Some Thoughts on the SES Resume

I had some thoughts on the SES Resume last night I thought I shoud share.

Here they are:

The achievements part of an SES resume is important. It should be concise and to the point. It should list your accomplishments in easy-to-understand language that avoids generalizations and You should use facts and figures to describe the results of your actions.

For example:

• Evaluated wrote and Implemented  new operating guidelines which increased productivity by 20%and shaved spending by $40,000 annually

• Improved Staff performance by 25%

Short descriptive and to the point!

Whatever your SES career objective is, professionally crafted writing that meets the requirements of the posit ion you are applying for, is what you need to provide.

Federal Resume Writing: The Deal Breaker

As with any resume or job application, there are certain elements and experiences that are required to be on a federal resume. However, with a federal resume, following the exact requirements is a necessity, and there is no room for almosts or sort of’s. When you are working at the federal government level, exactness and following the rules isn’t a suggestion; instead it is a requirement. For a standard federal resume, here are the minimum components that need to be included.

• Job information including the announcement number, job title, and grade of the position that you’re applying for

• Personal information: Name and mailing address, phone numbers, country of citizenship, and social security number

• Veteran’s preference, if eligible. This is available to retired military members that were discharged for honorable reasons, including disability, a campaign badge, or an expeditionary medal. This isn’t available to Senior Executive Service level workers or to competitive positions.

• Reinstatement eligibility, if you are a former federal employee. You must have a form SF-50 with your highest level of federal civilian grade held.

• Education, including high school with complete address, college information including majors and degrees. If no degree acheived, you need to list credit hours and courses taken.

• Work experience: Job titles, duties, achievements, address information, name of employers/agencies worked for, supervisor’s contact information, dates of employment, hours worked weekly, and salary history.

• Job related training courses, skills, certificates and licenses, honors, awards, and any other special accomplishments. List this information, but do not provide documents unless it is requested. Also, for certificates and licenses, only include current information. With training courses, list the title of the course and the year attended.

This is the most basic information that will be required for a federal resume. If a Senior Executive Service position or high level management position is sought, there will be extra requirements and forms to include with your federal resume, including ECQ’s (executive core qualifications), KSA’s, and other relevant federal forms.

Writing a federal resume is a huge undertaking; you need to have a professional resume package, including your resume, cover letter, and any other required information or forms. You also need to ensure that these applications are 100% error free and well written. At this level of employment, the person in charge of hiring only spends a few seconds glancing at resumes, so yours needs to be perfect, as well as unique. If you can’t catch their attention in the first minute, your chances of getting hired are gone.

Federal resume writing isn’t like public sector resume writing. You need to ensure that everything is listed as the position requires, with no room for leniency. If you don’t give them EXACTLY what they need, you won’t even get a second glance. With public sector resumes, you generally have a little input as to what you want to include and exclude in your resume; when it comes to federal resume writing, you don’t have choices. You have to include all of the information that is requested, or your resume will be discarded. If you feel that federal resume writing is too intense for your abilities, you can always contact a professional resume service to write your resume for you. However, it doesn’t matter how you complete your federal resume, as long as it is unique and polished, and completely perfect.

Choosing the Right Resume Writer

Hiring a resume writer is a worthwhile investment. There are many professional resume writing services, and you might feel overwhelmed when looking for the right one for you.

Here are some tips to help you choose the best resume writer for your needs.

1. Pay attention to the Resume writer’s website. Any resume service should have a compelling sales pitch on their website. Make sure that any resume writer you consider has a convincing argument for their services.

1. Reputation is another element that is essential to consider when hiring a resume writer. You can utilize search engines to check out companies and find out which ones are highly regarded, as well as which ones should be avoided.

1. Experience is key when you’re looking for a resume writer. With so many different companies out there to choose from, it might come down to which company has been around longer. Although you shouldn’t discredit a resume writer who’s just starting out, they may not be as qualified as someone with three or four years of experience. Ultimately, the decision is yours, but you should choose wisely.

1. You need to make sure that in addition to experience, any resume writer you consider should have a qualified educational background. Your resume needs to be perfect, especially if you’re paying someone to do it for you. It’s just plain embarrassing to submit a resume that has errors in it, especially when a professional has done it for you.

SES Resume: What is it, and Why Do I Need One?

Finding Federal Government jobs can be complicated, and so can the application process. If you are applying for a Senior Executive Service ( SES ) position, you need a Special Resume to get the job. An SES resume differs in many areas from traditional resumes, and even executive or federal resumes, but is ultimately going to contain the same information, with the addition of a few different categories.

Generally, an SES resume will provide much more data and personal information than a private resume. An SES resume needs to be written clearly and in a concise manner, while maintaining a standard of professionalism that is unseen in most jobs. After all, this is the upper level of the Federal Government that you are applying with. The SES resume also needs to follow the requirements of the job listing exactly, and be in the proper format as requested.

The most essential part of an SES resume that will set you apart is the Executive Core Qualifications section, which is also known as ECQ. There are five basic ECQ’s in the SES resume, which are listed below:

1. Leading Change

2. Leading People

3. Results Driven

4. Business Acumen

5. Building Coalitions

The ECQ’s are based on important elements of Senior Executives’ jobs, and build on each other. To get a job at the Senior Executive level, you need to be highly skilled in all five sections of ECQ competence. However, you also need to explain your skills and abilities in these areas, because this is just as important as your level of success in them.

Outsourcing your SES resume to a qualified resume writer will be your best bet when applying to a Senior Executive level job listing. They will be able to help you choose the best format, layout, and information to provide in your SES resume. The requirements will be different for every position, so you need to be sure that you take the time to do exactly what is requested of you in the job listing.

Additionally, as with any job, an SES resume needs to list what you are capable of, why you are qualified for the position, and how you can benefit the department with which you are applying. The more internships, educational experience, and job skills and abilities you have, the better qualified you will appear on your SES resume. Getting a Senior Executive level job isn’t like applying at McDonald’s; there are many more considerations to be had, as well as much stricter application requirements and the slightest deviation in the job listing instructions will result in your SES resume being discarded and you losing any chance at getting the job.

In summary, an SES resume requires much more structure and detail than traditional resumes or private sector resumes. If you want to work at the Senior Executive level, you need to put in the effort that reflects your desires, while demonstrating your skills and abilities.

Federal Ksa Writing

A KSA is simply an specialized essay (narrative statement) which is a required part of a Federal Government Resume.Ksas are very Important to the Federal hiring process. Ksas are usually rated on a points system, from 1 to 10. (there are some exceptions to this ) A KSA is that extra information used to separate the best candidates out of the pool of all the other applicants.

A KSA is written using the first person and it is written following Challenge, Conflict, Action and Result structure. Usually there are three KSA questions but there can be up to 10 or even more according to the job announcement.

KSAs are written to put a spotlight the applicants qualifications.

* Knowledge is real data or “How To” data applied to the position.

* Skill is Know How, and level of application in managing data, things or people.

* Ability is talent, gut instinct and the knack you have for getting things done.

The Ksa is a very detailed document. They tell a story. They cover real life instances where you actually demonstrated Knowledge, Skills and Ability in a specific situation and brought about a successful resolution

I believe in having KSA’s written professionally. They are too important to leave to chance. Actually landing a Federal job depends on the quality of the KSA writing. It is your future.