Episode #8: Need to Spruce Up Your CV for 2021? Here's How the Professionals Do It!

Is it time you updated your resume?

Join me on today's 'Living Your Career Show' and discover how to spruce up your CV for 2021, just like the professionals do! 

This episode is going to be packed with useful information. 

- What employers want to see on a CV in 2021
- The significance of a good cover letter
- Essential elements for a winning application 
- How to Work Well with a Recruiter
- and much more 

02:06    What to include in your Cover letter
10:11   3 Tips to Customize your CV
17:27    How to Complete a Job Application
21:59    How to Get Inside the Mindset of Your Desired Employer
27:42    How to Lay out the Perfect CV

Please Hit the LIKE button and SUBSCRIBE to the channel to keep updated.

This is an episode not to be missed. The things you will learn in this episode could possibly be the difference between you being selected 🥇 or ignored.

Roisin Duffy hosts the Living Your Career Show every Tues/Thurs at 12 noon Brisbane
https://www.facebook.com/Blueskycareers/videos/3602514529806449

Transcript

Need to Spruce up Your CV for 2021? Here’s How the Professionals Do It!

Roisin Duffy  1:18  

Welcome everybody to the Living Your Career Show. My name is Roisin Duffy, I'm a director at Blue Sky careers. The theme of today's show is how to spruce up your CV for 2021 and beyond. And more importantly, how do the professionals do it? What do we think about? It's going to surprise you to think that maybe many people hate writing CVS, it doesn't matter whether you're a graduate, a director; it doesn't matter where you are in your career. Many people are absolutely bewildered and befuddled when they're asked to write a CV. Some people have several versions of their CV. And they have different tools, techniques, practices and disciplines that they use or skills and achievements. So they can go into different careers.

Other people just update the version they use when they left high school, or when they got their degrees. One of the key things is to keep your CV modernized and  relevant, because at the end of the day, times are changing, employers expectations are changing. So they always will not serve the new;  jam pack your CV with relevant achievement, show your unique achievement, show how you're different and the work that you do in the workplace, and how that contributes to achievement, legacy and productivity for your employer.

So you might ask yourself, does this CD need a lot of changing? Yes, a CD really needs a lot of changing- your current work, your role, your duties, your responsibilities, and your achievements are all there for people to see, similarly, so what's your past experience, so in some respects, your CV is kind of in the past. 

But what does the heavy lifting is the cover letter that accompanies it. This should contain relevant context, it should show your unique contribution, and it should show relevant achievement to that employer. So effectively, it's taking what you had in the past. And it's redirecting it to your future. So your cover letter is your opportunity to do that.

Now, the recruiters experience is interesting, because as you can imagine, we could get hundreds of applications in a week; depends on how many jobs we're recruiting for. And we have to read through those applications. So eye tracking research says that it takes us something like 7.4 seconds to read through an application. And it used to be six seconds. That's a very short period of time to capture the imagination of somebody that's potentially going to give you an interview, and shortlist you and put you in front of a prospective employer, one that you deeply and passionately want to work for.

So what makes us click on in those 7.4 seconds, and I would say the cover letter First, if it has my name on it, I will always advertise a job. And I will always put my name at the end of it. I want people to know me. I want people to know that I'm the person who's recruiting that job. I want people to know they can email me. And I want people to know my telephone number and my email, so they can ring me up because they want to find out more information. 

The reason why I want you to do that is because I want you to prepare an application that is tailored to that role. I don't care if it's a contract. I don't care if it's a fixed term position. I don't care if it's a permanent role. I want you to be able to talk to me and tell me what it is about you that makes you unique in terms of your experience, your knowledge, your skill, your experience, your achievement, your purpose and your passion. You're very for that role, I want you to tell me that story. 

