30 Artistic and Creative Résumés

http://yettobebranded.net Micheil

hmm.. I can’t say I agree with the design of about 90% of those Résumés, purely because they are overly graphical. Your résumé is meant to be a document, not a poster.

I do however quite like these ones out of the list:
– http://akidesign.deviantart.com/art/Curriculum-Vitae-92588918
– http://darthkix.deviantart.com/art/MY-RESUME-118989245
– http://mac1388.deviantart.com/art/Typographic-Resume-111684292

And just for reference, my résumé is rather simple in it’s design, If you’re interested, you can have a look at a copy of it over at http://clients.yettobebranded.net/resume.pdf .

http://www.vinodbatus.com Vinod

I completely agree with Micheil.

CV’s are not necessary meant to have bunch of graphics around it. Use of heavy graphics might want the employer to close the CV without having a complete look at it….Important points can also be missed out.

I think good typography makes a great CV.

I specially like this: http://mac1388.deviantart.com/art/Typographic-Resume-111684292
http://www.pvmgarage.com piervix

I am in accord with Micheil’s opinion… CV is a document, but we should not forget to be creative in this kind of works…

This is my example:

http://www.pvmgarage.com/2009/05/un-esempio-di-curriculum-vitae-con-template-scaricabile/
Gabrioch

Pretty cool cvs, if you are applying for a creative departament.
I`m agree with Micheil, some of cvs information are not easy to read but even thought this fact i like most of them.
http://www.snco.us David Eldridge

I think some of these may be “overboard.” But I think they are not worse than those that would be drab. Your résumé seems clean, but I think it is important for a designer who is marketing himself (particularlyto a design shop) to use this as an opportunity to get attention. (Granted, if they all look that way, they don’t stand out.)

Two recurrent themes that I saw here were that they found creative (and appropriate) ways to indicate timelines and they were brief. I think the graphical presentation is something that designers are afforded that many others cannot well represent and is wanting in résumés, but we all assumed that there was no way around it. They all managed to keep it on one page. I don’t know about trends elsewhere, but generally here in America, over two pages ensures that your résumé goes straight to the trash. But you should really keep it down to one page, because the interviewers time is important: the interview and references will fill in the gaps that may be left by the résumé’s relative brevity.

Market yourself naturally. If that is who you are, then employers who are looking for that will be pleased with you, and you will enjoy being appreciated. Don’t try too hard to be what the employer wants in the interview process, or your whole employment will be a drudgery. Be your best, but be yourself.
Ni Pos

Sorry Micheil- I disagree.

I believe that all of these can be used appropriately for Graphic Design positions and would be much more catchy than the standard “word” format. If these folks were going for standard web developer, marketing, or other jobs than there would be no need to show some of their creativity up front. However, since most of these folks are going directly for Graphic Design, I think what they’ve done is tasteful and very appropriate. Graphic Design demonstrates visual communication skills, top agencies recognize this and would hire based on this. Smaller traditional conservative shops may not appreciate this, but then again I don’t think many of these graphic designers want to work somewhere “traditional”.

Ni
http://myspace.com/thegodsey Andrew

If you’re a graphic designer(which most of these people are) its pretty much required that you have a visually impressive and creative résumé. I would say yours is actually more complex than the ones on this blog; you have 3 pages! Most of these people keep it down to 1, and they didn’t even need a cover page. The first rule of the résumé is to not scare a potential employer away from reading it because there are too many pages. Keep it short, only show the important info and best parts of your working history, and above all IMPRESS them. I really hope you aren’t a graphic designer, because I can’t see you getting anywhere with that résumé, except maybe at a newspaper, lawl.
Brittany

i just graduated in febuary and im really stuck on making an awsome resume im not sure if i should go all out or if i should take it easy…any ideas?by the way i couldnt go to your link.
- Jill
  
  OrangeResume.com they made mine
http://www.facebook.com/claudio.nader Claudio

And what do you think about mine, displayed in the new Fb profile?

http://www.facebook.com/claudio.nader

Here is the HOW TO: http://www.claudionader.com/

:)

Claudio
Jill

It all depends on the job you are looking for. If you turn in a creative resume to a job that expects it, then great. If you turn one into a job that doesn’t expect it, that’s even better. My dad hires and fires people all day, when I asked him if I should use OrangeResume.com to make a creative resume for me he said “I wish someone would turn in something like that to my office, resumes are SOOOO boring to look at.” So, I did it, and he doesn’t work in any creative field.

http://www.danhbaweb20.com/ Danh ba web 2.0

Awesome collection. Thanks a lot !

http://blog.insicdesigns.com insic

If the HR officer is an oldies. I dont think if she dont trow it to the bin. :) Nice design though but for a resume hmmm?

Parvesh

I agree with you…
But we can simplyfy the design to the extent the oldies can accept…
e.g. that one of moises is good one… : ) “u r beautiful”

http://www.ree-she.com Rishi Luchun

Nice resumes…I think that as designers, we should make that extra effort to make our resumes shine.

thashiz

I agree. Generally cause your portfolio site sells you better you need something catchy to get them to go there.

http://www.orphicpixel.com orphicpixel

what! why only now that i saw this articles, last night was not here! i do some redesigned with my resume last night a just a second ago i send it to our company, oh seconds late

http://www.paulaustindesgin.co.uk Paul

I agree with Micheil – most of those cvs are completely OTT. As an art director who has had a say in hiring people before, most of those cv’s would end up in the bin if they landed on my desk. Your cv is meant to convey information. It doesn’t have to be set in tnr using word, but most of those go too far and sacrifice legibility. Your portfolio is there to show off your creativity and work.

At least half of those featured are useless – you have to hunt for the information you require – the whole point of a cv is to make your information instantly available to the reader.

http://juliamonahan.com julia

That was exactly what I was questioning when looking through this post. I think there definitely needs to be an happy medium of artsy and functional – that is what design is supposed to be afterall…

I think a better article/showcase would have been exactly what you commented Paul – showing the difference between an outstanding resume and the one’s that are outrageous.
Juan

Are you really and art director???

You sound like a High School Principal; however, you’re totally right about the two last lines you wrote.
z f k

Isn’t graphics artwork exactly meant “to convey information”? in a way different than mere simple text?
I think some of these are quite good in that (note: I’m not design-related…).
bye
http://www.influxx.com adam

I too am in agreement with the notion that these resumes, whilst extraordinarily creative and eye catching, they are far too much for the document as intended. I was recently asked by a recruiter to sex up my resume to make it look like a designer created it. I wonder if this was what he had in mind. I have always been of the understanding that the resume should be clean, easy to digest and brief. The documents in this list are long on design but short on info, for the most part. There is no detail, they tell me nothing. The ones that do have greater detailed information make it hard to find. Also, these would not work on most online job applications as in my experience they ask for Word docs, they rarely even accept PDF.

I wonder what the trend is, if this is a direction I should take my resume in. My guy says no, but one has to stay current.

http://www.rule-twentynine.com Starstuff

Thank you for this nice overview. While some of the designs above are hard to read, I find all of them very inspirational. It’s amazing to see how much one can do to spice up the the usually boring and standard formats … and for a graphic designer, a beautiful and creative resumè can make all the difference when it comes to applying somewhere or getting a prospective customer’s interest.

http://www.thegraphicmac.com Jim

All very nice… perhaps one or two would actually manage to stay out of the trash can for longer than 2 minutes though.

Business cards and resumés are simply not supposed to be overly designed. They’re supposed to be easily read and the information on them simple and concise. Why designers can’t accept that is beyond me.

Allen

it is beyond you because you are not a creative fellow; just another schlub.
- http://www.designfarm.com Eric
  
  Speaking as someone who has run a multimedia and design company, it is not just about creativity. It’s about doing a fantastic job that actually DOES THE RIGHT JOB. Too many designers fall in love with their own ideas and forget what the point of any given piece of work is for. Resumes like this are NOT doing the right job for many, many employers – in this case, the designer only hurts themselves if their work is off target. I’m sure these resumes are perfect for some opportunities: do you know which? You have to know what the *point* of a given piece of work is before you can assess its design quality. Let’s face it, unless you are one of the top 1% of designers in the world, an employer can find someone else with the same creative talent eventually; what’s harder to find is a designer that is creative, talented, AND understands how to use those skills in the right way, at the right time.
  
  Since I’m ranting: I actually read a lot of the resumes – proofreading and grammar wouldn’t hurt either. A beautiful design with the client’s name spelled wrong = bad design in everyonje’s mind but the creator’s.
- http://www.linkedin.com/in/luisespinal Luis
  
  I happen to be a creative fellow, done wood carving, cartoon drawing and portraits, as well as creative work in the field of engineering (plus have a sister with a degree in fine arts and a hell of a painter.) I got to tell you, though, that being a creative fellow is not a license to be a fool, specially an arrogant one.
  
  If you really wanted to be and live creatively without constrains from the uncreative schlubs as you so call them, then you should make a living as an artist. But you are looking for a job as a creative designer, to be hired by creative and non-creative fellows, where your creativity is just a medium to convey business (as opposed to fine arts where creativity is both the ends and the means.)
  
  Those schlubs, they are the ones that hire you, they are not there to do you a favor. They are not there with free time in their hands, without hard business problems to be solved “yesterday”, free to just enjoy the colors of your resume and hire you just because it looks cute and *creative*.
  
  When you send a resume, it’s not for you to feel good about your creativity. It’s to establish a business contract between you and the hiring company. If you can’t present your business case in an objective, readable manner, then it is almost certain that you lack the common sense and business acumen to serve their business needs with your creativity.
  
  Those schlubs don’t exist for you, to praise or feel awed by your unreadable CV. Creativity is not a clutch for irrational thinking.
- Sand
  
  Well said Luis.
  
  In the end it’s about fulfilling the business need and helping them achieve their goals through the use of your talents.
  
  If you can do that, you’re a Graphic Designer…otherwise you’re just another person with the Adobe Suite making pretty pictures.
  
  What’s rare is, fulfilling the business need and fulfilling your own creative desires simultaneously.
  
  As in any healthy relationship, personal or business…compromise reigns.

http://justinharter.com Justin

I have to agree with Micheil. I think my resume is out of the ordinary, but still professional looking enough that I can submit it to most anywhere:

- http://justinharter.com/docs/resume.pdf

Allen

and it would rapidly be shoved into file 13
http://westbydesign.com Christopher

You might want to make your headings all consistent. “Project & Work History” has more space under it then the rest of the headings. It also has a taller blue box then the rest. Font sizes are not consistent in the gray column on the right. “I’m also a freelance writer…” is arbitrarily a larger point size. Italics are being used way too much. I would call yourself a “Web and Graphic Designer” opposed to a Web and Graphics Designer.” No comma is needed after your street address. I see at least 3 orphans. You are misusing dashes. En dashes are used to show a span in time such as “May 2006 – present.” For example “Freelance Web Designer — March 2001 – Present” does not need an em dash after “Designer” and should have an en dash between “March 2001″ and “Present.” Here is my suggestion. Bold “Web Designer” add a space then type “March 2001 – Present” in a regular weight. I really could go on. To be frank, this resume is not out of the ordinary and because of the things I have already pointed out, it’s not professional. This would have ended up in the trash where I work. A wise-man named Ice Cube once said, “You better check yo self before you wreck yo self.” That was totally unprofessional of me but seriously…
John

Basically what Christopher is saying is the typography on your resume really needs some work.

lee

Your portfolio should show your skills off, your résumé should be clear and concise.

I look over potential employee’s résumés at my current job, and I would be less inclined to read many of the above. Support your résumé with a quality portfolio, but don’t make my eyes bleed when I am trying to read about your experience and personal history.

And the one résumé which uses a ‘KEY’ to read, it would be put straight into the circular filing cabinet aka the bin…

http://www.vinodbatus.com Vinod

I completely agree with Micheil.

CV’s are not necessary meant to have bunch of graphics around it. Use of heavy graphics might want the employer to close the CV without having a complete look at it….Important points can also be missed out.

I think good typography makes a great CV.

I specially like this: http://mac1388.deviantart.com/art/Typographic-Resume-111684292

http://spotmeon.blogspot.com Gaurav M

SO COOL

http://www.RedesignYourBiz.com Design freak

i liked this one the most

http://royaldesign.com.au Royal Design

These would skim off my desk and straight into the trash. None of these show a serious professionalism that is sometimes needed. I get the impression of a cocky difficult person, not someone we want to employee. Just my two cents

ed

Or in other words, you want a worker that shuts up, does the job for as cheap as possible, and adds no creative input. Wow, sounds like a real fun place to work! That’s why I am SO HAPPY I am freelance. LIfe is SO SHORT folks, ONLY WORK at a shop with COOL, CREATIVE people, there are lots out there.

:-)
- http://www.mbruns.com Mike
  
  You can be “COOL” and “CREATIVE” while maintaining professionalism. If I have to reference a key to understand the bombardment of images that is someones resume, its no good. Making a good resume is like designing a good website: Get the user/viewer to the information this want as quickly and easily as possible while using good design practices. Just focusing on the design of it to make your resume, in essence, another example of your work misses the point of what a resume is supposed to do and there for is unsuccessful in its execution.
v for vendeta

royal design, you want slaves no employers
http://www.creativeindividual.co.uk Laura

For most of these I’d agree with you, OTT design with photographs of yourself are extremely egotistical.

But there were a couple that did hit the mark. Managing to be professionally design without seeming cocky.

My favs were:

http://mac1388.deviantart.com/art/Typographic-Resume-111684292
http://akidesign.deviantart.com/art/Curriculum-Vitae-92588918

I also get the impression that some of these were more like self-promotional mailers rather than CV’s per-say.

tron

who says it is supposed to be a document?… what a bland outlook of the world, and it’s interesting that your favourites were the most unimaginative of the lot.

And furthermore, you are still in high school (according to your resume) and probably have very little understanding of how competitive the design industry is. So my advice to you would be; take note of how much effort and creativity these guys have put into their resumes and inject the same into yours – otherwise no one will read it.

http://www.creativeunleashed.com Jason

While I agree, injection of creativity into nontraditional places is outstanding! HOWEVER, if your resume is being cycled through an HR office, the reality is that 9 out 10 will dump anything that is difficult to read or requires more time to skim through. They need the info now, and because there are always just as qualified candidates in line behind you, they just keep looking.

My point of reference is from having over 300 employees – both creative and non – and while the artist in me certainly appreciates the time and effort, I wouldn’t have been handed (for my review) most of these.

While I don’t claim to “know everything” or hold the same regard in the hiring process as your “potential” next hiring manager, I would find ways to conform to prescribed professional standards WHILE injecting something fun and non-conforming: something uniquely you that won’t hurt your chances.

Cheers everyone,

Jason
John

Tron, your comment show how very little you understand the professional business world. Creative? yes. Practical? No. Professionals responsible for hiring do not have & will not take the time to try to glean relevant info from those.

Rebecca

Great collection and really fun!

http://www.moxiedisplays.com Mike

I agree with Micheil. I think people should stick with a simple text-based resume. Just make sure the typography looks immaculate!

David

Francis Homo? hehehhh

http://youtheuser.com solle

Lots of really good ones here and feel that my attempts at a Persona Style CV (hat tip Todd Warfel) is worthy of mention.

Can be found here http://files.me.com/solle/k2itws

ta

http://www.guavalab.com Marvin

These resume are beautifully designed and props to all the creative minds out there. However, I have to agree with Micheil on this one. Some of these have parts that are, unfortunately, almost unreadable.

I think its a great way to showcase your work but it would be wise to always keep a simple, “text-only” version at hand.

Anyways, keep up the great work guys!

http://mikkokiviniemi.com Mikko

So much of use of crap DaFont.com grunge/stencil fonts and Impact makes me sad. The first two seem pretty good executions.

Creative Director

I can say, as a CD, I mostly ignore these types of vanity projects when I get them. They look like some school assignment. I want to know about you in 5 seconds. And, that comes from the text. Your work is represented in your book, not your resume. And if you don’t have any experience/work yet, you’d better WRITE something that tells me something about you. Remember writing?

http://www.probloggerworld.de dr/roné/di/kristu

Thank you very much for this piece of superb art. Every work mentioned here is a masterpiece.

Thank you for the inspiration. :)

http://www.dalenapier.com Dale

Actually, no, most of these fall far short of ‘masterpiece’. Davinci created masterpieces, and as many people have already said, most of these wouldn’t last 2 seconds on a serious design director’s desk.

