• Employers skim resumes and discard generic objectives
• ATS algorithms prioritize summaries with keywords over vague objectives

• Replace the objective with a 2‑sentence professional summary
• Highlight years of experience, key admin skills, and value you bring

Objective: Seeking a secretary position where I can utilize my skills.

Professional Summary: Detail‑oriented secretary with 4 years of experience managing calendars, coordinating travel, and streamlining office operations for fast‑paced executive teams.

• Hiring managers can’t see the impact you made
• ATS looks for quantifiable results to rank candidates

• Turn each duty into a bullet that shows a measurable outcome
• Use numbers, percentages, or time saved where possible

- Answered phone calls and greeted visitors. - Managed filing system. - Scheduled meetings.

- Handled 80+ daily calls, achieving a 95% satisfaction rating. - Reorganized filing system, reducing document retrieval time by 30%. - Coordinated 150+ meetings quarterly, optimizing room usage and saving $5,000 annually.

• ATS may misinterpret employment timelines
• Hiring managers view gaps as red flags

• Use a uniform MM/YYYY format for all positions
• Ensure every role includes start and end dates, even if only month and year

Office Assistant – June 2019 – Present Administrative Clerk – 2017 to 05/2019

Office Assistant – 06/2019 – Present Administrative Clerk – 01/2017 – 05/2019

• ATS cannot read fancy fonts or embedded images
• Recruiters may ignore a resume with an unreadable file name

• Stick to Arial, Calibri, or Times New Roman (10‑12 pt)
• Remove graphics, tables, and text boxes
• Save as PDF with a clear name like FirstName_LastName_Secretary_Resume.pdf

File name: "My_Resume_Final_v2.docx" with a teal header graphic and Comic Sans font.

File name: "Jane_Doe_Secretary_Resume.pdf" using Calibri 11 pt, plain headings, and no images.