The Hidden Step
www.necouncil.org/the
hidden
step
STEP FOUR
Build Your Resume
Therefore, to ensure that we are not miscommunicating, we write the title to
communication FUNCTION and not TITLE.
The title traditionally communicated “what an employer titled you” while
working for that employer. Today the title should communicate “What you did
for the employer while working for them” (function).
Using the title to communicate “what your previous
employer titled you” no longer works. After all,
what your ex-employer titled you holds very little
value when you are communicating to a new em-
ployer. You see, an employer can title you what-
ever they choose.
In fact if you and I started our own company
and hired salespeople and chose to title them
“marketing agents,” as owners we reserve
that right.
Those we hire are then really salespeople in
function, yet titled Marketing Agents. If any of the salespeople left our compa-
ny and applied for other jobs with other companies, placing the title “marketing
agent” on their resume would miscommunicate their true function to the pro-
spective employers looking for sales skills.
stage two:
the
Title
What is Function?
Working in any position, one inevitably develops other skills pre-
paring one to qualify for other positions. An offce manager may
also strengthen skills of team building, clerical, administrative, and
customer service. These new skills are the
functions
of the
position of offce management.
My title at my last
job was Communication
Technician but I was
really a Territory Manager.