I have performed essentially the same job for three different companies in the past 5 years. For 18 mos I even did the same job at the same desk, but who signed the paycheck depended on which shift I worked.
So how would I list these three positions:
Company A (2009-2014)
Cat Herder
Found cats
Put cats in line
Directed cats to collection point without losing any.
Company B (2013-2014)
Cat Wrangler
Found cats
Put cats in line
Directed cats to collection point without losing any.
Company C (Present)
Feline Herder
Found cats
Put cats in line
Directed cats to collection point without losing any.
Listing separately makes me look like I am job-hopping, although they overlapped and this was not the case. I was thinking of designing my resume with title on top, companies below, as so:
Cat Herder
Company A (2009-2014)
Company B (2013-2014)
Company C (present)
Found cats
Put cats in line
Directed cats to collection point without losing any.
This has happened to me at least twice, where I officially switched employers while continuing to do the same job, at the same desk, reporting to the same manager. IT is a big mess of contractors, subcontractors, staffing firms, sub-staffing firms, oursourcers, and people-I’m-not-sure-exactly-what-they-do-but-they-get-10%-of-our-profit-for-like-doing-something who appear all of the place in “official” org charts. De facto, day-to-day org charts are completely different.
You could group the jobs in a sorta-functional style like this:
Cat Specialist (2009-Present)
Company A (2009-2014) as Cat Herder
Company B (2013-2014) as Cat Wrangler
Company C (Present) as Feline Herder
Found cats
Put cats in line
Directed cats to collection point without losing any.
So you’re disclosing the fact that these jobs were technically separate, but emphasizing that it’s less relevant than the fact that you have been doing those three things for the past five years.
Also, did you have any notable quantitative achievements that could set you apart? Managers like to see those. E.g. “Put cats in line 10% under budget” or “Consistently found between 5% and 10% more cats than expected.”
Consistently exceeded industry personnel safety averages.
Obviously, a small number of lion tamers die each year. So if 1 out of 100 lion tamers die each year, then the Expected Value (E) of a lion tamer’s life each year is 99/100. You own metrics consistently rated a full 1 (you didn’t die!). Your metric = 1, industry average metric = 99/100. Of course, 1 > (99/100). Also remember that most people have an above-average number of limbs, and half of all people have a below average understanding of mathematics.
Depends on the snazzy outfit (which you should definitely save for Halloween and costume parties).
I kind of like the organizational aspect; I’m just not sure how well it will go over with the HR person. The right person will read it as innovative, but the wrong one may shred your chances over it.
However, assuming I did have notable accomplishments such as finding 10% more cats than expected at company A, and significantly reduced cat malfunction at company C, how would I include these?
Also, try to add additional individual, discrete accomplishments. That indicates what you solved, rather than the work you did. Anyone can tighten bolts. Not everyone can tighten bolts well enough to build a car.
e.g.
Found Waldo.
Found Garfield.
Completed the Kitty Treat run in under 12 parsecs.
Earned a Lolcat Award for Outstanding Achievement in the Field of Excellent Internet Humor.
Correctly identified Xenon as a noble gas.
Cleaned up two noble gas spills.
Added cat doors to the noble gas storage compartments at Company C.
or, go even further and explain how what you did affected the final results.
e.g.
Added cat doors to the noble gas storage compartments at Company C, reducing cat malfunction by 20% and decreasing the frequency of noble gas spills by 50%.
If A and B actually are the same job, same physical desk, same herd of cats then I would list under one company and note that you were a contractor/subcontract/whatever. I don’t think you need to get into details of who sent you a W2 if all that company is doing is signing the check (ie, they don’t assign your tasks or do your evaluations). That info can be provided on an employment application form.
So something like:
Cat Emporium (subcontractor) May 2009-Jan 2014 Cat Herder
herd cats.
…
Or: Cat Emporium, May 2009-Jan 2014 Cat Herder, subcontracted through CatTechnologies-A and FelineTech-B
herd cats.
…
That said I’m not sure I am actually following the situation here so feel free to disregard.
You might organize by skills rather than jobs. “Excellent at distinguishing tabbies from calico cats, even in the dark, as shown in my 3 years at Company A. Skilled at finding cats even when their wave-forms have temporarily collapsed, as demonstrated at Company B.”