how do i update my indeed resume

How do I update my resume to help land that job? Ask HR

Johnny C. Taylor Jr. tackles your human resources questions as part of a series for USA TODAY. Taylor is president and CEO of the Society for Human Resource Management, the world's largest HR professional society and author of "Reset: A Leader’s Guide to Work in an Age of Upheaval.”

Have a question? Submit it here .

Question: Since leaving a job I have had for almost a decade, I have primarily conducted my job search online. I have used the same resume design since I started working 12 years ago. Should I update my resume design to be more effective? What do you recommend for building a modern resume? – Sandra

Answer: Updating your resume design can indeed be a wise move, especially if you've been using the same format for a long time. A fresh, modern design can help your resume stand out and leave a positive impression on recruiters and hiring managers. Here’s what I recommend for building a modern resume:

◾ Clean, professional layout: Opt for a layout that’s visually appealing and easy to read. Avoid cluttered designs and overly decorative elements that may distract from your content.

◾ Font selection: Stick to standard, easy-to-read fonts such as Arial, Calibri, or Times New Roman. These fonts are widely accepted and compatible with Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS), ensuring your résumé is easily scannable by both humans and software.

◾ Incorporate keywords: Tailor your resume to each job application by incorporating industry-specific keywords and phrases relevant to the position. Many companies use ATS to screen résumés, so this will increase the likelihood of your resume being noticed.

◾ Organized sections: Structure your resume into clear sections, including Contact Information, Summary or Objective, Work Experience, Skills, Education and any additional relevant sections such as Certifications or Volunteer Work. This organization makes it easy for recruiters to quickly find the information they need.

◾ Summary/objective statement: Start your résumé with a summary that highlights your key qualifications and career goals. Keep it concise, focusing on what sets you apart and what you aim to achieve in your career.

◾ Accomplishment-oriented experience: When listing your work experience, focus on highlighting your accomplishments, rather than just listing job duties. Use quantifiable achievements whenever possible, to demonstrate your impact, such as increasing sales by a certain percentage or leading successful projects.

◾ Skills section: Dedicate a section to showcasing your key skills and competencies, including both technical skills and soft skills relevant to the job. This section provides recruiters with a quick overview of your capabilities.

◾ Proofreading: Before submitting your resume, thoroughly proofread it to ensure there are no grammatical errors, typos, or formatting issues. Consider having someone else review your resume for feedback and additional insights.

By updating your resuméewith a modern design and incorporating these key elements, you can increase your chances of making a strong impression in today’s competitive job market. Good luck with your job search!

Ghosting a job Is it bad to ghost low priority potential employers? Ask HR

I've been denied PTO requests on multiple occasions, which is becoming increasingly frustrating. Most of them are denied on the grounds of staffing needs. Do I have any recourse in fighting these denials? What can I do to ensure PTO approvals? – Chanette

You may indeed have some recourse in addressing these denied paid time off requests. Start by reviewing your company's PTO policy and procedures. Many employers have specific guidelines regarding PTO requests, including deadlines for submission and limits on the number of employees who can be on leave simultaneously, to ensure adequate staffing levels.

First, check if your PTO requests were made in accordance with company policy. If they were not, ensure that you adhere to the established procedures for future requests, to increase the likelihood of approval.

However, if you followed company policy and your requests were still denied, consider discussing the matter with your manager or the human resources team. Seek clarification on the reasons for the denials and inquire about potential strategies to improve the approval rate for your requests.

It's also essential to consider whether your state mandates sick leave, and if your company uses PTO to fulfill those requirements. If so, your employer may be obligated to approve leave requests that align with qualifying reasons for sick leave under the law. If you’re uncertain about your state’s sick leave requirements, consult your HR team for clarification.

Ultimately, unless there is a contractual agreement or policy stating otherwise, employers typically have discretion in managing PTO usage. However, by following company procedures and addressing your concerns with management or HR, you may increase the likelihood of having your PTO requests approved more frequently.

Salaried, nonexempt What does that mean? Ask HR

Updating Your CV on Indeed? Here’s Why Your Employer May Be Notified

If you use the Indeed platform to search and apply for jobs, be warned that it could notify your current employer when you update your CV. Here's why.

Indeed is one of the most popular job searching platforms available, with millions of users visiting it every month. But after looking into some reports, it transpires that Indeed may accidentally notify your employer when you update your CV.

Here, we'll look at when Indeed may be notifying your employer about your CV changes and why this is even happening.

Note: It's essential to stress that this isn't an intentional Indeed feature but rather a byproduct of another feature and user error. It also will only happen under specific circumstances, as we'll explain below.

How Does Indeed Notify Employers About CV Updates?

One of Indeed's features for employers is notifications about applicants. This feature certainly sounds completely harmless at first, but it can have one unintentional fallout.

As part of Indeed's notifications to employers about candidates for any open roles, the job search site updates hiring companies on candidates. such as when they update their CV.

If employers don't change candidates' status to Hired on the platform, they'll continue to receive these notifications, as the platform assumes the role is still open. Of course, whether or not an employer marks a candidate as Hired after employing them can vary–it's certainly the case that some don't.

Due to these continued notifications, your current employer could get notifications when you update your CV in your current position. Naturally, some people are good at admin and might update their CV for their records, but it could lead to awkward conversations at work.

Related: The Best Way to Search for Jobs Using Indeed

Why Does Indeed Have This Notification Feature?

Right now, you may be wondering why Indeed would even have this feature with this accidental byproduct. The feature is handy and may even help you for getting roles in the future.

Employers want open positions filled as quickly as possible. And even more so when an employer is spending money on recruitment and job ads. Also, potential employees want to find a job as quickly as possible, whether it's to leave their current role or to re-enter the world of work.

Indeed's notification feature can prove very useful in this recruitment process. For example, when an employer overlooks someone for the role by mistake, or a candidate gets an additional qualification that will help in the position they just applied for.

In these cases, the notification that the candidate has updated their CV may make the employer take a second look. This increases the hiring odds for that person, which is beneficial for everyone involved.

Should Indeed Be Notifying Employers About CV Changes?

So, while we've established why the notification feature can be helpful for everyone involved, should Indeed be notifying employers about CV changes?

Related: How to Decide the Best Job Options for Yourself: Things to Consider

The answer gets a little complicated. As we've seen, these notifications aren't intended for your current employer, rather potential employers for job roles you've applied for. Unfortunately, Indeed only sends out these notifications to current employers due to user error on the employer's part–and Indeed can't help that.

When reaching out to Indeed, the company explained that the feature isn't designed to report on employees:

Indeed’s mission is to help people get jobs. We put jobseekers first in everything we do, and protecting their privacy is of the utmost importance. Indeed does not provide insights to an employer on their employees’ job search activity. If a jobseeker chooses to make their CV public on Indeed, then an employer can access that person’s publicly available CV. When a jobseeker applies to an employer’s open role, an employer can leverage Indeed’s hiring solutions to manage where candidates are in the employer’s recruiting process.

It's pretty clear that Indeed isn't reporting on employees on purpose, but it can have consequences for you in your career. The onus to correctly use Indeed is certainly on employers, but perhaps both the company and Indeed can do more to prevent this accidental issue.

Be Cautious When Applying for New Positions

Indeed is still an excellent option for your job search, so don't let this accidental consequence deter you from using the powerful platform.

But just in case your employer isn't using Indeed correctly and receives these notifications, be cautious when applying for new positions.