Strange Résumé Issue

littlemushroom

TLDR; What do I include on a résumé requested by my company's CEO when the purpose is to set up a meeting with other high ups and me to discuss how I can be better utilized in the company based on my unique background?

Background: I went to law school, graduated magna cum laude, passed the bar, and worked in the legal field at a large firm in Chicago for about a year. I then moved home and changed fields due to reasons.

I have been with my company just over 7 years. I have worked in many different call center projects, done collections, worked in administrative services handling the money side of the collections part and have been in Payroll for just over a year. Currently, I am being trained as an HR Benefits Specialist due to people leaving and being promoted.

Now the issue: Our CEO just asked me to forward my résumé to him. The higher ups just recently learned of my legal background and want to talk to me about how they could better utilize me. He said this is due to my unique background and skills gained from my legal training and my extensive knowledge of all aspects of our business (from the call center side to the back end/accounting side).

I have NO IDEA what to include on my résumé for this.

Typically, a résumé is tailored to the job you are applying for, but there is no specific job being considered for me where I can look at the job description to figure out what to highlight. I have had so many different jobs within the company due to projects closing and being moved around that they don't all fit on a single page. Usually I just pick the most recent ones and the most relevant ones.

There is also nothing on there about my legal background either due to it being irrelevant to what I have been doing for years.

Does anyone have any recommendations? Can it be over a page long for this purpose? Should I include more of my legal experience? Should I include more about all my various jobs with the company?

lurkergirl

I have no advice (don't worry--someone smarter than me will )  but what a great problem to have!

"Hello, little mushroom?  Yes, you're so awesome, that we want to see all your awesomeness on paper so that we can fully utilize said awesome."

Get it, girl!

TrixieJess

Instead of a resume, do a curriculum vitae. It will outline your skills and schooling as opposed to being "job centred". You can find lots of websites to help you with this. Your alma mater may even have an office that can assist you. 

ETA: words are hard

littlemushroom

@lurkergirl Thank you! It is a very good problem to have. I think I am worried that the résumé is going to convince them I am not nearly as awesome as they think I am, haha.

@TrixieJess I wish I had time to get help from one of my schools or something. My problem is they want it Monday and I am out of town tonight and tomorrow is booked with appointments for the house we are buying. I guess Google will be my friend soon.

bethsmiles

TrixieJess said:

Instead of a resume, do a curriculum vitae. It will outline your skills and schooling as opposed to being "job centred". You can find lots of websites to help you with this. Your alma mater may even have an office that can assist you. 

ETA: words are hard

This. A CV will be better in this situation than a resume. They are longer and include more than a resume so it will give a larger picture of your background than a resume that is job specific.

TrixieJess

You should be able to find all the info online. Ouch, that's a tight deadline!

[Deleted User]

I'd maybe switch your resume to a functional format (vs the typical chronological).

That way you can highlight the big chunks of skills/experience you have from various jobs (like Legal, HR, Operations, Administrative, etc).

You can still list out your job history, but all the content that would normally be divided out by job, would be under those competency sections.  

If you google "functional resume template", that might help with some ideas.

southernbelle0915

Agree with Trixie on the CV. 

Do you have any idea what they're thinking for you? Any clues will help you better prepare. I had a meeting like this several years ago. I was in a quality department and the general counsel pulled me out to "talk compliance" with him and some other senior leaders. Uhhhh "sir yes sir"... (no fucking clue what that was) Then I googled the shit out of compliance before I met with them and geared my resume (I didn't do a CV - didn't have enough experience) toward it. 

FiancB

Hmm. I know nothing about that sort of field but maybe this kind of thing can be better described in a cover letter than a resume? I agree though that a functional resume probably makes more sense than a traditional one. I barely know what a CV is, so take that with a grain of salt. 

littlemushroom

Thank you all!

Looks like I am going to be reading up on what a CV is and looking into the functional template for résumés in the car tonight. I don't know anything about either of them, but they sound promising.

I truly have no idea what kind of position they would be considering for me. I wish I did since that would make this so much easier. There aren't any openings for anything that looks like it would be a fit for me.

Another question: Is there any issue doing a CV or including a cover letter when he specifically said résumé?

TrixieJess

You can include a cover letter as part of the CV (normally as the first page) but I wouldn't. A CV is a highly descriptive "resume" for want of a better word. It takes all of your experiences and education and expands them into paragraphs. A CV is often 4-6 pages. It is in depth and meant to showcase a specific skill set, in your case, your law background and education.

[Deleted User]

I almost forgot about this! There's a cool site I used on the last interview I had internally at my company (www.visualcv.com).  You can upload your resume into one of the formats, but what's cool is you can add documents and project samples (so it's almost like a resume and digital portfolio all in one).  You can also save it to PDF to be able to have just a typical paper copy.

They have a few formats you can use that are free, and you can make it private so that only those you send the personalized link to can see it.  The portfolio might be helpful to show the types of and quality of work you've done.

southernbelle0915

littlemushroom said:

Thank you all!

Looks like I am going to be reading up on what a CV is and looking into the functional template for résumés in the car tonight. I don't know anything about either of them, but they sound promising.

I truly have no idea what kind of position they would be considering for me. I wish I did since that would make this so much easier. There aren't any openings for anything that looks like it would be a fit for me.

Another question: Is there any issue doing a CV or including a cover letter when he specifically said résumé?

I wouldn't do a cover letter. You're not applying for a job. And you have no idea what they have in mind, so it would sound cheaply generic, IMHO. I don't think you can go wrong with a CV. However, it is longer than a traditional resume and more wordy. You could also consider making a bulleted list of skills/responsibilities/experience. That way if he asks for a cliff notes version, you're prepared.

onefootinthebayou

littlemushroom said:

Thank you all!

Looks like I am going to be reading up on what a CV is and looking into the functional template for résumés in the car tonight. I don't know anything about either of them, but they sound promising.

I truly have no idea what kind of position they would be considering for me. I wish I did since that would make this so much easier. There aren't any openings for anything that looks like it would be a fit for me.

Another question: Is there any issue doing a CV or including a cover letter when he specifically said résumé?

I wouldn't think so since you don't have a targeted position to tailor the resume to, I would think your CEO would likely appreciate you providing the information about your background in the most effective/efficient way, and it sounds like a CV suits that format.

You may know this already but remember to include any publications you may have, law review participation, or professional organizations you may have been a member of or presented for.

I'm not sure what type of company you work for but I've heard that in-house counsel jobs are wonderful, if you're interested in that.  Have you kept your bar license active?  Done any CLEs?  I would imagine those would be relevant.  *I'm looking at this as an exec, not a lawyer, btw*.  

Regardless, it sounds like exciting things are on the horizon for you professionally, good luck!