Recruiters' Top CV Tips
Author: Corinne Hutchinson at TipTopJob in
CV Writing
The following are some helpful tips specifically from recruiters when you are writing your CV.
Recruiter Tip 1
When emailing your CV, it is always a good idea to name your CV Word Attachment "Jones, David CV". Recruiters do not have the time to guess the author of the attachment.
Recruiter Tip 2
Use your Objective to sell yourself rather than making it too narrowly focused that adds nothing to your background. This can be customised to match the job description and "hot-buttons" of the employer or recruiter.
Recruiter Tip 3
If you are unqualified for the job, the easiest solution is to provide a simple introductory statement "while my qualifications do not match your requirements, please accept the attached for your files in anticipation of future, suitable opportunities".
Recruiter Tip 4
Use blunt, paraphrased bullet-points and appropriate amounts of "white space" to help guide your reader for the best formatting techniques.
Head back to the article on "
How
to write an good CV" to help with what to include in your CV.
Recruiter Tip 5
Avoid long paragraphs. For employment beyond 10 years ago, create a "Previous Employment" section where you can quickly list your older assignments by simply including title, company and dates. The CV should be no longer than 2 pages long! See here for info on how to write a good CV.
Recruiter Tip 6
It is important that your CV is not full of major formatting errors and that it is clean and clear. Most candidates are unaware that many formatting features will not view well on a computer screen. To see what your WORD document CV will look like as a text file, copy and paste it into NOTEPAD where you can then make any minor formatting changes as necessary.
Recruiter Tip 7
When providing dates, work history should be in reverse chronological order. The general consensus among recruiters is to place the employer info, title and location to the left hand side of the screen. Your employment dates should be aligned to the right so that your reader can easily skim down the page. If you have a proven track record of staying with a job for a while, make sure that your employment dates jump out at your reader. This is a real selling point.
Recruiter Tip 8
Do not separate your skills and accomplishments from each position. By looking at your CV, someone should be able to identify what you did at each job and how long you were there. Provide specific examples of how the company benefited from your performance. Another common complaint among recruiters is reading a CV that is "too duty oriented." A good CV must detail your accomplishments, mentioning the business benefits and results attributable to your direct effort, involvement or leadership.
About the Author: Corinne Hutchinson works at TipTopJob.com and is a professional marketer and career advisor working in the online recruitment industry. She has written articles and advised jobseekers on searching and applying for jobs since 2005.
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