We are here to provide you with guidance. In this article, we will talk about the front desk receptionist resume and answers to all your questions regarding writing a job winning desk receptionist resume.
When you are looking for a new job, you may face some challenges such as a competitive job market, not getting many interview calls, confusion about how to improve your front desk receptionist resume and so on.
We will help you with it all because the solution and first step to deal with all these obstacles is- your resume. We will tell you how to write a perfect front desk receptionist resume that lands you your dream job and many more interview calls than you may be getting as of now.
Receptionists are typically found in every industry and they make around $14.40 (median hourly wage) per hour according to data of May 2021.
(Source: https://www.bls.gov/ooh/office-and-administrative-support/receptionists.htm)
We will also give you tips to enhance each section of your resume along with some bonus tips! Let's get to it then!👇
What do front desk receptionists do?
Front desk receptionist resume requires you to truly understand the role, the industry you are working in, the responsibilities and job duties and so on.
Front desk receptionists are usually responsible for various tasks depending on their industry and employer's service/products. Here is a list of some of the generic tasks that most front desk receptionists may be responsible for.
- administrative tasks
- providing exceptional customer service
- scheduling appointments
- answering phones
- data entry
- providing administrative tasks
- providing administrative support
- Handling multi line phone systems
- Overseeing office supplies
- greeting visitors/ greeting customers
- making patient appointments
- handling office equipment
- dealing with patient inquiries
- clerical duties
- assisting customer inquiries
- ensuring customer satisfaction
- answer inquiries
- directing calls
- mail distribution
- redirecting calls
- record keeping
There may be many more tasks that front desk receptionists may be responsible for depending on their industry. For example, if you are working in a healthcare environment, you might be required to maintain hygiene in the reception area.
You need to describe these usual duties and assigned tasks in your resume because it defines and reflects the kind of employee you will be and how you will perform. This is something that hiring managers look for in every resume.
How to write a perfect front desk receptionist resume?
Writing a perfect front desk receptionist resume means meeting all the professional resume standards and then putting in some extra efforts.
The language of your front desk receptionist resume should be formal to display professionalism. You should always use past tense and third person while describing various details of your profile in each section of your front desk receptionist resume.
You should avoid using pronouns in sentences as it may seem informal while reading the descriptions.
Professionalism is defined by how close you can get to perfection. For perfection you need to proofread your front desk receptionist resume once you are done writing it.
Make sure you proofread everything twice and remove any spelling or grammatical mistakes. You should also double check the accuracy of factual information in your resume.
When you are saving your resume document, label it properly and in a simple manner. Use your full name and the term 'resume' or 'CV'. For example, if your name is Penelope Verstappen, your resume document should be saved as:
Penelope Verstappen Resume
Next important aspect to keep in mind is the document format. Your resume will be passed through various applicant tracking systems, mediums of viewing various documents by the hiring managers and you need to ensure that your front desk receptionist resume document is compatible for all of them.
Most compatible formats are word document and PDF document and you should choose either format to save your front desk receptionist resume document.
If you follow these guidelines, your front desk receptionist resume will meet all the professional resume standards. Now let's talk about how to write a front desk receptionist resume along with some bonus tips for you!👇
Tips for dream job- landing front desk receptionist resume
Research your role
When you are about to buy a product or service, what do you do? You look up your options and alternatives, you compare prices, you check out the company owner or the product origin and pretty much all the information you can think of to ensure you get a quality product or service and do not end up wasting your money.
Everyone does a little research without getting into something. Going to watch a movie in theaters, following sports, choosing a course to study, choosing an employer to work for and so on.
This is helpful for when you want to write your front desk receptionist resume as well. Whether you are a front desk receptionist or a personal assistant or administrative assistant, research is important for every role even when it's similar to your previous role that you have experience of job hunting with.
When you are about to write a front desk receptionist resume, you need to do some background research of your role, job description, industry and everything in between.
You may already know a lot about your role and responsibilities however doing research, going through job ad and job descriptions will help you get even more insight into the job market scenario and you will be able to learn the hiring managers' perspective.
This will help you learn what you can offer more and how you can present your front desk receptionist resume in a manner that impresses the hiring manager and makes you stand out.
A little research can go a long way and an impressed hiring manager is likely to offer you a job after an interview as well.
Choose the right format
When you make a powerpoint presentation or a scrapbook, you decide what will be put in it and how everything will look at the end. Your front desk receptionist resume also needs an outline which decides which information will be included, where and how.
There are various options for you that you can choose from however, each format has a purpose and you need to choose the one that will help your resume presentation to make the maximum and positive impact on the hiring manager.
These formats are preferred for a standard professional resume. First one is the functional resume format, it is suitable for freshers and recent graduates who have no or next to none professional experience. This format focuses on the skills and education section.
