Prepare your CV for Post Covid...

A CV is still pretty much the first contact point a recruiting manager will have with you – you may have sent it directly or via an agency but either way your CV will make or break your application.

It’s a sad fact… but most hiring managers will scan through a CV in only a few (7-8) seconds before deciding… Yes | No | Maybe

There are literally hundreds of CV templates out there, so take a look… or ask your friends, colleagues how they have structured their CV’s – try to get an idea or a style that you feel will work for you.

The aim of your CV is to provide enough information about why you are suitable for the particular role so that you get called for an interview… not necessarily to give them so much information that you have nothing left to disclose during the interview!

Recruitment, whether it be directly or through an agency, is changing all the time. As an agency it is our responsibility to help make sure your CV stands head and shoulders above your competitors; so when working with an agency, always ask their advice.

In our experience, the way a hiring manager reviews a CV differs from person to person… your recruiter is likely to know what a Manager looks for – so ask them!

• Job Match – will always be an essential – but a good recruiter won’t send CV's that don’t match… right?
• Qualifications - check if any specifics are needed and highlight yours

This is where it gets trickier…

• The thing that will set you apart from the other 5-6 CV’s sat on the manager’s desk will be… YOU! So how do you put that on paper?!

Post Covid CV

Companies will be looking to see how C-19 impacted you.

• Were you lucky enough to continue working?
• Were you furloughed or even made redundant?
• Did you use the time to complete any training or up skill in areas?
• Did you volunteer?
• Did you take a role completely outside your normal career?

In these most unusual of times, these are factors that can help to form a picture of you as a person and whether you could be a fit for that company (at least on paper) – so let’s showcase them!

Your CV in general

 A few tips

•  Aim to have your CV between 2-3 pages; obviously the more experience or roles you have had may mean there is a lot more to talk about but generally it is wise to go no more than 4.
• Unless you are a graphic/web/UI – stay away from boxes, tables, graphics – text is fine – how you format your CV can alter the way it can be viewed on some devices, job boards etc.
• If you are a graphic/web/UI designer – include your portfolio and/or links!
• Check your font… we will always change font to Calibri 11 – not the most exciting but feedback and experience has shown us that managers find it easier to read and pick out key words
• Proof read, proof read and proof read again!

Managers do look at things like spelling and grammar and it can be a huge turn off and can be the deciding factor between two excellent CV's… an agency should always do this check for you, but if it gets missed by you or them it could ruin your chances…

• Don’t talk in third person, I have yet to speak to a manager who likes this way of writing a CV…
• Ask someone to take a look objectively at your CV, see what their feedback is

So… let’s start from the top… Page 1

• Your name! use this as your header – don’t put “CV” or “Curriculum Vitae” this just wastes space… increase the font size (20) bold and underline it – make it stand out and easier to remember
• You could also put your professional title under your name
• Your contact details… ALWAYS put your mobile number and email address… postal address isn’t necessary… but it is really helpful to see where you are based, so town and county.
• You should also put your LinkedIn profile here too… but ensure it is up to date – more often than not your profile will be looked at and referenced against your CV in any case, so make sure they are both up to date.

Personal Profile

This is a short but crucial paragraph at the beginning of your CV giving the reader an overview of who you are and what you are about. We would usually suggest tailoring this section based on the role you are applying for – it should only be a few sentences long and include things like; who you are, what you can offer, what your career goals are. Basically: you in a nutshell!

If you were not working during the C-19 period then this where you should highlight any volunteer work, courses taken, upskilling etc, don’t underestimate the soft skills that can be obtained by suddenly home schooling or providing day care to children etc.

Here is a also a good place to highlight any security clearances that you hold, ideally with their status: SC – Lapsed (for example)

Skills Profile

Your front page should “sing” to the reader and leave them in no doubt that you are an excellent match, so this section should also be tailored (are you seeing a theme yet?). We would recommend a few bullet points here highlighting your most valuable/relevant skills, try to avoid too many soft skills here and pick out suitable keywords from the job specification to resonate with the reviewer.

Achievements

Not everyone includes a section for achievements so if you do it can help to separate your CV from the next!

Use this section to highlight a few bullet points of your strongest work-based achievements that are relevant to the role you are applying for. Keep them concise and say within which role as it helps to piece things together. 

Experience and employment history – Page 2

ALWAYS work in reverse chronological order

Each employment should be separate and under a sub heading that features:

• Job title, Employer, Dates to and from and ideally a sentence to say what that company is (it’s not always obvious, but more often than not its useful)

You should then bullet point (I told you there was a theme) …

• Your key responsibilities
• Skills
• Achievements in that role

Try and tailor them (theme!) around the role that you are applying for. When summarising your roles try and use the S.T.A.R method: Situation, Task, Action, Result. This should help you to provide information in a concise and relevant manner. You should use examples and provide figures if necessary, to substantiate your experience/input.

Try not to give everything away here… it’s about giving enough to gain interest and traction but still leave some points to divulge at the interview stage!

Again, you could choose relevant keywords from the job spec to help your CV stand out by mirroring the language used.

It is important when listing your employment history to fill in any gaps… don’t give the reader the ability to fill it themselves… if you had a sabbatical to do house renovations - put that on… if you took time out to travel the world - put that on!

Managers can get an idea of soft skills based on these things and more often than not at an interview they make for great conversations and can help you to build rapport!

Employers are really only looking back 10yrs on a CV anything prior to that date can be provided if requested…

Education and Qualifications

List any recently completed and other relevant courses or qualifications that you have achieved with level and dates.

Hobbies and Interests

Ah… do you put these in do you not???

My advice would be… if you have space and they are relevant to the industry or role you are applying for… stick them in… if they aren’t leave them out! Everybody reads, socialises and enjoys meals out…

BUT, if you are applying for an IT role within a police force and you used to be a PCSO or volunteer – absolutely put that in!

As we all navigate through C-19 to see what the world looks like on the other side, we have to prepare for change. As an agency we are working our hardest to speak to and represent as many people as possible throughout these ever-changing times and any advice given, is purely that… If you have amazing results already from your CV – don’t change it…

However, if you start to notice that you hit a wall with applications or feedback – take a look through these notes.

SmartSourcing have always strived to be more than “just a recruitment agency” for our clients and our candidates and now more than ever we need to support each other!

If we can help either with your next role, or to help boost your team please do get in touch.

All calls can be treated in confidence and we will try our very best to support you – whatever your needs…

If you know anyone struggling to find work… please point them in my direction!

Let SmartSourcing show you how different we are!

Cheryl Dean                                  

01782 970840                             

[email protected]