Focus on relevant experience to best position yourself for desired job

Dear Sam: I am 49 years old and have been working as a multimedia professional for more than eight years. I currently create corporate training videos for a large organization. My duties range from video and audio production to photography, scriptwriting, directing, lighting, motion graphics, animation and more. Over the past few years, my role has changed. The company is under new management, and we no longer do as much video production and multimedia projects as in the past. The work, for me, has dwindled, and I am now being utilized for menial tasks.

I have been looking for another position in video and multimedia production for about three years and have had absolutely no luck. Of the 20-plus positions I have applied for, I have only received one call back. I believe I am very good at what I do, and my body of work will support that — but I feel my resume does not reflect my abilities.

I changed careers in midlife. I went back to school in my late 30s to get a degree in multimedia design. Before that, I worked as an assistant to a private banking manager, and I spent a few years working as a retail sales manager.

My dilemma is that I have only been working in this field for eight years, which gives the impression that I’m much younger than I am. If I include all of my experience prior to my current position on my resume, the information appears irrelevant to the positions I am applying for — and it gives away my age. However, I believe customer-service and management experience are relevant qualities to have.

How do I market myself in a way that is going to grab attention without setting off red flags? — Shana

Dear Shana: That is a terrific question. This is a dilemma that a lot of candidates face, whether or not their foundational experience is aligned with their current career.

Most hiring managers expect candidates to present about 10 years of professional experience on a resume; some say as little as eight and others as much as 15. Because of this variance, I believe that to present only eight years of experience is completely within the realm of expectation. I do, however, often present more of my clients’ experiences, as I, too, feel that this can be a little misleading when you get to an interview and are more experienced than you appear on paper.

To avoid unnecessarily aging your candidacy while still presenting the optimal picture to hiring managers, I suggest including about 15 years of professional history. This way, your resume will comply with both best practices and market expectations.

Is there a way you can trim your experience to go back to only about 2004? In presenting these early experiences, focus on transferable skills that you feel still add value to your current career. You can use these experiences to differentiate yourself from all of the other qualified multimedia professionals by demonstrating your understanding of business and industry outside of your field. I think this early experience could add a “flavor” to your resume that your competition will not be able to replicate.

I have not seen your resume, but I suggest you start by making sure it follows today’s guidelines in resume strategy.

Does your resume open with a qualifications summary that highlights the breadth of your multimedia experience? Do you fully explore your current role as it was at its fullest? Have you outlined the ways you added value to your employer above and beyond expectations? Have you created an eye-catching design indicative of your multimedia talent?

Once you correct any of these deficiencies and address the chronology of your career on paper, I am certain you will gain more traction in the job market.

— Samantha Nolan is a certified professional resume writer and the owner of Nolan Branding, a full-service resumewriting firm. Email resume or job-search questions to dearsam@nolanbranding. com. To find out more about Nolan and her services, visit www.nolanbranding.com, or call 614-570-3442.