Is it time to revisit your CV?

Only a few short months ago Ireland was close to full employment with a 4.8% rating in February 2020 according to the CSO. Today, not 2 months later, that rate has risen to 16.5% and growing due to the Covid 19 pandemic. 

My usual tactic here would be to assist where possible as a Recruiter, slight changes here and there to a CV to cater to the need of a client we are dealing with. If I can’t assist them as a Recruiter, I will try assist as a consultant. Refer them to an industry contact, even coach them on how best to utilise the social media, get there LinkedIn right, etc. etc. This advice I would still offer. Get your LinkedIn profile up to date. Recruiters and Hiring Manager do tend to check it. 

Certainly for the next few months, it would seem only the very few pandemic proof companies are hiring leaving the vast majority of businesses in Ireland not hiring. In fact it’s the furthest thing from a lot of company’s minds.

I thought I would offer some incite in preparing for what we hope will be an upwards curve of a V shaped recession. So you should look to preparing your CV and understand the importance of it. I read all sorts of CVs, hundreds in a day sometimes. If you have spare time, you should put some time into your CV.

A lot companies today will send your CV into an Application Tracking System (ATS). This process is known as CV Parsing.

CV parsing is an automated process which means your CV is read, the system will extract from the document key words to assess your skills and suitability. Along with skills the automation tool will scan your work history (Identifying how many years’ experience you have), degree’s, qualifications and contact details. This information is then stored in the ATS database to be reviewed by the Recruiter. Not all companies will have this type of system, but they are the norm in today’s recruitment process. So best prepare for them.

• Make sure you select the right file type for your resume. I would stick with word or PDF, if not, use plain text or google doc. Do not be tempted to use images or fancy software. Just don’t!
• Don’t put important details like name, address or phone number in the header or footer of your resume. The parsing technology may not pick it up. Happens all the time.
• It is critical to optimise your resume with keywords. For example, the words used in the job title of the Advert you are applying for. So if you are applying for a Network Engineering role, insure you have Network Engineer frequently throughout your CV.
• Avoid images, charts, and other graphics. You might think this will stand you out from the crowd. It does have a tendency to confuse the parsing technology, where you might not get seen at all, so best leave them out.
• I would always recommend customising your CV to each job advert (Where possible) or job description. Match the key skills accurately.

Within the ATS, your CV (or profile) gets matched or ranked.

The ATS will screen your CV and rank them for the recruiter or hiring manager who is managing the hiring process. In order to get to the top of that list, you have to have the skills and experience. You have to tell the system all about your skills and experience using those key words/skills. Remember you are dealing with a computer program. You need to frequently use the key words so you can ensure the system ranks you as high as possible to get noticed. These few steps might help.