Side-note: remember that no matter who you’re sending this too, they’re most likely going to print it out, so black/dark text on white/minimal background will work best and reproduce more correctly on their end.

http://jvb.webb.se Johan

I agree with #1. I found the examples quite messy and it was difficult to extract any info from them. When you’ve got to concentrate hard to actually read a CV, then maybe the document needs a redesign? ;)

#1 got a fully readable CV, though they shouldn’t be longer than 2 pages (at least I’ve been taught that way).
I like this kind of resumes: http://dl.getdropbox.com/u/364076/CV_DG_HK-090427.pdf
My own (WIP): http://dl.getdropbox.com/u/364076/Curriculum%20Vitae%20Redesign%20v2.pdf

Evelyne

well, Micheil if I was looking for a designer for example, I would really appreciate something like that because it expresses the creativity of one person. I think anyone would consider that! It’s quite impressive to see what someone with such skills can do even with something so simple as a CV!

Matt

Well said Evelyne, however, there are many positions hiring creative that are not actually for creative companies. An artist’s personal flair when shown for an opportunity to interview can hurt them if the style is not just right for the reader (mostly HR folks, you know the type, straight laced – by the book – just the facts ma’am – types). That would be a shame if the experience and talent of the designer is desired. Remember that actual work pieces are for intended demographics but a résumé can end up in anyone’s hand.

Britney Spears never set out to impress Ozzy, she set out to impress record buyers.

http://adampetrie.com Adam Petrie

I tend to agree with Micheil, resumes need to be easy to read and to the point. As you mentioned, recruiters are inundated with resumes and I feel you risk being over looked if your resume is needlessly complicated.

Regardless all the posts above are definitely creative and kudos on that. http://akidesign.deviantart.com/art/Curriculum-Vitae-92588918 is definitely my favorite.

http://www.fubiz.net Fubiz

Beautiful !

http://codeartmedia.com Jason

These Résumés are truly amazing, I find these type of Résumés are very acceptable in the design field. When I hire a designer I look for the full package, and the more this person can show me the better. On a side note, I never really care too much about eduction or about a traditional Résumé for designers either. I found you can’t teach talent, only theory.
Job well done to all!

Caroline

I’d have to disagree with @Micheil your resume is way too long – it should be one side of A4, two at most. It may be ‘simple’ – but the two (standard) fonts are used in 5/6 different sizes – making it quite hectic.

A design cv is far different to a regular cv. It’s a chance to showcase a little of what you do. Employers are bombarded everyday with the same old standard resumes – why not make it a little different, it’ll make you stand out, and in these cases will make you memorable – in a good way!

http://www.JMH-Design.net Jeffrey Heiserman

While I do see the argument to doing whatever it takes to ensure that your résumé stands out amongst the others, I have to agree with Micheil.

Your résumé should be a document to explain your skill set and experience. It can and very well SHOULD have some type of design to it, being in the business that we’re in, but your résumé doesn’t have to be a portfolio-worthy piece.

http://www.albert-pak.com Albert Pak

My favorite one out of all of these is Sid Santos, neat idea to make it into a packaging one.

http://www.wevegotideas.com jhoysi

I would agree that some of them are inpractical, but more importantly I am glad to see conventions being questioned. In some cases, I see some very well-executed Infographics. In others, just an opportunity to showcase design capabilities in lieu of experience.

They’ll all get an employer’s attention, but if it is not readily clear WHY the design choices were made, and if the information is overpowered by the overall design, then they fail regardless of how creative they are.

Jamie

Most of those were very hard to read/understand. I’m no expert on resumes but if I were the employer and couldn’t find the information I was looking for without an instructions manual I think I would pass on to the next resume….

http://www.oliverker.co.uk Oliver Ker

I have to agree with Micheil, there are some lovely pieces of graphics work here, but some are difficult to read easily and more importantly quickly.

http://thomasmoffett.com BeakerBen

hmm….Micheil…you may need this post more than you think….Looked at your resume….if you claim any design experience…As an Art Director I would not even call you back based on your submitted resume.

I do however, not agree with everyone of these…My favorite is Michael Andersons InfoGraphics resume’. Brilliant, It made me laugh and had to call others over to look at it.

Would definately call him in, if he were looking…

which is the goal of a resume.

Rob

For the majority I’d say great creative but most lack the necessary readability for a resume. Take into account the majority of first line resume viewers are not necessarily creatives, so you’ve lost them there. Too many of these examples are more puzzles than concise deliverers of information. There for they would most likely end up in the trash. Just because it looks good doesn’t mean it communicates, or as I like to say, works.

http://www.cancelbubble.com cancel bubble

Some of these are incredibly hard to read and I can’t help but wonder how many will be tossed out because of this.

While I think it’s cool to stand out from the herd, your resume, above all else, needs to be quickly readable.

http://xandesigns.com Alex McCabe

I like all of them, except one…the game-board one. It is not all that nice, clever idea though. I love graphical resumés and I am currently working on mine.

z f k

Heh. I like it, instead. :)
A form grouping info a way you can reach them quickly, yet shifted in a fantasy world yet carrying real-world info…
As implying that the enterprise world is not the real world, with different rules etc., but employ real persons and affecting the real reality. Clever, isn’t it? :)

(sorry for my bad english)

http://kevindeleonphotography.com Kevin deLeon

I have to agree completely with Micheil.

While most of these resumes are gorgeous in design, all of that time and talent would be completely lost on managers, and HR reps that are sifting through these in email, etc…

Many of them are very cumbersome and hard to read. Being part of the hiring team for many candidates, I look for a well organized, easily skimmed resume that I can quickly make a decision on. Most of these examples would drive me absolutely crazy.

I have to say even Micheil’s cover page, while nice, would drive me a bit crazy as it seems like a waste of my scroll-time/paper.

vtv3000

AMAZING LIST OF RESUMES! :)
however, is it possible for you guys to come up with a post that has resumes made in a word processor or pdf or a ppt. Something that is simple yet impressive…

http://www.restlesslikeme.com Norcross

Considering most of these resume’s are for graphic designers, I think they’re pretty awesome and shows off their skills rather well. Now, if they were an accountant….not so much.

CX1D

a document communicates information.
all documents utilize typography.
many use colour and imagery as well.
by employing visual techniques, the content is communicated in an appropriate manner to the relevant audience.

ie: a book is usually typeset simply and elegantly to enable easy parsing and digestion of the content by the reader (who could be anyone) and allow them to interpret the content themselves.
however a more targeted communication piece may rely more heavily on colours, imagery, typefaces and treatments likely to elicit the desired response from the intended audience.
this is not new or revolutionary.

a resumé is a document that communicates one’s skills, qualifications, accomplishments, etc. in a given field.
it is almost always viewed by a professional accustomed to evaluating a multitude of such documents from other contenders with like skills, and as such, requires the creator to rely heavily on their ability to craft a document that communicates their unique strengths.

these resumés do what they are supposed to do for the audience they are supposed to impress upon.

and i’d take another look at maybe 10% of the ideas in these and maybe apply some of that thinking to your own.
your resumé is boring dude.

http://www.guavalab.com Marvin

…typo…*resumes*

http://www.webdesignerdepot.com Walter

well spotted, corrected now :)
- http://www.guavalab.com Marvin
  
  Thanks Walter :)

http://hunterhastings.net/ Hunter Hastings

While the google maps idea is rather nifty, as with several other ideas here, as a potential employer, I’d get distracted, bored, or tired of figuring out all the arrows and doo-dads pointing every which direction.

Josh Cagwin

Creative and cool looking resumes, but the majority of these are way over the top. Resumes should be simple and the content should be easy to digest. These would get passed up by majority of employers looking to hire.

Casey

I enjoyed the post and the designs, but I am not sure they would be appropriate as resumes in many situations.

There are so many steps to getting hired at larger companies and the majority of those people in HR are very conservative. While the person you directly report to might appreciate the design, they may never see it because the hiring manager or recruiter discarded it immediately. I don’t agree with that practice, but that has been my experience.

Better to let your creativity shine through in your portfolio, stick to a classic resume, and network like a fiend so that your resume is not stuck in a pile of others to begin with.

http://fullclout.com Joey Sichol

I think most of these would function well as sort of a “designer’s cover page”, but I would still include a boring old scannable version…

http://www.brennancreative.com Kevin Brennan

We should be cautious about drawing a line between “creative” and “effective” or “functional”.

Most of these don’t work as resumes. If you’re a creative person, whether its a graphic designer, web designer, copywriter, etc., it is your work (portfolio) that should be showing off your talent. If your portfolio is lacking in content, take the time to create some mock ads, brochures, or other marketing pieces. In a real work situation you will never be asked to design a “creative resume”.

Your resume is a document that allows the reader to clearly understand your professional background, expertise, education, etc. The only real design elements it should contain are typographical. A good font, well laid out text and proofread copy.

After looking at numerous resumes throughout the day, most recruiters wouldn’t even attempt to read some of these designs.

http://www.sachagreif.com Sacha

Wow, lots of great resumes here. Although you probably also have a stripped-down version available. Anyway here’s mine, maybe you could feature it too ?

http://www.sachagreif.com/new-resume/

gkleon

@Micheil

The most important part is here:
“So, how can we stand out from the rest and grab the attention of a design agency when they’re usually bombarded with hundreds of applications?”

These are resumes for a Design Agency… when you just write only simple words they won’t say anything special about you… they won’t “show” how good you are. If I good remember design agencies even request some “special” forms of resume.

http://www.webdesignerdepot.com Walter

It’s important to remember that you shouldn’t use an overly designed résumé for any type of job, however, when applying for a design job, it certainly makes sense to use a bit of creativity.

Some of the examples here can be a bit ‘over the top’, yes, however, they’re meant to show you different possible approaches.

http://www.brennancreative.com Kevin Brennan

Do not include a photo of yourself on your resume. Unless you’re an actor or model the person hiring you will just think you’re a vain individual.

Amelia

It makes sense to a certain extent, I wouldn’t want to be employed based on my looks and not abilities.

but I’ve noticed, what about property agents?
Please enlighten. Thank you. :-)
http://dotaportal.hu WishCow

In some countries it is required to include a photo in your resume.
vhaugn

in the Philippines, a picture in the resume is a requirement.

http://decisiveorigin.com laurie

these are some really hard to read resumes

nichole

These resumes show an exceptional level of creativity and imagination. But from an HR manager’s perspective, it is too much.

Many of these would be much better used online.

http://sweetcareers.blogspot.com Grace Kutney

These documents are beautiful and amazingly creative. However, resumes need to be tailored for specific positions and specific employers. Without knowing to whom these resumes were addressed, it is difficult to know if they would have been effective. As a result, I would generally not encourage designers to take the above approach to crafting their resumes. On the other hand, if after doing significant research into a potential employer, a designer feels the above type of resume would be appropriate, then by all means, he/she should be as creative as necessary.
The key is knowing your audience; not every employer in the creative industries will find the resumes featured on this page appealing. So, do your homework on the organization. Network without ceasing. And, at the very least, if you create a resume like one of those above, make it available online, then provide the link to it from your traditional, tailored resume.

nana

i agree with you Grace.

http://diffusers.wordpress.com @macdonmt

I think these are all cool, but I get the feeling that there are two types of potential hiring managers providing comments.

HM type 1: You aren’t in the creative field, but rather in business. You would consider one of these over a standard resume b/c frankly they’re really cool looking. Yeah, it takes a bit more to find the information than a standard resume, but so what, you’re looking for someone who thinks out of the box and has already shown it.

HM type 2: You’re an Art Director or Creative Professional. You know crap when you see it, and good work when you see it, and you know why it’s crap or good. You know that “cool creative people” are a dime a dozen. You also know that creative types need versatility, with a range of styles and abilities that will work for your clients. You use a resume to see if this person is full of shit or if it’s worth looking at their portfolio. You’ll make better decisions when you see more work.

I’m squarely in the first type of HM, and I think these are awesome. However, I definitely see the difference and agree with type 2 when it comes to getting quick and clear information. Plus, it’s a resume, and if it doesn’t convey the information efficiently, it doesn’t really do it’s job, which is the purpose of most design work (at least in advertising). I mean, there’s one here where you can’t read some words b/c of glare… that’s a big issue.

I’d say, consider who you’re audience is, and design for that. If you want a job designing subway maps, then I think that’s a good design, same thing with the packaging guy’s if he’s going for that job…

http://tinoc.com Martino Chiaviello

While these resumes are impressive, they are also really hard to read and follow. I would go with something a bit simpler…remember the person reviewing your resume probably has a stack on their desk that is easier to read.

RobRepta

The designs are great, but mostly impossible to read. If we get anything out of this, its that these are “couture” resumes. Simply take a little piece from a fave, simplify, and make it your own.

http://www.kerrimchale.com Kerri

I agree with all of those who believe these are ineffective vanity projects. Some of them are quite lovely, but they fail at the main objective of a CV, which is to clearly, quickly, and concisely convey information.

There are some creative managers that might go for them, but the fact is that generally the HR manager screens them first, and these’d probably go straight into the recycle bin.

I do disagree, however, that a CV can’t show off your design skills. Design is primarily about effectively conveying a message, and a CV is a perfect way to do this. Typography, white space, information hierarchy—all of the foundations of good design can be applied to a resume to show your talent without resorting to gimmicks and grunge paintbrushes.

http://www.rand9.com BJ Neilsen

Most of these completely miss the point of a resume. When hiring, I don’t want to see a resume convoluted with design elements. Give me a sheet of data nicely typed with good leading in a readable typeface. Then give me a portfolio folder. Don’t do both in one, it defeats the purpose of both.

Les B

I must say I am quite impressed by the creativity and design ability showcased by the above artists, but I think the resume is the wrong vehicle in which to showcase that talent.

I agree your resume must stand out but more most importantly is must be readable. To many of the designs above while very visually stimulating are difficult to read. If I can’t find the information that I’m looking for quickly and efficiently, then I pass on that paticular resume and move on to the next one.

Once I have chosen someone based on their resume and ask for a portfolio / exmaple of work now I’m looking to be impressed by their design skills. Your portfolio is your chance to blow me away by what you can do.

Rosemary

These are incredibly imaginative. Would work well on a website or in creative fields. Not so sure about for business

http://blog.usability-idealist.de/ fwolf

my CV is rather plain, but stuffed with useful data. I’ve created it for print out, not for the net. Thus it is very simple formatted, using Georgia for headlines and Times New Roman for the rest.

If you’d like to see my portfolio, you’d have to enter the url which is supplied in each page footer into your favorite browser, and off you go.

cu, w0lf.

http://www.oxford-creative.co.uk Stu

I’m a little torn here – I can appreciate that many HR managers/recruiters could find these over the top, but the creativity that has gone into some of them amazes me. Sure – reading a graph and having to work with a key is kinda out there – but so what? Do you want to hire someone who says (s)he’s a designer, and sends you a vanilla MS Word document as a CV?

If you’ve been set the task of hiring for a creative role, and you throw the more creative CV’s in the bin…maybe you’re the wrong person to be evaluating candidates for that position…?

Barbara Saunders

The most important task for a “creative” is to properly convey the message, not show off virtuoso moves.

http://www.nurbsatwork.com ozy

I dont like them all, but there are like 2 that are really good!

http://blog.callumchapman.com/ Callum Chapman

Wow, some great resumés there, great inspiration as i’m about to write my own! The last one and christas are my favourites!

Bean Fairbanks

As a manager that has hired hundreds of people, I can tell you that most of these would have been immediately circular filed.
It takes time and energy to review resumes and if I have to hunt for the relevant information about your skill set, you are wasting my time. Most of these are way too hard to read and would never make it to an interview committee.

http://www.marketleveragetv.com MLDina

Those resumes are great. We’ve seen some creative descriptions come through, but I love the extra details these job candidates put in. If any of them are still looking, we’d love to chat with you! ;-P

Anthony

Aamir Shah ripped off someone else’s photo/wallpaper… wow. im 80% sure i’ve seen that background image on deviantart.com

yikes

http://tabbycat-creative.com Nicole

It may have been stock, DA has a rather large stock section.
Tricia

I have seen the same image in a computer arts magazine tutorial so I guess it must be a stock image

http://www.kendalricher.com Kendal Richer

Although I think this conversation has pretty much been hashed out by now, I have to throw my two cents in anyway.

The only resume that really stood out here to me is Christa’s. All the others were way too over the top. Unless you are applying specifically for a job designing infographics, why design your resume in that style?

