20 Key Traits to Include in Your 2020 Resume
Publié le 10 September 2020
Many people are currently looking for work. To help yourself make a strong impression as a job candidate, there are 20 key traits to include in your 2020 resume.
Taking the time to write and prepare a good resume is a vitally important step in the job search and application process. Making sure that your resume stands out for positive reasons will help grab the attention of a recruiter and HR managers. Given the fact that they likely receive hundreds of resumes, and as little as a few seconds to review them, you cannot afford to provide them with any reason to discount your candidacy for a job.
There are certain key traits and characteristics that you should make every effort to include in your 2020 resume. According to research conducted by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), there are a number of specific skills traits that hiring managers specifically look for when they study a resume. This does not mean that they are only looking for these exact words, but for examples of how you have embedded these traits and demonstrated these skills in your previous job history.
Of course, it would be very difficult to include every single one of these traits and skills in your 2020 while still remaining under the limit of 2-pages in length. Nevertheless, by understanding these traits and endeavours to include a number of them as organically as possible, you will create a 2020 resume that will stand out from the rest.
20 Key Traits to Include on Your 2020 Resume:
Adaptability: If there is one skill that has proven invaluable in 2020, it’s adaptability. With the current state of the workplace in fluctuation, employees need to be ready to change as circumstances evolve. Your 2020 resume must make it clear that you are willing to adapt to fit the needs of a safe and effective workplace.
Attitude: Showing up to work everyday with the right attitude is a true key to success. Your 2020 resume should make it a point to showcase how you will arrive in the office ready to work, support your colleagues and tackle new challenges with an open mindset and a positive attitude.
Creativity: Good employers are not looking to hire robots to input numbers. A strong workplace is one that features a diverse array of creative voices contributing new ideas and fresh perspectives. Creativity means that you will be able to come up with effective solutions and think beyond traditional norms to help your company stand out in your industry. Examples of your creative thinking should definitely be a key trait on your 2020 resume.
Critical Thinking: This is your ability to analyze information and form accurate conclusions and judgements. Half of surveyed hiring managers stated that critical thinking is only going to become a more important trait over the next few years. Get ahead of other applicants by using your 2020 resume to highlight this trait.
Customer Focus: For sales and other B2C businesses, having a strong commitment to customer service is an important trait for job seekers. Applicants should use their 2020 resume to demonstrate their ability to successfully address client concerns and provide solutions and answers to customer queries.
Dependability: Employers want workers they can depend upon. This sentiment, while seemingly obvious, was ranked as very important to almost 97% of surveyed hiring managers. Especially in the age of remote work and virtual offices, company leaders need to be sure that employees can be depended upon to work hard on their own.
Initiative: Employers want to know that you will be able to think and act on your own. Being prepared to tackle problems the moment they begin and devise effective solutions shows a great deal of initiative. Don’t just wait for assignments and projects, instead be prepared to put your own ideas forward.
Innovation: Stagnant businesses are doomed to shrink and fail. New ideas and approaches are required for businesses to grow and continuously fulfill the evolving needs of their customers. Your ability to innovate and bring something new and unexpected to the workplace will make you a valuable employee.
Integrity: Having strong principles of integrity is very important for job applicants, with 87% of surveyed hiring managers ranking it as very important. Recruiters want to know that when you make a commitment, you will follow through and do the work to the best of your ability.
Leadership: Leadership doesn’t just mean giving out orders. Leadership means being unafraid to take charge and be a guiding voice. With many employees working remotely in separate locations, leadership is needed in order to keep companies moving forward. A team of people with strong leadership abilities will have no problem charting a new path forward.
Mathematics: Many of us hoped to leave math behind in high school, but the truth is the basic arithmetic and numerical skills are used on a daily basis in almost every profession. Your 2020 resume doesn’t need to include a calculus degree, but it should demonstrate that you are comfortable doing some quick calculations, especially if you are applying for sales-based roles.
Organization: Organization has also been an important employee skill, and it now plays a key role in maintaining a highly functional virtual office. Employees must be able to stay on top of multiple tasks and projects, while collaborating with colleagues in different locations. This requires a commitment to organization, and should be featured on your 2020 resume.
Planning: Every business is a team, and teams need to have a strong plan in order to be successful. Businesses must be able to plan for the long-term, while also ensuring that everyone stays on track to complete their work and tasks. Employees must be ready to contribute to planning, and doing their part to ensure team success.
Professionalism: Even as workplaces promote more relaxed and casual atmospheres as part of their recruitment campaigns, there is still a basic level of professionalism that hiring managers look for from job applicants. This means you will be ready to produce your best work, and remain committed to building a strong career through effort and ingenuity.
Reading Comprehension: The amount of emails and other documentation employees received in a day has only continued to increase. Employers want to know that when a great deal of communication in the virtual office is written, you will have no problem understanding the tasks and information that will be sent to you on a daily basis.
Reliability: A reliable employee is one who managers and supervisors know will go the extra mile to do a good job. Reliability means that no matter the task or problem, you will be able to come up with effective solutions and work towards the best possible outcomes for the workplace.
Respect: You would not want to work with a disrespectful colleague, so don’t be a disrespectful colleague. Make it clear on your 2020 resume that you work with a high degree of professionalism, which means respecting your co-workers and the company. Maintaining a respectful attitude is key to a successful office, and employers will be looking for this trait from job applicants.
Teamwork: Even in the age of remote work and virtual offices, teamwork is still an important skill. Despite this fact, according to SHRM, only 73% of applicants display the right aptitude for teamwork as required by entry-level positions. Your 2020 resume needs to make it clear that you can collaborate with coworkers and support your team even while working in separate locations.
Verbal Communication: Despite the fact that millions of people now find themselves working from home and away from the office, strong spoken verbal communications skills can still help a virtual team function well. With video calls and conferencing a near-daily occurrence for remote workers, being able to effectively speak with co-workers will aid in cohesion and unity. It can also help stave off the dreaded Zoom Fatigue.
Non-Verbal Communication: Communication has always been a key employee trait. With the current state of remote work, continuously communicating with colleagues in the virtual office is vitally important to ensuring that a business remains successful. Now that a great deal of communication is done through email, chat and texts, effective non-verbal communication skills should be featured on your 2020 resume. This will let employers know that you can still make yourself understand in any communication format.
The job market has always been very competitive, and it remains so today. By utilizing the 20 key traits to include in your 2020 resume, it will greatly help recruiters and hiring managers see that you are the best candidate for the job.
