EFFECTIVE CVs
TURN YOUR CV INTO HUMAN VOICE
Writing an effective CV is equivalent to a successful marketing documents designed to pique the employer's interest, persuade the employer to want to learn more about you, and get invited for an interview, so it's imperative that the CV you keep your audience in mind, and write in a way which will appeal to them.
A professional looking CV that clearly details your skills and experience will play a major part in whether or not you make it through to the interview stage.
It is an advertisement for your services and should be as forthright in “selling” you as any other advertisement. However, to do this successfully requires it to cover its bases and communicate certain kinds of information that traditional resumes do not. Here’s more information on that.
GOOD RESUME WRITING INCLUDES
- Quantifiable Data: Anything that you say on your resume will be unbelievable if you have no facts and figures to back it up. That’s why your resume should always include hard statistics wherever possible. For example, if you’re a sales professional and drove an increase in sales, be sure to specify something like “A 20% increase over six months,” not just “an increase.”
These are achievements, the kind of information that sets you apart from others — but they can only set you apart if you provide the whole context of what went on! - Insight Into Your Problem-Solving Strategy: Excellent resume writing gives the reader an idea of what you did, not just the end result. In our example above, the 20% increase is what you achieved, and it’s the bottom line. You should always include and emphasize the bottom line if you can’t fit anything else.
But, whenever possible, you should also strive to provide a line or two of details on how you accomplished the result. This is crucial in providing an insight into how you approach problems. If your approach is similar to the ones used by your new employer, all the better. - What Sets You Apart From Others – A Brand: If you looked at a hundred “bad” resumes from people who had all held the same job title — say “Director of IT” — it would be hard to tell them apart. Sure, you might see some minor differences, such as the size of the organization they presided over, the size of their team, and so on.
That would give you little insight into why you should hire them; and that’s why all good resumes should describe your “brand.” In effective resume writing, the “brand” is the one or two things you do better than anyone else.
See below for more guidance: