Padding the resume

Working at Boeing, I didn’t consider how something would look on my resume, or how an experience  would help me in the longer run.  Instead, I gravitated to projects that I enjoyed doing; this hasn’t a bad way to approach it—I was always doing what I loved.   But now, needing to be prepared to enter the job market at any time, the effects on my resume is a concern especially in the project startup phase when the scope is still up for consideration and modifications.  I think about how each project would look on my resume, or examine the skills involved in delivering this project.  While this seems somewhat self serving, I think  it actually makes me better at my job due to the increased focus in my value areas.  In addition to being on projects that I have passion around, the projects also need to have components that are highly marketable.  This combination keeps me focused on my skill and market niche.

 

Recently, I decided I needed to hand off a part of a project because I could see no benefit by my doing it.  Someone else could handle this  section of more routine work, and send the finished work back so I could complete my analysis.  This part of the project didn’t involve analysis or facilitation, or have to do with people issues, culture change or change management. It didn’t involve process management, ITIL implementation, bench marking, metrics or increasing the value of IT in the eyes of University.  These are the items that I was hired to do.  How well I do on these are what I will be judged on.  So anything outside of these should be considered for being handed off, keeping me focused on more valuable work.  Being more aware of the value that I’m adding also helps me in communicating back to management about this value I’m adding.

The list of what I was hired to do covers many of the marketable items on my resume.  The items that allowed me to get this job in the first place.  By focusing here I focus on the marketability of the experiences I am having.  I am also looking for ways to make projects more valuable, because a project of more value to the UW will be more valuable on my resume.

For the work I’m doing at the UW, this has been the case.  Evaluating what I have been doing from their perspective puts me in the best possible position to turn this temporary position into a full time permanent position, so I remain vigilant in watching the value that I am bringing to the UW.

I’m also watching for what I can do outside the UW that will add to my resume.  I just completed such an event; presenting at the OSR conference: Leading Sustainably: Transformation through Vital Conversations.    The timing was bad because of the new job at UW and training for the Seattle to Portland Bike ride, but I thought it was still worthwhile  it to have another Leadership presentation on my resume.  The last one was last fall for the North Seattle Community College.

A two hour interactive design on Modeling Sustainable Leadership, this session produced great dialog on some tools to use for first personal transformations and then to use with groups to bring about personal transformations at the group level.   My belief is that Leadership is the outward representation of an inward journey and we truly lead when we invite others to participate in their own journey.  The session dialog centered on this.

Whenever I return to the OSR community atmosphere, it is like being dipped in a intellectual stance of helping people and society.  This was a side benefit of doing the presentation; it was a grounding that I haven’t had for a while.  I noticed this  on the day of the presentation through the interacting with friends I haven’t seen for a while and meeting new friends. Dialoging on subjects that I don’t often get to discuss like teaching leadership or facilitation. 

Another aspect of the grounding was from working on the project that wasn’t bounded my my current employment.  A chance to explore a subject through my own passions, by what I was excited to cover and have dialog about.  I think this is helpful in finding the areas that I want to emphasize on my resume, areas that I want to grow into.

In both these areas, evaluating the effects on my resume doesn’t take much time, but I think is a valuable addition to my thinking since being laid off.  One of those helpful changes that I hope carry forward with me forever.