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The job market is a tough place to be. For every job opening, there are likely many candidates applying, so standing out and making yourself an attractive option for hiring managers can be quite tough. Knowing what they\u2019re looking for and what skills make you a valuable employee is crucial. Let\u2019s look at these skills, how to list them, and what the most valuable skills are.<\/p>\n
This is quite an easy answer!<\/p>\n
When you compile a resume, you\u2019re essentially writing an advertisement about yourself. Your resume sells you and your skills to a potential employer and lists the benefits they would gain to their company by employing you. Hiring managers often read hundreds of resumes and applications, so ensuring yours is perfect is a good first step.<\/p>\n
There are many resources online that will help you create a great resume<\/a>, but we\u2019ll focus on one part of the resume \u2013 your skills. You should always be honest on your resume and not list skills you aren\u2019t genuinely good at, as your employer will notice this very quickly once you start working for them.<\/p>\n Your skillset contains two very different but equally important sets of skills \u2013 hard skills and soft skills<\/a>.<\/p>\n Your hard skills knowledge are the technical skills that you\u2019ve been trained to do. These are things like languages or skills specific to your industry. Artisans like welders would have welding as a hard skill, accounting and finance professionals have finance as a hard skill. These are learned and require specific knowledge on how to perform your core job role.<\/p>\n Soft skills speak more about your personality and how you perform as a person in the workplace. You might be great at listening to people and understanding them, and thus you\u2019re a great listener and have a high level of empathy. You might have amazing patience and the ability to interact with customers and find solutions for them, making you very good at customer service. They\u2019re adjunct skills that compliment your hard skills and make you a desirable employee.<\/p>\n It\u2019s important to highlight both skills on your resume as they\u2019re both very important. While a resume should be short and succinct, creating a section where you can list your skills is important. Candidates who do research and read job descriptions thoroughly to adapt their resume specifically for the position often do better than those with a generic resume. Your skills section should be a reflection on how your skills, both hard skills and soft skills, will be beneficial in the role. You might do this with a short cover letter or have a full section on your resume dedicated to it. It can take the form of a list, but should have strong examples for each while remaining succinct.<\/p>\n Computer Literacy and Expertise<\/strong><\/p>\n A level of computer literacy is expected for almost all job roles. A strong working knowledge of Microsoft Office and email and internet literacy is expected, but don\u2019t let that stop you from listing more nuanced computer skills. If you\u2019re fluent in computer coding or an Excel wizard, note it on your resume, even if you think it might not be absolutely needed for the role you\u2019re applying for. Computer skills are often transferable, and a skill like computer coding might tell a savvy hiring manager that you\u2019re a strong problem solver.<\/p>\n Management Skills<\/strong><\/p>\n A career path that includes a management role is quite a common promotion, regardless of what level of job you might be applying for. The ability to manage a team\u2019s productivity and be proficient in management theory shows a hiring manager you are promotable into a management role. It may also be a good place to highlight things like your project management experience<\/a> and delegation and communication abilities.<\/p>\n Data Analytics<\/strong><\/p>\n You don\u2019t need to be a data scientist to have a core understanding and knowledge on how to apply basic data analytics principles. In the modern workplace, data analytics is almost an essential skill and hiring managers will be pleased if you are able to demonstrate proficiency in management and analytics via a degree from Aston University<\/a>, this is a very sought-after skill.<\/p>\n Active Listening<\/strong><\/p>\n Listing something like being good at listening might sound a bit unnecessary on a resume, but it\u2019s quite an important skill. The ability to give your attention completely to a speaker and be able to show that you understand them and respond to them is a learned soft skill.<\/p>\n Customer Service<\/strong><\/p>\n Customer service is perhaps one of the most transferable skills you can learn. It also shows a great combination of other soft skills like the active listening mentioned above. Being great at customer service requires empathy, organisational skills, the ability to solve problems, and strong interpersonal skills.<\/p>\nHard Skills vs Soft Skills<\/h3>\n
Create a Section on Your Resume for Skills<\/h3>\n
Desirable Hard Skills<\/h3>\n
Desirable Soft Skills<\/h3>\n