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Resource Center CV Presentation Interview Techniques

CV Presentation Your CV's primary function is as a marketing tool to convince a prospective employer that you and your skills are worth investigating further. To this end you need to bear in mind that an employer wants a CV that summarises both present and past experience in a clear, chronological and legible manner. The average person takes about ten seconds to decide whether or not to read any further than the first page, so you need to ensure that all the relevant information is presented clearly and concisely, free of irrelevant detail and clutter. Remember: The product is you and you are selling yourself through your CV. • Keep it short - two pages is the ideal, three pages the absolute maximum. • Spelling and grammar must be checked and re-checked. Don't let yourself down with misspelling. • Write yourself a short personal profile (maximum 60 words). This should highlight your skills and attributes, comment on your personal character and summarise your goals and aims with regard to your next career move. • Begin the CV with your personal details - name, address, telephone, mobile phone number and email address. This is usually followed by your personal profile. Follow this with your career progression, starting with your most recent role.  We would advise that you put your date of birth and nationality after your education at the end of the CV. • Point out the responsibilities and achievements for your most recent and second most recent roles in bullet point fashion. All your previous roles should have the company who employed you, the dates you were employed and the title of the role. All roles before the two most recent, should have a one line explanation (if needed) of the role - this also assists you to focus your thoughts should you be invited for an interview. Do not write lengthy or wordy job descriptions. • Use strong verbs such as managed, achieved, negotiated, gained, instigated and resolved. • Make the sure the bullet points are concise and are able to best describe your responsibilities and/or achievements to their best advantage. • Tailor your CV to the role that you are applying for. Highlight those skills or achievements that are relevant to the position, emphasise any parts of your present or previous roles that relate to the vacancy. • On the second page, include your educational details. Typically on the second page you should also list any professional awards or training courses, computer skills, languages and interest/hobbies. • Check that your point size and font usage is consistent, and keep the general look and feel of the CV uncluttered. The use of bold and underline has more impact if used sparingly. • Below you will find an example of a typical CV which you can use as a template.   Norma Jones 3 Masons Lane, Enfield, London N17 3QL Tel: xxxx xxxxx E-mail: Njones@xxxx Mobile: xxxxx xxxxx Profile Highly motivated and focused individual who enjoys working in a team environment. Results orientated professional who is used to working under pressure; committed to giving 100%. Proven track record of good commercial awareness. Looking for a new challenge in marketing and/or sales within an established blue-chip company. Hoping to achieve greater management responsibility. CAREER HISTORY January 2005 to date - ABC TRAVEL Marketing Manager, reporting to Marketing Director Responsibilities • Developing marketing strategy • Heading special projects team • Regional sales responsibility for Australasia Achievements: • Increased profits in Australasia by 75% • Set up and managed new European division • Implemented new trading relationship with Far Eastern suppliers • Successfully implemented new corporate identity and branding July 02 - December 04 - 123 TRAVEL Sales and Marketing Executive, Reporting to Sales and Marketing Manager Responsibilities • Responsible for all 123 marketing campaigns including advertising and PR • Implement and promote all agent incentives • Monitor sales statistics, prepare monthly report for Marketing Manager Achievements: • Implemented successful launch of new branding together with all promotional material and direct mail campaigns • Developed new website, co-ordinated design, project managed integration of existing database November 00 to June 02 - XYZ TRAVEL Regional Accounts Executive, reporting to Accounts Manager • Managing several new accounts, responsible for re-planning budgets and re-organising departmental strategies EDUCATION AND PROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATIONS 1996 - 1999 University of Wales, Cardiff, Mid Glamorgan BA Hons 2:1 Communication Studies 1994 - 1995 Farnborough College of Technology Diploma in Business Administration 1986 - 1994 Woking Girls School GCE 'A' Levels - Maths, English, History, 9 GCE 'O' Levels PERSONAL DETAILS • Date of Birth: 2/2/1975 • Nationality: British OVERSEAS EXPERIENCE From August 1999 to September 2000 I travelled to the USA, Canada, New Zealand, Australia, Malaysia, Indonesia and China. PERSONAL INTERESTS Tennis, Jive dance, Life Drawing and painting.