C.V Writing

dave35

Anyone point me in the direction of a good c.v writer?
Need to get mine up to scratch,about to be made redundant for the 2nd time in 2 years.

Cleat Eastwood

Tough break chap - hope you find something soon.

CV's are most effective if they are somewhat tailored to the job - generic ones can often sell your talents short. A few years ago I went to the job centre to ask about CV's and was put in touch with a business advisor who helped rewrite mine. Why not pop along and have a chat - by and large the job centre staff are only too keen to help.

dave35

Thanks, my problem is that i have only ever had one career-printer,as there aren't many print companies left i am going to struggle to get work. When i last lost my job-after 21 years,i got told by the job centre amongst others-that i was too old for a new career...i am 38 ffs!

rick_chasey

Have you asked around to see what other people in your position (if there are any?) can do? Perhaps there are some specialist recruiters who you can speak to.

They're usually helpful (if they're good).

If not, anyone who's professional capacity involves helping people find jobs, whether that's recruiters, people down at the job centre or whatever.

I can't imagine this situation isn't one that occurs more often.

capt_slog

dave35 wrote:

Thanks, my problem is that i have only ever had one career-printer,as there aren't many print companies left i am going to struggle to get work. When i last lost my job-after 21 years,i got told by the job centre amongst others-that i was too old for a new career...i am 38 ffs!

Jeez, that's really helpful, what a load of bollox.

I've changed jobs a few times.
Started out as computer operator, in the days when they were big things with spinny tapes and the like.
Then was an assistant scientific officer for Min of Ag (read 'lab technician')
Then a clerk shuffling papers at a desk
then a lab tech with an animal feed company
Then a Lab tech in chemistry in education
then a job analysing soil
then in a workshop
and now in physics.

Ok, so I've most of what I've done is lab work. :roll: but it's been quite varied all the same.

Anyone who tell you that you can't re-train is an idiot.

izza

My sis works for high end global recruitment agency - MD's, CEO's, etc..

The first thing to do is write down what you achieved in your job/roles within the company and NOT what you did.

Then you can focus on:

- layout - have a look on web for samples for those that look good
- focus on editing where necessary for each advert
- get on and write a covering letter - one that is different to all others and makes people want to read your CV

Anonymous

Tx izza. That 1st point is actually really interesting. Just putting mine together and I was wondering how I would write what I DID rather than concentrating on my achievements.

izza

Little tricks with the covering letter:

Make the first paragraph completely "left field". e.g. "Your risk accounting manager position reminded me of squashed tomatoes"

Then go through why you think you have the right qualities, experience, etc. and then make sure that you then tie in the last paragraph back to the first paragraph by repeating what you said in the first paragraph e.g. "so, I hope you can now see that by considering the risks, finances and contingent liabilities a company has to count not just its tomatoes but also its squashed tomatoes."

That way the reader will want to revert to the first paragrpah to see how cleverly you tied in the last paragraph. End result - they have spent twice as long reading your letter as anybody else's. First base reached - you've stood out.

Best example of a person who does this regularly - Clarkson. Every Sunday in the Times, he uses this tactic in his articles and it makes people read (and thus remember) his articles twice as much as others.

Anonymous

......and if looking for a corporate finance role in a major bank?

izza

coriordan wrote:

......and if looking for a corporate finance role in a major bank?

I still used the above technique and it worked.

Anonymous

Thanks. Just wanted to check. Will let you know how it goes - watch this space come Sept/Oct!

Sorry, back to you dave35. Best of luck

izza

coriordan wrote:

Thanks. Just wanted to check. Will let you know how it goes - watch this space come Sept/Oct!

Sorry, back to you dave35. Best of luck

Predominantly the HR department read the covering letters before passing to the potential 'Boss'. They may not pass the letter on, they may mention it or they may leave it before handing over an edited pack of CV's. Whichever way you have raised the percentage chance of being in the pile of CV's marked 'success'.

Monty Dog

If applying to larger companies, many use an outsource recruitment provider to run their external recruitment - they rely on online applications and search / sift on keywords - particularly related to the job advert / description hence the need to customise your covering letter / CV to each particular job application.
This is likely to be as little as 10% of the applications - they'll then do a telephone interview and then select suitable candidates to put in front of the actual employer.
The advise on what did you do, not what you did is a common failing of many job applications / CVs.

jawooga

In the case of a CV, as others have said I would try and make it as specific as possible to your target employer. Maybe look at their website if they have one, and see what skills they look for in their job advertisements, as well as their corporate values etc. Don't bullshit too much. Clear and concise are the watch words.

You have 21 years of experience, which is fantastic. Don't fool yourself in to thinking that you can only work in printing, as you have built up 21yrs of diverse skills which will be applicable anywhere. But again, try not to be generic and wishy-washy on a CV as space is a premium.

If completing a job application, read what the required skills and responsibilities are. Then tailor your 'suitability for the role' by addressing each of the points specifically, using the same buzz word for the skill they have asked for, without overdoing the bullshit. This makes it easy for an HR department to tick off your skills against what is required.

When addressing questions about your skills: Don't just say, "I was involved in doing such and such". Say what the requirement was, what you did specifically to achieve it, and what positive impact it made. Think evidence.

Good luck and keep positive.