What is the ideal resume length for someone with 15+ years of experience?

A friend of mine came by over the weekend to go over his job search plan. He had paid a good deal of money to a company that helped him rewrite his resume and then they blasted out hard and soft copies to thousands of companies.

Well, he hasn't gotten the results he had hoped for, so he was asking for advice. I was shocked to see that this company recommended that he limit his resume to one page! He has over 20 years of experience and I have always thought the one page rule was for recent graduates, not accomplished professionals.

I encouraged him to expand to at least 2 pages and to add detail regarding his major accomplishments in each position he has held.

I would love your input in order to give him some advice. I have also launched a poll on LinkedIN at http://polls.linkedin.com/poll-results/15416/myoew.

Thanks!

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Permalink Reply by Ashley Houston on January 5, 2009 at 3:00pm

Ah yes, the timeless question about resume length. As you know, ten different people will have ten different answers. My two cents: I believe everyone - everyone - should have a 1 page resume and also an "extended version". Both an entry-level candidate and a seasoned executive should put only relevant information on their resume. Tenured professionals often call their one-pagers "Bios", and to avoid coming across as flimsy, they commonly write "Full Resume Provided upon Request" at the bottom. The one page resume shows the recruiter that the candidate can analyze and synthesize large amounts of information and widdle it down into concise, relevant talking points or key messages. The one page resume can also garner the interest of a bleary-eyed-two-plus-page-resume-reading recruiter. Now then - which one to send out first - I'd say it depends upon the employer/industry. In PR/Marketing Communications, we absolutely love the one-pager, but those in public accounting or the legal profession might like to see an elaborate resume. In short, you can't go wrong with an expertly-tailord, relevant one page resume or bio that tells the recruiter, "...there is much more where that came from!"

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Permalink Reply by Amy Crossley on January 5, 2009 at 3:01pm

I think having a resume over one page is fine if you are a professional. I prefer resumes to stay between 1-3 pages. I feel an experienced person needs more than one page or they are forced to leave out important information or qualifications.