Professional CV

Professional CV : 

Professional CV Ian R McAllister M.Eng MBA UK Professional Recruiter Principle, CV4.biz http://cv4.biz info@cv4.biz 0844 884 2825

Creating a Professional CV : 

Creating a Professional CV Don't start with... Something old - it will need revising A template/something a mate gave you - it will look like everyone else's The thought that you have to lie to get a job – you could get sacked/sent to jail That you have to include EVERYTHING – no, just the relevant stuff for that job Do start with... A good list of your career experiences - who would validate this/provide a reference? A clear idea of what you want to do next - sector/position Know what you need to get paid to cover your bills The geography in which you could work/move to A market test of whether your ideal job exists. Find at least 20+ suitable positions on Jobs Boards

Construction of your Professional CV : 

Construction of your Professional CV All modern CV's are nominally a hybrid format: Reverse chronological: nice history, might not highlight SQE Skills based: nice SQE, but difficult to confirm your work history Hybrid: best of both, including SQE and work history Never use a Skills based CV UNLESS you are changing careers, ie: sales person to teacher designer to chemist

Construction of your Professional CV : 

Construction of your Professional CV Things you will need: Name: keep it the same everywhere! Contact details: address, eMail, telephone Don't use existing employer details! Get a Post Office Box and PAYG cellphone Personal Statement: “I am, I do/deliver, I seek” Chronological list of positions/SQE going back 5years List of education, training and qualifications with dates ONLY add hobbies/interests IF they add value eg: no managerial experience, but you captain a football team

Personal Statement : 

Personal Statement Old style = focused on YOU and your ambitions New Style = focuses your skills on that JOB How do you construct one? I am: I am a Professional CV Writer I do/deliver: who creates interview winning Professional CV’s, that get motivated job seekers employed within half the time of the average job seeker I seek: (That job!) The great Power Words debate… Theory: Power Words create emphasis and action Reality: once you have seen three PW packed CV’s in a day, they lose their originality Conclusion: like BOLD and bullets, use Power Words sparingly to emphasise your value to that employer

Positional Write Ups : 

Positional Write Ups Write-up each position, communicating what you did and achieved Break big jobs down: ie one 5year job could be two shorter jobs Amalgamate short positions: 3years of 3month contracts could be one job Best write-up form is STAR: Situation: who, when, what, where, why? Task: what was the required achievement? Action: what action did you take, how did you deploy resources? Result: did you (over) achieve? Don’t focus all on the jobs duties, write up what you achieved: Not too much: I was responsible for a checkout, where I… More of: I won employee of the month twice because of customer written compliments Don’t over bullet or over bold Two/three lines of text, plus… 5 bullets maximum to highlight achievements/key SQE

Construction of your Professional CV : 

Construction of your Professional CV Create as many drafts as you want! You probably won't end up with one CV… one for skill set (ie, designer) one for market (ie, motor vehicles) Once you are happy… Use a spell checker Review it printed out – like most employers will Get at least three friends to read it. Incorporate their feedback Get your friends to re-read your CV again – REPEAT! You could also use our Free CV Review service: http://cv4.biz/freecvreview

Job Application : 

Job Application Adjust your Professional CV to each job application: The Job Advert (from the Job Description) lists required Skills, Qualifications and Experiences Read the job advert three times: note down the required SQE Do you have the required combination of SQE? Are the SQE in the same order in your Professional CV, and confirmed in the first half page? Are the SQE mentioned in your Personal Statement/Cover Letter? If your CV can't pass ALL of these tests, then… Don't Apply! You will just be rejected = waste of your and the employers time

Job Application : 

Job Application Don't measure the number of job applications BUT the number of job interviews... Less than 1 in 20 = something can be improved Less than 1 in 40 = something is majorly wrong: get help! Written by a Professional CV writer = better than 1 in 5 On average, you will need three job interviews to get one job offer Best advice to reduce your job search timescale? When rejected, always ask for feedback!

One last thought… : 

One last thought… If you need some help… Submit your Professional CV for a free review at: http://cv4.biz/freecvreview Call us on: 0844 884 2825 Thank You, and Good Luck! Music: “Finding the Balance” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons "Attribution 3.0" http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/