Whether you have industry experience or not, that's what I'm looking for. Because if you don't have industry experience, you can find other ways to convey to me that you're deeply interested in that position. Research to impress, there is nothing, more disheartening than receiving an application that clearly has amazing potential and promise, and the person hasn't done any research on that employer. I think perhaps one of the biggest mistakes that people make when they're applying for roles is not doing thorough research. Firstly, not finding out the information from those people who may know quite a lot about the role of recruiters or the inter recruiters for that company. But also, research the website, read their annual report, you can read their strategic plan, you can look at their initiatives, there is so much about a company that can tell you about that company. And you can fasten all of those words and form all of those words and shape them into what it is that you're trying to explain and convey to that company.

Tailoring your cover letter and CV is absolutely essential when you're applying for a job. And I think for people that don't tailor and that don't prepare to that level, those applications come across as being quite lazy and slick. Now, that's not to say if somebody doesn’t have great experience, and we could see that connection and promise, that we wouldn't want to see them. But it certainly wouldn't help you at all, if you're trying to use transferable skills, and perhaps bridge gaps to get into that role if you don't do preparation, and if you don't incorporate your knowledge into a cover letter. 

I guess the other thing in the new recruitment world, we're going to have to look broader, deeper, brighter about what we're doing. Employer clients are looking for originality, they're looking for inventiveness. They're looking for people whose capability is supercharged  especially now that companies are trimmed. They're slimmed. And they're having to be very industrious, and very efficient about what they do.

So the old ways, again, as I said before, will not serve the new, modern, refined, tailored application that encompasses what I've already talked about, we'll definitely get a good viewing, and I suspect an interview. The lesson then for you is if you're applying for a job that you really want, that is very relevant to you; make sure you take the time and care to prepare appropriately.

What frustrates recruiters? Wow, lots of things frustrate recruiters! Generic applications without a shadow of a doubt. I mean, to just send off a CV willy nilly, and without even addressing it to the recruiter, without addressing it to the company. You know, just your CV as it was, I don't think would be sufficient in 2021 and beyond.

Serial flickers? Yes, people do send us CVs, it doesn't matter what job we are recruiting, they'll just send their CVs. I often wonder why? Do they sit there, call this a ‘post and pray’ sort of application?

 I think we have a world that is considerably changed and employers are looking for new and smarter ways to deliver their work more productively. From a quality of service perspective. The internal recruiters and the external recruiters will now be looking for much more customization than that. Cuttered applications badly laid out badly structured. And you know, I think again, long sentences, grammatical errors, typos. Really, I think if you're doing your CV, and no matter how accomplished you are, or think you are, always make sure you get a few people who can look over that and review it and give you some insight and health and most certainly a good editorial review.

The other thing that I would say is vitally important is dating CVS. I am 30 years doing what I'm doing. And sometimes people put as much weight and importance to what they did when they first left school when they first left University, to their current job. The first thing I would say to you is give importance to that which is important. So in other words, give way to that which is most relevant and appropriate and relevant to the job that you're applying for. 

I think the second thing is if you, like me, have 30 years experience. I don't need to see every pulse of that career. Why don't you categorize it? You know, in terms of showing your current career achievements, and then do your early career highlights. Your current career achievements are going to increase in terms of level, potentially, in terms of your promotions and career ambitions and aspirations how you have developed, it's very likely that what you've done over the last 10 years is going to be quite significant. Your early career highlights are often your foundations. And if they are, there's no reason why you can't say early career highlights, and simply bullet points, some of those important companies that you work for. And those achievements and in fact, perhaps bullet the companies and consolidate the achievements. 

Rather than having excessively long CVS with information that probably was more junior, potentially in your time, there's a codicil there, do not and I think this is vitally important. And don't underestimate something that you did 10 or 20 years ago as being significant to a role that you're applying for now. If that is the case, bring that information to the fore, and incorporate it into your cover letter, your cover letter will do that heavy lifting for you, and include it in your early career highlights, and include it in future the key achievements that would be relevant for this role. 

 11:07  Winning applications: What makes an application something that we can pass?

There are three things that encapsulate a good application, it has to be personalized. So that means we need to see you and your reflection and your footprint and your brand and your values and your work. 

We need to see your commercialization of your achievements. And that means we need to see what is unique about you, and how you hire those achievements. 

