I’ve put up my resume.

[elfs]

As some of you may have heard, I recently lost my job at Isilon. In that great tradition, I have put up my resume. Have a look, and please comment on the content or presentation of either version:

Kenneth M. Sternberg, Senior Web and User Interface Developer and Designer.

There’s a copy for printing here.

This entry was automatically cross-posted from Elf's technical journal, ElfSternberg.com

Comments

[dossy.livejournal.com]

I hope you don't mind, I just IM'ed the link to your printable resume to my boss. If you wanna know more, email me - dossy@panoptic.com (my personal email acc't).

[http://users.livejournal.com/_candide_/]

Perfect.

You're leading with active-verbs, exactly as you should.

The only piece of advice I'd offer is moving the "Relevant Tools" and "Relevant Skills" sections up to the very top, instead of off to the side. Make them the focus. I'd rename "Relevant Skills" to "Technical Expertise" or "Technical Skills".

But that's how I have my resume organized, so I'm biased to that sort of layout. ;) I'm not sure how ... "open" employers out in Seattle are, and the 2-column layout you have in the print version is rather non-traditional. (But I work in the financial industry, so again, I'm biased in certain directions.)

[elfs.livejournal.com]

I meant the two-column design to say, "See, I can actually use floats properly." I was trying to get something attention-getting and memorable.

[ibsulon.livejournal.com]

You're overthinking it. Most people in HR wouldn't know to check, and most technical types will be more interested in looking at your portfolio.

[elfs.livejournal.com]

The problem with the portfolio line is that I don't have one. My jobs for the last ten years have all been appliance-based UIs: for F5, for Isilon, even for that crappy startup Carbonwave where we were making web-based control panels for wifi-based data storage generated by ultrasound carts. All of my stuff is, well, not "invisible," but for the most part found only in enterprise datacenters.

[http://users.livejournal.com/_candide_/]

Like I said, I live in the NY metro-area, which is a good deal more ... conservative about resumes (and job interviews), so my views are kinda slanted.

[kitsap_charles]

Dude! I didn't know you used to work at F5!

At the moment we have a couple of software dev positions open (one Senior, one Principal) and a Senior Test requisition as well. Don't know if you'd consider coming back, but if so then mention my name when you submit your resume.

[elfs.livejournal.com]

I might do that. Oddly, my memory of F5 isn't the best in the world. At the time the bubble exploded, the place was highly dysfunctional, lots of side projects that were going nowhere.

[whipartist.livejournal.com]

I like it. It's dynamic and energetic.

The one thing that I think is missing is a clear up-front statement about the type of job you're looking for. When I'm scanning resumes, that's generally my very first filter. I can generally figure it out from the body, but that makes me work for it. It's much better to spoon-feed a summary first thing, since it saves the reader time and energy.

[elfs.livejournal.com]

Thank you. I figure that's for the cover letter, and oddly enough, I've been told that for tech positions, the "objective" block is generally a time waster; programmers know that you want a job programming. I suppose I could try it both ways over time.

[amythis.livejournal.com]

That's funny, I never thought about you as having a "real" name. I sort of thought of your first name as legally Elf.

[codeamazon.livejournal.com]

a) drop the bit about "...slack" at the top of the web version. Management types are unlikely to like it.

b) A paragraph about your strengths doesn't just put them out there -- it also demonstrates your ability to put together a cohesive paragraph. ;-) Remember the person parsing resumes isn't likely to be a geek peer and writing skills are rare in geeks. I'd put it at the top, full-width.

c) Was the job with missing children a side-gig? Dates overlap.

d) I missed your extensive side-work listings on my first reading of hte online version. I like the print version MUCH better.

e) don't gloss the years 2006-2009 at Isilon. You were the core that helped build a dynamic vibrant UI team, no? That makes you a team player and a company leader. Make sure they know you can work on a team, in varied environments, and if you can subtly imply you effectively made yourself replaceable, good managers will like that. (And good managers are better to work for.)

wow

[joeypimping.livejournal.com]

hah wow i didnt realize you worked at isilon..

FYI that is a nice gui. I was fortunate enough to play with the isilon when it was in trial where i work.

Re: wow

[elfs.livejournal.com]

Thank you very much! One of my biggest frustrations we always had was how little feedback we got from the field. For the most part, "it just worked," and we never got much back in the way of either praise or bug reports.

On the resumes

[(Anonymous)]

Take my opinion with a piece of salt, as I'm not in HR, and I'm not any kind of career guru, but...

I like the two-column format that you use, and I think some of its positive messages might be sub/un-conscious. e.g. "I can do design that's somewhat different without it being obnoxious." Now that I think about it, I have enough experience in publication design to be aware that a two-column page can be very good for efficient use of space without obnoxious overcrowding.

On the whole, looking good, IMHO!

I do agree that "arrogant" and "slack" could confuse some possible employers who don't know what you're really like. I think they're better in a blog tagline than on top of a resume.