How to tailor your resume to a job description

Step 1: Find the must-haves (5 minutes)

Read the “Requirements” or “Qualifications” section first. Write down every tool, skill and type of experience it names. Then skim the responsibilities: anything mentioned more than once is probably a must-have too. Ignore the company intro and benefits; they don’t tell you what the job needs.

Watch for “or” and “e.g.”: “Tableau or Looker” means either one counts.

Step 2: Find your evidence (5 minutes)

For each must-have, find the bullet where you actually did it. If you can’t find one, ask yourself honestly whether you’ve done it somewhere you didn’t write down. If you haven’t, it stays off the resume: you’ll address it in the cover letter or interview, if at all.

Step 3: Reword in the job’s language (7 minutes)

Lead with what the job cares about, use its words where they truly describe your work, and keep every number exactly as it was.

Step 4: Reorder and trim (3 minutes)

• Put the most relevant bullet first in each role.
• Drop bullets that don’t relate to this job, but keep at least two per role so the history reads naturally.
• Reorder your skills list so the job’s must-haves come first.

What tailoring is not

• Pasting the job description into your resume, visibly or in white text.
• Adding tools you’ve only read about. It’s the fastest way to fail an interview.
• Inflating scope: “led a team of 15” when you mentored three people.