And the third thing that we look for is customization and tailoring. How are you selecting examples that are going to be relevant for that employer? Your personal attributes, guiding your contributions and your achievements. The employer will want to see these things, what powers you, the professional, the values, the capability, attributes and how that contributes uniquely to achieve for the betterment of the organization you're working for, and would be valued by a prospective employer.

Let's talk a little bit about personality. I wrote a blog about this recently. And I call it adding the spark, I read a lot of dutiful applications, I read a lot of applications that are pretty fluffy and could have been a lot more succinct, to the point, a lot more relevant, and could be a many more things.

But I think nothing beats ambition. Nothing beats a willingness to want to deliver. Anybody can have lofty desires, aspirations, ambition, but you need to be able to achieve. Action based CVs have that ambition, they have that action, and they have that achievement. I would say the CVs that we're going to be paying very careful attention to now are those that can pivot, those that can flex those that can adapt those that can deliver solutions. 

This has got to be inherent in what you're saying. And it's got to be tangible in your achievements. Employers are looking for fresh energy and fresh thinking now. They're looking for substance based on results. And that's what lures the reader in. So when you introduce a dollop of personality, imagine how that can tip the scales in your favor when we are reviewing lots and lots and lots of CVs?

What does personality mean? What does your personal state mean? Personality is how you think, it's how you feel, how you interact,  how you behave. It's that silent force that intuitively and instinctively guides you. It's that force that makes you happy in one environment, and perhaps potentially incredibly unhappy in another. And achievement counts for so much more. 

When we can see your inner self, the authentic you, the real you and what you do in the workplace and how you can power achievement. a difficult thing for many of us to do and I think this is without fail, irrespective of your level. And what you do in life is to know really what makes you tick. I mean, we're all so conditioned to do what we do every day of the week.

We're not greatly conditioned to think about how we stand out. And I think the Aussie way, too, is not to Showboat. It's not to brag, it's not to be arrogant. The other way is to be very understated.The Aussie way and I'm talking particularly to you about the audiences; UK audiences are very different, the Americanaudience is very different. 

We're much more full thought and what we have to say, and how we say it. But if you're struggling to identify, what is it that makes you tick, I would be saying to you, what do you love in your work? What do you really value? I mean, that's a very good place to start. How do you stand out with your team? How do you stand out in management functions? Are you the person who's creative with ideas? Are you more of the person that thinks about compliance in terms of risk? Are you more the driver and the project manager? Are you the strategist? And these are the things you need to think about, and what makes you unique in your work, and in your immediate environment? How is your work distinctive? And how do you know that is distinctive? What do you do to make it distinctive? What does your team tell you about how well you do? What's their feedback to you? What are the things they like about you? What do your managers and your leaders say about you? What do they value in you?

You know, as a role, you're like, well, who are your role models? What lessons do you take from one place to another? Who are the people, you know, the ethical leaders, the values based leaders, the people that you try to role model? Why is that important to you? If I was talking to your manager, how would they describe you? If I said, What are the three things about this person that stand out to you? What would they say to me? And I guess the other thing is, outside of work, who are you? I think if you can answer any of these questions, it will kind of tell you what makes you tick, what's real about you, what's authentic about you? What matters to you.

Personality and authenticity are two of the things that are most valued in the applications that we look at every day. If you can master the craft of incorporating both of these, particularly into your cover letter, which is your opportunity to tell your personal story, as only you can, nobody else can tell your story, your personal and professional story, the way you can, then it is very likely whether you have industry experience or not. Whether you're going for that promotion or not. Whether you're seeking your first job or not, whether you're trying to move into those executive ranks or not, it is very likely whoever is reading that application, is going to be compelled to read on and not click off in 7.6 seconds.

Roisin Duffy  17:54  

I guess my guidance to people trying to be the same as everybody else in an application is that your work experience is unique to you. It's unique to your employer, it's unique to the role that you did the duties, responsibilities and achievements. But your cover letter is unique to you. So don't try to be the same as everybody else. When you write these things, make it uniquely you. Know yourself, be yourself. I think that will come through to the person that is reading that application. 

