a typewriter. Cover letters served as the personalized document that supplemented these static resumes so the job seeker did not have to retype the resume. - Twenty years ago, recruiters had a bit more time to read documents because most people submitted resumes via fax, mail, or in-person. Today, technology has changed everything and most jobs are advertised online, which makes it easy for hundreds or even thousands of resumes to be submitted to the employer at the click of a button. That is why, on average, very few recruiters actually read documents anymoreâ€¦they just scan them. The latest research indicates that 6 seconds is the average amount of time recruiters will spend scanning your resume. - Applicant Tracking Systems (ATSâ€™s) perform most of the screening functions for employers and less than 10% of cover letters are scanned by these systems. Additionally, more than 80% of HR staff (hiring managers and recruiters) read the resume first. Considering all of this information, the summary or objective section of a resume is important because it contributes to the readerâ€™s first impression when scanning a resume. It is not merely a section that indicates for which position the candidate is applying, but also an opportunity to market oneâ€™s brand and highlight oneâ€™s most marketable features that pertain to the job. If a candidate thinks that this is unnecessary because a cover letter has been submitted, then he/she is assuming that it is guaranteed that the cover letter will be read. This would be a fundamental mistake. Robert Starks Jr.