NextGen Resume: It's an Infographic

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For most of the the thousands of college students getting their sheepskins this month and next, the months to come will likely be a sobering entrance into the job market. One graduate from the University of Missouri, however, is moving right into his dream job at The Huffington Post. Regardless of your age or experience you might want to pay attention to how he nailed it.

Chris Spurlock did it with his cleverly produced infographic resume and some aggressive social networking thorugh Facebook, Twitter, and all the other usual suspects.

For the right field, an infographic could be just the thing to make your resume stand out in the pile. Done well, it explains who you are at a glance. Think of it as a dashboard view of your skills and work history.

Here are some examples (and here are some more) that you can sift through for ideas.

Notice, however, that I do say "done well."  If you consider an infographic resume, I recommend the following:

1. Always offer a traditional text resume, as well.

2. Make sure your graphics do not substitute style for substance. Don't reduce your professional self down to a gimmick. The "graphic" part of the infographic should not overshadow the "info."

3. If you aren't sure how to produce one, pay somebody to do it for you. An elegant, well-produced, clean, easy-to- digest graphic is a wonderful thing. Anything less is a hot mess and a huge turn-off.

If you do want to try your hand at an infographic resume, here is a link to some free templates via PowerPoint.

Let me know how it goes. I would especially be interested to hear from HR types and recruiters for feedback on this one.

Renee Oricchio is a technology writer and former supervising news producer for CNN Financial News. She has been covering the computer industry since 1987. @oricchio