"CV not working ? READ THIS"

Standard CV's; those boring grey documents which exude nothing but the lack of imagination of the writer. What we aim for is the 'Killer CV' that goes straight for the jugular and screams out to the reader. By combining razor sharp content that is clear, concise and instantly accessible with striking layout that adheres to the tried and tested conventions of CV writing, you will be half way to getting the perfect job.

What is a CV and what can it do for you? If you buy a new stereo you make a point of reading its specification to make sure it can perform all the tasks you want it to do. An employer reads your CV for much the same purpose. A CV is your personal specification, it documents your abilities, and shows the reader what you are capable of. Curriculum Vitae is Latin for "course of life" An employer may have a pile of one hundred CV's on his/her desk and from those applicants only ten will be chosen for interview. A well written CV will get you that interview. During the interview the only source of information the employer has about you is your covering letter and CV, therefore many of the questions that will be posed will be based upon aspects of those documents - so make sure you know what you've put before them. Afterwards the interviewer may once again refer back to your CV to remind themselves of your abilities, and depending upon how you performed at the interview you will be offered the job. Finally the CV can be influential during salary negotiations as it details your skills and experience; your salary will be partially based upon these factors.

A CV should always be considered work in progress What to put in your CV? An employer needs facts about your skills, experience, qualifications, and some personal insight. If they like what they read then they will require contact information to get in touch with you. The order in which these facts are documented is important. Convention states that contact details should be at the top, then a brief introduction, then employment history, followed by qualifications and personal interests.

Contact details. Often CV's are kept on file for long periods so any contact details you give have to remain accurate in the long term. A daytime phone number is most important, include your mobile number if you have one. Include an e-mail address, a Hotmail address is good because you will have it for life. If you have your own URL domain name put it down for added class, for example contact@joebloggs.com.

Date of birth and nationality. Employers are not allowed to discriminate, but putting these details down saves them having to ask you. If you are not a citizen of the country in which you are applying special arrangements may have to be made.

Introduction. Write a brief and powerful introduction last thing after you have written everything else. Sum up your key qualities and include your aims. There is no need to head this section as it is self-evident.

Previous employment. Write in reverse chronological order, including starting and leaving dates for each position. Include concise details of what the job entailed, your responsibilities and what you achieved in the role. If there are any time gaps between employment explain what you were doing in that time, for example travelling, at college, carrying out charity fund raising work. Use active verbs to describe your achievements, for example "I have experience in… I am trained in… I managed... I developed, I co-ordinated etc. Bullet point these at the start of a sentence for maximum impact.

Qualifications. There is no need to list all of your High School or O-Level/GCSE subjects, simply write something like, 10 GCSE's A-C including Mathematics and English. A-Level and degree qualifications can be listed, the grades do not have to be included. List only the academic centres where a qualification was earned in reverse chronological order with dates.

Hobbies and interests. This give an insight into your personality. Consider carefully what you are putting down and its implications. Team events indicate that you are a team player, other activities such as Scouting, CCF, Duke of Edinburgh's Award Scheme show commitment and the fact you are not adverse to a challenge. If you like reading say whom you favourite author is.

References. Unless you have a reference that you are particularly proud of, for example a letter written by Richard Branson saying that you are the 'bees knees', then it is advisable not to include references in the CV. Instead simply write "References available on request".

Don't over-play or under-play your achievements

Format. Use a word processor to write your CV, sometimes a company may specify that they want a hand written covering letter but the CV should always be typed - remember quality of presentation should never be ignored. No longer than two sides of A4 and put the most important information on page one. Do not print on both sides of the paper. It is crucial to keep things concise because you will probably find that two pages provide not a lot of room to include all of your details, intelligent formatting is required. Make the layout clear logical and not cluttered, use sensible margin spacing. Use the best quality paper you can get hold of, but use common sense, do not send paper that is too thick. Bulleted paragraphs are a good way to save space and add impact to statements. Titles are required so that an employer can instantly see just what he/she wants to read. But try to avoid using formulaic titles such as Skills, Objectives, Profile, Introduction etc. Instead use a few sensible broad headings, 'Career', 'Personal', 'Professional' Talented design and layout with flashy type settings cannot fail to impress, however do not over do it, smart design cannot be considered a substitute for quality content. Another problem with complex formatting is that when it comes to posting your CV online, often the format is lost. Ideally have two versions, one flashy CV which can be snail mailed and e-mailed in Word, or PDF format and one which is txt. format which can be cut and pasted into online CV fields.

Tailor your CV to each separate position. Whenever possible carry out some research into the company (the easiest way to do this is to look at their website) - see section on tailoring your CV. Do not quote your previous salaries, and do not state why you left previous jobs

Points for those new to the rat race. If you are fresh out of university, college, or school it is possible that filling two sides of A4 with details of experience could prove tricky. Describe what skills you have learnt and put into practice during your studies, for example working in-groups, presentation skills, perhaps you have carried out some unpaid work experience. Do not worry about your CV being thin to begin with, everybody has to start somewhere. Demonstrate on paper the benefits you could bring to the employer's organization

Language. Try to slip in some relevant industry buzzwords, because it is a fact that employers scan read CV's and you want them to think that you know what you are talking about. Use simple language, you are not trying to impress anyone with your verbosity. ·

Back up your statements with evidence. For example 'Excellent organizational skills, I single handedly transferred all the company records onto CD ROM.' Similarly, try to quantify every statement, for example 'launched new marketing initiative which resulted in additional revenue of 45K'. Some things just don't need to be said, for example if the employer has read your covering letter and CV, then it should be evident to them that you are a good communicator. There is no need to state it separately; you don't want to come across as being naïve. Similarly you don't need to write CV at the top. Write a positive objective statement clarifying where you want your career to go, avoid any negative language in your CV. Try to avoid using 'I' too much. A page of I did this and that is a big turn-off - it says to the employer you haven't thought about them, only about yourself. An employer is not going to be interested in someone who has apparently drifted from job to job, perhaps across sectors. There should be some consistency and progression so that your career seems planned. Employers want candidates who are targeted and focused, ambitious types who know what they want and where they are heading. Your CV should reflect this considered progression.

Always be honest. Do not write anything in your CV that you would not feel comfortable talking about at an interview. Get someone else to read you CV for a second opinion, you may have missed some grammatical or spelling errors. It should be noted that there are no universal rules, this document is only a guide, the key is to incorporate all of the necessary elements, follow the conventions, and then to incorporate your own individuality.