#JobSearch : Explaining Résumé Gaps to Employers. Any Unexplained Discontinuity in Work History can Slow or Kill the Hiring Process.
Jenson Crawford quit his steady job as lead programmer for Southern California Edison to pursue a dream of becoming a sound engineer. But he later realized that late-night concert schedules weren’t compatible with starting a family. So he decided to go back to his old career.
The problem: He had a six-year hole in his résumé.
“The companies I interviewed with did not know anything about the [sound engineering] work I did. So I had to bridge the gap for them,” says Mr. Crawford, who translated his experience during those six years into something that software companies could use.
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He talked up his project-management experience, which involved hiring and working with a crew of 50. He also took classes to brush up on his programming skills. The effort paid off. He got a job at Fetch Technology, a software-intelligence company in El Segundo, Calif.
Whether due to career changes, layoffs or taking time off to raise kids or travel, résumé gaps can signal to employers that you lack commitment, focus or are trying to hide a bad work experience. That’s why it’s important to have your story ready and, if possible, turn your experiences during that gap into a plus for a prospective employer.
Any unexplained discontinuity in work history can slow or kill the hiring process, says Ann Spoor, founder of Executive Lattice, a Denver-based executive talent agency.
When talking about personal reasons, remain professional, stay on topic and be brief, unless you can connect your time away to something that has a direct benefit to the company. Taking a year off to care for a sick parent, for example, may have given you applicable insight into the senior-care marketplace, hospitals or the insurance industry.
If you did consulting or volunteer work, took classes or even worked an entry-level job to pay the bills, talk those up. Working at the local coffee bar, for instance, may have given you insight into customer needs.
If you were fired or quit on bad terms, highlight what you learned from the experience. Accepting responsibility shows character and a willingness to learn from mistakes. Don’t place blame, lie or falsely alter dates of employment. If the truth surfaces down the line, it can result in your termination.
When it comes to your résumé, you can leave out the actual months of a gap if it was short — say, a few months. Then, address the time lapses during an interview. If the company has an online application process that requires filling in exact dates, explain your reasons for having any gaps in your cover letter.
With gaps that span years, consider creating a skills-based résumé, instead of a chronological one. It puts bullet points on top that highlight skills and experience and de-emphasize dates. The downside is that a skills-based résumé doesn’t highlight your career growth on the first page and some recruiters don’t care for the format.
WSJ Article: Dennis Nishi at cjeditor@dowjones.com
WSJ.com | October 17, 2010
