How to format a resume for a call center job

Call centers remain important to business' client service and marketing functions. They give customers a communication alternative to email and generic internet forms, allowing clients to get immediate and personalized service without having to travel to an in-person store. Call center representatives are on hand to receive calls, collect information, and help resolve issues - they can field inbound calls, perform outbound calls, or do a mixture of the two.

Follow these tips to write a resume that highlights your skills and experience and is optimized for resume scanning technology so you stand out among the competition and land that call center job!

These information blocks are essential to your resume:

1. Name and contact information

Make it easy for them to contact you for the interview! Include your email address and phone number.

Tip: Remember to record a professional-sounding voicemail message. Here’s a chance to demonstrate your phone communication skills before the interview! A concise, articulate message with a clear call to action will impress an interviewer calling to schedule some time with you.

**Here’s a sample script: ** “Thank you for calling Suzanne Flett. I’m unavailable at the moment, but if you’ll please leave your name, number, and the best time to reach you, I’ll return your call as soon as I can. Thank you, and enjoy the rest of your day.”

2. Experience

This is where you list previous work. Here’s how to organize the experience section:

• Start with the most recent position, and go backwards from there
• Include company name, job title, and dates worked
• For each job, list about five bullet points that summarize your responsibilities and accomplishments, highlighting those that will best support the job you’re applying for.
• Use active verbs

This is where your resume can really shine, even if you don’t yet have call center experience! Referring to the job posting, gather key words from the job responsibilities and repeat them as you describe your work experience.

For example, the call center posting seeks someone who is service oriented, and skilled with customer retention management (CRM) software. You would like to list your previous job as a bookkeeper. You could describe your responsibilities as maintaining vendor and customer data in a software system, and serving internal and external customers by resolving issues.

TIP: Add examples of measurable accomplishments, like the “top agent for call volume” in a given month.

3. Skills

Again, pick up as many words from the job description to highlight both [hard and soft skills]. For a call center job, employers are interested in database knowledge, customer retention management software skills, note taking, and typing abilities for hard skills. Great call center soft skills are active listening, organization, and problem solving

4. Education

List your highest level of education (GED, high school diploma, degrees, relevant certifications)

• Keep it to one page. Short descriptions organized by bullet points take up less space and make it easy to read. Page margins should be no narrower than ½-inch

• Bold or italicize words to call out those that match the job description for the position you’re applying for

• Use basic fonts like Arial, Calibri, Tahoma, or New Times Roman in 10-point to 12-point size type

• Keep it simple. Avoid borders, graphics, and more than two colors

• Consider a two-column resume which keeps the contact info and skills blocks in a smaller column. Listing skills side-by-side with experience makes it easy for the reader to integrate your experience with your skills.

Incorporate these guidelines into your call center resume to help the hiring manager capture a clear picture of you as their next employee! Need some more help formatting a call center resume? Use Jobcase’s resume builder and let us help you get it ready!