So now we need to talk about job applications in 2020 in relation to what to focus on if I was preparing a job application in 2020? For myself, if I was writing for others, what are the things that I would think about? Well, the first thing that went into my head is that COVID-19 isn't going to go away anytime soon. The ripple effects of what that has done to the business market, to government, and to the employment market is going to continue for a while. 

Business will continue to reform and transform. Government will look at every single avenue it has available to really stimulate employment growth. And there are going to be opportunities and there are going to be obstacles. And you're going to have to navigate the obstacles. And you're going to have to capitalize on the opportunities when you're developing your applications, targeting industries, targeting employers and targeting roles.

So what are employers going to focus on in 2021? According to ADP Research Institute, a data driven research agency that focuses on the world of work, and the things that they think are going to be important to employers in 2021...are resilience, mental health in the workplace, people having to work remotely in social isolation,how projects are being delivered now as organizations are geographically dispersed, how are they keeping their workforce united in harmony-still challenged and engaged, supported. 

So building in those resilient structures is going to be important. Diversity and inclusion, that we speak about all the time. But increasingly, this is right up at the top of an employee's expectation. Now they want to work for organizations that have good corporate social responsibilities in place. They want to work for organizations now more than ever, after seeing what COVID-19 has done, to friends, family, communities, the world, they want to see organizations that are socially and culturally responsible, show agility and take action.

That's a combination of people, performance and technology. So now they're looking to be more fluid, more responsive. So if they can find technology to deliver solutions, smarter technologies, they will last. I was recruiting business intelligence roles, I had applications from big data analysts, people that are miles smarter than I am. And for a business analyst role, they would create a dashboard of intelligence, so that the executive and the managers could look at one lot of information from a range of different sources, to aid their strategic direction, to aid the support of their priorities and the delivery of their priorities. 

This is where the world is going. Some jobs will disappear. Some jobs will stay, some jobs will evolve, and a brand new world is emerging. Agility in action, though, as far as people and careers is concerned, is people that are fresh thinkers, innovators, original, flexible and pivot or adapt in the world that they're going into. Show that in your CV, it is going to be vitally important, as well as safety and compliance. 

That's the other thing. If you take away the safeguards of a modern workplace, if you take away that your manager is probably sitting in the next room or right beside you. Imagine safety people working from home, remote working. I think this is going to stay, or at least in part, and we're going to be doing a lot more online. Companies have found the productivity levels have been high, performance has been great. And employees, some have hated it, some have loved it and some prefer the hybrid version.

Either way, it brings into mind from an employment perspective, safety, safety at home, safety at work, safety on the project side and compliance. How are we now overseeing the quality and standards of what we do? So that we can ensure compliance when we're not all in the same workspace? 

Step one for any candidate when doing your job application, is to incorporate the employer mindset into the application. And if it's saved in compliance,  they're looking at and that is an area of strength for you, make it shine. If they're looking for adaptability, then let it be seen how you have evolved, adapted, grown, contributed and achieved as a consequence of that for your employers benefit and for their prospective benefit. Whatever the critical areas are, that they're searching for, make sure that you're researched and you incorporated into your application. 

Relationships you know, people who are ahead of the game, don't really wait for an emergency to activate their network or their contacts or their relationships. Career Management is actually a habit to them. It's something that they constantly have an eye on the ball. The first thing I could say to you about relationships is to be memorable, it's no different to when you send off a cover letter on a CV, find out the person who's recruiting personally. Connect with them straightaway. Make yourself memorable to them.

You may be in a situation where you've lost your job and resilience is something that it doesn't come easily, but positivity helps resilience. We're coming into Christmas.Take the time off, if you've been off work for months, and you know, take this time off, regroup, re energize, but come January and the end of January in particular, when this market picks back up, get active, and that's where you need to put those positive steps in place. And if you do one or two of those steps each day, they will help build resilience that is floundering or has been lost. 

Be professional. I can't emphasize to you how important it is to think about the corridor chatters of the employment world. We recruiters every day speak to people you work with, we speak to your bosses, we speak to your managers, we speak to your leaders, we speak to stakeholders who interact with you every day of the week.

