Whether you are new to the world of product management or an experienced Product Manager looking to make a change, a strong resume should be your priority when on the hunt for jobs. When updating your resume, should you use a Product Manager resume template?
Follow along on our YouTube channel with our Q&A series. We’re unpacking the most-asked questions of Product Manager job hunters. This week we’re tackling Product Manager resume templates:
Your resume is your chance to get the attention of hiring managers and recruiters. You want to communicate to them why your experiences make you the best candidate for the role. When it comes time to decide on the layout of that first impression, it might be difficult to choose what direction to go in.
Should you be using one single Product Manager resume template to apply to every Product Manager job? Or should you go ahead and customize your resume for every PM job that you apply to? Resume templates can be highly debated, and the strategy you use will vary depending on your circumstance.
Begin with the End in Mind
Your first step when optimizing your Product Manager resume should always be to consider the end goal. What do you want? Is this your first Product Manager job, or are you going for a director-level position? Someone who is currently unemployed and in need of any Product Manager job they can find might take a different resume strategy than someone who has a job they don’t need to replace anytime soon. Your current employment status, seniority level, and the sort of job you are aiming for matters.
When Customization Matters
Customizing your resume to each application may seem like a great way to make your resume stand out. In some situation, it is. If you are an experienced Product Manager trying to land a high-paying role as a head of product, customization is crucial. These positions are rarely open. What’s more, they generally have fewer applicants due to their level. But it is still crucial to be as competitive as you can be. If a company is willing to make a significant investment in a new role, you need to tailor your resume accordingly.
In fact, all resumes have to get past a Resume Bot before it even reaches the hands of the recruiter. Therefore, it is extremely important to know the exact keywords and skills to highlight in your resume, and how to phrase them, so that you get past the first round of eliminations and make it to the interview.
At Product Gym, we show you exactly how to do just that. With our expert-led skills courses and our interviews with Product Leads at top companies, we’ve distilled the exact skills recruiters look out for. Combined with our tried-and-tested methodology, our members not only get past the Resume Bot, but also end up scoring 3-5 job offers in as little as 45 days.
How to Use a Product Manager Resume Template
When applying for those more common, more accessible positions that have many applicants, you need to to understand how to take your template and make it stand out. Contrary to popular belief, there is no need to customize every resume. Your goal is maximum efficiency. For this, a template will allow you to go out and mass-apply to jobs.
With more companies going remote every day, the pool of candidates for each new job posted continues to grow. As a result, many recruiters utilize an applicant tracking system or ATS to sift through resumes. So long as you understand how to structure your template for ATS with the right keywords laid out in the right places, using this strategy should be able to get you on your way to 10 to 22 interviews a week.
Even if you are currently employed with no concrete plans to leave your current position, it’s always a good idea to have a template handy. That way, you can tweak your resume as your experience grows — in case an opportunity comes up. Say you decide you want to transition to a different sector. Testing the waters with 2 – 3 different templates, each tailored to the specific sector, can be a great way to get a sense of your options.
Resume Template: A Work-in-Progress
Remember, a Product Manager resume is something that should evolve with you to suit your goals and the role you’re applying for. If your resume is not tailored to the job description of your dream role, chances are, your recruiter will feel a disconnect between your skills and the role.
To avoid being deemed as a poor fit for the job, Product Gym offers an entire module and a ton of other resources to help you customize your resume and cover letter for the job you’re applying to.
If you’re struggling to hit 10+ interviews a week, we would love to look at your resume and help make it work for you. It could be as simple as ensuring your template is passing that application tracking system! Schedule a call with one of our career coaches: we can help stop you from missing out on that opportunity that would have been the perfect fit.
