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I admit it, I’m a story teller. I see my workplace value in terms of the cultural fit I bring to a team. My resume and interview answers tell the story about the change I lead, forgetting to tell the measurable results. Yet I’m hypocritically surprised when I interview someone who doesn’t mention a single sales results.

Ultimately, everything we do in our workplace needs to be tied to the improving sales or profits; that’s the value we bring. Improving morale retains talent which accomplishes both those things. Can you put that into a number? Yes, you can. Employee turnover reduction is measurable.

Your resume is likely to get less than 10 seconds of a screener’s time. Numbers catch the eye. Numbers tell more than the story of your accomplishments, they also show your focus on results, your awareness of the important measurables, your ability to hit the highpoints of your story in one bullet point, and the scope of your role. Like this: Increased sales by 15% in my 10 stores while reducing costs by 30% through KPIs improvements of 20%. (Ignore the illogical math.)

Know those numbers in your interviews – every interview, from recruiter to final interview – numbers are part of your pitch. Don’t wait to be asked, reveal your numbers in your story of you from your first recruiter screening.

You don’t need to reveal your company’s volume but you should reveal your impact on it by using percentages – they’re numbers too. How much did sales or profits go up in your area of influence? What were Key Performance Indicator results you improved? What were your results? In other words, KNOW YOUR NUMBERS!

-Michelle

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