Task/Job orientated or skill orientated CV?
Discussion
So I had my CV looked over by an older guy who is on my swim team. He generously offered to take a look and have a sit down chat about it. One notable thing he said was the way in which skills were presented. I had gone for a typical layout of:
Job title, description, dates and then bullets of notable examples of work done, what I achieved, what skills I developed etc.
He suggested turning that around to make the skills used and developed the focus and the job/task where those were used to come in the following statement. Sounds like a decent enough suggestion, but on the other hand, it might make picking out relevant jobs/experiences a little harder.
Additionally he suggested that the PhD should be in education with my degree. However, the careers advisor advised against this and as my PhD has been for a company it has been rather like a small industrial project. I have had to manage the work, report every quarter to both UK and US management etc, so I really think that it should be kept up top with other relevant jobs/experience.
What do the PH Pros think about the above two points?
As an aside, I am becoming weary of asking people for CV advice now. It seems everyone likes to see different things even within similar industries. Almost laughably, someone from my GFs family who works in recruitment and used to own his own recruitment business for over a decade, edited heavily my GFs CV only for it to be demised immediately by the careers advisor at university as complete rubbish!
It makes you wonder whether to bother trying to construct a CV to how you think a potential employer might want it or whether to just do it how you want and to hell with what anyone else thinks. My GF and I both see the same advisor and although we are going into different industries there are some odd inconsistencies with the advice we've been given which makes you question whether what they are telling us is any good!
Job title, description, dates and then bullets of notable examples of work done, what I achieved, what skills I developed etc.
He suggested turning that around to make the skills used and developed the focus and the job/task where those were used to come in the following statement. Sounds like a decent enough suggestion, but on the other hand, it might make picking out relevant jobs/experiences a little harder.
Additionally he suggested that the PhD should be in education with my degree. However, the careers advisor advised against this and as my PhD has been for a company it has been rather like a small industrial project. I have had to manage the work, report every quarter to both UK and US management etc, so I really think that it should be kept up top with other relevant jobs/experience.
What do the PH Pros think about the above two points?
As an aside, I am becoming weary of asking people for CV advice now. It seems everyone likes to see different things even within similar industries. Almost laughably, someone from my GFs family who works in recruitment and used to own his own recruitment business for over a decade, edited heavily my GFs CV only for it to be demised immediately by the careers advisor at university as complete rubbish!
It makes you wonder whether to bother trying to construct a CV to how you think a potential employer might want it or whether to just do it how you want and to hell with what anyone else thinks. My GF and I both see the same advisor and although we are going into different industries there are some odd inconsistencies with the advice we've been given which makes you question whether what they are telling us is any good!
Having spent some time studying after 20 odd years working (took VR) I'm going through the same experience. One adviser says this, next says the opposite.
Personally I'd have more faith in industry based advice than from "careers" advisers. Rog007 on here gave me a good kick start and I've been mixing and matching advice since.
If you want to PM me I'd be happy to take a look at your CV and share a copy of mine. I'm CEng (IMechE) and also in the Midlands (Notts).
Gary
Personally I'd have more faith in industry based advice than from "careers" advisers. Rog007 on here gave me a good kick start and I've been mixing and matching advice since.
If you want to PM me I'd be happy to take a look at your CV and share a copy of mine. I'm CEng (IMechE) and also in the Midlands (Notts).
Gary
Personally, I much prefer reading a conventional CV, because I find it clearer and easier to digest. I will infer skills from someone's jobs.
Whereas I find skills-based CVs gimmicky. Anyone can make up a skill a invent evidence to support it, IMO.
NB: I'm not a professional recruiter. Others may have different, but equally valid, opinions.
Whereas I find skills-based CVs gimmicky. Anyone can make up a skill a invent evidence to support it, IMO.
NB: I'm not a professional recruiter. Others may have different, but equally valid, opinions.
Thank you for your kind offer Gary. I will take you up on that if that's ok? I guess I shall shoot you a mail via the links here first then sort something out?!
I have so far stuck to the clear and simple layout many on here seem to espouse. Though it makes no odds when some application forms simply want things in plain text which helps things nicely.
