The Curriculum Vitae - Your Presentation on Paper !

Your job / career today is your responsibility, with career advancement very uncertain, unlike a few years ago. You will or may have changed jobs even career a few times already, therefore a good CV is an essential tool in the survival kit of every ambitious employee. Today your CV or Résumé is your passport to new opportunities, your personal invitation to meet new employers, your marketing tool.YOU plc.

There really is no right or wrong way to do a CV as we all have different stories to tell to different prospective employers, which is why it is critical to tailor your CV to the organisations / people that you want to meet.

CV's serve four different functions:

• Self inventory - helps you to recall your achievements, talents and skills and present them in an easy-to-read format
• Extended calling card - gets you invited to an interview
• Agenda for an interview - helps the interviewer/s during the interview
• Memory jogger - helps the interviewer/s remember you afterwards.

The most important parts of interest in your CV should cover the following or a combination of (in order of reading):

• Personal details
• Career or Personal Objective
• Summary
• Education
• Training & Development
• Work Experience
• Key Accomplishments (through work, sports, community, social)
• Community service
• Membership of professional organisations
• Interests
• References

Included in your Presentation is the Cover Letter/ Email, which can be as important as your CV.

No matter where you are in your career, whether just starting your first job, in your third or fourth job, or choosing your final job in your career, the CV's function always remains the same - to tell prospective employers how you can help solve their problems.

The rule of thumb is two to three pages, depending on your career history and role (executive summary's are recommended for more senior positions). Proof read it many times to find, correct and eliminate spelling / grammar errors. Fill your document with as much white space as possible to allow the reader to:

• 'breathe' while reading the document
• skim through it quickly
• write notes between the paragraphs

Your CV should read like a story from start to finish following in a logical order and sequence.

Do devote a lot of time to writing and preparing your CV, ask the Recruitment Agency if it fits with their requirements for their client, make it personal and tailored to organisations / people that you would love to work in / meet.

The Interview

There are three main areas to the Job Interview:

• What you do before it
• What you do during it
• What you do after it

Employers are asking themselves three questions:

• Can you do the job
• Will you do the job
• Will you fit-in

Interview Preparation (The Before the Interview)

So how do you prepare for that all-important meeting with people who you have probably never met before?

It may seem obvious, but you must know:

• The Organisation
• Your Curriculum Vitae
• The Job Criteria / Specification

Pre-empt probable questions, prepare answers that will impress and memorise in bullet point format. Try to bring in examples of where you have demonstrated competency - our past is a reflection on our future.

The Interview Itself (During the Interview)

Dress to impress - you get one chance to make a first impression (90% of it is non-verbal). This is where a lot of interviews are won and lost. Less experienced interviewers give you less time to make a good first impression.

Be mindful of your body language:

• Eye contact, Firm Hand Shake, Gestures, Posture and don't forget to Smile

The interviewers are not really looking for the best quality person with the best experience and education - they want the person with the best-fit!

• Listen to the question, pause and formulate the answer and then answer it if possible with an example.

Finally thank them for meeting with you.

Post Interview (After the Interview)

When it is all over, stay positive and don't be too disappointed with any part of it. Consider the following:

• Write down all the questions that you were asked
• Write a Thank-you letter/email
• Seek feedback / discuss the interview the Recruitment Agency

The interview is a science in itself and difficult to get right. Be yourself naturally, but with a professional approach exuding enthusiasm, passion interest about them, yourself and life!