Also, as a somewhat recent grad, I remember my early years in school where I wanted everything I did to look super “cool” which usually meant a lot of decorative fonts, photoshop work and other trick techniques. Unfortunately, all this trickery is usually an attempt to cover up fundamental design skills that are lacking. Most of these resumes fail because there is no clear hierarchy to the information, and it is not easily gleaned from the page. In good design, form follows function–the hiring process is often one of reviewing hundreds of resumes. No director wants to hunt through a muddle of “creativity” in order to find out the relevant facts of an applicant. If you take away all the little decorative elements, these resumes lack the basic design skill of good typography, which is essential to any great designer.

My resume, offered up to the wolves for discussion:
http://www.kendalricher.com/resume.html

http://www.twitter.com/rebeldesigner Rebel Designer

Nice, I think this is enough for a resume… go crazy in your portfolio…

http://www.weblimner.com Ali Sipahioglu

when someone looks at your resume they dont really spend more than 5-10 minutes on it and the most info their eyes will catch the more they know about your and your skills or whatever. if they spend 5 minutes figuring out how to read your resume I dont see how useful it will be for them. On the contrary you want to stand out from other people so I think it depends on the person hiring you.

One not that your resume should not be more than a page. It is not your portfolio. You might have hundreds of work done but you need to put 2-3 on it that gets most attention not all of them

http://www.mikestickney.com Mike

Wow… some visually appealing designs here, but for a resumé? Definitely questionable. Most of these lack key assets to a resumé: presenting your information in a clean, legible, scanable and digestible way. If these resumés got past the HR hiring departments, than you might make a good impression on a Creative Director, but are HR departments really looking for a great design (or even know how to recognize it?) I wouldn’t think so. In my opinion, a resumé is definitely something that you want to take a minimalist design approach to. There are ways to communicate your message while still demonstrating your creativity and design sense (even using *gasp* MSWord…). My advice, stick to the best practices for ANY resumé (not specifically an art/design position), and let a killer portfolio show off your real skills. Just my two cents worth.

Efraín Rivera (Torphedeus)

I think they are good because in our case to be graphic designers, creative artists, illustrators, we must show creativity from the presentation, whether it is important that the literature of our curriculum is good, otherwise it is just a poster, chill.

http://imtheschmidt.com Kurt Schmidt

These are great! While I can’t say it is a good idea to give your typical HR person a headache there are times were these sorts of resumes really can work for a candidate. Like ending up in a WebDesignerDepot post! ; )

http://blog.jakerocheleau.com/ Jake

Really neat collection of resume’s, nice work!

http://www.dijup.com.np Dijup

I think very creative way of presenting.

bebopdesigner

One smashing collection! If I were to hire any of these people, I’d have a hard time deciding.
Thanks for the post… very inspiring.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/bulooji/ Chester Lau

Hi, I am Chester Lau, Nice to meet you all.
Thanks for you comments, guys.

I am the full-time freelance designer and have my own business based in HK, actually I have a simpler resume too, and this artist one i created is just for print out as a self-promotional item.

In my experience, depend on who i have to meet and work with, i will choose different method and process to approach my clients, that’s why i have different format of the resume and portfolio too.

I never work with the clients who really don’t like what i did for them, because he understand how i am before we start to work, my artistic resume let them really understand me without reservation (..so some clients will tell me that directly i am not suitable for them…but for me it’s good).

Sometimes the relationship between the client and me is friendship or partnership, because i don’t only do something really formal and commercial, try to do something experimental, personal and fresh for them. (I admit I’m really not a commercial designer, but i can get the job finally)

So when i try do my artistic resume, I think this item is not for the formal & commercial business. Even I sent this artistic one to the HR Manager, sometime they also give me a good reply and refer me to their Creative Department, and then i have an interview to meet with the Creative Director directly.
(..so just believe what you should do, and than just do it…)

You know, some clients or Creative Director who don’t really like my works, but they will refer my resume & portfolio to their friend or partner. That’s my experience in this 4 years, it’s unusual but real.

Thanks again :)

CHESTER

http://www.michaeladesigns.com Michael

The best tip I’ve ever been given on designing resumes, is “your resume should be nothing more than ‘perfect’ typography.” It is so true. I don’t agree with many of the resumes above, rather a simpler version where typography rules.

http://rsstudioat.blogspot.com/ rsstudio

Great list again! I just only have to add some points. Resume is a personal marketing brochure — and like any kind of marketing tool, expect the unexpected. The idea is countless and I’m sure the list here is just a sample of what artists can do with their cv. The only tricky part is to get your resume objective: the job.

To get the job, one should know the company, the culture and the philosophy. Only then should the applicant design his cv to be taken seriously. Well, if an artist is applying for Pixar studios, then having a vulgar design which is not too wholesome might not land you the job – knowing that Pixar is now owned by the family-valued Disney company.

I’ve read clashing comments here and I totally agree to most of them. That’s because like any kind of art, all of us have reservations to what we like. This goes with the CV design too.

But all in all, the list is definitely visually entertaining. Good job!

http://erwinprasetyo.wordpress.com/ erwinprasetyo

weew…nice

Joram Oudenaarde

I also think that most of these example resumé’s are overkill, even for a designer.

I do think that a resumé can be as long as 3 sides of an A4 (of Letter). After all, after 10 years of experience you probably collected a couple of companies that you need to have on your resumé… but from what I’ve always noticed and learned at school (a long long time ago), having up to a max of 3 sides is still ok :)

But designwise; absolutely avoid making the design of a resumé in a way that the design is more important than the text. If you’re a designer it’s ok to put sóme design in it, but if you want to do it right, make your resumé typographically perfect. Use nice type, a good grid and things like that. Don’t make the important information second place by making your design overrule it.

http://www.giuseppedimaria.it Giuseppe

STUPENDO!
WONDERFUL

http://ocaroco.wordpress.com Andrea Vazquez

I did love most of those resumes!
Although they are very visual, they are very easy to read. Definetely catchy.

Flipchart

I would love to receive CV’s like this, mind you the people I employ aren’t creatives in the traditional sense (I employ training professionals and HR staff) so something like this would really stand out as unusual in my field.

Some of them are a little hard to read or interpret but those that are both legible and well designed are really impressive.

G

Just showed a friend of mine who is a project manager for a web design company. His thoughts:

“I’d hire any of them on the spot if it was for a creative position”

http://www.smashingapps.com AN Jay

I cant rate anyone, for me all of them are terrific and impressive. I won my heart :) Keep it up guys!

http://www.evanbot.com Evan Byrne

Like said many times before, most of these are hard to read. The whole point of a resume is that it’s supposed to be easy for a potential employer to read and get an overview of your skills set. Your portfolio can be fancy, keep the resume plain.

http://www.e11world.com e11world

One of the best sources for inspiration. I would make mine a bit less creative and more informative since most employers need the info and you have your website to show off your skills.
Or if you are applying in person, these would be great (nice paper and maybe even cut out or rounded).

http://www.psprint.com/stickers-labels Ashely Adams : Sticker Printing

Well, there you go. Graphic designers showing off their trade. I seriously doubt how well some of these resumes would be received by HRs. Some of these may look good on screen but not on print. And filing them can be a real nightmare. So, if these were to be of software programmers or network administrators, would they come in binaries or etched on network cards? But all said and done, this is a rather enjoyable list. Thanks.

z f k

Same doubt.
Can I, as a programmer, send a resume’ formatted as a piece of code? Yes, I can :D
But, code is a language-specific thing, not everyone can read it right on the spot, fewer can appreciate the subtleties in it.
If the person who it is destined was a fellow programmer, well, I think I can consider to do it. But if the evaluator is just someone with a list of requirements who have to select the ones that match…

(sorry for my poor english)

http://www.marviecreative.com marvieb

After more than 15 years working for design firms, ad agencies and in-house, I’ve seen my share of resumes. When I was tasked with hiring people, I wanted key information fast and most of these require far too much deciphering. Some ask me to use a key or even cut and fold. Do these designers think that CD’s or HR people have nothing else to do?

http://meat.org amy

They are nice HOWEVER they won’t get you a job. I would save these resumes for the interview, a leave behind.

John Saturn

I am a business manager in a mid sized design consultancy and am actively involved in the recruitment and selection of designers. The vast majority of these resumes would not be helpful in getting a job with us. I appreciate a designer paying attention to how (s)he prepares his resume. A resume is supposed to be a summary or listing of relevant job experience and education, that allows someone to quickly check if that is what is what they are looking for. It is not supposed to be a gallery to show off all the tricks you can pull of on Adobe CS. Infographics exist to facilitate information assimilation, not to make it tougher to understand.
Most of these resumes tell me the designers are tricksters, not people concerned with solving visual communication problems. I don’t want tricksters in my team.
What is the purpose of a resume?
To land a job or to grab attention in the same way that a nudist runs into the middle of a sporting event?

http://simplestation.com Simple Station Web Design

I think it depends on the job and the firm you are applying to as to whether or not an awesome personal portfolio site like this is valuable. At my small design company we would heartily welcome resumes in this format (even if they are just a link) as we believe that your work speaks for itself. We don’t care what you say in your resume if your design+code doesn’t measure up. We want results – and these speak to that.

If you were applying to a more traditional organization that still did a huge amount of screening via HR or requires paper copies then this might not be the way to go. I could see if you were screening thousands of applications that you would probably skip checking out somebody’s personal portfolio site if their resume didn’t make it past the first round of cuts.

A fun list!

http://www.artvisiona.ro graphic design

Nice designed but hard to read…

Monica

then it’s not well designed, i guess. People still misunderstand the meaning of the word design.
It’s not meant to be pretty, it’s meant to be GOOD. Some are good looking but don’t even maintain grafic relation inside it self, seems like they were shooting in the dark to be creative and have loads of cool looking effects.
I’m a very young designer but I actually do think that most of those are not good designs, they are trying too much to seem creative but they forget the main point: passing information.

estenoesminick

A lot of knowlege for a few euros a month, it seems like a mud fight for the best sale-poster. Is this the designer’s view? Just making a cool and recurrent face for a job in front of some “apple-computer”? More snobs than sense, that’s what happen!Freelance working and consciousness, that’s the way of design, no more sweet toady with a big and false smile in their faces!

Fernando

nice, a fresh ideias… congratulations… from Portugal

Pedro

Nice work!!! but there is a time and place for everything and most of these resume samples are Not appropriate for the occasion. Its like trying to impose or force a grunge style to conservative brand, here you are pushing the envelope and take the seriousness and importance away from your resume.

My suggestion to those who really want your audience have a sense of your work, will be to provide along with your “Nice and Clean” resume a Self-promotion.

I was with the same enthusiasm as many trying to create a Kick Ass!! Resume, but was not efficient in getting the interview I was trying to get. Maybe the concept did not help either (a picture of a Viagra bottle with titles “I will work Hard for You”)

… going on a bike ride ø‹åø

http://NA Curtis Loftis

A designer resume that shows T-squares and period looking artwork says little about the designer in question.

A portfolio is where one shows their work or in a biography. Not a resume.

Elmismodeantescondistintonombre

Empty words. We are playing smart and not being clever. A portfolio is a postmodern invention to put designers on the market. More consciousness about our profesion, we have some social responsability and we can work for freelance, I’m doing… looking for no trouble. A lot of sweet toadies gonna be snobs, yuppies, viyorcs… but just for a while (_)IIIIIID

http://tylershaqiri.com Tyler

OMG – I could not agree anymore with Micheil in the #1 comment.
I would not hire a single one of these designers based on JUST their resume presentation….I don’t even know where to begin reading them…

A resume needs to be simple and clean. In my opinion, this is where one’s understanding of Typography comes in handy.

http://www.twitter.com/rebeldesigner Rebel Designer

They are artistic & creative, as the topic says.

But not very practical…

CV / Resume : have to be simple and clear where you can find required info within no time.

Portfolio : you can go crazy, that is your playground…

Denise

I am a creative/artist person, so I really enjoyed these resumes and would interview many of these people for work. It is a relief to see fresh ideas and pleasing design.

I do understand though, that a resume for non-creative HR people, would need to be much more traditionally presented.

This reminds me of unusual business card designs that really only impress other creatives. You need to appeal to the needs of the people on the receiving end.

I like the idea from Amy, that these could be left with the interviewer upon leaving the meeting. It’s more of a tear sheet type of thing.

http://paperdoll.orange-crux.net/portfolio Sara

Micheil has got the right idea, but I’ll tell you what. Some of these designs are BEAUTIFUL designs. I think it’s safe to have a great copy of your resume or cv as long as you’re willing to supply a standard document version as well.

I love the 2nd one, the infographics one, but yes, that’s definitely got a targeted audience, and only infographics people would appreciate it.

I came up with a combination of both that I’m pretty happy with:
http://paperdoll.orange-crux.net/sara_reffler_resume.pdf

It’s designed, but it’s still clean, concise and readable.
Feel free to drop me an email with feedback!

David

If you want to be noticed as a design professional, then your resume needs to be designed! These are excellent!!

I interviewed with an art director who liked my resume because it was designed (though not as well as these–thanks for the inspiration). He said he was shocked at how many designers submitted resumes made in Microsoft Word. Those went straight to the garbage!

http://iamtotti.com tot2ivn

That’s a fantastic list but should only be used for graphic designers.. if you’re not one, then those Resumes would be self-killers :)

electronbee

A lot of these are way to flashy and over bearing. When in the past that i have had to screen potential applicants for an interview I had a lot to go through. So, with these resumes, although very cool and would be OK to have on your web site or maybe include with your resume with a portfolio, I would probably toss it. Resume screening is a fairly mechanical process and is “just another one of those things” you end up doing. The most that I would personally do would be these two:

http://mac1388.deviantart.com/art/Typographic-Resume-111684292
http://akidesign.deviantart.com/art/Curriculum-Vitae-92588918

They are fairly easy to read, they stand out, but are not insane like some of the others. I like the second one the best as it’s easier to read than the first but still shows some artistic expression. Although what I am saying may sound trivial they are not.

The absolute main goal of submitting a resume or CV is to get an interview! Once you have one then bring in a tangible portfolio printed on quality paper along with a CD/DVD with everything on it.

Christa

Hey,
My resume was one of the ones you chose to put up here…I just want to say thanks a bunch! I really appreciate the compliment–means a lot to me. =]

http://jobmob.co.il/ Jacob Share

Great roundup, I’ve done some of these too and I always enjoy seeing what original ideas the designers have come up with.

Here’s my original beautiful resumes article that is very popular:

36 Beautiful Resume Ideas That Work

Dani

Just saw your article – those are MUCH better examples of how a designer can show a bit of personal flare, but still keep it in line with being a resume. Thanks so much for the link!

Dani

A designer is supposed to communicate information in a simple, organized (understandable) fashion. I don’t think the majority of these have accomplished that. Yes, you are selling yourself, but some of these look so much like ads, they would end up in the junk mail pile.

We design to fulfill the clients’ objectives – the ‘client’ here has asked for a resume:
Think ‘creative brief’:
- “a brief account of one’s professional or work experience and qualifications”
- well written, grammatically correct (there is a reason they call it ‘writing’ a resume, copy is key – if you’re selling snowboards then maybe not so much)
- easy to read & find keywords at a quick glance (I never read resumes when first received…I scan, then trash or file for later review)
- printable on a typical B&W printer (or photocopier) to be passed on to others involved in the hiring process
- these are just a few to keep in mind, this list could go on :)

Even when you present your portfolio, you’re not just showing how well you can use Photoshop – that’s technical, anyone can learn it. The person you’re showing your work to, may not even like some of your work – but it’s up to you to explain each of your pieces, and justify why you did it that way and how it satisfied that particular client’s objectives. Our job involves so much more than just ‘making shit look cool’, a position I find myself constantly having to defend!

http://www.mediumr.com Rehan

these are dame good ideas….. realy

http://www.iamduncan.com DMC

By no means should you design a resume. I’m a senior creative at an award winning agency here in Scotland, and like an earlier poster, I would disregard these straight away. They’re pointless and annoying. I want to see your cv in a simple word document, not designed, so that I can read it. Designing your cv is such an immature thing to do.

Put your work in your folio.

hugo

regardless of the issue of a ‘desiged’ cv/resume or typed doc…

most of these samples are awfully designed, if i was to be sent these i would think that would be the caliber of your work (really not good!!!!) and you were probably staring out straight out of school. wouldn’t bother reading them and bin them!

by all means design you resume, get rid of the images/graphics and make it typographically beautiful.

Piglicker

Avoid employing unlucky people by throwing half the resumes in the trash without even reading them.

sam

hilarious :)

Joram Oudenaarde

Agreed DMC,

I don’t think however, that it would hurt to make your resume a typographicly perfect letter. Not that you have to go nuts about making it the most unreadable typography, but do something very pleasant and almost grid-like, without killing it with design.

