What recruiters really want to see on your CV

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If you’re spending hours applying for jobs every day and you never hear anything back, there’s a strong possibility that your CV simply isn’t appealing to recruiters.

Hiring managers are often bombarded with hundreds of applications every time they advertise a new role so it’s important to ensure that your CV stands out and displays all the information that’s going to secure you an interview.

The job site, Reed surveyed hiring managers are recruiters from all across the UK to find out what their biggest application turn-ons and turn-offs are and their research revealed the following:

• When it comes to presenting your CV, the most important thing is for it to be written in a logical order. This means displaying your most recent job first and working backwards. The same should apply for your education.
• The correct formatting was also found to be very important to recruiters. Your CV should be displayed in a Word document, the font should be easy to read and it shouldn’t be more than two pages.
• A great tip is to tailor your CV to the job you’re applying for. The more specific you can be, the more likely you are to be invited in for an interview.
• The biggest turn-offs for recruiters include poor spelling and grammar, candidates who apply for jobs that they don’t have the required qualifications for, poor formatting, CVs that are too generic and candidates who apply for roles but don’t attach a cover letter to their application.
• The top three phrases that recruiters don’t want to see on your CV include ‘I enjoy socialising with friends’, ‘I work well as a team or as an individual’ and ‘I enjoy going to the cinema and long walks on the beach’.
• If you really want your CV to stand out from other applications, make sure that you qualify every statement that you can with an example. For example, if the job specification says that they’re looking for a strong team player, rather than simply saying that you work well in a team, give an example of a time when you and your team performed exceptionally well and saw great results.
• Four out of ten recruiters say that they would instantly disregard any application that doesn’t have a cover letter. To maximise the impact of your cover letter, make sure you tailor it to the position that you’re applying for.
• 82% of recruiters say that it reflects well on a candidate if they follow up after they have applied for a position.
• When writing about your experience, make sure you focus on your current role. Previous experience is important but recruiters want to know what you’re doing right now because it’s the biggest indicator of what you’re capable of at this stage in your career. Potential employers want to know what your position is, what’s your overall goal, the people you interact with on a daily basis, any tools and software packages you use, the work you produce, any targets you have and what you have achieved.

If you would like any CV advice or help finding your next finance role, please feel free to contact Choralis Consulting and we will be more than happy to help.