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Resume Optimization

Comprehensive guidance for creating effective software engineering resumes that pass ATS systems and resonate with hiring managers.

When to Use This Skill

• Reviewing or improving a software engineer's resume
• Crafting impactful achievement bullets from work experience
• Optimizing resume content for ATS keyword matching
• Tailoring a resume for a specific job description
• Understanding modern resume structure and formatting

Core Principles

The Resume's Purpose

A resume is a marketing document , not a job history. Its purpose is to:

1. Pass ATS screening (keyword matching)
2. Capture a recruiter's attention (6-second scan)
3. Demonstrate value through quantified achievements
4. Secure an interview opportunity

What Makes Engineering Resumes Different

Software engineering resumes should emphasize:

• Technical impact : Specific technologies, scale, and performance improvements
• Business outcomes : Revenue, cost savings, user growth, time savings
• Leadership signals : Mentoring, cross-team collaboration, technical decisions
• Quantification : Numbers that demonstrate scope and impact

Resume Structure Quick Reference

Recommended Section Order

1. Contact Information - Name, email, phone, LinkedIn, GitHub (optional)
2. Professional Summary (optional) - 2-3 sentences for senior roles
3. Skills - Technical skills organized by category
4. Experience - Reverse chronological, 3-5 most relevant roles
5. Projects (optional) - For junior engineers or career changers
6. Education - Degrees, certifications, relevant coursework

Length Guidelines

Formatting Essentials

• Font : Clean, readable (Calibri, Arial, Garamond - 10-12pt)
• Margins : 0.5-1 inch
• Format : PDF (preserves formatting)
• File naming : FirstName_LastName_Resume.pdf

Achievement Bullet Formula

Action Verb + Specific Task + Quantifiable Result

[Strong Action Verb] [specific task/project] using [tools/methods], resulting in [quantified outcome].

Strong Action Verbs by Category

Quantification Types

• Time : "Reduced deploy time from 2 hours to 15 minutes"
• Money : "Saved $50K/year in infrastructure costs"
• Scale : "Scaled system to handle 1M daily requests"
• Improvement : "Improved test coverage from 40% to 85%"
• Frequency : "Reduced support tickets by 70%"

ATS Optimization

What ATS Systems Look For

1. Keyword matching - Skills, tools, technologies from job description
2. Job title alignment - Titles that match or relate to the target role
3. Section structure - Standard sections that ATS can parse
4. Clean formatting - No tables, columns, graphics, or headers/footers

ATS-Friendly Practices

• Use standard section headings ("Experience", "Skills", "Education")
• Include both spelled-out terms AND acronyms ("Continuous Integration (CI)")
• Mirror exact phrases from job descriptions
• Avoid images, icons, or non-text elements
• Use bullet points (-, *, •) not custom symbols

Keyword Extraction Strategy

When tailoring for a job description:

1. Identify required skills - Listed in "Required" or "Must have" sections
2. Note preferred skills - Listed in "Nice to have" or "Preferred"
3. Capture soft skills - Leadership, communication, collaboration terms
4. Extract action verbs - What the job says you'll "do" or "lead"
5. Match technologies - Specific tools, languages, frameworks mentioned

Tailoring Strategy

The 80/20 Rule

• 80% base resume : Core experience and skills that apply broadly
• 20% customization : Targeted adjustments for each application

What to Customize

1. Professional Summary - Align with job's key requirements
2. Skills Section - Reorder to prioritize job's requirements
3. Achievement Bullets - Emphasize relevant accomplishments
4. Keywords - Incorporate exact terms from job description

Red Flags to Avoid

• Generic objective statements ("Seeking a challenging position...")
• Job duties instead of achievements ("Responsible for...")
• Unexplained gaps without context
• Typos or inconsistent formatting
• Outdated technologies prominently featured

References

For detailed guidance on specific topics:

• Resume Structure Guide - Section order, formatting, length
• Achievement Formula Guide - Transforming experience into impact
• ATS Keywords Guide - Keyword extraction and optimization
• Tailoring Guide - Matching resume to job description

Related Resources

• achievement-bullet output style - Format for achievement bullets
• /soft-skills:track-win skill - Transform descriptions into achievement bullets
• resume-coach agent - Interactive resume improvement

User-Facing Interface

When invoked directly by the user, this skill tailors a resume for a specific job description.

Execution Workflow

1. Parse Arguments - Extract job description text or URL from $ARGUMENTS. If URL provided, fetch the job description content. If no arguments, ask the user for the job description.
2. Extract Keywords - Analyze the job description for required skills, preferred skills, soft skills, action verbs, and specific technologies.
3. Find Resume - Search for the user's resume in common locations (current directory, docs/, ~/.claude/temp/). If not found, ask the user for the resume location.
4. Analyze Gaps - Compare resume content against job description keywords. Identify missing keywords, weak achievement bullets, and alignment opportunities.
5. Generate Tailored Output - Produce:
   • Keyword match report (matched vs missing)
   • Rewritten achievement bullets incorporating job keywords
   • Suggested skills section reordering
   • Professional summary tailored to the role
   • ATS optimization recommendations
6. Offer to Apply Changes - Ask user if they want changes applied directly to their resume file.

Version History

• v1.0.0 (2025-12-23): Initial release with core resume optimization guidance

Weekly Installs

69

Repository

melodic-softwar…-plugins

GitHub Stars

41

First Seen

Jan 24, 2026

Security Audits

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Installed on

opencode60

codex59

gemini-cli57

github-copilot52

claude-code51

cursor50