Writing Resumes That Showcase Problem-Solving Skills

👉 “How do I show my impact on my resume when the company I worked for failed or the project wasn’t completed?" It's a common question when I'm reviewing peoples' resumes. Maybe the company ran out of money, the product never launched, or external factors derailed the business. It happens. (Or maybe you left the company, for whatever reason, before the fruits of your efforts were realized.) But here’s the key: your impact - and what the hiring manager wants/needs to see - isn’t just the results. It’s about how you tackled a meaningful business problem. As a product manager, your accomplishments are rooted in solving problems that matter. Did you: • Identify a business problem worth solving? • Persuade leadership that they should fund a solution (allow you to work on it)? • Design and execute a solution to address it? • Work towards an outcome that would have made a significant impact if circumstances had allowed? Here’s how to frame it: • Focus on the problem you solved and the solution you developed. • Use phrases like “expected results” or “projected outcomes” to show the potential impact. • Be transparent about the external factors, but don’t let them define your story. For example:"Customer churn was going up, customer sat was going down and revenue was flat. I created and drove a go-to-market strategy projected to reduce churn by 20% and increase revenue by $2M annually." In interviews, you can expand: "Yeah, the company unfortunately ran out of runway due to another product's failure before we were able to see the full impact, but early indicators - customer sat and profit margins - showed we were on the right track." The bottom line? Your career isn’t defined by a company’s outcome. It’s defined by your ability to focus on meaningful problems, create actionable solutions, and drive towards big business impact—even if circumstances didn’t align perfectly. What’s the toughest challenge you’ve had to frame on your resume?

Last week, my client sent me a screenshot: Their offer letter: $120K base + equity. 3 months ago, they were getting rejected from $70K roles. The difference wasn't their technical skills. It was this systematic approach that 90% of data professionals ignore: Here's what we fixed (and what you're probably doing wrong): 𝟭/ 𝗦𝘁𝗼𝗽 𝘄𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗯𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘂𝗺𝗲𝘀. My client was listing their job duties like everyone else. I made them rewrite every bullet using my impact formula: Action → Outcome → Business Value "Built customer churn model → increased retention 15% → saved company $1.2M annually" Numbers talk. Buzzwords don't. 𝟮/ 𝗤𝘂𝗶𝘁 𝗰𝗼𝗹𝗱 𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗹𝘆𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝗶𝘁'𝘀 𝗮 𝗻𝘂𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗴𝗮𝗺𝗲. They were sending 50 applications a week and getting nothing. I told them: "Stop. You're wasting time." Instead, we mapped their network: • 12 former colleagues • 8 university connections • 15 LinkedIn contacts at target companies    One coffee chat = three interview invites. 𝟯/ 𝗧𝗲𝗹𝗹 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗿. They used to list every project they'd ever touched. Wrong move. We picked 3 experiences that matched what each job posting actually wanted. The hiring manager's notes matched our strategy perfectly. 𝟰/ 𝗧𝗲𝗰𝗵𝗻𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗽 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝘀. No more "study everything and pray." They practiced medium-level problems for 20 minutes daily. The key: explaining their thought process out loud. When interview day came, they weren't just solving problems. They were teaching the interviewer how they think. 𝟱/ 𝗠𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗶𝗼𝗿𝗮𝗹 𝗾𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀. "Tell me about a time you handled competing priorities." They used to stumble through this. We built 5 STAR stories that showed leadership, problem-solving, and results. Confidence = preparation. 𝟲/ 𝗗𝗼𝗻'𝘁 𝗯𝘂𝗿𝗻 𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀. They tried pulling all-nighters to "catch up" on skills. I stopped them. 8 hours of sleep > 16 hours of stressed studying. Energy wins interviews. Exhaustion loses them. 𝗪𝗲𝗲𝗸 𝟭: We rewrote their resume using my impact formula 𝗪𝗲𝗲𝗸 𝟰: First referral conversation turned into an interview 𝗪𝗲𝗲𝗸 𝟴: They were choosing between 3 offers This system works because I've placed 50+ data professionals using it. I've done 300+ mock interviews. I know what gets offers and what gets ghosted. PS: You can ask me anything in the next 30 minutes. 𝗣𝗣𝗦: When you treat job searching like a system instead of throwing spaghetti at the wall, you get results like this. Ready to build your custom system? Start here: https://lnkd.in/eP5KJrbh

