Ten tips for writing an interview winning CV

Jane Garrard, Regional Director for Personal Career Management Ipswich, gives her top ten tips on writing a winning CV.

1. Research

Begin the process by being clear about the type of jobs you are targeting. Build your understanding of the skills, knowledge, training and personal qualities the recruiters are looking for and use this as the starting point for your CV. Study the advertised roles and talk to recruiters – build your understanding about their key needs and requirements.

2. Relevance

Don’t be tempted to include all the information about your career history. It’s important to cherry pick only the content which is relevant to the jobs you’re applying to.

3. Evidence

Back up any claims that you make in your CV about your experience with evidence and examples. If for example you state that you have good communication skills then provide an example such as handling enquiries and complaints in the customer service department.

4. Added Value

Demonstrate to the recruiters how you’ve added value to the employers you’ve worked for. Include examples of how you’ve solved problems, increased efficiency, saved money, increased profit, spotted new opportunities or improved quality. Show that you’re an asset to your future employer not a cost!

5. Positive Language

Ensure your CV contains plenty of energy and positive language. Weave positive action words throughout such as led, created, initiated, to create a sense of you as a results focused individual.

6. Key Words

The recruiters will short list CVs based on the key words used in the job description. Go back to your initial research and ensure you include all those used in your CV

7. CV Format

Your CV needs to look good! Two pages is ideal, include plenty of white space so that it is easy for the recruiters to read and avoid use of any tables, columns or fancy graphics as these can play havoc with recruitment software. Get a free CV template.

8. Personal Information

Don’t include your age, marital status, sex or ethnic origin but do include eligibility to work in the UK if appropriate. Just your name, email and mobile number will be sufficient.

9. No Errors

9 out of 10 CVs have errors in them so ensure yours doesn’t! Don’t just rely on the spell check – check, check and check again and ask someone else to review it for you as well. Don’t let the recruiters discount you because of a typo on your CV!

10. Get Help

Writing a winning CV can be deceptively tricky so do ask others for help. Find people who recruit staff themselves – managers, HR professionals or recruitment consultants – and ask for their feedback on what you’ve written. You can always find plenty of advice on line or if you need professional support then seek out a career coach.

Contact us

Personal Career Management work with individuals on a 1-1 basis helping them to write a successful CV, you will work closely with a career coach over a series of meetings via Zoom. For more information call us on 01753 888995 or fill in our online contact form.

Corinne Mills, MD of Personal Career Management also has the best selling CV book ‘You’re Hired! How to write a brilliant CV’ where she gives an in-depth look at writing your CV including; CV style, CV templates and marketing your CV to potential employers.

Article by:

Jane Garrard

Article by:

Jane Garrard

Jane Garrard is Regional Director of Personal Career Management, East Anglia & West Midlands. She is a fully qualified Career Coach and trained in occupational testing.

View Articles by Jane Garrard