Hiring is becoming more competitive in the evolving tech industry. Not only are employers looking for the top candidates, but they are looking for niche skill sets that are hard to come by. So, what does this mean for you as a job seeker?

“Many organizations won’t settle for a candidate that doesn’t meet all their requirements, especially for their most technical roles,” says Andrew Gumora, a Director at ES Technology, a division of The Execu|Search Group. “This means hiring managers are willing to wait for the right candidate to come along instead of relaxing on certain preferences in their job description.”

If you are searching for a new tech job, you’ll, therefore, need to catch the hiring manager’s attention right away. “Your resume is your only chance to make a first impression,” warns Andrew. “To get your foot in the door, it needs to be tailored to the specific role you are applying for. If you aren’t able to show that you meet the requirements of the role from the get-go, you won’t be able to make it to the interview stages of the hiring process.”

It may feel time-consuming to tailor each resume to the job at hand. However, there are a few things most technical hiring managers are looking for in each resume. Below are 4 tips to help you tailor your resume for a top tech job:

Add relevant keywords to your resume

One of the best ways to tailor your resume is to include relevant keywords from the job description throughout your resume. To get started, look at the job description and mark the important responsibilities and skills listed. Are there certain trends and skillsets that stand out that you have? If so, you’ll need to include those skills and experience within your own resume if you want to land the job. Just note: you should only be adding these keywords if they are relevant to your experience and work history.

Have base versions of your resume to work from

If you are applying for multiple types of roles, it may be beneficial to create different resume templates to speed up your resume tailoring process. For example, if you are interested in searching for management positions and functional positions, you should have two separate resume templates that enable you to showcase the right skills for the job. For your management resume, you’ll want to include soft skills throughout your experience section. For your functional resume, you’ll need to elaborate on your hands-on experience if you want to get noticed by the hiring manager.

List your relevant certifications

Although tailoring your resume can be a time-consuming task during the application process, one easy way to tailor your tech resume is to list your relevant certifications. “Certifications are becoming more important within the tech industry as managers are looking to hire new employees,” says Tricia Demosthene, a Director at ES Technology. “If you are in a specific skillset or silo within tech, it’s important to get certified and list your certifications on your resume. Doing so will showcase your expertise and will make you more appealing to hiring managers looking for a particular set of technical skills.”

Elaborate on your cloud experience

Regardless of your function within IT, having cloud experience is critical for all job seekers in the tech industry. “Every single new position we’re hiring for now has a requirement or preference for cloud technology, “says Tricia. “No matter what job, whether it be application development or infrastructure, we are seeing employers look specifically for this experience on resumes that come in.”

This means you should elaborate on your experience working with cloud technologies, regardless of what technical role you are applying for. It may be the factor that helps you stand out from the competition! “Most people will mention cloud technology on their resume, but few people elaborate on their hands-on experience utilizing cloud,” Andrew says. “That’s why explaining how you use cloud technology in your current role can be a determining factor on whether the hiring manager will set up an interview.”