Written by Katie Doolan - Lead Recruitment Associate
There’s so much to consider when putting together a CV, it can be difficult to think of everything that you need to include. There are so many opinions out there too of how long a CV should be, what does and doesn’t need to be included, etc. so it can be a daunting prospect when you’re faced with having to update your CV!
As recruiters, we review CV’s every day, so we’re here to advise you on some of the most common mistakes we see people making on their CV’s and how you can avoid them.
Missing Out Vital Information
This sounds like an obvious point, but you’d be surprised how many CV’s we see that have either no contact details listed on them or have wrong numbers or invalid email addresses. You might look perfect for the job that you applied for, but if there are no contact details or incorrect contact details on your CV then you definitely won’t be contacted! Check for typos in your email address, and wrong digits in your phone number, and then check again.
It’s also important to make sure that your address or at least your city or town is listed on your CV so that the hiring manager or recruiter can see that you’re based a commutable distance from the job you’re applying to.
Don’t forget to include all relevant work experience and all your qualifications too.
Using The Same CV For Every Job Application
It can be so time-consuming applying for jobs, so it’s understandable that it can be tempting to send out the same CV to loads of different jobs and hope for the best. However, putting that little bit of extra time and effort into tailoring your CV for each job you apply for based on the job description is so worth it as this really can be the difference between getting an interview or not.
For example, if you’re applying for a back-office administration position where you won’t be speaking to any customers, but your CV says that you’re “a passionate customer service professional who thrives on customer interaction, searching for a permanent job in customer service”, it’s not going to fill the hiring manager or recruiter with confidence that you’d be a good fit for their administration role.
Just a few minutes making sure that your CV fits the job you’re applying for really does make all the difference, and you’ll most likely end up saving time in the long run by securing a job sooner by doing this!
Making Your CV Too Long or Hard to Read
Recruiters and hiring managers will often be going through hundreds of CV’s for one job vacancy, so you need to capture their attention and ensure that everything on your CV is relevant. If your CV is ten pages long, there’s no chance it will all get read, and vital information could be missed, resulting on you not being shortlisted for the job you’ve applied for.
A good way to cut down the length of your CV without losing valuable information is to shorten down very old jobs and cut out any information that isn’t relevant. For example, that 100 metre swimming badge you achieved when you were 10 probably isn’t relevant to the Marketing Manager job you’re applying for!
To make it as easy to read as possible, be sure to organise your CV well with clear divisions between section, bold headings, text that is broken up and use bullet points too.
Start the CV with a clear profile that summarises who you are, what you’re about and really sells your skills so it’s obvious within the first few seconds of reading your CV that you would be a good fit for the job you’re applying to.
Not Including Achievements
We see so many CV’s that list job responsibilities, but don’t list what the person achieved in that job. If you’re not including your achievements in your CV, you’re missing a huge chance to show off what you can do and prove that you’re a fantastic fit for the job.
For example, if you’re applying for a role as a Sales Representative where you will be responsible for winning new clients and making sales calls, don’t just put “winning new clients” on your roles and responsibilities! Be specific about what you achieved in your last role that would be relevant to the job you’re applying for. For example:
- I built the client portfolio from 3 clients to 12 regular clients per month with average monthly billing of £17,000 per month
- I received an award for best Sales Representative for most new clients brought on within a single month
- I consistently exceeded KPI’s and achieved bonus each month
The person reading your CV doesn’t just want to see that you’ve worked in a similar role before, they want to see that you were successful in this role and good at the job!
Not Including Enough Information About Really Relevant Stuff!
The other end of the spectrum of your CV being too long and ‘waffly’ is your CV not containing enough information that’s relevant to the role you’re applying to.
For example, as a legal specialist recruitment agency, we speak with candidates daily about legal roles. One candidate applied for a job working as a litigation legal secretary, but all the experience on their CV talked about their experience working in family law. It was only when we spoke to them that they said they had only been in family law for the past couple of months, and they had worked in litigation for the past 5 years! This just wasn’t listed on their CV. They were getting so frustrated at not being shortlisted for any of the litigation roles they had applied to, and hadn’t thought they needed to be so specific on their CV.
A lot of Hiring Managers would’ve completely looked past this CV, so it really illustrates the importance of including all of your relevant experience on your CV.
Conclusion
Hopefully the above will help you to avoid these common mistakes. We have also put together some general CV writing tips along with an example CV which can view on our website at the following link:
https://talentwisesolutions.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/CV-ADVICE-Talentwise-Solutions-2020.pdf
If you have any questions on any of the information in this article, or if you’d like to see how we Talentwise Solutions can support you with either a job vacancy, or with your own job search, please do get in touch. We’re always happy to chat!
02477 981223 / admin@talentwisesolutions.co.uk
