Accessorize Your Unretirement Résumé for Every Occasion

If you find yourself searching for a job after you officially "retired," you're certainly not alone. Today's older Americans may delay retirement to build savings, out of financial necessity or because they miss the interaction and stimulation of a work setting.

Whatever the reason one has for seeking work in later years, adapting a post-retirement résumé to a variety of opportunities is not difficult. Just as one well-made black dress or dark suit is accessorized easily for a range of settings, a well-crafted résumé can be tailored to pursue various career opportunities.

Before dusting off your old résumé, consider your current goals. Donna Tucker, owner of CareerPRO Résumé Center in Phoenix, says many older workers come to her with little idea what their ideal post-retirement job looks like. She asks that they research what kinds of companies they're interested in working for — or start from scratch.

"[Retired] people looking for work often say, 'I just want to do something,'" Tucker said. "There's no focus, and I can't really write a résumé for them without a focus. I ask them to do some pre-résumé research. . . . The goal is to identify somewhere where you'll bring value and you'll be valued."

All is not lost if your most recent résumé doesn't reflect the skills listed on the posting for your target job. You may already have the skills and not realize it.

Maura Porcelli, senior director of the Senior Community Service Employment Program for the National Council on Aging, said SCSEP helps participants dig into their own pasts for relevant experience.

"Some people have taken 10-plus years off, for caregiving and other reasons," Porcelli said. "We show them their life experiences have given them skills. Maybe they've balanced a household budget, or managed another person's medicines."

Tucker frequently reminds clients that anything they've done in retirement can be fair game for their résumé.

"Learning relevant skills is a great way to talk about an employment gap due to retirement," she said. "Did you learn a language? Explore new software? Anything to fill the gap and show your skills are relevant. You can even do it now and get it online quickly."

When you're ready to write, use the following tips from career development experts to create a standout résumé:

• Know what current résumés look like in your field. Find résumé examples for dozens of fields on Indeed.com or other sites.

• Limit your résumé to one or two pages. Very few fields welcome longer résumés. Edit, edit, edit!

• Stick to a chronological format. Employers are wary of functional résumés, which downplay employment dates in favor of grouping work experiences by skills.

• Cover the basics. At a minimum, you should include your full name, contact information (phone and email), a paragraph-long professional summary (formerly called the "objective"), work history and summary of experience, applicable skills and educational background.

• Limit work history to the last 15 to 20 years of your career. Need to reference earlier experiences? Add an "Additional Work Experiences" section after your main work history.

• Omit dates indicating your age. Include dates in the work history covering the past 15 to 20 years. Omit dates related to your education. "[Employers] should not know your age until you show up for your interview," Tucker said. "Your age should be a surprise to them."

• Focus on accomplishments when recounting your career history. Tom Powner, who owns the career services company Career Thinker, recommends listing responsibilities in a short paragraph and bullet-pointing your successes and accomplishments in the career history section, using the Challenge–Accomplishment–Result (CAR) format.
  
  "Put the CAR in reverse when writing the bullets," he suggested. "Start with the results, followed by the action, and you can leave off the challenge so your successes are concise."

• Include relevant keywords. Tucker explained why keywords used in job announcements are important to include.

"The first read of your résumé is by computer," she said. "The ATS (Applicant Tracking System) looks for keywords, and if you don't have them, or the right keywords for the industry, you probably won't score high enough to get an interview."

Once you have a general résumé, you can easily customize it for each job you seek. This increases the likelihood ATS will find the specific keywords for the job on offer and bring your résumé to the top of the hiring manager's pile.

The online networking platform LinkedIn, used by both recruiters and job seekers, now has more than one billion members. Powner oversees the Nationally Certified Online Profile Expert certification program and calls the LinkedIn profile "a résumé on steroids." He advises clients that a robust LinkedIn profile is more likely to catch recruiters' attention and demonstrate the jobseekers' value than a traditional résumé.

"There are 17 sections on a LinkedIn profile to add keywords and information," Powner said. "There are typically six sections on a résumé."

A profile's keyword usage is critical to bringing recruiters to your profile; Powner said keyword density and diversity are important. Also important is not trying to hit multiple job targets with your profile.

"Your LinkedIn profile should be targeted for your TOP job choice," he said.

The most powerful part of the platform is LinkedIn's networking capabilities, which can directly connect jobseekers with recruiters, employees inside targeted organizations and others who may prove helpful.

"[On LinkedIn], you can build networks of people at your targeted companies," Powner said. "Nurture these connections. . . . Magic can happen once they know you."

By putting informed effort into your post-retirement résumé and online profile, you can make your experience your advantage. Porcelli and Tucker emphasized that adults seeking work after retirement age can fare well if their years of work are framed as assets.

"Ageism is something we have to combat when looking for post-retirement jobs," Porcelli said. "When you present as a dynamic individual . . . your verve for learning and growth can overshadow negative preconceptions."

"Employers are willing to hire older candidates who bring and demonstrate value," Tucker said. "Candidates need to show they can save money or make (the company) money. If you show you have what it takes, why would they not hire the more-experienced person?"