The second resume format is the reverse chronological resume format. It is defined by the reverse chronological order of experiences' description in the experience section. It is suitable for those who have extensive or even significant work experience and need to focus on that.
The third one is the combination resume format and it is suitable for those who are looking to shake up their career and try something new. This resume format focuses both on the skills section and the experience section and allows description of transferable skills that help them convince the hiring manager of their competency.
You may want to go with the reverse chronological resume format as you may have significant experience as a front desk receptionist. To enhance and improve your resume, each section needs some extra effort.
The header
The header of your front desk receptionist resume will include your name and contact information. Type your name first and then your mobile phone number with area code. Type it in a formal manner. Next up should be your professional email ID that you use for professional communication.
Your photograph and home address are not mandatory but you may include them if you want. If you include your photograph, it should be a professional headshot in formal attire.
If you are active on LinkedIn, and your profile is carefully curated and updated, you can also add the link of your LinkedIn profile.
Write a compelling resume summary
HR managers usually don't have a lot of patience or even attention span to read your whole front desk receptionist resume unless they are intrigued by what they see in the beginning- in your professional resume summary.You need to grab their attention, make them interested in your resume and then hold that attention throughout your resume. You need to begin by writing a compelling resume summary.
Always use bullet points and keep 3 to 5 bullet points in the summary, no more or less. Your sentences should be short, crisp and concise. Do not use jargon or unnecessary fluff content, the hiring manager can see through it all.
Type your job title and then begin describing details in bullet points. The first detail should be how many years of experience you have in total and a little background.
For example: 5+ years of experience as front desk receptionist in Hospitals
Next you need to describe your most notable achievements and skills that are the highlight of your resume. Try to use numbers wherever you can and quantify the details to increase the impact of the information.
Lastly, mention what kind of new role you are looking for and how you will leverage your skills and knowledge.
Describe your professional experience
After the summary, you need to write your experience section. Mention each experience with details of your job title, employer name and employment period.
While describing details, use bullet points. Include your usual responsibilities and relevant skills. You can also include soft skills as they are important for a receptionist.
Do not undersell yourself and include every detail of your responsibilities, achievements and skills. Also, include any exceptional performances and improvement you may have achieved with your ideas and suggestions in your workplace.
Describe the experiences in the reverse chronological order meaning the latest first and the first job at last.
Your formal education
After the experience section comes the education section. You need to note the highest level of education (degrees or a high school diploma) you have acquired and mention it with the name of the education institute.
You can also note any relevant coursework you may have had. If you have done any online courses or completed any relevant programs that may add value to your front desk receptionist resume, do not miss them and include them in your education section on the resume.
Include skills section
As important as the experience section, your skills section also needs some extra effort. Note the skills that you think are most important and relevant to your role. You should take a look at the job description and pick the skills from it to ensure the hiring manager finds what they are looking for in your resume.
- Interpersonal skills
- Communication skills
- Verbal communication skills
- Hard skills (handling equipment, record keeping)
- Taking incoming calls
- Handling phone calls
- Handling multi line phone system
- Overseeing housekeeping staff
- Keeping reception area clean
- Telling customers about hotel services
- Assist clients
- Microsoft office
- Office management
- Handling office supplies
- Time management skills
- Greeting visitors
You can also add some more relevant skills depending on your front desk duties. For example, responding to instructions by the executive staff in a timely manner. Time management and data entry in MS office or such.
Beat the ATS with Keywords
Now the bonus tip! Your job application and resume will pass through an applicant tracking system whenever you apply for a job. Recruiters these days use this software to scan the resumes and shortlist them.
The software works on parameters that are the relevant keywords' presence in your front desk receptionist resume. So to beat the applicant tracking systems or the ATS, all you need to do is include the important keywords in your resume.
You need to pick the keywords especially from the job description and use them throughout your front desk receptionist resume.
Key Takeaways
- Always use past tense and third person
- Research a little
- Include keywords
- Choose the right format
- Proofread your front desk receptionist resume
- Include carefully chosen skills
You can also check out resume examples, resume writing guides and templates. Now that you know all about writing a perfect front desk receptionist resume, you can get on with it! Good luck with the job search!
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
For most positions, you will not need a bachelor's degree however depending on the industry and the challenging duties of the role, a recruiter might require it in some positions. You should check the job description carefully and check with the recruiter directly.
Personal assistant is similar to the receptionist position in terms of the responsibilities. If your experience details are relevant, you can definitely include the experience on your front desk receptionist resume.
With the industry and employer, the role responsibilities may vary. You need to check the job description. You are likely to be required to have skills such as MS Office and data entry.
