visual resume takeways

January’s #SWDchallenge was a fun one: apply data visualization principles to your professional resume. The results were impressive, but most importantly, they sparked many insightful discussions about the use of graphic resumes, including: identifying audiences that might respond well to a non-traditional resume; deciding exactly how “visual” a resume should be; and how best to visualize one’s own skills and other qualitative data.

What is a visual resume?

Visual resumes—also called graphic resumes or infographic resumes—run the gamut. For our purposes, we’re including any graph, report, or document that goes beyond just listing experiences and skills using only plain text.

Let’s look at the broad array of visual resumes that were submitted last month. 

The above sampling shows the wide spectrum of solutions. Simon chose a more traditional or classic approach by focusing primarily on layout, color, and adding a few images. Heidi emulated a dashboard, visualizing each section with a different graph type. Stephen went wild and visualized his career as a board game.

There isn’t a single way to incorporate data visualization techniques into a resume. Whether you keep things simple or get fancy depends on your needs.

Should you create a visual resume?

This is a divisive question—even amongst the storytelling with data team! It’s really going to depend on who’s reviewing your resume, what role you’re applying for, and how well you pull off a non-traditional approach.

Looking at the commentary for each resume submission, there wasn’t a clear consensus in the community either. Ludovic created an interactive resume and, despite acquiring a good number of datapoints, mentioned that he probably wouldn’t showcase this in an interview. On the other hand, Ngaire recognized that a personality-driven resume would alienate some people, but thought it would be a good way to target the right role. Jacob suggested that while he wouldn’t lead with his portfolio-focused resume, he’d consider sharing it further along in an interview process. 

SWD’s own Randy Knaflic has an extensive background in HR, and he had this to say: “Having interviewed and hired literally thousands of people over the course of my career, and in turn having reviewed probably 50x that number of resumes, I can say that visual resumes can sometimes work, but there is a fine line between sometimes working and definitely not working.” 

Despite some of the concerns about using visual resumes, at least two members pushed ahead and were successful. Joseph shared his creative take—one that blended the traditional text-heavy approach with a few images. Once he struck the right balance, he landed a new data science role. Robyn created two visual resumes last month: one for herself and one for her daughter. Applying SWD principles paid off; her daughter not only landed a new job, but also received kudos from the interviewer about the resume. 

In short, how you approach your resume is unique to you. If you’re looking for a data visualization role or one where design skills are valued, it’s probably okay to show off your talent in your resume. However, if you’re applying for a more traditional role, having a creative resume might send the wrong message. It’s all about context. 

To help you decide whether a creative resume is for you, refer back to the original challenge description. I outlined several questions to help you better understand your specific context.

Tips & tricks for designing a visual resume

Thanks to the challenge, we now have a gallery of visual resumes on the community, built in a wide range of tools. Let’s look at a few of the overarching themes on display.

Should you orient a timeline horizontally or vertically?

Both horizontal and vertical timelines were shared last month. It’s common to process time from left to right, so if there is space, I’d suggest a horizontal variation like JP’s. If you include a vertical timeline, like Chris or Francisco, consider how putting the most recent dates at the top emphasizes your current experiences.

Should you display skills on a rating scale?

Jeff mentioned that he was wary of adding a self-evaluation for his skills due to the Dunning-Kruger effect. In other words, how do you rate yourself with accuracy and credibility? A few community members designed views with this exact concern in mind. Anna used arrows instead of the normal bars, in order to provide a comparison of her current skill levels while also indicating that her skills are still improving. Jill chose a qualitative display, ranking whether she knows a concept, executes it routinely, or can manage others on it.

How many colors should you use?

This will likely depend on how you are sharing your resume. Some interviewers may want to print the document, so it makes sense to choose a printer-friendly color palette. Examples would include Zsuzsanna's black-and-white resume, or Megan's leveraging a single color (blue) to make the sections pop. For those creating something to share online, additional colors might help drive engagement. Check out Samuel’s radial design or Jen’s skills in transition.

Should you include personal touches?

Used thoughtfully, visual elements can maximize the use of space, compared to plain text alone. This means there’s more room to add additional information about yourself. Last month, many of you used this as an opportunity to share hobbies, places traveled, or other tidbits that highlight personality. This won’t be for everyone, but it was well-received by the community and offered great conversation starters. Some of my favorite personal touches include Katy’s everyday phrases, James’ Drake meme, or Kate’s illustrations.

Final thoughts on infographic resumes

For the right person, infographics or visual resumes make sense. They show off your skills and how you can carefully craft a single document to tell a story about your professional experience. Regardless of your opinion on graphic resumes, this was a fun challenge and an excellent exercise in synthesizing a large amount of qualitative data. 

To browse all of the entries, pop over to the community. If you're looking to continue flexing your creative skills, participate in February’s challenge, which is all about drawing data. There is still time to sketch!