Sital Ruparelia

Your CV or resume is the vehicle through which you market yourself – it is your sales brochure that enables you to get an interview.

The interview is where you really sell yourself – the role of the CV is to secure an interview, not to get you a job.

It goes without say, that you require a good CV / resume to get an interview. But in a tight job market you need more than a good CV. You need a great CV.

So if you have recently been made redundant or are simply looking to change jobs, take a look below and ask yoursef if you have a “Good CV  / resume” or a “Great CV / resume”

A Good CV / Resume

There are some fundamental guidelines you need to follow to make sure your CV does its job:

• In the UK /Europe aim to have a 2-page CV/resume. 3 pages at the very most. In the US and Canada the aim should be 1 page (2 at the most)
• This may sound very basic, but ensure that the CV is free from any spelling or grammatical errors
• Keep it simple – no fancy borders or colours. Simple black ink on good quality white or cream paper (if sending hard copies)
• Completed on Word so that it is easily emailable and forwardable
• List all relevant academic and professional background
• Ensure you have sections for “education & professional qualifications” and “career history”
• Add in sections where you detail your computer and any language skills
• Have a short and simple section that lists your hobbies and interests
• Ensure any gaps on your CV are explained.
• It is customary for the career history to be detailed in reverse chronological order so that you start with your most recent employment

Overall the CV must provide an accurate history of what you have done in a logical and well-laid out manner

A Great CV / Resume

A great CV has all the above as standard, but goes much further to make it stand out.

A great CV focuses on giving the reader a high-level overview of what you were accountable for in each job but is heavily focussed on what you delivered in terms of results rather than what you were responsible for. 

The reader should be very clear about the value and benefits you can offer a future employers and so see the benefit in meeting with you.

In practical terms, A great CV:

• Opens with a series of key achievements which are relevant to the job you are applying for
• The achievements are not generalisations, but fact-based statements demonstrating what you have achieved in your career and showing what you have delivered in terms of results
• These results should show how you are someone who has helped previous employers “save time”, “increase revenue”, “reduce costs”, “implement new systems”, ”improve service levels” “reduces staff turnover”, reduced client time to close sales” etc.
• Where possible, you should seek to quantify these with measurable, tangible results
• The CV should give the reader an indication of the size and scale of the jobs you have done – size of company, team, number of clients you’ve dealt with, number of transactions, dealt with clients from x different countries
• Make sure the words and language you use is powerful: instead of just saying “being responsible for..”. use action-phrases such as “initiated” “challenged” “instigated” “suggested” “pioneered” that show you in a better (but still accurate) light
• Should be tailored and adjusted to the requirements of each individual job application. Within 5 seconds the reader should be able to see how you match their key criteria
• Is easy to read and impart information. Use bullet points with short sentences instead of long sentences and paragraphs
• Effectively promotes the soft skills you have gained: instead of just saying “strong communicator, great team-player, excellent project management skills” a great CV backs these up with examples that show where you have demonstrated these qualities

Fundamentally, a great CV shows you to be unique and different from other people

Admittedly, if your background is nowhere near what an employer is looking for, then even a great CV won’t get you an interview. But if you are applying for roles that are relevant then taking some time to introduce some of these elements into your CV will make a difference.

Like anything to do with your job search, producing a great CV is an evolving process where you try things, learn and see what happens and adapt as you go along based on feedback. So don’t look at the above and be overly perfectionist; just make some immediate changes and then get out and test it.