I think a perfect typographically layout works a lot better then either a design-overkill or word document as a resume any day :)

http://www.iamduncan.com DMC

Joram, for sure, some typography is fine, applying logic to it is great by all means, but every example above is pure overkill.

I have to agree with Hugo, most of these examples are awful anyway.

http://raphaelddl.com RaphaelDDL

While they are cool, i don’t think anyone would hire them to a ‘serious’ business. Serious i mean in those old fashion corporations, or when the boss is an old style man.

Like Hugo said, “by all means design you resume, get rid of the images/graphics and make it typographically beautiful.”

While my resume have design, i don’t use it too much. It outstands the ‘standard’ word docs but isn’t too fancy.

DMC said:
“By no means should you design a resume. I’m a senior creative at an award winning agency here in Scotland, and like an earlier poster, I would disregard these straight away. They’re pointless and annoying. I want to see your cv in a simple word document, not designed, so that I can read it. Designing your cv is such an immature thing to do.”

I half disagree. These resumes shown sure are ‘immature’ but when you get just a better layout, with no fancy things, just a better way to show while keeping the reading simple and obvious, is the best.

That’s what i tried make on mine. If anyone want to give me some feedback/suggestion/critiques, here it is:

http://raphaelddl.com/CV_Raphael_v2b_cens.pdf

(That’s not the final version since i need to re-think about the ‘extras’ place in the 2nd page and some better way to show more skills with less space consumption. And of course, i censored my address and stuff :P)

Regards,
RaphaelDDL

http://www.chamelledesigns.com/blog/ Livia

I’ve seen something like this before on another blog and a lot of people commented that they are illegible and hard to print, which I agree with. Most employers would print out your resume on a b&w laser printer and most of these would look like a mess on one of those. They’d be better suited to an online portfolio website design.

http://www.marcusfolio.com.br Marcus Santos

Well, I think both sides of question are pertinent. As a graphic designer, we need to take an advantage of material and show something different from ordinary. We need to think about the core of question: I need a creative resumé but it need to be printable and readable. Most office pirnters are lasers or ink, so we need to take advantage of fast and easy print. So I decided to create a 2d, 3d resumé. To solve this problem I create a little chronological history about my skills and experiences and put in text blocks around the sides of a cut-and-fold trash can. And made my business card with the same structure and put together in my resumé.
With the resumé there´s a link to a section of my site that explains how to cut and fold the resumé.
Just need 1 color to print, cut and fold.
Well. I typed a lot…
The result is that:
http://www.marcusfolio.com.br/pdf/curriculum.pdf
The link about “How to cut and fold”:
http://www.marcusfolio.com.br/apresentacao.html
You need to click at: “Como montar o curriculum” and for business card: “COmo montar o Cubinho”

http://fensonism.blogspot.com Fensonism

These are awesome though I wouldn’t recommend anyone who plans to work in a conservative company to do this.

http://www.transparentpixel.com.br Sergio Almeida

Just two or three are good. I like mine http://www.sadesigner.com/downloads/resume.pdf. Simple as that.

http://missskywalker.deviantart.com Grace

Wow they’re all so cool, but I do agree with the first guy who wrote, maybe a little less poster-looking. You know leave the cool stuff you can do for later, like give them a taste and have them wanting more. In any case as a beginner it’s really inspiring to see these resumes. They’re so cool!

derChef

I like how the 18th one down, “Christa Roethlisberger” says she has HTL Experience.

http://www.citysiteswebdesign.com Digital Froilan

They are all good, but I like the one by Jean-Francois.
I didn’t know that you can be creative with your resume.

I will try this approach and redesign my resume and see what happens.

Great article.

thomas

personally, i’ve never seen something like this before (artistic resumes). i love and am going to try it out soonest possible. it’s just powerful.

http://hayniedesign.com Rich

This post should be titled “what NOT to do” when it comes to your resume. A designer should know when to NOT go overboard. Clean, simple typography is key when designing your resume, any design shop worth its salt knows this.

http://www.transparentpixel.com.br Sergio Almeida

#126 Agreed :)

It’s more difficult to construct something clean and simple than anything.

http://www.galdinorama.com André Galdino

I think those resumes doesn’t fit a HR desk. They should be at an Atr Gallery!
It’s all about being at the right place!

http://www.eduideia51.blogspot.com Eduardo

Its a really great ideia………..

I´ll post it in my blog…

ivan_s

In my opinion, only one or two of those résumés will make it out of an instant bin.

A résumé should be a balanced statement of Proffesionalism and a clever way to demonstrate your talents. These are way over the latter awfully crying “I’m very Talented!!”, going far off to the “overly creative” area. It might as well show you as an unexperienced candidate.

http://patrickds.com/blog Patrick

Hey, I found interesting and inspiring event if most of them are just graphic solutions to the standard A4 or web page Resumé.
I found interesting however that few tried to “quantize” or develop a new way of presenting their skills, like the first, second and the cube CV and I think I should share mine with you.

In the same way there is feedback on these ideas I would like to put a project I did during this Winter to present my skills. Is a little bit long and I must warn that it was not intended to work like a CV or resumé since it’s too long to present in an interview. But it was an experiment that aimed to explain or summarize the choices that led me to my career…

Take a look and give feedback!

http://unfold.patrickds.com

retlaw

I disagree with most of you here. Come on people, get out of the dark ages. The outlandish ones on the top of this page are the ones that I would keep. As a Senior Art Director in charge of a room of animators the resume is the first thing I look at. If i see one of these sitting in a pile of black and whites full of text I’m gonna grab these exciting ones. I’ll want to look through these and then pop their demo in to see their motion. Weren’t you all taught to think beyond the box? These here are definitely beyond the box. In fact they are so beyond it that it takes you a couple minutes to even find their meaning. Are you all that busy that you won’t take the time to actually look through the “hard to understand” ones here? If that’s the case you need to take up some time management training.
now on a side note. If you’re gonna do something like these….don’t use standard clip art/vector graphix that we all see and use. Draw some original stuff.

http://www.paginatrix.com Krista Gregg

My resume is on here (made a long time ago) Graphic is spelled wrong!

Thank God, I’ve NEVER used it for an actual interview.

hahahaha

http://redblackbrown.com Bill

Some questions for anyone who hasn’t rushed back to the drawing board (answers supplied):

1. What is your goal? The only right answer here is, “to get in the room, with my portfolio, with the person who makes the decisions.” It is not “to meet HR requirements with flair.”

2. What is the most effective way to get in the room? I wish the answer was “send a super-sweet resume.” The answer is networking and concept-based self-promotion. Sadly, these terms come up a total of four times, FOUR TIMES, in 133 comments. Maybe because it’s so hard and nobody wants to pour water on the lovefest for bitchin cool resumes.

Your resume should be the last thing you hand over, and ideally only upon request. And if you’ve done everything right, when you do, it should feel like a redundant formality.

If I had to break down how to spend your energy, it would look like this:

50% Portfolio prep
30% Self-promotional piece(s)
29% Networking
1% Resume

Oh look, that adds up to 110%.

Sorry.

Bill

Jeff

Only problem I see is printing these suckers out. Unless you are dropping it off. If you emailed these heavy graphical resumes to employers they would lose that option to print (unless severely wasting some color ink or having a crummy black and white mess) I think the typographic version is perfect as it would print out nicely and still shows off some creativity. Including these graphical resumes in your portfolio to showcase some skills would be a better decision and would be a great thing to bring along printed out to an interview to sway the employers decision even further and they can take away a nicely printed graphical version to the decision making process after the interview.

Dave Thibodeau

Ron Lim also has a great resume:

http://www.portfolio.ronlim.com/Ron_Lim_resume.pdf

Tattybye

No he doesn’t…

An illegible list of nonsense copy about how great he is, and a list of meaningless awards.
Crap.

http://thesocalledme.net Jenny

just dropping in from StumbleUpon. :) You have a pretty nifty site here. I’ll be sure to bookmark it for daily visits.

Mark

“Expenditure” is misspelled in the first line of this one.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/7855449@N02/3258568672/sizes/o/

robert b

Screw the haters. I thought these were cool, so I designed one for myself. I would appreciate any feedback! http://greentechbuilders.posterous.com/my-new-resume thanks for a little inspiration.

Isabel

I think these resumes are quite “cute” as design school asignments, but quite uncommercial. Remember when applying to a job you are being judged by people who doesn’t know anything about design mostly, so tecnically when they get these sort of resumes, they find em hard to read and of course, “full of crap”. As a Pro designer for almost 5 years I get this kind of resumes all the time and consider them inmature. A designer must be capable to get the best out of a format, I agree, but also communicate the right way towards the objective, and most of all, be able to find the proper solution. Keep em simple, classy, a good and clear layout is the keynote. Be sure to enhance you software and platform skills and send it in pdf. Makes a better impression.

Cheers.

http://nmiciano.com nOeL

WOW! Awsome!

Isa

#17: “Track Record” :B Dur-pa-dur.

Toto

I agree with you guys… resume should be readable and easy to understand but the way there people designed their resume, hmm it’s pretty interesting! But let’s admit you can put flowery words to impress people but only few of them can really make good design. At least these people, they did not only give you their experience but their creative side as well. Keep up the good work guys and believe in yourself! God bless.

http://www.martiandesign.com David Platt

When I look at resumes, I just want to see info, not graphics. I don’t think I would have the energy to try and find the info I’m looking for on these. -dp

Deluxe Interactive

This is superb & interesting approach. Im digging their works. Cool CV. Ayos -_+

BD

Nice Page

Marjorie Lumet

These resumes are great! I think it takes guts to present a resume like this and think outside of the box and if you are dealing with a company who doesn’t recognize this and agree with the above you probably are looking in the wrong place anyway. Indeed, with a CV like this one makes a choice, it doesn’t work with all companies, as long as it is done in all consciousness then that’s cool! Depends if you are desperate on getting A job or wanting to find THE job that will allow you to fully express your creativity. And most of all you are getting loads of hype (I’ve already tweeted this and I’m sure most of the above have passed it on too…) so you probably have landed that cool job already!

Good God…

I think the amateurs and enthusiasts need to stop posting in this thread, because you’re all giving people a completely incorrect idea about how to go about things.
The people here saying DON’T make your CV in this way are absolutely correct, 100%.

With 20 years experience, now a creative director at a leading London agency, I absolutely do not want to know about anyone who presents this type of CV. It’s appalling, amateurish, and annoying. I’m going to print out any CV I get, in duplicate, and use it to go through points when discussing potential candidates. If we can’t quickly skim and read the most salient points, that CV is going in the bin.

Those people bleating on about “get the job that allows you to show your creativity”, “cool jobs” and all that guff, please, have you even worked in the creative industries? I seriously doubt it, and believe me, if you present a CV like this, you never will.

Marjorie

Fair enough, don’t have your experience in the creative field, you have a point:)
It is quite obvious that a cool layout shouldn’t exclude relevant and clear content. No need to be nasty about it though or give these guys a triple A (appalling, amateurish, and annoying!). Nothing wrong with a bit of enthusiasm and you have to recognize they are getting attention at least, good or bad!
- Pedro Moreno
  
  Well is really annoying.

http://www.branddots.com Heather Torres

Very cool examples. I don’t think they are relevant for all occupations. However, if you’re looking for a job in graphic design, a creative resume like some of these examples can say a lot about your skills. They’re kind of like an extension of your portfolio. I would recommend having a basic resume that is submitted at the time of application. Then, when you show up to the interview, you can blow the employer away with your resume’s artistic design.

John Ragone

I think it’s REALLY important to do your homework before sending ANY resume to any employer. You need to know what kind of work they do so you submit the most appropriately designed resume, with content tailored to their needs. Its also important to prep your book accordingly. If the company your applying to is very corporate or uses corporate hiring practices, conservative is your best bet. But if the place is small and stresses ideas and design skill, the opposite is true. And no two companies are ever the same.

I can think of several small boutique design firms that would fawn over these. But they would never fly at ad agencies or in-house corporate departments. Strategy is ALWAYS your best bet.

I have several resumes–ranging from very conservative to very heavily designed for that very reason. In fact, I cant remember the last time I sent the same resume or design twice…

Adelina

Agree with your points. Very true.

victor

i think that one of them are very creative but other are really a mess are i hard to understand that, I think that resume can be clean and creative and not saturate like this ones

http://www.takingweb.com marighela

ver, very, very nice!…i’ve also done my resume as artistic-presentation only for download under my web site.

http://www.seniorwebdesigner.com Mohammed Alaa

Yes 90% are nor usable remember you want to apprear professional when applying for a job not like posting ads!

ashlei

Someone who went to my college and graduated the same year as me apparently has their resume on this list. If his could make it, so could mine! haha…And mine matches the look of my print portfolio, so it is basically branding myself. I agree some are a little over the top and hard to read, but I still think as a designer you should do SOMETHING. Mine is easy to read but has more style than a plain black and white resume.

ashlei

http://i46.photobucket.com/albums/f116/ashlei214/ajachimowicz_resume_updated.jpg

Sagmeister

@ashlie

I’m not entirely sure you really know what “branding” is…

As a designer, you SHOULD NOT DO ANYTHING LIKE THIS.

Just text, some typography to make it legible, then show your folio at interview.
ALWAYS.

ashlei

@Sagmeister

It’s ASHLEI and that’s not what I was told/taught, and clearly by this article that’s not what others have been told/taught either.

I’ve been on interviews where people have complimented my resume, and how it ties in with my portfolio. Its neat and legible, but designed. Not over the top. So your opinion is just one.

Sagmeister

@Ashlei

Clearly by this article, the people who admire and favour the above approaches, are people who either don’t work in design, or can’t get work in design, and quite rightly no doubt. The above examples are hideous.
What’s obvious to me, is that the working professionals who’ve commented on this article share MY views.
Something to keep in mind, is that those who can, do.
Those who can’t, teach.

Maybe they didn’t teach constructive criticism at your school, something that the people joining in the lovefest seem to have missed. Someone else pointed out that your resume should be the last thing you hand over, a redundant formality. Absolutely. You should have the job in the bag before resumes even come into play.

You say you’ve been on interviews where they complimented your resume.
Compliments are pretty worthless if they don’t hire you.
- ashlei
  
  You have no idea if they hired me or not, or if I turned down the job or not.
  
  Did you research each person who responded? How do you know if they work in design or not? And the ones who were TEACHING, DID and were DOING and still DO.
  
  I can take constructive criticism, and I also know that you can’t please everyone. You are still ONE person with ONE opinion. Yes you don’t like (hate?) these designed resumes but what you say is not gospel. If you were interviewing these people, maybe you wouldn’t hire them. Someone else might. It doesn’t mean that person is clueless about good design.
  
  At least I don’t come off like a self-righteous a**hole.
- Juan
  
  You win, that’s for sure!!!!!!!!!!
  That’s a clever comment. It’s not only uor resume but also your skills; in the end, I’ve never been hired based on my resume but on my performance.

http://www.dcypher.co.uk Webbo

I really like the one in the pantone book style – very cool.

http://www.medyum.gen.tr medyum

I agree with Micheil. I think people should stick with a simple text-based resume. Just make sure the typography looks immaculate!

http://jameslclark.com James

Okay, so I’m sitting at my desk looking at potential hires. 223 resumes. All white. All plain. All say the same thing. Except one. It’s bright. Graphic based. It stands out on the desk filled with a sea of white like a massive light house warning ships away from big nasty rocks. It’s not overly complicated and strikes a nice balance between conveying the concise information I need to make an informed decision — name, address, educational level, experience — and a decent example of his creative side demonstrated through color, typography, style, and individual flair.

Traditional CVs serve one purpose — they let me know who is NOT qualified. If I am looking for someone with artistic ability who can take our ideas and help us present them to the world, it’s refreshing to see someone take the time to give me what I need as a decision maker at my company.

In my view, anyone who ignores a quality graphic based resume isn’t someone you want to work for anyway. You have to have an environment that strikes a nice balance, otherwise, your creativity will always be stunted by those around you. While I liked a number of the above examples, I felt Ms. Berger’s did a great job of mixing both elements for someone who gets typography. Tudor’s was a great example of something that would “jump out” from the rest of the resumes on the table.

Make no mistake about it, people are sheep. Many of the people who poo-poo creative resumes are bigger sheep, and some will even be threatened by creative thinkers even though they claim that’s who they are.

The only people who have ever got ahead in life are those who are willing to stand out from the rest of the crowd. You won’t get looked at by every job, but you will eventually catch the attention of the job you really want — one that fits with YOUR personality, your lifestyle, YOUR goals, your ideals, et cetra.