Your resume reads like everyone else's. And that's exactly why it's ignored. I reviewed 50 resumes yesterday. 49 were forgettable. 1 got forwarded to every hiring manager. The difference? A story. Here's what most job seekers don't understand: Recruiters don't hire qualifications. They hire people. Your list of responsibilities? Every candidate has one. Your unique story? Only you have that. Let me show you the transformation: GENERIC RESUME 😴 • Managed marketing campaigns • Increased social media engagement • Collaborated with sales team • Analyzed performance metrics (Congrats, you just described 10,000 other marketers) STORY-DRIVEN RESUME 🎯 • Turned dying Instagram account into 50K community by spotting untapped micro-influencer strategy • Saved $2M campaign from failure by discovering 73% of leads came from ignored channel • Built sales-marketing alignment system after noticing reps wasted 3 hours/day on bad leads See the difference? One lists tasks. One tells stories. Which person would YOU want to meet? Here's how to find YOUR story: 1️⃣ The Problem-Solution Arc 'Noticed [specific problem] → Created [unique solution] → Delivered [measurable result]' 2️⃣ The Transformation Story   'Inherited [bad situation] → Implemented [your approach] → Achieved [dramatic improvement]' 3️⃣ The Innovation Narrative 'Everyone did [standard way] → I tried [different approach] → Results: [breakthrough outcome]' 4️⃣ The Connection Story 'Realized [departments/teams] weren't talking → Built [bridge/system] → Unlocked [hidden value]' Your personal brand isn't a tagline. It's the thread connecting your stories. Example brand threads: 🧵 'The optimizer who finds waste' 🧵 'The connector who builds bridges'   🧵 'The innovator who questions everything' 🧵 'The builder who ships fast' Every bullet should reinforce your thread. Here's my formula: Context (5 words) + Action (10 words) + Result (5 words) 'Noticed team wasting time → Built automation tool over weekend → Saved 20 hours/week' Example: BEFORE: 'Senior Software Engineer with 8 years experience in full-stack development' AFTER: 'Engineer who turns 'that's impossible' into production code. Shipped 3 features competitors said couldn't be built.' Same person. Different impact. One got lost in the pile. One gets interviews in a week. Your experience isn't generic. Stop writing like it is. Every hire solves a specific problem. Show them you've solved it before. But differently. But better. But memorably. The best resume doesn't list what you did. It shows who you are. Through stories only you can tell. Build your story-driven resume with Teal's Resume Builder: https://lnkd.in/gJSNk4FN #PersonalBranding #ResumeTips #JobSearch #Storytelling #CareerAdvice ♻️ Reshare to help someone make their next job move. 👍 Helps me know i'm creating content you want to see :)  🔔 Follow me for more job search & resume tips.

I've looked at thousands of resumes in my career, and the biggest problem is that Customer Experience professionals don't translate their work into business impact. Here's how to level up your resume, from basic to best-in-class: Customer Support 🔴 Basic: "Handled customer tickets" 🟡 Better: "Managed enterprise support" queue for Fortune 500 clients, prioritizing business-critical issues" 🟢 Best: "Led enterprise support operations for 75+ Fortune 500 clients with 95% resolution within SLA and maintained 98% CSAT" Problem Resolution 🔴 Basic: "Helped customers with issues" 🟡 Better: "Developed systematic approach to identify root causes and prevent recurring premium account escalations" 🟢 Best: "Implemented proactive issue detection system reducing recurring premium account escalations by 40% and saving $500K in potential churn" Team Collaboration 🔴 Basic: "Worked with other teams" 🟡 Better: "Established direct channels between Support, Product, and Engineering to fast-track critical customer-facing issues" 🟢 Best: "Led cross-functional initiative reducing escalation response time from 72 to 4 hours, improving enterprise customer retention by 15%" Process Improvement 🔴 Basic: "Created how-to guides" 🟡 Better: "Architected comprehensive knowledge base and training program, enabling self-service for top customer inquiries" 🟢 Best: "Launched knowledge base achieving 70% self-service resolution rate, deflecting 15K tickets monthly and saving $200K in support costs" Strategic Input 🔴 Basic: "Shared customer feedback" 🟡 Better: "Synthesized customer insights to influence product roadmap and feature development priorities" 🟢 Best: "Established Voice of Customer program identifying top 3 feature requests, resulting in $2M ARR from new enterprise features" Pro tip: Don't have metrics? Start with the "Better" versions - they show strategic impact without requiring specific numbers. As you progress in your role, track your wins so you can build toward those "Best" statements.