A résumé, sometimes spelled resume, also called a CV  in English outside North America, is a document created and used by a person to present their background, skills, and accomplishments. Resumes can be used for a variety of reasons, but most often they are used to secure new employment.

A typical resume contains a "summary" of relevant job experience and education. The resume is usually one of the first items, along with a cover letter and sometimes an employment application. A potential employer sees the job seeker and is typically used to screen applicants, often followed by an interview.

The Curriculum Vitae (CV) used for employment purposes in the UK (and in other European countries) is more akin to the resume - a shorter, summary version of one's education and experience - than to the longer and more detailed CV that is expected in US academic circles.

In South Asian Countries such as India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh, biodata is often used in place of a resume.

History
The word resume comes from the French word résumé meaning "summary". Leonardo da Vinci is credited with the first resume, though his "resume" takes the form of a letter written about 1481-1482 to a potential employer, Ludovico Sforza. For the next 450 years, the resume continued to be a mere description of a person and included their abilities and past employment. In the early 1900s, resumes listed things like weight, height, marital status, and religion. It was not until 1950 that the resume evolved into something more than words written on scraps of paper. By then, resumes were considered very much mandatory and started to include information like personal interests and hobbies. It was not until the 1970s, the beginning of the Digital Age, that resumes took on a more professional look in terms of presentation and content.

Description
In many contexts, a resume is typically limited to one or two pages of size A4 or letter-size, highlighting only those experiences that the author considers most relevant to the desired position. 

Many resumes contain keywords or skills that potential employers are looking for via applicant tracking systems, make active use of active verbs, and display content in a flattering manner. After the applicant's name, Acronyms and credentials should be spelled out fully in the appropriate section of the resume to increase the likelihood they are found in a computerized keyword scan.

A resume can also be defined as a marketing document in which the content should be adapted to suit each job application or application aimed at a particular industry. 

The transmission of resumes directly to employers became increasingly popular as late as 2002. Job Seekers were able to circumvent the job application process and reach employers through direct email contact and resume blasting, a term meaning the mass distribution of resumes to increase personal visibility within the job market.

However, the mass distribution of resumes to employers can often have a negative effect on the applicant's chances of securing employment as the resumes tend not to be tailored for the specific positions the applicant is applying for. It is usually, therefore, more sensible to optimize the resume for each position applied for and its keywords. 

In order to keep track of all experiences, keeping a "master resume" document is recommended, providing job seekers with the ability to customize a tailored resume while making sure extraneous information is easily accessible for future use if needed.

Styles of Resumes
Resumes may be organized in different ways. The following are some of the more common resume formats:

1. Reverse Chronological Resume: A reverse chronological resume lists a candidate's job experiences in chronological order (Last thing first), generally covering the previous 10 to 15 years. Positions are listed with starting and ending dates. Current positions on a resume typically list the starting date to the present. The reverse chronological resume format is most commonly used by professionals who are making advancements in the same vertical. In using this format, the main body of the document becomes the Professional Experience section, starting from the most relevant experience and moving chronologically backward through a succession of previous experiences. The reverse chronological resume works to build credibility through experience gained while illustrating career growth over time and filling all gaps in a career trajectory. A chronological resume is not recommended to job seekers with gaps in their summaries. In the United Kingdom, the chronological resume tends to extend only as far back as the applicant's GCSE/Standard Grade qualifications.

2. Functional Resume: A functional resume lists work experience and skills sorted by skill area or job function.

The functional resume is used to focus on skills that are specific to the type of position being sought. This format directly emphasizes specific professional capabilities and utilizes experience summaries as its primary means of communicating professional competency. In contrast, the chronological resume format will briefly highlight these competencies prior to presenting a comprehensive timeline of career growth through reverse chronological listings, with the most recent experience listed first.

The functional resume works well for those making a career change, having varied work history, or with little work experience. A functional resume is also preferred for applications to jobs that require very specific skills or clearly defined personality traits. A functional resume is a good method for highlighting particular skills or experiences, especially when those particular skills or experiences may have derived from a role that was held some time ago. Rather than focus on the length of time that has passed, the functional resume allows the reader to identify those skills quickly.

3. Online Resumes: As the search for employment has become more electronic, it is common for employers to only accept resumes electronically, either out of practicality or preference.

This has changed much about the manner in which resumes are written, read, and processed. Some career experts are pointing out that today a paper-based resume is an exception rather than a rule.

Many employers and hiring managers now find candidate's resumes through search engines, which makes it more important for candidates to use appropriate keywords when writing a resume. 

Large employers use Applicant Tracking Systems to search, filter, and manage high volumes of resumes. Job ads may direct applicants to email a resume to a company or visit its website and submit a resume in an electronic format.

Many employers, and recruitment agencies working on their behalf, insist on receiving resumes in a particular file format. Some require Microsoft Word documents, while others will only accept resumes formatted in HTML, PDF, or plain ASCII text sometimes.

Another consideration for electronic resume documents is that they are parsed with natural language processors. Resume parsers may correctly interpret some parts of the content of the resume but not other parts. The best resume parsers capture a high percentage of information regarding location, names, titles, but are less accurate with skills, industries, and other less structured or rapidly changing data. Resumes written in a standard format are more likely to be correctly interpreted by resume parsers and thereby may make the candidate more findable.

One advantage for employers to online resumes is the significant cost saving compared to traditional hiring methods. Another is that potential employers no longer have to sort through massive stacks of paper. AI tools can be used to test resume templates.

4. Infographic, video, and website resume: As the internet becomes more driven by multimedia, job-seekers have sought to take advantage of the trend by moving their resumes away from the traditional paper and email media to website resumes or e-resumes.

Video, infographics, and even Vine resumes have gained popularity recently, though mainly in the creative and media industries.

This trend has attracted criticism from human resources management professionals, who warn that this may be a passing fad and point out that multimedia-based resumes may be overlooked by recruiters whose workflow is designed only to accommodate a traditional resume format.

Resume Evaluation
Many resume development agencies offer evaluation services wherein they evaluate the resume and suggest any necessary changes. Candidates are free to either do those changes themselves or may take the help of the agency.

Keeping resumes online has become increasingly common for people in professions that benefit from the multimedia and rich detail that are offered by an HTML resume, such as actors, photographers, graphic designers, developers, dancers, etc. 

Job Seekers are finding an ever-increasing demand to have an electronic version of their resume available to employers and professionals who use Internet recruiting. Online resume distribution services have emerged to allow job seekers to distribute their resumes to numerous employers of their choice through email.

References:
1. Resume