A job is a job, unless you love it. You work to live your life, you don’t live to work. People like the “creative director” above who made the crack about “remember writing” has a very myopic view on this topic. By his own words, I’d never hire him to be a creative director at my company; if one of my employees acted like that and didn’t pass on that ONE or TWO resumes that come across thier desk as being different, they’d get fired. No questions asked. And they know that about me.

As for writing, I’ve written a number of actual books, I write for numerous magazines, and I successfully sell myself and our business to clients all of the time using creative ideas like the examples above. Albeit, there are some up there that need to be toned down a bit — but not so much as to stifle your creativity. Again, it’s about balance. And I’m an executive level manager with two post graduate degrees who actually makes the “final” decision in hiring; I’m not just someone who has a say and waxes on with partial authority here at a blog.

The real key in a down market is this: be persistent. And always be you. I don’t want conformists when your job will be to be creative. I want people who think differently. That is how we invented and marketed over 50 new products to the world in less than three years. By thinking outside AND inside the box. Be yourself. That way they know who they’re really interviewing.

Great post.

Hoss

“I’m not just someone who has a say and waxes on with partial authority here at a blog”

But, isn’t that exactly what you’ve just done? You’ve made vague claims to accomplishments but haven’t qualified them, and you’ve insisted you know what’s best and that you’re right. 594 words if I’m not mistaken, you must be seriously busy…

I’d also point out that if you fired a member of staff, especially a director, for not handing you a CV, they’d have you dragged through the courts faster than you can say “I’m not really a company director and I have no place hiring creative staff because I haven’t got a clue what I’m on about”

Actually, I take that back, you’ve spraffed enough nonsense to let me know you’re not a creative yourself, which means A: that you shouldn’t be hiring creatives, and B: you have no place critiquing creative CV’s, and that you’re so impressed by shiny things that you wouldn’t know real, EFFECTIVE, creative skill if it smacked you in the face. You’d hire the person with the funkiest CV and then wonder why they can’t do the work you give them.

You sound like every company director I’ve ever met i.e: An opinionated, short-sighted, boastful idiot.

These CV”s suck ass, the people here saying send a word file and follow it with a folio are the ones any hopeful creative should be paying attention to.

http://jameslclark.com James

Hoss, good for you. As far as I’m aware I never responded to you directly. However, your personal attack is quite amusing. Let’s look at your specifics here for a quick response. No, I’ve not waxed on, but you have every right to feel that way towards my post. No need to argue that point.

Vauge claims, well, okay — I could see how you might think that. I didn’t go line by line on my CV, true, but that doesn’t negate the reality behind my experience level. You are welcome to Google my name — do include the full name — James L. Clark, MBA and I should pop up around a few placed. Try Amazon and Barnes & Noble too. Okay, that may have been a little boastful. I’m fine with letting you develop your own conclusions on what details you find and feel secure enough to know not everyone will agree with my views or assessment.

Given that I can write 10,000 words of prose without trying, it’s not surprising that 500+ words rolled out in two or three minutes. Since I own the company and make my own schedule as I see fit, not really a shocker that I can pop by a blog here and there and take a look, and if I feel like it, respond to posts. I don’t work for someone else, as noted; there’s a lot of freedom in that. But hey, that’s me.

You in the UK? Or EU? You sure sound like it. Did you go to law school? Quite frankly, I did Hoss. In fact, in the UK and US. More than happy to debate the particulars of employment law if you really want to, but I’m confident you’re only partially right; each country and indeed, state in the US, has it’s own statutes.

Litigation in and of itself means nothing; you need a strong case, a contract to back up your claims, and deep pockets. If I choose to fire anyone at my company for any reason so long as it complies with statutes and common law, they can moan all they like, but there’s little the can do. That’s just reality here in the US my friend where my company is incorporated. And this is even more so if they’ve clearly violated policy or not acted as instructed. There’s no “right to work” at a company my friend — you have to earn it by doing what you are paid to do.

While I accept your views prima facia and acknowledge your right to agree or disagree with me and how I view things, the fun difference between you and I is I am a company executive and, well, you’re not.

Thanks for the input; it was interesting to say the least. For those reading our posts, really, it’s up to you to decide what works best for you. There will be a lot of people that come by and waffle on — some are qualified, some are not, and it really doesn’t matter. :-)

Jilly

Um, maybe if you have 223 resumes on your desk, you might find the best candidate by y’know, reading them, instead of waiting for one to “jump out at you”.

http://jameslclark.com James

Thanks Jilly, I do. But as a company owner, I’m allowed to ask for things to be presented as I wish. And since I am particular to creativity instead of people who follow custom, I am partial to seeing interesting resumes such as these. That’s one of the benefits of owning a company. You don’t have to work for me, and you don’t have to agree with me; just like I wouldn’t have to hire you if you happened to send me a standard run of the mill CV. After all, that’s your choice too.

Ashlei

@ James

Can I just give you a high five for all your responses? Thank you for being open minded and not acting like there is one right way and everything else is wrong. It’s shocking to me how so many designers are self-righteous and arrogant. No one has to agree with all opinions, but there is such a lack of respect of other people’s design choices and opinions. I’ve responded in a few design discussions, and people so rudely respond to what I say in a negative, superior tone.

I like you. You made my day a little better. Thank you.

http://jameslclark.com James

Ashlei,

Well, thank you for that.

Really, I don’t post for people who disagree with me; they are entitled to feel, think, and decide as they like. I imagine many are set in their ways for the moment, and very little I say will have a positive impact on that. Of course, their views may or may not change as they age, mature, and get more experience — just as mine did (and continue to do). I thought I knew everything too, and realize each year just how much I didn’t know the previous one before that.

Sometimes even rude people have good points. I’m not saying be a doormat or that the way they act is appropriate (in fact, I don’t feel it is), but be willing to listen politely and use anything they say that will benefit you from the exchange; the most successful people in the world learned that early on in their lives.

One should welcome opposing views without taking it personally. Between the poorly formulated arguments, ad hominem attacks, and straw man proposals, there may be something of value to you (or I) somewhere in there. Take a second and look; if you find something great! And if not, then shrug it off and know that you’re better than letting someone hidden behind a PC screen or MAC from having a negative impact on your views.

And that’s the crux of most online discussions; it’s impersonal and it’s very easy to lose sight of reality. Often people are emboldened, when they might otherwise be very timid, or a the very least respectful and accommodating. A great example is this: the same people who are rude, threaten, use inappropriate language, call you names, and so forth, would rarely have the sack to do so to your face. It’s tantamount to driving down the street and somone cuts you off, flips you the bird, and blames you for the situation. Then, when you both just happen to pull into the same gas station to fill up, they won’t even make eye contact with you. It’s an online culture thing, and if you enter into discussions assuming that there will be people like that, you’re approaching it from relative safety and you’ll never have cause for anxiety. Ultimately, people only have power over you that you give them online. In real life, as you probably know, it’s hard to get away with that kind of behavior. Ultimately, there are consequences for that kind of thing in civilized societies — especially liberal democracies.

To summarize, since I don’t know anyone here, I take what they post with a grain of salt, realizing all along that we don’t break bread together, go out for drinks, or go on vacation (holiday) to the the south of France with each other. And most certainly, they don’t pay my bills. I reserve my real feelings for people who have a vested interest in me and my family, and we in them. Keep that in mind, and you’re golden. Forget it, and people who don’t matter in your life will get into your head and cause you difficulty. Don’t let that happen.

Remember, people pontificate because they can online. The easiest way to deal with them is to be nice and move on to bigger and better discussions that serve you in a positive way, that add quality to your life, and encourage you to be a better person today than you were yesterday. I post for people like you who are interested in my views and may (and in some cases may not, but I try) benefit from my experience. I spent a long time in the military serving in combat arms and special operations — there are worse things going on around the world and in life right now that are actually worth fretting over, than some dude talking crap online at a blog. It’s that simple; nothing more, nothing less. The way I see it is, if people choose not to like me (or you) and what I (we) have to say, oh well. It’s okay.

That’s the wonderful thing about living on planet Earth — tons of great cultures, tons of interesting people, and great opportunities to learn and grow from each other every single day. In each instance, everyone has the opportunity to show up to the discussion with two buckets — one with water in it, and one with a flammable liquid of your choice. Which bucket you use should be appropriate to the situation at hand; sometimes you fight fire by extinguishing it, and in other cases, you need to use fire to snuff it out. Sadly though, few people truly understand how to make that decision.

I’m encouraged by your response; thank you again. Though, I’m not likely to come back around here. I just happen to stop by, saw some pretty pethetic examples of myopic and inexperienced pontificating, so I threw my two cents into the pot; they can take or leave it, it’s just two cents.

So, you’re more than welcome to keep in touch outwith this blog. I do think it is possible to make friends online, and I make the effort to keep in touch with people often; I enjoy that whole social network thing. Perhaps you will be one of them. I’m on facebook, twitter, and so on. It would be my pleasure to touch base again. You can’t miss me. Sadly, my avatar matches everywhere. lol

James
- victor
  
  get over please

Mike Gunn

@ James

I can believe you’re a company exec. You sure talk enough crap, and you seem to love the sound of your own voice.
What a cockstain.

http://jameslclark.com James

Yeah, I suppose I do like the sound of my voice; it’s even toned, clear, concise, and not pitch laden. And in general, I tend to speak with the experiential and educational authority of a person who’s actually accomplished a fair bit in life. But okay, you’re entitled to think that somehow makes me less of a person than you. Of course, all said and done, your response also identifies why you’re *not* a company executive. lol. Too funny.

Kate

I found this article in June prior to applying for a job. While many of these were much to busy (in my opinion), they did give me a few ideas. In the end, I worked out of InDesign and prepared my type in a tidy fashion, and then I made a plain logo header and a footer image for the bottom right corner. This way, the information was presented in a clear manner and creative elements that reflected my personality were woven in later. It seemed to be a much easier working process for me than trying to begin with an elaborately laid-out page, and apparently it worked because I got the job. When I get home I’ll see about posting a PDF if it’s of interest to anyone.

Mark

Let’s not assume that everyone is applying for a job at a stiff design firm. Many job openings happen to be at smaller entrepenurial shops where the owner is more likely to be attracted by some of the looser, more abstract designs. How about if one walks into an interview with two resume’s and hands over the most appropriate one. If an old guy with glasses walks up to you take out the conservative one. If some kid walks up and says “hey dude”, whip out the creative one. If you need to send out the resume in advance, then do some research on the company. Find out something about the decision makers there and then make you best guess.

http://jameslclark.com James

Well said.

Memphis

I am a hiring manager for a large team of Relationship and Account Managers – yes, business not design. I would be delighted to see any amount of creativity or personality added to an applicant’s resume. We don’t study them anyway. We look for minimum requirements and something that catches our eye. We want to hear from the applicant, not read everything on a resume. Be creative with your resume, bland is bad. All industries need creativity and free-thinkers to be succesul.

http://www.writeCLICKresume.com Jeff Tokarz

Winning resumes are compelling and persuasive.

Excepting design houses, etc., where the above resumes depict creative talent, most employers prefer a chronological or functional resume. The old adage, “Just The Facts, Man!” still hold true when it comes to employment.

http://scar1337.wordpress.com scarlett

Wow, thanks for sharing these, they are a great inspiration for all of us out there starting out in design.

Dunja

I like the one in the form of the GANT CARD- it is so simple, and tells employer everything he needs to know in an intresting and smart way. I will borrow this idea ;)

vx

You know, just a thought -

Several of you are claiming to have input in the hiring process, and state that you’d send most of these straight to the trash.

Something to consider – in an interview process, the employee is as much weeding out the employer as vice versa. I’d be willing to wager that most of the designers contemporary and forward-thinking enough to have a resume like this probably wouldn’t want to work for you anyway. The fact that someone so constraining wouldn’t ever call them back may be a feature of the resume, not a flaw.

And if they’re freelancers? Having clients you work well with is the difference between loving your job and hating it. If they can’t look at your resume and “get it”, you’re better off without them.

http://jameslclark.com James

hear hear.
Barbara Saunders

I agree that you want to work for a company that appreciates your creativity; however, logistics is an issue, too. I have been in a position where I had to screen more than 50 resumes a day. A really extraordinary resume requires a huge shift in gears to process intellectually.

I would admire the unconventional resume, but I would be left with having to set aside my own aesthetic attraction to re-interpret the piece of art into the “story of a candidate” I need to make an interview decision. I wouldn’t count this against the candidate, but it would likely make it more difficult for me to figure out whether or not I like the candidate, thereby hindering the application rather than helping it.

http://whatsafterthecredits.com Chris R.

I wish my I.T. resume could look like those!!!

Gene Cayce

I know I’m a bit late. I’m working on a project that will easily do that w/ your images of choice. Options are crazy. This is an incredible thread. I work for you. not anyone else…

TD

If I sent something like that to a recruiter, they would just ask me to re-send it in MS Word format so they can scan it into their database.

ayadet

You nailed it! That’s exactly what they would do!
- Gene Cayce
  
  word sux. google can do a better easier doc. word users can easily download it

http://www.starling-software.com Curt Sampson

I suspect that a lot of the people who like these resumes haven’t actually had to deal with one of the realities of hiring: sorting through fifty or a hundred resumes for a particular position.

Sure, a resume such as this would stand out. But the main job of a resume, at least for me when I’m hiring, is to quickly rule out candidates that are obviously wrong for the job. At that stage, the resume and cover letter get perhaps 10-20 seconds, allowing me to spend less than an hour whittling down those hundred candidates to ten or twenty that seem worth following up. None of the resumes above would have allowed me to extract the information I need in that amount of time.

Then again, if I were hiring for “produces cool looking stuff,” as opposed to “can communicate information well,” there’s a possibility that I would pursue candidates with resumes like the above. I still don’t think I’d bother to try to decipher the resumes, though….

http://twitter.com/deezzer Dominic Son

The future of Resumes! Heard of the Resume Race Theory?

Drew

A few years back I was talking to a recruiter at Adobe. She told me that they typically got about a thousand resumes for every advertised position, of which 200 were qualified for it. (Note that this was with an online submittal form that sometimes required a long answer – two or more sentences – typed into a half dozen or so boxes.) I would imagine that the current market is about the same for most advertised positions.
So a designed resume like these would be useful in that the hiring manager might spend a couple extra seconds looking at it, perhaps four seconds total rather than the average two seconds he or she normally spends per resume. But if the hiring manager doesn’t see something in that extra time, then it is wasted.
So the resume I like the best of the above is Krista Gregg’s: your attention is immediately drawn to particular points that the designer wants to highlight. Unfortunately, the Hobbies section is the most attention-attracting and the least useful, and the content is not really there.
On the other hand, if you are a firm that pushes these types of designs on to your clients, then it may be hypocritical to not accept a resume designed in the same manner.
On the other hand, I’m not in the design field, just a marketing manager for boring companies, so my input may be totally useless.

http://www.paginatrix.com Krista Gregg

why thank you. I never used the resume to land a job. I have a much more simple, yet styled, resume to send out. That was just for a class in college and needless to say I didn’t have much in the way of hobbies while in school.

Wiss

Well, the debate seems to be whether the designs are easy to read or they look cool… but I think people is missing the point.

Resumes should be, above everything else, easy to read, but trust me, the traditional up-down professional experience resume is a pain in the ass… you have to be over concentrated to see the full picture, constantly searching for dates to see how long the person has been on a job…

There are great ideas here, such as in Michael Anderson’s. A graph with an exponential time-line, showing your experience and education is awesome. You can see what a person has done in just a glance (though I think Anderson’s graphs could be improved for easy reading).

All right, resumes are not posters (some do look like posters…), but there are great ideas here for synthesizing your experience.

By the way, I prefer more personal resumes than just a bunch of facts that most of the time don’t say nothing.

Luke

Personally I would splash some colour, some not-too-fancy typography, and a nice well designed logo/icon and thats it. Nothing more is needed to draw attention. These resumes epitomize overkill.

Some of these resumes fail due to classic errors anyway. For example NEVER write “I will do just about anything”. If YOU don’t have a clear and focused idea of what you want to do then how is an employer going to know what to do with you? What choise will they have but to consider you an aimless bum?

maus

So… Anybody note that “caffeine” is spelled wrong on the character sheet resume?

Regardless of where you come down on the “design v. typography” debate (I’m a graphic artist; I think that design has its place and that place is not necessarily on your resume) the BEST way to get a job is not to misspell the third word anyone sees.

http://www.starling-software.com/ Curt Sampson

“z f k” writes, “Isn’t graphics artwork exactly meant “to convey information”? in a way different than mere simple text?”

