Michelle Magoffin did an infographic resume. Only where we’ve seen some smaller infographic resumes (or ones that were resumes redone as infographic) she went all out. This is a complex infographic with a huge amount of detail – it’s the kind of thing you’d probably print out on Tabloid paper.
The more you drill down, the more you see. There’s a kind of thought flow to go through the reader’s thought processes. There’s quotes. There’s history. There’s a lot.
So what can we learn from this?
- She decided to go the complex route on this – then made it easier. She’s got a scannable link to her regular resume and she broke the resume into four basic workflows depending on interest – experience, leadership, results, and creativity. It’s a good example of complexity and simplicity.
- It shows a definite sense of humor – even though it’s actually a serious resume. The quotes, the workflow, the design in general has a sense of wimpy.
- It shows she knows her potential audiences as she gave a sort of thought roadmap depending on what people are interested in.
- She put in hard numbers on her performance. That’s always welcome – and a bit too rare.
- Doing this shows a lot of talent and time. This is not something you whip up quickly. For that matter, it shows patience – not something resumes easily display.
Any criticisms? I have a few, though it’s a difficult one to critique:
- It’s definitely overbusy. That’s a choice she clearly decided to make, but I don’t think everyone will go for it.
- I think the flow of questions could probably be made more orderly.
- The use of the four initial colors for each category could be replicated in the resume to show how elements relate.
This is one of those “it’s it’s own thing” resumes. It merely is. And it is pretty neat.
Steve’s Summary: I’d be impressed in seeing this – but I like good infographics. I’d definitely want to talk to her, but would get her regular resume for people not into the idea. It’d also be an interesting conversation starter.
[“50 Shades of Resume” is an analysis of various interesting resumes to celebrate the launch of the second edition of my book “Fan To Pro” and to give our readers inspiration for their own unique creations.]
– Steven Savage