CV 4 Jobs

Lets face it poor qualifications and training can affect your job chances BUT don’t let this hold you back. There are many successful people with little qualifications.

Anyway if you want to improve your CV in this area why not check out what the Education providers who were at the recent FAS 2008 Fair have to offer. Please see a list of providers below.

Job Search Tip

As well as making sure the Irish recruitment agencies know about you, and have the fresh copy of your CV, there is also a number of the Irish Employers who do not use the recruitment agencies but hire directly. The majority of the employers in Ireland use the combination of all sources of applications for their positions. The internal referral is the method the most employers prefer, then the direct applications, and at then the recruitment agencies.

Therefore by targeting just recruitment agencies you are limiting yourself to only those recruiters who do utilise their services. Check your industry and see if the employers in your industry actually use recruitment agencies at all, or are they recruiting directly. If they are hiring themselves, sending your CV to the recruitment agencies will not get you a job you want. What you will need to do is to apply directly to those employers. Sending them your CV in the email format is the most convenient and effective for both you as a job hunter and for the employer.

Here is the list of the current companies hiring on Irish Jobs to help you with your Job Search:

Sometimes it is not enough to send your CV to a recruitment agency and sit back and wait for the job offers to roll in. In my time as a recruitment consultant I saw many applicants try this approach with little success. It is essential that you make contact with the relevant agency.

You must try to meet the consultant or at least make verbal contact on the phone.

If you are sending CV’s to agencies I have outlined a comprehensive list of recruitment agencies below.

If you need help with your CV there are many articles on this site to help you create a CV that will make and impact generating key interviews.

LIST OF RECRUITMENT AGENCIES IN IRELAND

Ever wondered where would be a great place to work in Ireland. I just read a post listing the top 50 companies to work for in Ireland. So if you are writing your CV why not send it to these companies.

I came across an interesting employer survey by law firm in the UK called Peninsula. The survey asked employers t identify what they disliked most about jobseekers. Well here is what the survey found.

These are the top 10 reasons why jobseekers do not land their dream job:

1. 26% of those surveyed disliked candidates with improper dress.

2. 19% of those surveyed said lateness was their greatest frustration. The survey also revealed that 1 in 7 jobseekers arrive late to interviews.

3. 15% of employers dislike candidates too focused on money and salary.

4. 11% of employers surveyed disliked jobseekers that were cynical towards colleagues past or future.

5. 9% of employers rated a limp handshake as a major NO.

6. 7% surveyed were not impresses by jobseekers that lacked direction and career ambition.

7. 5% indicated that poor eye contact was a key hate.

8. 4% said lack of research into the company put them off jobseekers.

9. 3% said poor verbal communications and mumbling was a reason to reject jobseekers.

10. 1% of employers surveyed disliked the know-all

An interesting point about the above findings is how much is non-verbal – improper dress, lateness, handshake, eye contact, research into the company. Interviewees are warned it is often not what you say that dictates interview performance.

There is no problem finding examples of interview questions on the internet. I have outlined a number of common interview questions to help you prepare for your next important interview. Over the coming weeks I will be telling you how to answer these questions. The secret to interview success is a combination of things BUT interview questions plays an important part.

Tell me about yourself?
Tell me what you know about this company?
Why did you apply for this job?
Why should we hire you?
What makes you different from other applicants?
What previous experience do you have relevant to this role?
How do you work under pressure?
How do you react to criticism?
What are your strengths and weaknesses?
How do you cope with failure?
Do you prefer teams or working on your own?
What has been the biggest disappointment in your career to date?
What annoys or upsets you?
How would your fellow workers describe you?
How would a previous boss describe you?
What would you hope to achieve in the first year of this job?
Where do you want to be in five years?
What is the next important step in your career?
Why did you choose the qualification you did?
What other positions or types of companies are you considering?
What is your greatest achievement in your career to date?
Describe what you would do in your first week in the job?
Why are you leaving your current position?
Why do you want to work for us?
Tell me what you know about this position?
What are your salary expectations?
When are you available to commence employment?
Tell me about your interests and hobbies?
Describe yourself to me?
What questions do you have?

Need help with interview preparation – why not talk to an expert.

They Lack focus – Jobseekers write CV’s without considering the employer or hiring manager. If you have one CV that you send to every job you are say to the employer this is what I have got and I don’t care what you want. You must think about the employer, identify what it is they want and the put together your CV.

They lack evidence – Jobseekers do not outline achievements on CV’s. OK they tell what they have done BUT not how they did it. You must provide successes and achievements to support you CV. This will help bring your CV to life.

Want an impact CV? Check out this site.

I often get asked if Hobbies & Interests have a place on a CV. Does the reader actually care what you do in your spare time? There are a couple of points to consider.

Traditional Interviews

There are still quite a few interviewers who rely on traditional interviews although this is changing. Traditional interviews are CV based and can consist of discussions around many topics including your hobbies and interests. Managers will gravitate towards Hobbies & Interests as it is easy to talk about and helps break the ice. This can prove an opportunity to build rapport with the interviewer and you may even have common pastimes.

Helping your CV to interview ratio.

Many jobseekers I meet have Hobbies and Interests which can enhance their CV and application. Would your membership of toastmasters enhance a sales CV? Would your participation and coaching of Gaelic Games help enhance an application for the GAA? Would your charity work enhance your CV for an application to join the care sector?

With these points in mind I normally recommend that Hobbies and Interests are included on all CV’s. If they have no direct relevance to the position you are applying then place them in a section at the end of your CV. If however you have Hobbies & Interests relevant to your application don’t leave it to chance that the employer will read your full CV. Ensure you get this information in the 1st page of your CV perhaps in a value statement.

To view CV and Interviews from the employer’s point of view see hrandrecruitment.

I know this article isn’t about your CV but I will be posting on related topics from time to time. Anyway if you are interested in CV’s you must be job hunting. I was asked yesterday (for the zillionth time) how do you handle the “S” word – Salary. During any interview process it is inevitable that the subject of money will eventually arise. Unfortunately most are not prepared to handle it. Here is my approach:

At interview keep your cards close to your chest

Try your best not to show your hand first and disclose your expectations. This will force the employer to make the initial offer. If asked the question a response like “I am currently on 40k but I am open to salary depending on the role and the company” or answer this interview question with a question such as “what would a role like this pay in your company?”.

I recommend this approach for a number of reasons. Firstly it disguises money motivations. Secondly, putting forward a figure can rule you out of contention – from experience you can negotiate an offer upwards if it doesn’t meet your expectations. The final reason most jobseekers do not consider is that your figure could be lower than the figure the client intended to offer.

Interviews – I want more money

I will point out that if money is a key motivation and the most important factor in your decision feel free to put forward your expectations. Do try to let the client bring up the topic though.

I have viewed four CV’s today and all four are littered with spelling and grammar mistakes. When I coach 1-1 or workshops on CV writing I often forget to mention spelling & grammar as this is very basic stuff. Unfortunately this basic stuff will cost you valuable interviews. Spelling & Grammar mistakes send out the wrong signals and I know many hiring managers who refuse to bring those guilty applicants to interview.

We are all human and we are all prone to making mistakes BUT please do not make Spelling & Grammar mistakes on your CV.

How can you overcome this potential problem?

1. Get someone else to script and type your CV – a professional or a friend.
2. Microsoft Word – Tools – Spelling & Grammar
3. Proof read your CV or get someone else proof read your CV.
4. Then trust and verify – proof read it again.

I will be posting other interesting CV, Interviews and career information over the coming weeks.

p.s I hope there are no Spelling & Grammar mistakes in this post. If so remember the saying “do as I say and not as I do”.