Sometimes. At other times, graphics are merely meant to look cool.

If any of these were intended to convey information better than the standard resume format, they’ve all failed, as far as I can tell. Viewed in the light of Tufte’s recommendations in the classic book The Visual Display of Quantitative Information, they seem all to have buried the real information under a lot of very pretty representations of irrelevant or non-information.

Isa

Oddly enough, I think this highlights one of the greatest intellectual disparities between the major houses of thought within design. Should design be visible or invisible? Should design speak for itself or help itself speak? If I wear to venture a guess, I’d say that most of the yea-sayers for these types of resumes are younger designers/enthusiasts who have experienced design more on the web than their print oriented predecessors. Now, on the web, simply via the nature of computers, all the the mechanics of designing are handled for you. A single letter of a typeface can’t be crooked from a bumped photo-typesetter.

Oh man, this thought isn’t coming out very coherently.. but I’m trying to say is that you are either designing from perfection to imperfection with a disregard to mechanics or you are designing from imperfection to perfection with a grapple-hold on mechanics.

Not sure I’ll get it any clearer than that, not much of a writer.

Reed

Look at all the responses.

Must mean something.

So – creative employers look for creative applicants.

And employers who offer cubicles – look for someone who won’t think outside the box.

Stefan

I’m guessing you don’t work in design. Creative employers look for someone who knows the rules of design, and how to effectively turn a client, not someone who’s going to sit all day dreaming up ideas, wasting their money, just for those ideas to be turned down by the client. In most design studios, you won’t be asked to think “outside of the box”, you’ll very definitely be asked to think inside the box, and work within the defined rules.

The amateurs and enthusiasts, who make up the large majority of commenters here, seem to think it’s not like that, and that a “creative” job somehow means you’re free to do whatever you want. You aren’t.

http://noir-badger.deviantart.com Krissy

Alright, I’m not going to read all of the comments. I get the general idea of most of them anyhow. I’m only just coming out of high school and going into design school. I recently designed my “résumé” (I call it a CV normally heh) and the only thoughts that I had in mind were ‘How can I make this stand out whilst still maintaining a clean, professional and practical look?’ That is the KEY thing that anyone should consider when creating their CV. Don’t take it overboard, but certainly consider the design aspect. I recently turned my boyfriends CV into an HTML based file (‘click to each section to easily view the specific information’ type of thing)for him to send to those requesting the CV via e-mail. It was simple and effective and it was DIFFERENT to the norm. Of course I created a simple print CV too to take in to places but the point is, in order to stand out, colour and imagery is not always the way to go about it. You can be creative without doing those things. I feel (even with my small bank of design knowledge) that a CV should be minimalistic but typographically sound, as well as compositionally. The majority of these examples give no initial focal point for the viewer, thus making it difficult to know where to start first.

http://www.jdavidbaker.com/ Jon

While these are interesting, I would never even consider most of them. If you’re going to force me to work that hard to read a document advertising you, why would I even consider hiring you to do designs that are advertising something I’m trying to sell to my clients? A good designer should be able to make something look well-designed without sacrificing the ability to comprehend what is being communicated. These designs just communicate that someone can go crazy in Photoshop/Illustrator/InDesign/whatever, but most of them also communicate that their designers don’t know how to communicate.

http://www.thecomplexmedia.com/ theComplex

Nice examples, but I’d hate to have to actually read most of them.

Roger Garrett

1. Graphic Artist gets given a project by manager.
2. Graphic Artist creates design that he/she thinks is absolutely cool.
3. Graphic Artist’s design gets rejected.

OR…

1. Graphic Artist gets given a project by manager.
2. Graphic Artist creates design that the manager will think is absolutely cool and fits all the necessary criteria for the target audience.
3. Graphics Artists’s design is accepted.

RULE 1:

Know your target audience.

RULE 2:

Your target audience is NOT other graphic designers.

RULE 3:

Your target audience when submitting resumes is most likely an HR person, who has no clue what graphic art is anyway.

Roger Garrett

It appears that most of these examples were produced by “graphic artists” (and I use that term very loosely) who are excellent at copying and pasting from clip art or other people’s graphics. Practically none of them show any talent at conveying information or understanding how to target a message (in this case a resume) to an intended recipient (in this case the HR person or, if they’re lucky, they’re eventual supervisor).

I wouldn’t hire any of them.

Mark

Nice examples but some are very hard to read but your definitely missing this one:
http://www.tshoda.com/My_Pocket_CV.php
The CV uses a good method of combining samples of work as well as content but looks very expensive to do.

James

Sorry, but I have to agree with the other commenters. Most of these examples are terrible. I am not impressed by the “designer” who can cram the most special effects into one document – especially when the document is actually supposed to be read. Context!

“Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.”
~ Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

Ha

I have an idea: print your resume on a large piece of cardboard. Then cut it into a 500-piece jigsaw puzzle and let the over-stressed HR employee put it together. Everyone finds puzzles relaxing, right? Think outside the box!

Nurg

Mark. It looks expensive to do, and it looks awful as well. Not to mention hard to read, I mean what point size is that? 3?

http://www.mh-31.com/nagpur Karthik Ragubathy

Wow nice Post on some nice CV’s. I appreciate the effort :D

http://afewtips.com MichaelT

These resumes (except for the ones that are slightly graphical) do Not help the HR person quickly scan the resume to get it to the next step.

These should be included ALONG WITH a traditional resume. That could demonstrate the creative side.

http://www.sbcjpr.com Prakash Sherawat

very Nice.

http://www.creativeindividual.co.uk Laura

I think it is very dangerous (in terms of getting hired) to overly stylise your CV, simply because design is all a matter of taste. And as mentioned above many times, it’s very easy to miss the mark. I found this one to be just plain stupid:

http://seanmcnally.deviantart.com/art/Resume-page-1-28051201

Guns, bullets, skulls and swords! Do you want a job or not???

Perhaps its more worth while to focus on beautiful typography and elegant layout, making the whole thing readable – and therefore usable – rather than going nuts with unnecessary graphical elements.

I mean, how about sending a digital portfolio along with your CV instead? Then you have every right to show of your creative skills.

Hey Laura-Get a Clue.

Laura (#194),

Before you call that CV “just plain stupid” why don’t you actually read it?

That CV is targeted at getting a job in the GAMING industry, and it happens to be designed as a Role Playing Game character sheet.

Quite clever if I must say so.

Now I am sure if Sean were applying for something along the lines of an isometric composition designer, he would change his CV accordingly.

Like they say, “Know your audience”, and I think he did just that!
- Stephanie
  
  Actually, Laura is correct. Nice try though.

Parvesh

I agree with Micheil & Insic.
But if we can make a resume that has a comparatively soft colors and simple design that can visually separate the text information in groups that can be negotiating between simple resume and these ones.

At least our work is different from desk works.

http://www.mccoy.co.uk Richard McCoy

Whist I liked looking at these CV’s from a design perspective ,I even got a little insecure thinking mine was dull http://www.mccoy.co.uk/about/cv/RichMcCoy.pdf I soon got over it, there is some skill involved in creating something that delivers the information needed in an attractive manner without sacrificing its purpose. I would argue that most of these are pretty but not that great in terms of design.

I also have created a more playful CV website http://www.webfellowforhire.com that I don’t send to apply for work but it more exists for the fun of creating it and to perhaps capture the eye of passers by.

I would be interested to find out if any of the above CV’s have actually been effective in securing a good post? Hopefully more then mine has been anyway!

http://www.imagedpi.com Laith Ibrahim

I think the majority of us agree that these resumes don’t give the designer a better shot at a job. If I was an HR Director and I get one, the first thing I’ll say is “ARE YOU SERIOUS??” and not even look at it (unless it’s the only I received in 2 weeks) :)
Don’t you agree?
Laith

http://www.osanchezdg.blogspot.com Oscar sán

Good Post.

The problem this in which paises like Venezuela, the culture is different.When presenting/displaying a so modern curriculum is possible that they do not take to you into account, to consider it informal.It does not have to be, but asi is the Latin culture partly.

Lisa

Wow – what a great list of resumes and a great debate! As a hiring manager (for both the business and creative sides of the house), I can’t completely disagree with either side of the argument, but I can’t totally agree either. In my experience:

1. I am disappointed by “plain” resumes coming from designers – it shows a lack of personality. A well-designed resume gives me an idea of the designer’s personal sense of style and skill level. There are a few very well-designed resumes here which use graphics to enhance, clarify and amplify their message. Those resumes – those get an extra look and an extra read when they appear in a stack of 400 resumes. But just pretty and brightly colored? Not good enough.

2. At the end of the day, we are hiring designers to create pieces that communicate something for CLIENTS, not THEIR friends. Sooner or later, we all have to suck it up and work to communicate clearly to old men, cat ladies, pregnant mothers – all sorts of audiences who don’t “get” us and aren’t particularly bothered by that fact. So if you can’t – or won’t – use your resume to communicate clearly, why should I believe you will do it when collaborating on an ad campaign, or a media kit, or a tear sheet?

3. The one instance in which we are usually more accomodating of over-the-top resumes is from recent grads with little experience. They’re trying. It’s the equivalent of the intern who listed their babysitting and community service. But at some point, you want your resume to communicate how qualified you are, not look like a band-aid to hide how qualified you aren’t.

Hilarious

THESE ARE NOT RESUMES. These are student design projects.
As projects – fun.
As resumes – complete shit.

Nathan

I’m Creative Lead at an agency.

Virtually all of these would never be read.

http://www.aydesign.net web tasarım

I’d have to disagree with @Micheil your resume is way too long – it should be one side of A4, two at most. It may be ’simple’

http://giorgiofasulo.wordpress.com/ Giorgio Fasulo

Interesante post.
Aquí está mi CV Creativo http://giorgiofasulo.wordpress.com/about/ (En Español)
Me gustaría saber vuestra opinión.
Un saludo a todos
Giorgio

http://www.makesomethingfor.me.uk Duncan

Some hilarious comments here, from the idiot HR people or ‘Company Directors’ who think these are great, to the feckless amateurs who think constructive criticism is “mean”, to the agency leads who’ve (rightly) dismissed these resumes as junk.

I find it quite interesting that virtually none of the owners of these resumes have jobs, or any experience, in the industry.

I think that single fact speaks volumes.

Aditya

Good designs though.. A “designer” CV needs to stand out from the rest.. we all have different personalities, learnings, and different perceptions and human attributes so we tend to differ – that’s natural.
I’m into HR and also a design enthusiast.. If I happen to select a “Designer” i would most certainly like to have a look at these resumes (More “why not” than “why”). However if I am hiring a IT professional – perhaps I would not expect a visual design..
Regards

http://www.iamduncan.com Duncan again

@Aditya

Something else that speaks volumes. You’re in HR and a ‘design enthusiast’.
Not a designer, not a creative director, not someone qualified to judge and critique designers work or suitability for a position within an organisation.

This is kind of the problem with the creative industries, every Tom, Dick and Harry with an ‘interest’ thinks they’ve got as much right to an opinion on creative work as those of us who’ve spent years training and working on the creative side. They need to shut up and leave it to the professionals…

http://windymay.ca Windy May

Clever design isn’t necessarily effective design.

While I find these resumes visually engaging – I can honestly say I would probably actually read 2 of them (the simple, typographically well thought out ones).

They’re wonderful to look at – even if do question the effectiveness of their communication tactics.

Nice work!

http://lucascobb.com Lucas Cobb

Most of these are way too cluttered. They need to step back and simplify the design to get who they are across. Some hit the mark, but most just threw information all over the page. Interesting concept, but I feel the employer just wants to get through resumes as easy and as painless as they can and won’t take the time to dissect one to get the information. This could end up hurting your chances for the job in the long run.

Diggy Slipt

Sweet stuff. . .even though a couple of them were pretty hard to read, I digged the
designs.

There is another one I would like to add! Heres is this other resume you should check out. . it even turns into a paper airplane when you fold it!

http://www.jaesal.com/images/resume_jsalavarrieta.pdf

Digislap

“it even turns into a paper airplane when you fold it!”

You mean, so we can throw it more easily into the trashcan?

dan

The only one i liked was francis homo. The others are mostly too difficult to read.

Ricardo

Two words:

1. awful
2. KISS

Most of them are completely sacrificing readability and would be a mess to print (unless you always deliver a printed copy yourself). And would you feel comfortable in an interview where the interviewer is holding that funny poster-resume of yours in his hand?

http://themanalyst.com Manal Assaad

Oh man, these make me feel really jealous! But now I’m determined to fix mine up and jazz it up a little bit. But I do agree that some of them were hard to read, and I guess these type of resumes don’t work for everybody. Most of those guys are graphic designers so it is almost a requirement to have a creatively designed resume. But they also need to understand recruiters, for them practicality beats most other things!

Well done!

http://thedonutproject.com Ricky Salsberry

Is this a joke? Seriously… are we being punked? Where’s Ashton?

90% of these are instant garbage. Instant. Sorry to sound harsh, but these are being presented as cream-of-the-crop résumés and most look like 2nd year student work, right when people discover outerglow in Photoshop.

Some of the typography here is horrendous…

http://none Wim

I think that a CV like one of the above, will definitely stand out between the gray mass.
If the company is looking for a flexibele, innovative, creative, fresh mind than you will abso-fucking-lutely score some points, no doubt about it!

And not only for Apple or some other arty-farty company, but for every company.
(There are more companies then the grafical-business and Apple, which can use some creative view on their prospects/direction…)

I Like those CV’s a lot, especially the one with the “Hire me” tag on the finger…! :D

http://twitter.com/karlaidoscope Tutti

How can anyone NOT go “Wow…this guy/girl is creative that’s for sure”.

These creative resumes not only make you stand out, but they’re trying to convey their personal style when it comes to designing. How can people not get this?? And hiring managers most of all?

I admit some of these are a little hard to read, but did you notice that started happening after you read 3,5, 10? If someone was looking through these and that’s ALL they had on their desk, then I can understand how you’d be dizzy after a while. But odds of that happening are slim. You might not be the only one with a super creative resume but there won’t be tons either! These are works of ART. And they sure capture your attention……isn’t that what the whole point is??? Isn’t that what companies are looking for??

If I was hiring for a designer/web developer, I’d for sure look at these and find my top 3 favorites, and then would narrow down to one JUST based on the way they chose to design their resume. And about the info and experience, as somebody mentioned – you can’t teach talent.

There were so many interesting ones in here but I picked a favorite: The one with the old 40-50′s newspaper style (the one with the “hire me” tag on the finger). It soothed me, very readable, creative, entertaining, and I got a sense like a could trust this person. I would definitely call for an interview and take it from there. http://chuckdlay.deviantart.com/art/My-Resume-118309545

And just because you pick one creative resume and call them for an interview, doesn’t mean they’ll get the job, but you can definately get a feel for their graphic style and practicality sense. I’m glad some of you get it.

http://skatox.com/blog Skatox

Great designs, some ideas i will put in my next CV

arda akbay

i wanna do like them :(

http://www.slicrew.com/ Mahijeet

Awesome Collection… very creative and innovative!!!

http://mfinch.ca Marshal Finch

If your design is not functional then it fails as a design. Pretty pictures are not great design. Being creative while getting information across is the important thing. Design firms are looking for creative’s that can portray a message and make it look good. Not just make things look good function over form any day. You can still make a resume stand out from the crowd by using typography and hand delivering it or mailing it.

http://duxcoope.com duxdesign

I agree that these are way over the top. Very few of them actually convey the information in a easily readable manner.

Most of these CV should take a look at what the “Client” (aka Employer) wants and design there CV around that. If you want to do a fun layout stick to doing a poster design. If you want a job and do fun layout, design something readable.

design student

I did one month of research speaking with different HR people, teachers and possible employers in the design field, and this is what I found.

Designers are suppose to be versatile.
Resumes do not need much design. Some design is welcomed, but over designing is a problem for most employers. A resume is a good opportunity to show you have good type setting skills. This is one area, especially in page layout design, that you want show.

For people who want to show more, this is the fix.
You CAN make a promotional package. This is separate from your portfolio. This is where you show some of your other design skills that will make them WANT to see you portfolio. It may include your business card, a letter head that is on your cover letter telling them why you would be a good fit for that specific job, a small logo book, or for website designers, a sample book of layouts (you want to leave this behind so they have something to remember you by). Including a CD with your digital portfolio on it or any additional information you want to convey (must be something extra worth looking at, but good to have). Some people just have a link to their website instead of leaving a CD, this works very well also.

