Writing a resume requires a lot of care to attract attention, even more so if you’re an executive. “A lot of care” doesn’t mean “a lot of pages.” On the contrary, even if your CV is a bit of a story of your professional life, conciseness is the rule to follow. Like any writer who writes a good story, you need to think about your reader first. Who is this reader? What is he looking for? What interests him and what does he not? Let’s see this together.
Who reads your CV?
It sounds simple, but it’s perhaps the most essential question of all to ask yourself.
Generally, resumes are read by recruiters, headhunters or an employer. No one reads resumes as hobbies, to relax or escape. For all these people, it is a working tool, a selection tool to find the best potential candidates.
Indeed, your readers are people who have a lot of work. They have tight deadlines and huge responsibilities on their backs. They are running out of time. They want to read two-page resumes that go straight to the point and show how your qualifications and personality will allow you to contribute positively to the organization and position you want. They are looking for very specific skills in a sea of skills. They look for qualifications and personality traits that set you apart.
Your readers are professionals. Reading a CV takes less than a minute and after this short period of time, they will have an idea. Not necessarily an idea of you as a person, but depending on the position to be filled. Battery A or battery B. And these will not be of equal height at the end. This is the fate of CVs.
It goes without saying that headhunters, recruiters, HR departments and employers, do not have long minutes to devote to your leisure and your favorite travel destinations, your sporting achievements or even to a list of references. They want to know if you are doing well and if you understand the requirement of the position to be filled, even more so if it is a managerial position. This will make them want to call you, and possibly meet you, and then refer you to an employer for an interview. They want to make mistakes as little as possible, because it costs them 1) effort, a lot of effort, 2) time, and that they don’t have, and 3) money, because time, as everyone knows, is money. Moreover, in the immediate future, they have two or three other positions to be able to do at the same time!
Increasingly, headhunters, recruiters and employers are looking for personalities, attitudes and etiquette. These skills are very different from academic and technical qualifications. This is what we call in recruitment jargon behavioral skills or soft skills. It is of the utmost importance to know what your strengths and weaknesses are and to highlight those strengths in your resume.
Normally, you should find the exercise of making your resume demanding. This is because it requires reflection and critical thinking. Writing your CV is not so much writing as choosing between what to exclude and what to include.
Indeed, when writing a CV, it is much easier to make long than to make short. What for? Because in short, you have to prune. But to prune, we must distinguish between what is important and what is not. Admit that it’s not easy to “skip” this work experience or that other responsibility you’re so proud of… But ask yourself: in this position to be filled, is it really essential?
Your CV should talk about your personal achievements, your contribution and not list the tasks related to the positions you have held. Obviously, all this while avoiding spelling mistakes, repetitions and any invented career history.
What is he looking for?
Many candidates, particularly in technical fields such as engineering or information technology, assume that employers, recruiters and headhunters use advanced and complex computer tools that automatically analyze the content of a resume, such as artificial intelligence, rather than reading the document. It exists, but it is not the norm or even desirable if they are managerial positions.
Today, all recruitment specialists do intensive research in digital tools like LinkedIn. In parallel, they make a selection from a number of CVs. They carefully read the information in your CV. Important point: your CV and LinkedIn profile must be consistent. Otherwise, there is a problem.
Imagine how many resumes and LinkedIn profiles they look at in a week. Imagine in a year! The last thing you want to do is annoy them with superfluous details. Be surgical in terms of your technical and behavioral skills. Shape points are your friends. This step is crucial if you want to end up in the right stack.
For example, especially if you operate in highly technical environments, avoid lengthy enumerations of all processes, machines, instrumentation, and technology products, unless it’s relevant. In middle and senior management positions, recruiters and headhunters are just as interested in your behavioral skills: leadership, problem solving, stress management, communication skills, team spirit, etc.
They want to know what drives you as a person at this stage of your career plan. Their goal at the RESUME stage is to make an initial selection and call the best candidates to start an oral conversation with them.
What is superfluous?
The introductory paragraph that many candidates choose to include in their resume is often an insignificant list of buzzwords that takes up too much space. On the other hand, well written, it can be a good hook provided you get straight to the point. If you’re writing one, it needs to talk about your skills and what sets you apart as a framework.
Finally, let’s talk about the photo. Is your photo mandatory? What about reference lists?
The reading of your CV is therefore at the beginning of the hiring process and this summary is read in order to make a pre-selection. Often, the recruiter’s and headhunter’s searches will continue on LinkedIn where they will see your photo. At this stage of the recruitment process, the photo is not mandatory. In Europe, we are more inclined to include it. Here in America, we usually do without it. And then, they will have the pleasure of getting to know you at the time of the virtual interview or in person.
It is the same for reference lists. We want to know you, you, not to know who you know or who knows you. In short, it is not a crucial pre-selection determinant.
To conclude, do not start your job search without having seriously thought about the content of your resume. The well-written resume is a powerful tool to progress to the stage of the job interview.
The 4 keys to a CV that stands out:
- Think about your reader.
- Focus on how you have been able to create value in the organizations where you have worked.
- Identify and name your soft skills.
- Cut the superfluous. Avoid reference lists. Instead, provide them upon request.
Visit the Recruscope website to view our job offers. Send us your CV via our website and do not hesitate to contact us. If you are an executive, we could develop with you a valuable collaboration in a spirit of collaborative hiring.
Read our next blog: How to attract the best candidates
