How to simplify… your CV (for maximum impact)

Finding a new job in the current atmosphere of recession is not easy, but getting your CV working for you will make the chances of securing that all important interview much greater.

The recruiter who receives your CV will probably have dozens and dozens to sort through, and very little time to do so, so your CV will have to showcase your relevant experience, skills and qualities in less than ten seconds. Simplification is the key to success.

The golden rule for job applications is not to rush. Give yourself ample time to collate the information for your CV. If you dash something off the night before a deadline and it leads to your application being discounted, all your experience and hard work will be wasted.

The most important information – usually your skills and recent experience – should be clearly laid out at the very beginning of your CV, as it’s this that will get you long-listed for an interview. Don’t assume the recruiter will search through reams of information to find out if you’re qualified for a position – they won’t!

Whilst there’s no hard and fast rule for the length of a CV, a couple of pages are usually regarded as the norm unless you’ve had a very long career or the recruiter specifically asks for a more detailed CV. Keep it punchy, get your foot in the door and save the more involved explanations for your interview.

Your CV should not become a confessional, a list of mishaps or a series of excuses. Exorcise any references to failure – whether that’s examination, marital or business. Write positively and present your best face to the world, concentrating on the experience and achievement that equips you for a bright future.

Decorative patterns and eccentric formatting can often detract from your message. Keep your CV uncluttered with short sentences, big margins around your text and key points emphasised. Bullet points can be useful in moderation.

A sure-fire way to boost your chances of getting an interview is to tweak your CV for each application you make. Do your research on the business or organisation – what type of language do they use on their website to describe their staff and their outlook? Can you mirror this in your CV? Go through the job spec with a fine tooth comb, making sure to include examples proving relevant experience for all requirements of the role.

Any unexplained gap in your employment history will be regarded with suspicion by recruiters, so make sure to plug those holes. Even times of unemployment can be adequately justified if you focus on the development of soft skills such as project management, communication or teamwork.
Check, check, check. And then check again.

Any spelling or grammatical mistakes in your CV are going to create a negative perception in the mind of the recruiter – why would they want to employ someone slapdash? Whilst spell-checkers can be useful they don’t catch everything and can often end up erroneously altering words to American spelling conventions. Get as many people as possible (who can spell) to go over your CV for typos and grammatical errors.

Unless specifically asked to provide a photo of yourself, leave it out. The skills, achievements and experience you describe should carry weight with the recruiter, not your hairstyle. In the same way, you should not provide recruiters with age, weight, height, religion or marital status unless strictly relevant to your application.

Never, ever embellish the truth in your job application, no matter how well you think you can cover it up. It only takes a quick phone call for the recruiter to discover that your First in Biochemistry from Oxford is actually a NVQ in Food Science from your local community college. Highlight the positives in your CV, but don’t include blatant lies – even in the section on your leisure activities.

Source: Yahoo

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Excellent advice, but the following paragraph in my experience really sets the candidates apart. Put together correctly the interviewer can actually visualise the candidate working in the organisation. With that you're in the game.

"A sure-fire way to boost your chances of getting an interview is to tweak your CV for each application you make. Do your research on the business or organisation – what type of language do they use on their website to describe their staff and their outlook? Can you mirror this in your CV? Go through the job spec with a fine tooth comb, making sure to include examples proving relevant experience for all requirements of the role."

Something else I found and I know it sounds poxy but it works....put a page border around your CV and colour it in the companies corporate colour, it will make yours stand out from the rest and a connection will already be there with the person sifting through the applicants.

Simple things are always the most sucsessful.

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I'm not a complete idiot....There are still bits missing!!

These CV tips are very useful for everyone over here. Can you suggest me some tips on GD and interviews Questions.........

I do agree having a cv is a good idea as it got me many jobs but having said that most of the starts i did get was on the basis that i work for a couple of days to see how i was and then agree on a pay rate if i was any good , i was always happy with that but again in this day and age the industry is changing so we have to change with it i suppose and not get stuck in the past!!

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Hero to zero in one job

Curriculum Vitae
Ian Mills


PERSONAL INFORMATION

Marital status :- Single / Co-habiting
Nationality :- British
Age :- 39
Place of birth :-
Address :-
Mobile Number :-


EDUCATION

1982 - 1987 Deincourt School North Wingfield
O Level Chemistry
O Level Maths
O Level English Language

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

1988 - 1996 Scaffold Erector-
1996 - 1997 Scaffold Erector-
1997 - 2006
2006 Safety Advisor -Cape Industrial Services
2007 - To Date Safety Consultant- with a specialist scaffold training and consultancy provider
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE QUALIFICATIONS

NEBOSH General Certificate
Level 3 Certificate in Occupational Health & Safety

IOSH Managing Safely
Approved by the Institution of Occupational Safety & Health

CISRS NVQ3 Advanced Scaffolder

Cuplok System Scaffold Product Update Course

PASMA Certificate of Competence

Asbestos Awareness Training Course

Pull Testing Course TG4:04

Basic Scaffold Inspection Course

Advanced Scaffold Inspection Course

CISRS Supervisors Course
Elements
Risk Assessments/Method Statements
Working at Height/Planning & Organising/Scaffold Inspections
Regulations/Codes of Practice/Best Working Practice
Safe Erection & Dismantling of Scaffolds
Communication Skills
Estimating /Measuring Skills
SG4:05 Preventing Falls in Scaffolding & Falsework
Work Planning & Scheduling
Project for Assessment/Toolbox Talks




WORK EXPERIENCE

Prepared ,developed and reviewed corporate health & safety policies. Formulated company procedures, method statements and working practices for associated practices such as scaffold erection and working in confined spaces. Carried out site inspections on busy construction sites, oil refineries and power stations as part of a health and safety team. Carried out site monitoring visits to ensure company procedures and codes of practice are being adhered to by company operatives. Advised and audited corporate Health and Safety systems including PPE and equipment documentation. Prepared and developed risk assessments and Health and Safety reports. Carried out workshops safety inspections.
Sites include
Lindsey oil refinery where I currently advise Total on contractor health & safety performance.
Corus steelworks where I undertake monthly site monitoring visits
Didcot A power station where I have undertaken regular monitoring visits.
Eggborough power station where I was the site health & safety advisor for Cape Industrial Services Ltd


All training certificates and personal references can be provided on request.


Omitted a few things from my cv, but just a few things to include . Also get your cv on the net
Find Jobs. Build a Better Career. Find Your Calling. | Monster.co.uk
OilCareers - The Official Recruitment site for the UK's Oil and Gas Industry
Jobs, Job Search, Job Vacancies, UK Jobs online
UK jobs - CV-library.co.uk

All the above will host your cv

Curriculum Vitae
AOM

Chucked out of Campbeltown Grammer 86.

Humping steel ever since.

Now you know the real reason I started on my own.

well presentrd cv ian , thanks

when i started scaffolding it was because you couldnt do a cv .cant do nothing else be a scaff . like the generation before .cant do nothing else be a miner . or like your average smoggie .cant do nothing else do a minor

I, agree when I started in the game I thought a CV was something to do with Citroen cars.Once they stopped producing these in 1990 someone decided that scaffolders will need to write their life stories down in order to get a start.
Thats progress for you!!!!