Hand delivering this package is preferred because it allows you possibly meet the art director. You do not want to take up their time unless they offer, simply say you just wanted to dropped this off to the art director (find out name before if possible).

Employers have created job openings for students even when they were not hiring. Happened to a friend of mine last year. One thing they chose to do is leave one of their best projects off of their web page so they had something different to show them in person. Showing them something new everywhere they look keeps them thinking (wow, this person just has more and more). Can be risky but works well.

Main thing: Give them teasers, then reward them for looking. But give them enough to want to look.

My friend hand delivered a promotional package to 15 companies. They got 12 responses, one within 30 minutes of delivery. Most companies were not hiring and had recently downsized, including the job that they took.

ParveshK

Being some-kind of creative artist we may think that our resumes should be Creative enough to stand out..
But where this creative approach looses the race with traditional resumes is the point that says that hiring process is in the hands of HR Guys and their approach is limited only to find the information details only /-

so I think they won’t like to be get lost in the designs / obviously that doesn’t play the criteria to select or reject a candidate

http://www.mxky.com Infographiste

Hey great resume’s list, i’m looking for minimalistic cv ideas, if anyone knows where I can find some exemples that’d be great :)

http://www.avitacareermanagement.com Patricia

Great post. I would love to hear if these resumes generated interviews or not. Wonder how many HR reps actually took the time to read them.

http://www.decoymag.com Karen

Thanks for sharing this great collection of creative resumes! As an employer I would certainly enjoy seeing one of these ‘mini portfolios’ before deciding whether to call a person in to review their portfolio. However, I suggest that you always include a straight-forward and traditional easy-to-read resume along with the graphically creative one. It would show respect for the limited amount of time that an employer might have for reviewing the initial onslaught of resumes when a new job gets posted. Another thing to keep in mind — often the resumes of the hottest prospects will be read by more than one person and some might only be interested in the information they need to glean from your resume. Make it easy for those people to read the ‘vitals’ – they’ll appreciate the extra effort you’ve made to accommodate their needs and will remember that you’ve been respectful of their valuable time. A creative resume like those above will be seen and enjoyed by many but they do take more time to read and assimilate. Send a more traditional copy along with the creative one — your professionalism will be obvious and your resume(s) will be a guaranteed winner!

http://www.xn--n3cfb1b0c1c3cf2e.com แรนเถื่อน

Interesante post

Barry Norgaard

A resume, especially a designer’s resume, should contain all of the basic information but in a graphically compelling way that showcases the designer’s talents. No doubt should be left that the resume creator can design – this will give the job seeker a better chance at a portfolio presentation or interview which is the point. In these tough times, any advantage gained is worth the extra effort needed to stand out from the piles of run of the mill resumes.

Stan

Some of these are impossible to read in 30 seconds or even 2 minutes with any understanding. They can get an HR person mad. But if some hirer liked the style, it might get a further read, after all sometimes it is the work that gets you in, not where you went to school or how much experience you have. But for the most part, these are risky CV’s.

Awesome typography on this resume….literally awesome
http://barneysvideoresume.com/video/himym_barney_video_resume_smaller.mov

http://www.w3wall.com lokendra

i am working since 5 years never seen before really really nice posting

K-Tatu

I think you left one out… pretty cool

http://pixcaliba.deviantart.com/art/Ideas-in-a-box-155822091

http://www.anaokullu.com/ anaokulu

Wow nice Post on some nice CV’s. I appreciate the effort

http://www.MyhrPhotography.com Bryan

Thanks for the great ideas!

http://jessicamckenzie.designbinder.com/ Jessica

I think its great to go all out on a CV design if your looking for work. It makes it easy to remember you if you do. However in saying that it is also good to have a simple design for people to download or so you can email it.

heres mine
http://fc09.deviantart.net/fs50/o/2009/279/6/d/6daae53f6044700bc8392cfec20a0560.pdf

http://whyisbox.com Julian James

Here’s mine: http://whyisbox.com/cv/ Love to know what you think…

Joseph

Take a look a this one here, pretty amazing….

http://www.gerardocid.com/cv

Debojyti

nice post for nice c.v, & nice output given. I am totally impress. to all of the c.v

Niki

Reading some of the comments to this post indicates one thing: you don’t know WHAT will satisfy a person looking at your resume. At the end of the day, do what YOU think is best. Clearly the hiring people aren’t consistent in what is “good” and what is “bad.”

Rebecca

we use a computer to filter our resumes and none of these would pass our test. They would all be rejected. a resume has to functional above all. if you can’t get the information out of it then it is worthless.

http://www.mrcusfolio.com.br Marcus Santos

[Quote] Rebecca
we use a computer to filter our resumes…a resume has to functional above all.[\Quote]

Indeed you have a strong point that resumes have to be functional, and most of these resumes aren’t to much functional.
And of course, if you work on a Multinational or a big corporation you need some sort of filter. But there are some good resumes that could come foward to the eyes when you see a thousand of same just-type-template resumes.
If think if your corporate seeks for a robot-alike the filter can just be fine, but if you have a creative studio, you should give a chance for some non-common resumes.

http://whyisbox.com Julian James

@Rebecca

Also in reference to [Quote] Rebecca
we use a computer to filter our resumes…a resume has to functional above all.[\Quote]

With no offence intended, I imagine that the designers above would be fairly happy that their CVs prevented them being interviewed by a company that chooses it’s candidates via a ‘filter’.

I wonder does your company hire creatives? I would argue the graphical elements/layout are equally as important to a prospective (creative industries) employer as the words.

The designers above have approached it in uniquely creative way that (coming from the viewpoint of someone who’s interviewed and hired creatives many times) would definitely have put them to the top of my ‘interested’ list.

My own CV was delivered as a web-page and used a specific language style with the deliberate aim of only attracting potential the interest of agencies where I would fit in. Effectively reversing the function of the CV to my own benefit. Which worked I might add.

http://democzar.wordpress.com Deep

Fantastic effort by the folks in breaking out of the box with the so boring looking resumes and yeah they surely stand out. There however will always be a mixed response from those who see it, mainly because most recruiters tend to stick to the normal and generally followed way of a resume. But there are recruiters out there who goes with how you can present yourself. Some of the examples here though are definitely not straight forwardly readable, like the one by Greg Dizzia – I am pretty sure the recruiter would not care trying to understand the different symbolic and color codes. I loved the Skilldex concept used by Branko though. Cool stuff but would depend on who is looking at it – a potential recruiter looking out for a difference or just another regular hiring person!

FOR THE LOVE OF GOD

WHY WON’T ANY OF YOU LISTEN?

THESE ARE SHIT. THEY DON’T WORK AS CV’S, THEY AREN’T EASILY READABLE OR SCANNABLE AND THE ARTWORK ON ALL OF THEM IS SHIT ANYWAY.

GOOD GOD…

Saville

CV’s should be easily readable. What these “designers” have failed to learn or implement is that form follows function, function does NOT follow form. That’s the most basic lesson in design, the first thing we learn. These have all been over-designed, by over-enthusiastic youngsters, or, I’m sorry to say, but fairly untalented designers.

Good, clean, elegant typography is all a designers CV needs.
With the exception of Christa Roethlisberger, not one of these designers has even a basic grasp of typography.

Awful. Utterly awful.

ih

These CVs are terrible!

Look up design on google, it is not about photoshop-spooging, design is about creative problem solving, and the problem to solve here is getting across the necessary information in as easy to digest a way as possible.

They have therefore failed miserably in their brief, and only succeeded in proving how bad they are at design.

They are not ‘creative’, they are just clutching at straws, layering up fancy effects to cover up for a lack of grasp of the fundamentals.

By far the worst of the bunch are the infographics ones. The entire point of infographics is to take complex data and visualise it in a more easy to understand way. These jokers have taken simple straightforward information and visualised it in a more complex way, which only demonstrates a complete failure and inability to grasp the fundamentals of their craft.

The exceptions are Christa Roethlesberger, and maybe to a lesser extent Jean-Francious Houssiaux.

Even those ones still fail in one key aspect – if you are applying for a job at a company of any reasonable size your CV will be looked at by the HR department, who inevitably use Word and rely on copying, pasting, highlighting etc, so by having a PDF CV you are already shooting yourself in the foot. At the very least you should have two versions, PDF and DOC, to send alongside each other.

I would never in a million years hire any of the others… unless I was looking for an illustrator rather than a designer, in which case and H Sercan Tunali might get a look in, and maybe Doni Kristian Dachi if his biogrophy wasn’t such a SPECTACULAR failure and if the illustrations were actually his own and not just stolen straight from http://joekeinberger.com/.

Surely this is all common sense?

Why would anyone in their right mind go through the chore of having to hunt for the relevant information and rotate the page through several different angles or try to read in a circle? It’s incorrect and egotistical to imagine that recruiters read every detail of every CV anyway, the first pass at filtering them out is usually just done by reading the summary and skimming the rest, so adding an extra layer of complexity is seriously damaging your chances.

Imagine if google presented its search results in that way, you would all run to Bing instead pretty quick then. Same principle.

In summary, to quote Doni’s CV:

“Alright peeps, I’m gonna keep this bio like me, short and pointless. It’s probably like every other biography out there, but oh well, you’re gonna read it anyway I assume.”

Hmmm.. your assumption is wrong.

Joe Picasso

Those who say these resumes are “too graphic” entirely miss the point. If you consider that HR people see literally hundreds if not thousands of CVs a year, they all start to look amazingly the same…drab and uneventful.

To distinguish yourself from the rest of the crowd, you have to have some guts to show off your creative skills instead of running with the pack that insists on gray-plain Jane on white paper resumes.

I used to hire people at a large corporation and clearly, originality was a big asset to bring to the table.

ih

Joe.. no.

The point isn’t that they are ‘too graphic’, it is that they make the information less easily accessible. With some of these you may as well cross out every other word, it would have a similar effect.

As for creative skills, creativity for creativity’s sake is not an employable skill, unless you are hiring an artist.

CVs are used to whittle down the list of applicants and weed out those who do not meet the requirements. The style of your CV has no bearing on this, other than to put off employers if it has glaring flaws like so many of the above.

Noone in their right mind hires a designer solely based on a CV. The later stages that take place after this whittling – looking at portfolio, followed by interview – are the appropriate ways to establish things like creativity.
- ih
  
  .. and originality.

Bbs29

I don’t think these CVs are shit, on the contrary I think they are amazingly composed and the concept of some is incredibly creative. However, having worked in the design industry for a few years and having redesigned my CV very recently I have to say all the websites about CV writing advise to steer away from showing our own creativity in our CV. That is the job of our portfolio. A clean, lebigle, professional CV (not boring! and InDesign can be used in stead of Words!) can still be creative using an appropriate font, using a personal logo as your name or adding a gente graphic touch somewhere in the page but works an addition not a distraction. The main point of a CV is verbal information, not graphic comminucation. Let your creativy run riot in your portfolio.

ih

Creative concepts are inappropriate and a waste of time. CVs are functional, not pieces of art.

I’m going to design a car that has no wheels. It’ll look really cool and is such an out-there creative idea because noone has thought of that concept before.

So what if it can’t move anywhere, I’m sure loads of people will buy it anyway because it’s just so creative.

http://darthkix.deviantart.com Francis Homo

Hi! This is the owner of the blue resume, thanks for the post. I’m A.D. here now in a creative agency. ^_^

MGBYG

Please folks, I realize most here are not Latin- or French-speaking folks but just say the word resumé to yourself, aloud. Both examples of the letter ‘e’ sound out different, no?

Just use the é on the last e or none at all. The é is like a long ‘a’ in English. Merci.

Also, nearly all examples would end up in the circular file bin at companies I consult.

ih

hahaha yes funny.. the author has written it as ‘rayzoomay’ instead of ‘rehzoomay’. if you didn’t have the accent at all it would be ‘rehzyoom’.

http://mclear.co.uk John McLear

Probably been done before.. Twitter CV, I thought it was creative..

http://mclear.co.uk/2010/05/03/my-creative-twitter-cv-resume/

Gene Cayce

beautiful. hehe. i get it. people who need asskissers don’t . you’re hired. hehe

tymon

it all depends on what kind of person gets to view those resumes. it may be great fun even for an egg-headed white-collar HR-bullshit specialist from some boring consulting company to get through such an artistic mess some of those above present. bare in mind most of CV’s are so ordinary you can’t really tell between two, unless you READ them. the psychological side of things suggests there should be something eye-catching; nice n tidy but still catching, so that SEEING is sufficient enough to pass the resume further.

Lauren

Wow, lots of comments… I have to agree with the majority, I think the resumes are pretty cool… but not as resumes. Would be nice to see these users incorporate better designs into their online presence than using some free templated website.

http://jnucreativeworks.com/cms2/ Jessie Nunez

Some of these are really cool, but your resume will cross the desks of many ‘stuffed shirts’ like recruiters and HR people. They’re not going to ‘get it’. Good writing along with balanced design is the key. Most people (at least in US) still want MS Word resumes. That is not conducive to creativity. Sharpen your pencils!

Jon

Well, I’m a Senior Creative Director in entertainment, consumer product licensing and toy/doll/game design with 38 years art direction, design and illustration experience… and though these are highly innovative creative resumes as an extension of the candidates’ talents and capabilities, rest assure a regimented left-brain HR office worker (despite age) will be initially delight but terribly confused. The resume should be concise, clear, readable, clean and serve to initially stimulate interest for further investigation, not overwhelm and assault the senses like gangbusters into a cacophonic entanglement with eyes rolling back into head. The visuals are best left for the purpose and anticipation of the “PORTFOLIO REVIEW”, the “WOW FACTOR” that dazzles the employer and clinches the job.

http://mikesmith187.wordpress.com/ Michael Smith

I LOVEEEE the graphic based resumes and I actually threw one together way before I knew about this list. You can view it here
http://mikesmith187.wordpress.com/2010/05/09/this-may-or-may-not-be-my-160-application/

DavidN

These resumes are stunning. I don’t hire graphic designers (I do phone screen and interview people of a different profession), but if I did, I would most certainly pay attention to a resume such as this. These people get it – they bring creativity to their work efforts. This, along with the necessary skills and some initiative, are what can lead to a job. These resumes provide a great avenue to showcase this initiative and personal expression.

The only downside is that they may not scan into an HR database well (assuming a large corporation) but I would think smaller companies that don’t do optical scanning and parsing of resumes and instead hand process them would pay attention.

Bravo.

Loren

Like many here, I find these interesting but not readable. I still hold that a résumé (or CV) should be readable. That is its main (and only?) purpose. If it can’t be read, you can’t be identified. I also agree that, particularly for design jobs, it is appropriate to spruce it up to show your creativity and skill. There are a lot of things that can be done to spice up the interface without making it difficult to use. Isn’t that what good designers are trying for? (To be sure, I saw many good creations, just not many good résumés.)

I’m also wondering if I am the only one who tried to actually read these. Lots of comments on how these looked, but did anybody check the content? I looked at the very first one on the list and found a “Perosnal Creation” heading. Did no one proof-read this? Where’s the copy editor? :-P Similarly, Sean McNally’s character sheet initially looked very fun, but I had a difficulty determining which game system it was modeled after. It looks most like D&D, but (if he’s familiar with the game) I would expect him to hold a little closer to the original layout and terms. (I just noticed that his Base Art Bonus is +11, but .07mm Pacer attack is only at +10 — which would imply a negative adjustment. Still not as bad as misspelling “Personal”, though.)

http://surfpk.com/ Junaid

Nice one I Like it ………………

Kei

Compromise!! Make it clear and concise while still exhibiting your sense of style.
Some of the CV’s were visually pleasing but a headache to make sense of and to read – like the first 4 examples.

Spen

If you create a such graphic-heavy resumé you completely missed the point even as a graphic designer. Your portfolio is here to show your works, a CV shows your personal information and should be kept readable, like if you had to put together a boring annual report book for a client. It’s alright to use a few design elements in a CV, but keep it readable (show off your typography skills!) from top to bottom. Remember it will be copied in black/white.

Also at least one of them is fake and not a professional example – the brownish one with the bike at the bottom. Just read the text…

http://n/a Patrick

Very creative. Love it.

Ian

Really Patrick? People still posting that these are good?

“Right and wrong do not exist in graphic design. There is only effective and non-effective communication. Every one can complain about advertisements in the magazines, but clients are only interested in whether it attracts possible costumers or not.” – Peter Bilak

90% of these are not effective communication, they are simply a self indulgent waste of time. I can’t even begin to imagine how many illegible & awful looking black and white laser prints of their CVs are lying in office bins.

