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Standing out in today’s competitive product management field can be challenging, especially when every resume on a hiring manager’s desk claims impact and expertise. To help you highlight your most compelling accomplishments, we’ve teamed up with The Product Recruiter to bring you this practical checklist—targeted specifically for Product Managers aiming to land that next interview-worthy role.
With this primary goal in mind, let’s jump right in:
THE DO LIST
Do consider recency bias.
While your entire career has helped make you who you are today, in most cases, your accomplishments at your last employer (or two) will be the reason you get hired so front load your resume.
Do showcase outcomes.
Emphasize your contributions by clearly presenting the scope, and scale of your impact. It is wise to always assume your audience knows nothing about you - this is the time to brag about your achievements.
Do focus on data.
This provides the hiring manager with tangible quantitative outcomes. Showcase all stats, numbers, metrics, dollars, customer names, integrations, investors, or analysts you've partnered with to add tangible credibility to your contributions.
Do communicate in the language of the product.
If your resume sounds like a finance person it introduces confusion and doubt that you really are a product professional.
Do keep it to two pages (three is the absolute maximum).
Hiring managers are busier than ever and almost no one will read past two. Only include the most relevant and impactful details.
Do curate.
Every line should add value. Stick to the main points and delete the excess.
Do use a font size of 10.5 or larger.
Keep it easy to scan.
Do use black font.
It has the greatest contrast and can be read easily. Modern, pale shades of gray are not accessible.
Do make it easy to contact you.
Place contact details (email + phone + LinkedIn) at the top to streamline the next steps for a recruiter.
Do share your resume as a PDF.
It's the most globally accessible format and will not get reformatted if opened by a different program (i.e., Word to GDocs).
Do name the file with your first and last name.
Make it easy for the hiring manager to find your resume in their system.
THE DON’T LIST
Don't add a photo.
Photos belong on LinkedIn; in fact, there is a designated area to upload one.
Don't include your home address.
No one is going to mail you anything. Offer letters and other documents are sent electronically. If you are the hire, then you'll be asked to provide your home address.
Don't make viewing it complicated.
Don't share a resume from a drive that requires a password or download. This introduces extra steps, friction, and the likelihood of someone not doing and not reviewing your resume.
Don't repeat your previous employer's name in every line of that employer's section.
Readers will understand anything in that section happened while working there.
Don't add the location of employers.
Where an employer has their HQ is irrelevant; what matters is where you are.
Don't overuse hyperlinks.
Hyperlinks take your audience away from your resume and delay them from the action you really want: an interview.
Don't use italics, underlining, or shaded text boxes.
Products look modern now, so resumes need to too.
Don't add clip art, graphs, maps, and other designed assets.
This may date the style of your resume or distract the audience from getting to what they care about: outcomes, accomplishments, scope, and scale.
Don't write in the third person.
Just don't. Please.
Don't rely on an automated alone.
Don’t think automation apps will produce an impactful resume that reflects your outcomes and will stand up against all the other candidates who took the time to "nail it" on paper.
Don't write out a job description.
A job description is not a resume!
Don't add a skills section.
If you are a senior leader you are beyond a skills section. The outcomes, scope and scale you present should satisfy the hiring manager that you have skills.
Don't include a cover letter.
Unless you are asked for one - most tech companies will never ask for one.
Don't include references.
References provided once you have been selected as the candidate an employer wants to hire. Often, the offer is presented as "pending references, background, and criminal check."
Don't write in paragraphs.
People don't read resumes; they scan them, make every point quickly accessible.
Still not sure how to best position yourself in the current market? The Product Recruiter offers a Resume Coaching Service aimed at helping Product Leaders better understand how to create a more impactful resumes to attract the attention of a C-suite stakeholder.
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Standing out in today’s competitive product management field can be challenging, especially when every resume on a hiring manager’s desk claims impact and expertise. To help you highlight your most compelling accomplishments, we’ve teamed up with The Product Recruiter to bring you this practical checklist—targeted specifically for Product Managers aiming to land that next interview-worthy role.
With this primary goal in mind, let’s jump right in:
THE DO LIST
Do consider recency bias.
While your entire career has helped make you who you are today, in most cases, your accomplishments at your last employer (or two) will be the reason you get hired so front load your resume.
Do showcase outcomes.
Emphasize your contributions by clearly presenting the scope, and scale of your impact. It is wise to always assume your audience knows nothing about you - this is the time to brag about your achievements.
Do focus on data.
This provides the hiring manager with tangible quantitative outcomes. Showcase all stats, numbers, metrics, dollars, customer names, integrations, investors, or analysts you've partnered with to add tangible credibility to your contributions.
Do communicate in the language of the product.
If your resume sounds like a finance person it introduces confusion and doubt that you really are a product professional.
Do keep it to two pages (three is the absolute maximum).
Hiring managers are busier than ever and almost no one will read past two. Only include the most relevant and impactful details.
Do curate.
Every line should add value. Stick to the main points and delete the excess.
Do use a font size of 10.5 or larger.
Keep it easy to scan.
Do use black font.
It has the greatest contrast and can be read easily. Modern, pale shades of gray are not accessible.
Do make it easy to contact you.
Place contact details (email + phone + LinkedIn) at the top to streamline the next steps for a recruiter.
Do share your resume as a PDF.
It's the most globally accessible format and will not get reformatted if opened by a different program (i.e., Word to GDocs).
Do name the file with your first and last name.
Make it easy for the hiring manager to find your resume in their system.
THE DON’T LIST
Don't add a photo.
Photos belong on LinkedIn; in fact, there is a designated area to upload one.
Don't include your home address.
No one is going to mail you anything. Offer letters and other documents are sent electronically. If you are the hire, then you'll be asked to provide your home address.
Don't make viewing it complicated.
Don't share a resume from a drive that requires a password or download. This introduces extra steps, friction, and the likelihood of someone not doing and not reviewing your resume.
Don't repeat your previous employer's name in every line of that employer's section.
Readers will understand anything in that section happened while working there.
Don't add the location of employers.
Where an employer has their HQ is irrelevant; what matters is where you are.
Don't overuse hyperlinks.
Hyperlinks take your audience away from your resume and delay them from the action you really want: an interview.
Don't use italics, underlining, or shaded text boxes.
Products look modern now, so resumes need to too.
Don't add clip art, graphs, maps, and other designed assets.
This may date the style of your resume or distract the audience from getting to what they care about: outcomes, accomplishments, scope, and scale.
Don't write in the third person.
Just don't. Please.
Don't rely on an automated alone.
Don’t think automation apps will produce an impactful resume that reflects your outcomes and will stand up against all the other candidates who took the time to "nail it" on paper.
Don't write out a job description.
A job description is not a resume!
Don't add a skills section.
If you are a senior leader you are beyond a skills section. The outcomes, scope and scale you present should satisfy the hiring manager that you have skills.
Don't include a cover letter.
Unless you are asked for one - most tech companies will never ask for one.
Don't include references.
References provided once you have been selected as the candidate an employer wants to hire. Often, the offer is presented as "pending references, background, and criminal check."
Don't write in paragraphs.
People don't read resumes; they scan them, make every point quickly accessible.
Still not sure how to best position yourself in the current market? The Product Recruiter offers a Resume Coaching Service aimed at helping Product Leaders better understand how to create a more impactful resumes to attract the attention of a C-suite stakeholder.
Toronto Product Management Association (TPMA) is a community focused on development, growth and networking of Product professionals in the Greater Toronto Area.
