How old is your current CV?
Your CV creates the first impression of you. If you haven’t updated and refreshed your CV during the last 2 years, now is the time to renew. Create the best impression of yourself, your skills, qualifications and experience via your CV without the clutter and unnecessary information. Keep it short, simple and to the point. Employers and Recruiters read many CVs daily and want to find the right talent and fit quickly. Discard the old faxed and copied CV today!
Keep it clean
Keep your CV in chronological order. List your current Employer first and state the industry of your Employer, i.e. ABS Trust does not give an indication of your sector. Check that you have included start and end dates (month and year) for every Employer and state your reasons for leaving.
Discard the frames, borders and fancy fonts – they don’t add any value and fancy fonts also make it difficult to read. Double check information like contact numbers and email addresses. Always add an alternative contact number, so that a prospective Employer or Recruiter can at the very least leave a message and get in contact with you when you are not available. Check your spelling and grammar before submitting your CV! Never write your complete CV in CAPS!
Add your accomplishments and Achievements – these should only be work related. If you do add a cover letter, keep it short and precise but state your motivation for applying for a specific position. Add your Reference’s Employers, job titles, land line as well as the mobile numbers. Include your residential area instead of your province and never add your complete address or ID on the CV.
Stick with the facts
Don’t add irrelevant information like school awards and social accomplishments! Keep to the facts – never lie! Focus on your skills and accomplishments rather than your high school subjects. Any detail can be discussed during the interview. Don’t exaggerate your skills – you will only be caught out. Never add a degree if you have actually only completed the first 2 modules of the course. This will be viewed as being dishonest.
Seeing other people doing their jobs daily does not mean that you can do their duties. Clarify your job title if you have to – not every Employer or Recruiter knows your industry lingo or jargon.
Give precise detail
Don’t be shy with your job description and complete duties with your last 2 Employers. Take some time and make this the best part of your CV – your skills and experience will sell you! Write duties in complete and detailed sentences – short bullet points won’t do the trick.
Add your actual Grade passed in High School – simply stating High School certificate does not add weight to your application.
If you have been in a managerial position before, state the number of your subordinates. If you were responsible for multiple branches, state them by name/town.
All previous Training courses are important – give all the details and dates completed.
If you are in Sales and can share some information on your target and actual numbers without exaggerating any facts. State a number of Rand value if you were able to help your company save costs.
Share your last performance appraisal scores.
If you apply for a position online, don’t be lazy – complete all the required fields.
Don’t forget to give your complete Computer skills as well as your level of competence for each.
State your details on a criminal record if you have any.
Lastly, only send your CV to a Recruiter/ Employer. Only send or share your certificates when requested to do so, or alternatively take them with you to your interview!
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