Writing your CV (Top Tips)
Your CV is the most important marketing document you possess and a good one can make all the difference to your career options. There is crucial information that should be included and certain formats you should use that will make your CV easier to follow and will highlight your relevant skills and achievements.

Some general points you should follow:

• Keep your CV as close to 2 sides of A4 as you can
• Update your CV regularly - perhaps tailoring it for each position you apply for
• Use bullet points and a concise and consistent style
• Avoid long paragraphs of prose
• Do not use flashy fonts, tables or borders - many systems cannot cope with them
• Use an easy to follow format with headings and sub-headings
• If you have non HR- related experience between jobs or before your career, be brief and succinct by including dates and title only

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Suggestion for format:

• Start with your name and contact details
• Then write a short profile to position yourself, for example:

• 'Driven and ambitious HR professional graduate, fluent in French and Spanish. Proactive and business focused approach with 3 years' experience in professional services. Strong negotiator and team player, looking for a new challenge within generalist HR.'

• Next state qualifications and education together - including grades, degree classification and dates
• Then summarise experience - start with the most recent position and work back

• Include all relevant details: organisation, title, dates employed and highlight skills and achievements.
• Although you will be tailoring the CV for each position you apply for, it is useful to always breakdown your experience to show what you were doing exactly and to demonstrate where you have used your initiative, been pushed to take on more responsibility, and areas where you have added value. Facts and figures are useful.
• It is a good idea to subsection your experience into skills areas for each role eg employee relations, recruitment, change management, projects etc.
• You should also include details on who and how many people you have managed (if you have), who you deal with in your role both internally and externally, and state any cost savings you have made. This will show your ability to deal with people at all levels and your commercial and business acumen.

• List IT systems you are competent on with a particular focus on HRIS such as PeopleSoft, Oracle and SAP. In a world of increasing technology - HRIS skills are in demand more than ever.
• If you follow these basic principles your CV will be appealing in both appearance and substance. You need to invest a little time but the results will be worth it.

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