Desiree

As a graphic designer i can really be ashamed of this kind of art-work WHY? just because they are trying to sell something that is really far away of what they really want to show…. THEMSELVES…

With the experience that i have working in really different kind of companies, i have had the opportunity to see how this king of CV are rejected because are considered child work…. a very serious advice to those one who are searching how to make the CV interesting….. Be YOU and show in the blanket the real skill that a company are looking for “CREATIVITY” and for become that you don’t need to make an explosion of different techniques… just a sheet of paper and what you have really done.

James

NOT A GRAPHIC DESIGNER BUT…

The concept behind Michael Anderson’s is very good.

(1) It’s the only one I bothered to actually read rather than look at.
(2) The graphics enhance the content rather than just being used for the sake of it.
(3) It’s easy to read as it doesn’t use random angles and unclear fonts.
(4) Would be better with some quantifiable metrics rather than made-up “energy expenditure” nonsense.

James

(5) Maybe a hybrid of a traditional text-heavy CV with a single graphic element at the end such as the academic/work history timeline would be more appropriate and *relevant.*

Certainly loose the coffee/focus/communication/productivity 24hour thing.

ERIC

The body of work contained inside your portfolio should do most of the talking when it comes to creativity, not your resume.

A great majority of good design commonly goes unseen. It is invisible. Those not in the creative field will for the most part be oblivious to the differences found in a pile of b&w ‘generic looking’ resumes. Those that are in the creative field see a use of hierarchy, typographic choices, color(if any), grid systems, micro/macro, etc… all elements of graphic design.

The above resumes are tacky, poorly designed and unprofessional. Even when applying for a position in the creative industry, your resume should be straight to the point. It does not need to scream ‘look at me, im an artist’. An intelligent use of a grid system, sophisticated and clean typography as well as minimal ornamentation is key. The document should also be timeless and quickly comprehensible; It should make no difference whom the person is that views it, or what their job title/career field may be.

For those of you who disagree and like the above resumes… this is exactly why there is such an over abundance of crappy graphic design.

K

I am curious…..
Does anyone know of any good examples of resumes for creatives? If so please email me.

Ian

K – noone can email you unless you supply your email address first. anyway just in case you subscribed to the thread, here you go, the following are all simple clean standard easy to understand CVs that also show a bit of design knowledge through logo / typography:

http://www.karla3d.com/images/Resume.jpg
http://th08.deviantart.net/fs45/PRE/i/2009/163/4/e/My_Resume_by_montia.jpg
http://th08.deviantart.net/fs8/PRE/i/2005/327/5/1/Resume_051123_by_wrecktangle.jpg

http://patrickcarterdesign.com PCARTER

Most of these would go in the trash if they came across my desk.

http://viuu.co.uk TwitterBackgrounds

Loved the one of Michael Anderson and the one of Branco Vukelic. But there are of course other very creative ones in this roundup. Love how people are creative about their resumés, but I guess you kinda have too if you are an artist, designer etc. Thanks for sharing these.

can’t be serious

There’s a very thin line between ‘designed’ and ‘messy’ in these so-called ‘creative’ resumes. As a senior art director who has been responsible in recruiting designers for past 12 years, some of them here, would end up in my trash straight away.

I hate when they throw random “graphic” elements wherever they can without caring what’s necessary, what’s not.

K

Do recruiters and creative directors prefer a resume that is more traditional but with some elements that make it stand out….. or do they prefer something that is completely different and unique?

Does anyone know of any good examples of resumes? I think that would help people out more than complaining about these shown here……

ih

K.. why not try reading the other posts. In particular, 4 posts above yours.

Rail

@Ian -

Those are ok examples…. except no one puts an objective on their resume anymore. Most HR people frown upon it. Also the last one says “References available upon request.” Again another thing that does not need to be on a resume…. it is a waste of space. References should always be available if asked for.

~Rail

Rail

@ih I have to laugh…. You make comments, but you never provide any ideas. You are looking at some sloppy examples above your post. Before posting something you should really examine what you are telling people to look at.

@k check out some of the example on Creativehotlist.

http://www.bundesign.com sertan

I did last year for self promotion class
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=2145823&id=645728573&ref=album

JF

I think you should always keep a cooperate state of mind. If your going to be creative with the design of your resume (that’s fine ) but the content has to be legible and to the point. I shouldn’t have to squint to read your qualifications. It’s important to note that keeping a resume black and white is imperative. There will be times recruiters will ask you to submit your resume via fax.

Veronica

I am currently a junior in the design program at my university and this is one thing that is continually preached to us, don’t lose the point of the design for the sake of design. I personally think that the designs are all intriguing, well executed and show the creativity and individuality of the designer, as well as showcase the talent each of them posses. With that being said most of them lose the point of a resume, having quick access to important information. To me it also seems that some of them are quite harsh on the eyes and if I was the one looking at multiple resumes I would not have the patience to sit there and hunt for information. I still think they are all beautiful in their own right, but maybe it would be better if they pulled it back a touch. By no means am I saying there is a right or wrong way to do it but I don’t feel like most of these were made with the employer in mind. Yes you have to put yourself into your resume, but you can’t leave out who is going to be reading it and how easy it would be for them to read it. I am currently working on my own resume and I am struggling with the balance between clean simplicity and the wow factor of high impact design. For now I am keeping it simple just until I get more rooted in the profession.

Here is what I have, might be too simple for some people but I think it gets the point across clearly. By no means is it perfect, still in working.

http://veronica-dominique.deviantart.com/#/d2wesn8

Adrian

Hi Veronica, Your aim to keep your resume clean and simple (but creative) is probably the best root. The motto I live by in design is ‘Less is More’. Some of the designs above are a bit busy, but some are clever. It’s good to be different especially as a graphic designer, but the problem for some designers is getting the design mixture right. It must be remembered a resume is a marketing tool. It has to be clever, functional and it must be quickly readable without effort or confusion.

http://itsbooyer.com Dianna Bougher

These resumes are very creative indeed! Unfortunately not sure if they are truly effective as resumes. I was of the understanding resumes should be clear, concise and easy to read. Maybe resume design should follow website design – Don’t Make Me Think. Even if you are applying for a creative position, a resume can be very creative while being simple.

http://www.techtic.com njmehta

These are fine for a website but for actual work, completely useless.

Matthew

These all have way too much going on and most of them don’t look very good to begin with.

Ponterius Sedula

These resumes really hurt my eyes. They are confusing, too. It’s like everything AND the kitchen sink. When in doubt, less is more. These are “over-selling” the individual, like a used car salesman; a lot of hype and hoopla, and no substance or class.

http://www.ericgandhi.com/ Stark

I think the following resume is extremely clever:

http://g.virbcdn.com/_f/images/de/PageImage-484184-1812200-googleResume.png

It uses something we’re all familiar with (the Google search page) and turns it into a strong argument for the designer.

http://www.raquel-ferreira.com/images/stories/cv_pt.jpg Raquel

here’s mine:

http://fc02.deviantart.net/fs70/i/2010/296/b/0/my_1_page_cv_by_rachnroll-d31c8sj.jpg

I tried to make it creative yet readable and structured and it also follows my website and business card’s aesthetics…

Adrian

As a graphic designer myself, a résumé or C.V. must make a visual impact. I’ve never heard of a graphic designer sending in a word document. (Personally I hate using word as is the case with any other designer I know). I wouldn’t think of sending a word doc to an agency it would be thrown in the bin. The résumé of a designer has to show ‘out of the box’ thinking and impress the agency or individual you are seeking employment with. I don’t agree that a résumé is a document. A résumé is a marketing tool used by people seeking employment and this can take any form, depending on the creativity of the individual.

Bill Edwards

I’ve come accross one that made me smile @ http://www.yucesoy.com

Denis

Thanks, this is great inspiration.

rebecca

These are all terrible and embarrassing.

http://www.hire-web-developers.com Hire Web Developer

Hi
Great collection and its a nice look and good feel, thanks for your wonderful collection

http://markteagraphics.blogspot.com mark tea

While a CV should showcase your creative abilities, a lot of these examples are forgetting one of the basics we all learn when becoming a designer.

Form follows function.

HR departments aren’t interested in eccentric, blinged up CV’s which take a while to deconstruct, they have more important things to do with their day and just want to see your skills in an instant and tick boxes. Some of these examples are great as pieces of design but don’t function well enough as CV’s to do the job they were intended to do.

However this doesn’t mean you should create something that is bland and conventional. Be creative yes, but remember being a designer is all about knowing which approach is appropriate for your market, being able to distill information in an original and eye catching manner, and most importantly knowing when it’s appropriate to produce something quirky which needs more time for the eye to decode- designing a CV isn’t one of these occasions.

My advice would be to aim to get the balance right – a CV is a piece of information design which should show your skills in an instant and should be a hard hitting and well crafted typographical exercise, not an all-singing-all-dancing graphical freak show. Don’t drown yourself in egotistical design features, but at the same time don’t let yourself fade into the background. Either approach and you’re already half way to the office shredder.

Kristin

I was interested in about 1/3 of these. The rest, I agree, are too much to take in when you’re in a hurry. I enjoy the ones such as this:

http://brankovukelic.deviantart.com/art/My-resume-111351290

Where you can see their strong points right off the bat. That way you know if the rest is worth reading.

I do think that a design resume needs to be pushed further than you think, though. If it’s made in MS Word, I know I wouldn’t look. It should be very obvious that you put extra time into it.

Kristin

I actually used these as inspiration for revamping my resume, but mine looks nothing like any of theirs. It just makes you think. My new resume landed me my first GD job just 4 months out of college. I’m in North Dakota, and trust me, these crazy designs are NOT what customers here want. You do need to adjust according to the job you apply for. I know I will need to redo mine again when I move to the West Coast.

http://stapleydesign.com Craig Stapley

These resumes are great. Thought I would throw mine out there for praise, bashing or criticism. Here is a link to it :: http://stapleydesign.com/resume_2011.pdf

Thanks, Craig

http://www.everybodyelse.etsy.com Melody

Good graphic design is about getting your content across and I felt like most of these obscured the content.

Octopi

I like a some of them, a couple its hard to read a little bit, but its definitely creative.
Please check out mine too, i hope you like it.

http://www.suddenpanic.net/images/resume_jsalavarrieta.pdf

http://www.dreaminfinity.com Chris

I am sorry but these are horrible examples of resumes. These CV’s are way too graphical and overly busy.

http://about.me/lovenadav nadav raviv

i’ve got a TWITTER CV!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
http://twitter.com/#!/lovenadavcv

http://www.inflicted.nl inflicted

Ok for some shameless self-promotion:

http://www.inflicted.nl/about

Gene99

I like it…

Sue

Sorry, but these give me a headache – they are a cognitive overload! Simple is best. If I want to see your design skills I will ask for samples.

Jill

That’s wrong. Why would you want to show how creative you are with samples then show how plain and typical you are with your resume. orangeresume.com made my for a specific job I was looking for and it worked for me.

Speedy

So, I see that some people included some links to their resumes. Some look amazing. However, a couple of them look scarier than the ones posted above.

I would really love to see a resume from a professional graphic designer. One that has worked for an agency… just to see how a professional’s resume would look.

Ian

No Jill, he’s right. If I received almost all of these CVs I would throw them straight in the bin without reading, as they’ve immediately proven their lack of design ability. Design isn’t self indulgent artistic waffling, it’s creative problem solving, and the problem to solve here is how to present the information in as simple and clear a means as possible, so it stands some chance of being read by busy employers and HR staff who have far better things to be doing than slowly rotating a piece of paper around in a circle just in order to read someone’s name.

I am both an awarded designer and a professional CV writer. The CVs I have written for other designers have had a 100% success rate. They are simple word documents, with enough decent typography to demonstrate an aesthetic eye, but still a clear and simple document layout that will not impede or put off busy managers.

These ‘creative’ CVs are complete failures. A CV is just a tool to get you an interview, using it as a way to show off this kind of stuff is completely totally inappropriate. That’s what your accompanying portfolio website is for.

Gene99

Ian I have to disagree.

Gene99

I like the new ones

Stephanie

I just puked everywhere after looking at these fugly resumés from people who claim to be designers. But seriously. If your portfolio and CLEAN, SIMPLE, and WELL DESIGNED resumé (with excellent education, design experience, awards and skills) aren’t enough to grab attention, you shouldn’t be hired.

Stephanie

PS: Who says you have to use Word? Have any of you “designers” ever heard of Illustrator or InDesign? Come onnnnnn, people.

Ian

Gene, you’re welcome to disagree, but that won’t help you get a job.

Stephanie – as a “designer” have you considered using the right tool for the job?

Any half decent company will have HR staff who will be filtering the resumes. Resumes are conventionally created in word. This is what HR departments expect, and use common functionality such as highlighting relevant skills and phrases. They do not care in the slightest about aesthetics, their job is to weed out the failed applications before passsing on the candidates to CDs etc to review and select interviewees from.

At the very least you should always back up your fancy PDF with a more practical and usable word document, and send them both in together. That way both target audience groups are catered for, maximising your chances.

amar

All are very good. I think designing work is a part of show business, there if you need attention you must have a different thinking and approach. Generally, simplicity is a good thing but only for self. If we are working to please others then we must have a different vision to grab attention and opportunity, in short, if you have good idea to show your skill why dont you try to show for self. It can be your cv plus a piece of portfolio.

amar

I must applause for idea, either it is good or bad. Because if it is good it must be applied in future if it is bad, will also give you a direction to create something good. By the way people has their own way (like their different faces and mind) but if you want to be different you must have an idea to represent himself different. Awards and qualifications are also one of the parts of your skill and qualities which will keep you outstanding instead of stand out.

Gene99

I don’t care who agrees w/ me or not. W/ my tools anybody can build any kind of resume they want & put it online. Multiple styles > the old uninteresting way or a newer better way. Or both. Or just post a video introduction or an audio version. Corporate economic servitude can kiss my $%%. I wouldn’t trust a pencil pusher w/ less credentials than me w/ my future. That’s stupid. Market on…

NY212

This has been interesting.

We have heard that everyone dislikes the resumes above for various reasons.
But no one has really shown better examples of resumes or even taken the time to show off their own.

Another side note…. My wife is German, and you all would have heart attack when you see a German CV (Resume). They are not 1 or 2 page documents… they can be up to 7 pages. Plus, they always and I mean always attach a picture to them.

What I would like to see is a real resume from a creative that is in the industry. A professional. This way we all could learn something new.

http://www.hunnydesigns.net Hunny

I have to agree with what the first poster said. These are wonderful designs don’t get me wrong however, some are presented overly crowded with a headache to find out which categories are what. I prefer a more clean decent approach that presents more typography and less “graphic” approach IMHO.

Gene99

NY212, CV’s are traditionally a bit more complete than an average resume in the USA. I tend to think of resumes/cvs as a way to qualify employers that the other way around. If any idiot cannot read a 2.0 type resume/cv then I really don’t want to work for them. I really shop for an employer. I read everything they do & decide who I like. You can easily screen who you want to be with by their reaction but it’s not foolproof. I wouldn’t try & send a cv/resume to a $10 an hour idiot. If there is a company you really want to work for just make calls & ask actual employees who to talk to. As many calls as neccesary. Walk in the back door. Actually walk in the back bay door of a business & ask who to talk to. I’d recommend getting on a company website, strip all email addresses & send that cv to all of them. People on the back side of a business will recommend people. NEVER EVER trust anyone else. Get to the heart of who hires. Cvs only go so far. If they don’t like your resume/cv forget them. If I could hire right now I’d take ANYone w/ a tricked resume. Matter of fact today I’d not hire anyone w/ out a tricked resume/cv. Credentials are one thing but the desire to succeed is shown w/ a unique resume/cv. Google for example has a bizarre test before hiring. It is crazy extensive. A unique resume is just one step. Either examples here can suffice. Simple or complex & unique. Either / or can tell me if you have a freakin brain & neither disqualifies the other. The crush or American corporate culturism must be taken into account when applying for a job.

Gene99

matter of fact ny212, mass email 10,000 resumes/cvs w/ junk data. see who replies. Most people don’t realize that they can screen employers.

Emily

They are pretty cool but they are a little exaggerated for a non designer, even a design person. I used cvimpress.com and they have more normal yet professional CV templates. I’m in finance and i created mine there for free and send it through and they loved it. so yey for me.

http://www.filipinowebdesign.com/ Filipino Web Design

Awesome, i love the typography one, but do they really need this kind of stuff for CV? anyways cool post mate! Cheers!

	Yes, they're great for usability.
	No, they remind me of frames.
	Fixed what?

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