In everything you do, make sure that your integrity and your value is kept close at hand. Because those are the very people that will be seeking references from third party endorsement. And people who sing your praises,  sponsor you, people who mentor you. They're the strongest allies you can have when you're looking for a job because they will back you all the way. As I might add, will recruitment agencies, somebody like me, will go all the way with somebody that I truly believe in, because I know that I can back you, once I have that third party endorsement. Once I have the insight, whether you've worked for me, or whether you've worked for clients of mine, the reality is that once I have that information, quality once is quality afterwards. And I will back you.

And I guess then we come to how you do applications. Three things I mentioned earlier on, you need to personalize, individualize your application to differentiate it. Tell your personal career story, the strategies that you've developed that only you contributed to. Only nobody else can share the context that you can. Nobody else has lived in your world, in your work in the relationships that you formed in your work. 

So I would say to you firstly, think about you, are you a strategist? And if you are, let it be seen. If you're very good as a project manager, and that's your core strength, let that be seen. You know, if you're somebody that's really good with stakeholders, and particularly complex tools and adversarial stakeholders, how do you bring them around to your way of thinking, how do you build a mutuality? How do you build them the trust and respect this the sort of thing we're looking for? When we're looking for somebody who wants to personalize their application. Remember a title means very little to me.If your level is manager you’re a manager, if you're an executive, you're an executive, if you're a job seeker, job seeker. If you're a specialist, especially as can cross boundaries, it depends on how you tell your story, how you shape your story, how you direct your story. Somebody who specialized in one industry can move into other industries, it depends on how you tell your story, how you shape your story, how you evidence, your story, and how you direct your story. The reason why title doesn't make much difference to me is that what makes the difference is the person within that powers the professional. No qualification, no title does the person make. It's the combination of facets, and what sits within to drive, inspire and power you. That's what we're interested in. 

Because that's where you make your contribution. That's where you make your mark. And that's where you render achievements and leave a legacy, a good legacy with employers. Some professionals are highly analytical, some are creative, some like to do, some love process, some like coming up with solutions, whatever you are, let it be seen. The key thing in 2021 for you to remember is that employers are looking for new and different. They're looking for supercharged, they're looking for inventiveness. They're looking for originality, they're looking for more. I think never before has there been so much opportunity.

And I would say to people, rejoice in who you are. Rejoice in who you are, the person. Rejoice in your authenticity, and rejoice in the value that you can bring and the values that you believe in, because that's what employers are looking at. Now, above and beyond straight experience. Time is short.

So I'm going to quickly get onto how you lay out a CV. For me, we're time shy. So, on your first page, we need to know how to get hold of you. We need your name, your contact number, the location you're going to be in, especially if you're thinking of relocating. And we need to know what your results are. If you've been to training, your training and academic results. 

The first page of any CV shouldn’t be a career profile that says “I'm hard working, I'm collegiate, I'm this, that and the other.” I don't want a whole bunch of objectors, what I really want is a cover that you can turn the first page of your CV into a cover letter if you want pages one and two. 

What I want on the first of that and get straight to the point, I want you to tell me why you're interested in this job. And why you think you'd be good at it, then I want you to give me five or six key statements that talk to me about the level, the scope, the nature and the dimensions of your work. 

So that tells me whether you're at level, whether you've worked in a particular area, scope, so that I know the level and I can identify the dimension, so that I can match you to the job that I'm recruiting. And then I want you to commercialize that for me. So that's stage two. I want you to be able to elevate what it is that you're saying you can do. So I want you to tell me why you think you're good at strategy, and how that has been evident in your contribution, and how that has lent itself to an achievement or a result. So you the person, the contribution that you make, why you made that contribution, how you made that contribution, why it was valuable, and why it left a lasting result. That's how you commercialize your CV. And that is the flow of how you move from person to contribution to achievement. saying you've done something and not backing it up is not enough, saying you have a strength, and you haven't evidence is not enough. I often see CVS where people have a picking list of skills and attributes. But to me, that's fine. And I would expect that to go with certain desk disciplines and professionals, but much more profound, much more depth, much more sincerity and authenticity, when it's backed up.

