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I'm updating my resume for consulting positions. The projects I've done are going on my resume ... par for the course.

The dilemma is if I should put my little consulting company on it.

My first reaction is "no, of course not", it's all about the projects I did through my company. However, I did have a subcontractor working for me for a year, and an employee for 6 months which I recruited, interviewed, and hired. I feel that this is valid management experience which doesn't really fit anywhere else.

But I still feel kind of weird about it. What do you think? Does that belong in my work history or not?

BTW-I did see questions Using your startup on your resume while job-hunting? & Should I put my “startup” experience on my resume? but feel that this is a little different.

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3 Answers

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I only put things that are relevant on my resume. I'd put a title saying 'consultant' and a sentence qualifying why this is important, whom you consulted for (examples) and that you had up to two employees.

Then, like any resume section, put bullet points saying exactly what results you gave to clients (e.g. Delivered 1,000% ROI to Company X through Y).

I tend to feature my consulting experience prominently as it is usually VERY relevant!

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up vote 1 down vote

Personally if I was employing off resumes, then I would want to get the full picture, and your experience with your own firm, even given the size, is pertinent. I would be tempted to include a short paragraph that prefixes the roles you had through the firm with an explanation of the setup.

Of course, prospective employers are always looking for reasons to throw out resumes as they generally get far too many. Any excuse will do and you don't want to give prospects a reason to do that, so try and provide any relevant background in a succinct way. For example, I would want to know why you were giving up on your own firm - is it that you maybe wanted a more stable environment (okay), or is it that you just couldn't hack it (bad). People often read a lot between the lines on resumes, so you want to limit the scope for reading back things in.

One thing to think about is that prospective employers may double-check your resume against LinkedIn, so you want to make sure it all hangs together.

Hope this helps & the best of luck finding a good role.

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up vote 1 down vote

If the consulting work was relevant to the position for which you are applying, and if you can describe specific benefits that your consulting advice produced for your clients, then go ahead. If not, then you may still need to list it, if only to "explain" gaps in employment, but I would make the description brief.

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