I have so far stuck to the clear and simple layout many on here seem to espouse. Though it makes no odds when some application forms simply want things in plain text which helps things nicely.
Edited by Otispunkmeyer on Thursday 20th February 19:47
A CV is simply a window in to you and your competences. If you can answer the questions that a potential employer is asking of you in that CV then it should suffice. The trick is anticipating what each potential employer is looking for. There are of course some well proven methodologies and layouts for CVs that can assist. Good luck!
Here's my take on CV's, just to add yet another opinion to the party 
Having worked in recruitment, also management and run my own businesses, I've recruited LOTS of staff over the years.
I won't pull a CV to pieces - but there is ONE thing which really does help, especially if you're looking at any kind of professional position.
I know it's a bit of a fag, especially if you're applying to lots of places - however this homework is fairly crucial in these times where many people might be chasing one role. Anyway, you're out of work at the moment - so what else are you doing with all that spare time?
You should do your homework on each company you are applying to. You must know their market, their product / service, their key players (definitely management, probably major shareholders and investors) and try to get an idea of what the company is trying to achieve in the short to medium term, what they want to achieve from recruiting for this role, and how you would fit into that role and help the company to achieve it's overall goals.
And then tailor your CV and covering letter accordingly.
There's nothing worse for a recruiter to receive a CV that's clearly generic and has been blasted out to all and sundry. Especially via email. I've even had CV's turn up with the name of the company that they emailed it to a few minutes before, where they've forgotten to even change that! So I just immediately think 'lazy' and that the prospective employee has just blasted out with no thought about my company in particular. Almost like they've thought 'right, I'll just spend half an hour emailing out 20 CV's, and then I can sit and watch Jeremy Kyle or Homes Under the Hammer. Then they whine when 3 weeks later they've not had a single reply, and how they 'just can't get a job, even though they've been trying like real hard..!'
Always send a printed copy; even if application is via email, send a printed one too. The first thing I did when recruiting for a position is print out all the emailed CV's anyway - me and the other Directors would often sit with a coffee in the boardroom and go over CV's in paper form. A printed one that you've sent, on some nice thick bond paper, will therefore look different from all the ones I've run out on our crappy 80gsm photocopy paper, and shows that you've put some thought and effort into it. Which, let's face it - is what companies want from their staff - thought and effort!
Having worked in recruitment, also management and run my own businesses, I've recruited LOTS of staff over the years.
I won't pull a CV to pieces - but there is ONE thing which really does help, especially if you're looking at any kind of professional position.
I know it's a bit of a fag, especially if you're applying to lots of places - however this homework is fairly crucial in these times where many people might be chasing one role. Anyway, you're out of work at the moment - so what else are you doing with all that spare time?
You should do your homework on each company you are applying to. You must know their market, their product / service, their key players (definitely management, probably major shareholders and investors) and try to get an idea of what the company is trying to achieve in the short to medium term, what they want to achieve from recruiting for this role, and how you would fit into that role and help the company to achieve it's overall goals.
And then tailor your CV and covering letter accordingly.
There's nothing worse for a recruiter to receive a CV that's clearly generic and has been blasted out to all and sundry. Especially via email. I've even had CV's turn up with the name of the company that they emailed it to a few minutes before, where they've forgotten to even change that! So I just immediately think 'lazy' and that the prospective employee has just blasted out with no thought about my company in particular. Almost like they've thought 'right, I'll just spend half an hour emailing out 20 CV's, and then I can sit and watch Jeremy Kyle or Homes Under the Hammer. Then they whine when 3 weeks later they've not had a single reply, and how they 'just can't get a job, even though they've been trying like real hard..!'
Always send a printed copy; even if application is via email, send a printed one too. The first thing I did when recruiting for a position is print out all the emailed CV's anyway - me and the other Directors would often sit with a coffee in the boardroom and go over CV's in paper form. A printed one that you've sent, on some nice thick bond paper, will therefore look different from all the ones I've run out on our crappy 80gsm photocopy paper, and shows that you've put some thought and effort into it. Which, let's face it - is what companies want from their staff - thought and effort!
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