WORKLIFE

Surviving first (HR) contact: The dirty little secret about graphical resumés in the age of AI

How I bit the bullet and designed a resumé for natural language processors. Spoiler: Typography.

Examples of beautifully designed resumés I’ve been inspired by, but now realize might have hurt me in getting job interviews.

Every graphic designer I’ve known—including me—has agonized over designing a resumé that will stand out and reflect who we are as creatives. Color palette, typography, interesting layouts, clever headings, perhaps a monogram and/or headshot: all sources of angsty indecision. This approach made perfect sense—in 2008, applying for graphic design positions.

Over the past decade, resumé fashions have come and (mostly) gone: infographics; using progress bars to communicate your skill level; headshots; listing hobbies with cute icons. (Coffee? Srsly?) Even a timeline from birth. Really.

Over the years, I collected a lot of examples to inspire my own resumé designs: one used the infographics approach; another used two columns and included a monogram. They got raves from fellow designers, art directors, and coworkers. Hooray for me!

ATS is where it’s at 🙅

Here’s the thing: before a hiring manager at all but the smallest studios sees your work-of-art resumé, it’s very likely going…