What is a Professional Headline on a Resume
The resume headline is a one line phrase located at the top of your resume, right below (or in line with) your name. The headline must describe yourself as a professional. It should lead recruiters to identify you as the right candidate for the job at hand, within a mere second of a glance.
Also known as resume one liner or resume title the resume headline is often left out of most resumes, but when included can decidedly increase a candidate's chances of being noticed and interviewed.
Why should I write a resume headline?
Depending on the size of the company you are applying to, recruiters may or may not be using an ATS (Applicant Tracking System) to screen applicant resumes and filter them more quickly. One of the first things the ATS will scan is your resume's headline, and so it's important to utilize relevant information and keywords to improve your resume's relevancy score. The resume headline is also useful further on in the recruitment process, when your resume gets in the hands of a human being. Whether you’re using an online, PDF, or standard printed resume, the first thing that recruiters will see is your One liner. In recruitment processes where the first screening is done manually, the resume headline plays an essential role in making your resume stand out. As the world's famous 6 seconds study by the Ladders suggests, recruiters spend on average 6 seconds screening a resume to decide if it's worth a second look or if it's discarded right away.
Regardless of the nature of the recruitment process, increasing the chances that your resume will get noticed is exactly the reason why you should include a headline.
What should I write in my resume headline?
No matter whether you have relevant experience or not, your headline should sum up what you do, while condensing your best skills and work experience into one line. Ideally, it should also be aimed at making recruiters want to continue reading your resume.
This being said, the way you accomplish this goal differs depending on the amount of experience that you have:
Candidates with relevant experience
Aim to impress recruiters focusing on distinctive skills and attributes that you've acquired throughout your career.
Candidates with few or non relevant experience
Aim to impress recruiters focusing on personal attributes and skills acquired during studies, extracurricular activities, and other aspects of life.
Tips for writing a great resume headline
- Keep it clean and short: It has to be a brief phrase and should not be longer than one line. Ensure that it stands out by capitalizing it or simply writing it in all caps.
- Focus on the position you are applying for. Don't write the same headline for different positions. Tailor your resume to the specific position you are applying to. Carefully read the job description and take away what type of candidate they want by selecting keywords and including them in your headline.
- Ask yourself: Is there something that makes me stand out from other applicants and that would put me in the top 10% of candidates? (Linkedin premium is a good tool to identify these advantages.)
- Avoid common attributes that don't add value such as "hardworking", "responsible"... Try to avoid attributes that are likely to be used by most other candidates.
Always follow up on your one liner by providing more details about it in your profile or summary section. Remember this section should be the first section on your resume.
Resume headline examples
Travel industry
Experienced Flight Attendant Speaking 3 Languages
Top-Performing Hotel Front Desk Manager
Experienced and Passionate Waiter in Award-winning Restaurants
Detail Oriented Concierge with vast Experience in 5* Resorts
Customer Centric Receptionist with +10 Years of Experience
Customer Service
Customer Service Agent with High-Volume Management Experience
Customer Relations Manager with Proven Success Rate
Sales Oriented Customer Services Representative
Customer Services Rep. with 95% Customer Satisfaction
Resolutive IT Customer Services Agent
Administrative
Receptionist with +10 years of Experience
Office Assistant with Accounting Experience
Executive Assistant Speaking 5 Languages
Enthusiastic and Highly Organized Receptionist Efficient Data Entry Clerk
Office Manager Overviewing +1000 employees
Sales
Key Account Manager Curating Customer Success
Sales Rep. Exceeding Goals by 10%
B2B Sales Leader with +8 Years of Experience
Data & Customer Oriented IT Sales Manager
Marketing
Creative Marketing Communicator with Media Connections
Design-Oriented Marketer & Great UX Curator
KPI Oriented Marketing Consultant
Product Manager in +100 Saas Projects
Motivated and Data-driven PPC manager