Why Is a Resume Necessary?

I get asked this question a lot. Why can't I just sign up to a few job boards like Monster or CareerBuilder; or pop a rough resume on my blog and instantly be found on Google; or maybe, text a few recruiters to let them know I am available; or simply be spotted by the talent scouts scouring Facebook? Resumes are paper dinosaurs and can't be that important can they?

Well it's true. You probably won't get a job by creating a great resume alone.

But then, being the perfect candidate probably won't get you a job either.

However, there is real magic in putting these two parts together. All of a sudden, the perfect candidate together with a great resume become a winning team that can be used to guarantee a flood of interviews, a highly competitive salary and a truly rewarding career.

So, your resume is necessary because of the fact that the recruitment process of today still follows the same pattern that it always has. The technologies may have changed from paper to iPad, from phone to Skype, from physical to virtual, but the content has altered very little. People remain people, and filling a job vacancy is about chemistry.

Everyone knows that their resume presents their job history and qualifications to potential employers. But in this age of electronic real-time wizardry it's obvious that there must be a better way of doing things that saves time, effort and stress. This is the 21st century after-all.

Well let's take a look at what a resume does:

- Confirms Your Job Fit: It's strange, but the very process of gathering information for your resume often clarifies what kind of job you can convince yourself you are actually suited for. This is a confidence booster.

- Gets You an Interview: Your preferred employer needs to be told reasons that you are the perfect candidate. Only then do you get invited to an interview.

- Forms the Basis for Interview Questions: Interviews are stressful for both parties, and it is common to use you resume as the basis for discussions in the interview.

- Represents You During Selection: Following the interview, the employer must select one or more candidates to proceed to the next stage. The only documents generally consulted are the resumes of those candidates.

- Gets Lodged With HR: When you get the job, your resume will become the basis of your records with the Human Resources Department. Any errors may become and embarrassment.

How else can you fulfill all these functions without an excellent resume?