How To Make Your CV Stand Out

A Stack of Files

On average, recruiters and HR professionals receive about 100-200 CV's per day (and this depends on how many positions are open at the company). So what do recruiters look for? What is the criteria used to determine if a CV is good or not? There is no specific formula or "criteria" It all depends on what role you are applying for. But here are some general tips that can help:

1. Clear Formatting : A CV that is easy to read, with a clean layout and clear section headings. Use bullet points, consistent font styles. Avoid overcrowding the page with excessive text or overly fancy designs that can distract from your content. Choose a font that is easy to read, and avoid too many colours - this can be really difficult to read and result in your CV being tossed out.

2. Tailored Content : This is what I meant by "it all depends on the role you are applying for." If you are applying for a sales position, have your cv reflect this by highlighting on why you are looking for your next sales role. Highlight your achievements - I want to see numbers. If you overachieved target by 30% mention this! If you hit presidents club - highlight that! Numbers matter more than words.

If it's a marketing position, why not include things like "Increased number of subscribers by X percent?" Having actual achievements will help tremendously by highlighting your experience in a more tangible way.

3. Professional Summary : You can include this at the top of your CV before going into detail of your job experience. But again, it must be relevant to the role. There have been times I have received a CV for a data analyst position and the person highlights in their intro that they are looking for a customer service role. This to me highlights messiness and it makes me question if this person really knows what they are looking for.

4. Avoid Common Mistakes Spelling errors, grammatical mistakes, and inconsistencies can make you look careless. Always proofread your CV. Make sure that it matches your LinkedIn profile—having dates be consistent. One common error I always see is "Attention to details." If I see this on a CV, I am already wondering if this person really has attention to detail.

5.Showcase Soft and Hard Skills Recruiters look for a combination of technical and interpersonal abilities. Highlight both your hard skills (e.g., software proficiency, certifications) and your soft skills (e.g., leadership, teamwork).

6. Short and Concise: A CV should not exceed 2-3 pages, even now three pages seems a bit too long, if you can keep if between 1-2 pages the better, but if there are a lot of things to highlight 2 should be the maximum.

Lastly, in another post I mentioned ways to prepare for a job interview, a good conscience CV goes a long way - but always remember to apply for positions that are relevant to your experience or where you can transfer your current skills to that role. For instance, if a job requires German as a language and you do not speak German, chances of getting past CV review will be zero.

Thanks for reading! There are many tools that can help when it comes to writing a CV, the most important thing when doing so is that organisation is key.

Looking for your next Go-To-Market role? Get in touch hello@optimyze1.com