Inspector Resume Samples

If you don’t have any employment gaps and you’re applying for an inspector position that follows a traditional career path, you can list your accomplishments for each previous employer using the chronological format, which is the most common resume style.

In the chronological style, the recommended sections are:

• Contact info (name/phone/email)
• Resume summary
• Work experience
• Skills
• Education

If, however, you have a difficult-to-explain employment gap, or you’re looking for a career change or a lateral move into another sector, the functional resume style will let you can cherry pick your skills and achievements. To do this, you’ll add new section solely for “Accomplishments” between the summary and work experience sections. By carefully crafting a minimum of six bullet points defining your transferable skills and achievements in this new section, the resulting work experience section will basically be a simple list of previous employers/jobs.

A functional style resume has the following recommended sections:

• Contact info (name/phone/email)
• Resume summary
• Accomplishments (new section)
• Work experience
• Skills
• Education

Read some of the inspector resume samples for content and flow to decide which style works best for you.

When you think about it, it makes sense. The employer already knows what you want. You want the job. A summary gives you the opportunity to draw them in with 2-3 concise but strong statements about your performance and your ability to add value to their business.

As you write these statements about your qualifications and experience, try to shape each one in the form of a problem/solution/result whenever possible. Read the summaries in the inspector resume samples you’ve found to see some well-written examples.

Following are two examples from different industry sectors:

Electrical inspector with over 15 years of experience in the construction industry. Performed inspections of new and existing security systems, wiring, lighting, and generating equipment and ensured all installations were up to code. Improved code compliance rate by 23 percent in one year and reduced fines and penalties by over $10,000.

Quality control inspector in the manufacturing sector skilled at using both hand-held measurement devices like calipers and gauges, as well as electronic inspection equipment. Helped to analyze and correct production problems when defects were found. Authorized to reject defective items and certify those deemed to be acceptable. Reduced product quality complaints consistently over a 3-year period.

In the chronological resume style, the work experience section follows the summary in a fairly simple format. A hiring manager wants to know what you’ve done lately, so list your jobs in reverse chronological order. Each job will be a sub-heading, with 3-5 bullet points highlighting your accomplishments. You can refer to the inspector resume samples for specific formatting suggestions, but basically it should look like this:

Electrical Inspector
ABC Manufacturing – Cleveland, OH
June 2008 – January 2016

• Performed both scheduled and random inspection of production line for size, quality, and performance, rejecting poor quality and identifying the problem
• Trained backup on what problems to look for

If you’re going with the functional format, insert the Accomplishments section after your summary and create 6-8 bullet points identifying your skills and achievements that most closely match the employer’s requirements. Since you don’t have to maintain a chronological profile, you can put your best successes first. Keep in mind, however, that no matter how proud you are that you know how to create killer spreadsheets, if that’s not a requirement, it shouldn’t be at the top of your list. Try your best to create this section to mirror the skills the employer has identified as important.

Once you’ve filled in the accomplishments section, you can move on to the now-skeletal work experience section, which will just be a basic list of your relevant previous jobs. It’s not necessary to include dates in this case.

• Monitor
• Recommend
• Test
• Measure
• Reject
• Report
• Discuss
• Approve
• Review
• Perform
• Verify
• Issue
• Provide
• Ensure
• Conduct
• Collect
• Analyze
• Document
• Determine
• Detect

If you’re still looking for the right word, quickly scan the inspector resume samples you’ve identified for more.

Separate your skills into categories, which should be structured and ordered to meet the employer’s needs. Review the inspector resume samples for formatting ideas and even content, if it helps trigger an idea.

To help get you thinking about your skills and capabilities and how to classify them, here’s a brief sample:

Technical Skills:

• Experienced in the use of meters, gauges, and computers
• Six Sigma quality control technique
• Blueprint reading
• Math skills used in measuring, calibrating, and calculating specs

Industry knowledge:

• International Building, Mechanical, Plumbing, and Residential Codes
• Construction methods, materials, and equipment
• Specialized tools and machinery

Interpersonal/Personal:

• Strong written and spoken communication to explain problems and how to fix them
• Critical-thinking
• Close attention to detail, even when dealing with more than one site
• Integrity
• Physical stamina, dexterity, and strength

Use whatever categories you’re most comfortable with, but try to match as much of this section to the job description as you can. You want the hiring manager nodding in agreement as they go down the list.

Since having a degree provides an edge, list your highest degree first, providing the name of the school/location/degree obtained. For example:

Cleveland State University – Cleveland, OH
Bachelor of Science, Construction Technology

Keep in mind:

• GPA is only relevant if you’re a recent graduate and your GPA is 3.5 or higher
• If you don’t have a college degree but you’ve taken related courses, list the school/location/courses
• No need to indicate that you have a high school diploma if you have a college degree

You may also want to include a sub-heading for In-house Training. Include any formal training received at previous jobs or times when you worked closely but informally with the lead inspector.

A final sub-heading to consider is Certifications/Licenses/Affiliations. While the certifications and licensing requirements vary by state and by business sector, most employers want to see some sort of certification, and where required, a license. Don’t depend on the employer to list it on the job description. If you’re an inspector, you already know what’s required. If you don’t, find out. If you’re not certified, you can begin the process and indicate on your resume that your certification is in progress.

Review your inspector resume samples for formatting framework.

Not only do they take up valuable resume space, but if you include them, you’ll never know if or when the employer was interested enough to check them. If you wait for the request, you can give your references a heads-up, ask them to let you know when they’ve been contacted, and ask how it went and what kind of questions were asked. That’s a lot of valuable information for a job seeker.

When it comes to putting together your list of references, try to have 3-4 prior managers or supervisors, or perhaps the inspector that trained you. A production manager that benefited from your diligence would be a good choice as well.

• As an inspector, you understand attention to detail and discovering problems, and you need to be equally careful with your resume. Typos and grammar mistakes take the reader out of the story you’re trying to tell, so proofread more than once. Even better, ask a friend to read it. You can’t count on spell check to catch everything.
• Since you’re presenting yourself as the ideal candidate, put the employer’s needs first. Mirror their requirements in your skills and accomplishments. Always tailor your resume to the employer’s needs.
• While not all employer’s use applicant tracking systems (ATS), enough of them do that it’s best to assume your resume will be scanned by an automated system looking for keywords. Don’t confuse keywords with industry buzz words. Keywords are the actual words used in the job description that the ATS will be looking for. If it doesn’t find them, you’re resume probably won’t make it into human hands.
• Don’t put previous employers in a bad light, even if you believe they treated you unfairly. If you’re applying for a job at a manufacturing plant and you blame the excessive product volume on the production line for low quality, you’ll look like you can’t keep up.