And finally customizing your CV is taking what's going to be relevant. Taking the best of your experiences, the substance, the distinction, the relevance, folding that through and link it to the prospective employer. Because when you do that, it may be more than what the employer is wanting. Some of it might be relevant, some of it might be transferable. But if you tell your story, and shape your evidence, your story the right way, it will hit, it will resonate, it will hit a chord.

Now I'm going to come to just the final part, which is really bonus tips and do's and don'ts. You'll notice today I didn't talk about selection criteria. When you write your cover letter, it can very well be your selection criteria,to fit  the competency and leadership framework of government. The federal system is different, the state system is a bit different, as is local government. We write those specifically. 

When we're talking about the private sector, it's very much about return on investment, the highly commercial, and not for profit. Again, there's probably just a slight twist on that. So I'll cover selection criteria in the new year and how you write selection criteria that relates to cover letters and cover letters unnecessary at all, if you write selection criteria, so bonus tips, do's and don'ts. 

And I think cover letters and CVs should be succinct, punchy, error free, easy to read, well laid out, good headers easily to find, and yet really easy to read. People ask me all the time, how long should a CV be? I think an application should be no more than five or six pages max. If you have a couple of pages of a cover letter, and three pages of a CV that is evidenced and harmonized with what your cover letter says, I think that's probably good. 

I think I saw one the other day that was 14 pages. Nobody has time for that anymore. And it's a pity because that CV had plenty relevance. And when I advised that person, that CV is probably now about five pages long. Don't waste first impressions with fluff. It's really important that you get straight to the point when you're in the open reveal CV. 

Why are you applying for the job? Why does it matter to you? Why do you think your skill to do this job qualified and have relevant achievements. And then you get into setting it up and evidencing; show achievements, not responsibilities. It's fascinating to me how many people will give me in there; they're giving me the job, the roles, the dates, and then I get a list of tasks, I duties and responsibilities, but where are the achievements? So that's the old school, we want the new school, modern Cvs are all about results. And that's what we're looking for. And also don't give me a list of responsibilities that are 10 long, and then two achievements. Take away the list of responsibilities, responsibilities of context for achievements, choose the responsibilities that you are very good at, show me the ones that you executed well and show me the achievements. Very importantly, write the application in the language of your employer. I think one of the biggest missed opportunities if you're applying for a particular industry, or a particular company, get on their website, see what that people are saying, read their annual report, read their corporate plan, understand that language and match your language to them. 

One application I wrote that was very successful was for a global engineering company. And the CEO had talked about their values, strength, unity, diversity through people. That sort of thing. You're trying to link yourself to an employer, choose their values, and say, these are your values. And this is your story. This is my story. And I'm going to connect me to your values and to your story. And then off you go. So that's another good tip for people to think about when they're trying to transfer or go for promotion. Make sure that you think about high order thinking of companies, what’s their vision, what their values are, and connect with those. 

I guess the final thing I'd like to say to everybody. Most people underestimate an application. Actually, I would say most people overestimate what they can achieve in an application in one year. And they underestimate what they accomplished in 10. So pay respect, pay homage to the work that you've done in the best of your work, what you did in the last year, the last two years, that can be significant, but it's only part of the story.

So be real, live your career, be honest with yourself, be ambitious, be focused. The living your career show is about to conclude for this year, folks. We'll be back again at the end of January and on Tuesday, and on Thursday, Brisbane noon time. I will be having more guests with their stories, their career stories, their experiences, their advice for you, and I hope you will take value and knowledge from that. 

I too will be sharing more tips and tricks with you in terms of recruitment and careers. And finance. Now I'd like to wish everybody a happy Christmas and a Happy New Year. The most important thing for all of you right now is to be safe to you and yours. Be safe, be happy. Enjoy the Christmas and the new year period. And then. step up in the New Year 21!

Here we go. So for now I'll say goodbye, I'll talk to you again in 2021. All the best