With the swipe of a pen, President Trump has issued executive orders that reduced some agencies to skeleton operations and completely eliminated others. The results have been immediate and devasting for tens of thousands of federal employees.
Their jobs, once thought to be the epitome of stability and security, are gone. These suddenly unemployed people are shell-shocked and asking: “What do I do now?”
It’s Time to Move from a Federal Government Job to a Private-Sector Job
If you are a member of the rapidly expanding group of former federal government employees, your best option is to look for a job in the private sector, and making the move may be easier than you think.
Companies engaged in areas like healthcare administration, corporate governance, IT/cybersecurity, finance, and purchasing and logistics value the structured experience of federal employees. They want people with expertise in areas like budgeting processes, operations management, regulatory compliance, contract management, and public-sector administration.
Your First Challenge
A government résumé and a private-sector résumé are different in design, language, messaging, structure, and more. So, your first challenge is to transition your federal résumé into a résumé that works very well in the private sector.
Change from Self-Reporting to Self-Marketing
Your federal government résumé is a report of what you did, how long you did it, where you did it, and why you did it. Your federal résumé is not intended to market you; rather, its purpose is to report your professional history to another federal agency.
Like most federal résumés, your government résumé is probably long, detailed, and formatted as a plain, extremely wordy and uninteresting account of your career. It’s worked okay in the community you’ve lived in for a long time, but it will fail to help you enter the new highly competitive community you want to join.
In order to impress hiring managers in the private sector, your résumé must be a concise, eye-catching, results-focused and keyword-rich résumé that markets you to employers.
Your First Challenge
A government résumé and a private-sector résumé are different in design, language, messaging, structure, and more. So, your first challenge is to transition your federal résumé into a résumé that works very well in the private sector.
Change from Self-Reporting to Self-Marketing
Your federal government résumé is a report of what you did, how long you did it, where you did it, and why you did it. Your federal résumé is not intended to market you; rather, its purpose is to report your professional history to another federal agency.
Like most federal résumés, your government résumé is probably long, detailed, and formatted as a plain, extremely wordy and uninteresting account of your career. It’s worked okay in the community you’ve lived in for a long time, but it will fail to help you enter the new highly competitive community you want to join. In order to impress hiring managers in the private sector, your résumé must be a concise, eye-catching, results-focused and keyword-rich résumé that markets you to employers.
How Can You Do This?
By creating a résumé that communicates your special brand and potential value, highlights your accomplishments, is tailored to a specific job, and uses numbers, percentages, dollars, etc. to clearly demonstrate your performance.
There will be many applicants for every job you pursue, so it is critical that your résumé (your marketing document) positions you as the most qualified person for the job.
Transforming Federal Government Résumés is Our Specialty
A specialty of Résumé Plus is transforming government résumés into private-sector résumés that market you well to decision makers, are extremely impactful, get past the ATS (Applicant Tracking System), and place you in the must-interview group of applicants.
Plus: We Guide You in Every Step of Your Job Search
We help you identify your target industry, transferable skills, analyze what you can bring to the table, develop an action plan for your search, and learn how to network and interview to win offers.
We coach you in how to:
Identify and learn about the industry…research the latest trends, technologies, and challenges in your target industry.
Understand the company culture…learn about the company’s values, management style, and work environment.
Be prepared to discuss profitability and business goals…private-sector companies are driven by profit, so be ready to talk about how your skills and experience can contribute to the bottom line.
Be adaptable and willing to learn…the private sector is often more dynamic and fast-paced than the federal government, so be prepared to adjust to new challenges and learn new skills.
Let’s Collaborate!
Let Résumé Plus help put you in charge of your career again by exploring private-sector employment opportunities with you.
We’ve been helping displaced federal employees and transitioning military personnel start new careers with private-sector companies for more than 20 years. We can help you, too, by providing the résumé and career coaching you need to get the results you want. Let’s work together to find your answer to “What’s next for me?.” Contact us now.
Zero-Cost Discussion
We provide a free-of-charge session with a career coach for every potential client. It will help you gain insight into employers’ needs, communicate what sets you apart, learn how to market yourself effectively and identify your best course of action.