You're debating the importance of volunteer experience on resumes. How do you navigate differing opinions?

Volunteer experience shows people a side of them outside of work which is equally important as their paid compensation. It can give employers a broader view of a person’s capacity outside of the traditional workplace setting and can be an indicator of one’s ability to go above and beyond their job description. However, it is also important to note that volunteer experience cannot be emphasised over traditional workplace experience and is not a substitute to direct professional work related duties as the environment is different.

Almost anything can be relevant if you are able to effectively communicate the transferable skills that employers are looking for. For example, although camp counselling is seen as a fun camp job just for teens; the transferable skills of leadership, taking initiative, and so on can be used to show managerial skills and problem solving which are crucial for the workforce.

In reality experience gaps are normal as life circumstances happen which is inevitable. Volunteer experience can show what candidates do when economic uncertainty is at stake and can be a way to see character traits of humility and servant leadership which are elements of going above and beyond even when we are not obliged to do a task.

Soft skills give a glance into who you are as a person. I say list volunteer work in a way that connects to your passions and unique skill set. Being human matters!

Adding volunteer work to your resume is a great way to showcase soft skills that may be overlooked in a traditional paid role, things like: compassion, kindness, patience, adaptability and going with the flow, rallying people around a single cause, even leading without authority (as a volunteer, leading a group of other volunteers can be a critical opportunity to showcase your leadership skills and how you would be able to influence business lanes without necessarily having authority over them). There are so many strengths you can pull from with volunteer experience that can help you stand out as a job seeker! Plus, it also shows potential employers that you have abundant work ethic even without monetary compensation (character building)!

Volunteer work demonstrates that a person is multi-dimensional. Giving back to your community is part of who you are. It shows that you are human and care about others.

Volunteer experiences offer a unique opportunity to contribute to the world other than through payed work. Many meaningful projects and contributions to the world have come from volunteers sacrificing their time to do meaningful work. Because there is no compensation for volunteering, volunteers often have a good reason and meaning behind why they are spending their time to contribute without expecting a pay check and that reason in and of itself is valuable which employers can check off as a character trait of purpose driven work.

Tailoring your resume is like dressing for the occasion. It shows you know what you are doing and are the person for the job. Knowing this, it’s important to tailor your experience and skills to the job description to best match what the employer is looking for to stand out from the crowd.

I am a prime example of how using volunteer experience on your resume can land you a job! I was a volunteer at the American Red Cross for about 3-years when the perfect job opened up. As a volunteer, I knew several employees within the organization and sent my resume to every single person. Eight people, including the CEO walked my resume into the Human Resource Manager's office and recommended me for the role. I landed an interview, even though my resume was not exactly in alignment for the role and I was missing a few qualifications. Volunteer experience doesn't only give you accomplishments and experience to add to your resume. It also gives you a network! And many of us have found jobs due to the people we know.

Add it! For my clients, I ask them to share their “non-traditional” experience because all experience matters! In a resume, you can get creative by adding sections for leadership experience, community leadership, etc.

Volunteer work is an important element for students and recent grads, as well. Particularly if a) you don't have other work experience and b) the work you did there was relevant to what you want to do or has great transferable skills!

The premise of this article was whether you should add volunteer experience to your resume if you are receiving different advice from different people. While the prompts don't address that point, I think it is worth discussing. As with any advice about your resume or any other aspect of your job search consider the source of the information. Number of followers is not necessarily an indication of valid job search advice. Look for advice from someone who has experience as a recruiter or HR manager in addition to coaching. You want solid advice based on actual recruiting experience.