CV 4 Jobs

Most jobseekers put time and energy into CV Writing and even pay people like me to do it for them. You need a good CV but I do feel though that there should be more emphasis on finding jobs in this market. I write CVs for many clients and as part of the process I tell them the reality of the current job Market with emphasis on proactive job hunting. I know much of this is not heeded and that many jobseekers will inevitably sit and wait for the jobs to be posted online or in the papers. I guess my point is that there is no point having a great CV if no one ever gets to see it.

Reminds me of a story I read once about two students who finished up for the summer. They both planned to get work for the summer. The first student spent the first week creating an immaculate CV and the other student got a job.

CVs are an essential tool as most employers will want to see the document at some stage no matter how you source the job. Having said this I know of many people who got jobs without a CV. In this market a planned job search strategy is more important as I feel it is harder to find jobs than write a CV. Are you using your CV as the reason for not finding a job when in fact it is more than likely your approach to job hunting?

My dear – Been so busy for the last 6-8 weeks that I have had limited time to research the market and my competition. If you are a jobseeker you have sooooooooooooo much choice for career advice, interview coaching and of course CV services and judging from my latest findings this choice has increased.

I noted a few individual providers that have set up in the last few months and the backgrounds range from management consultants to public sector. Of greater note – Irish Jobs has set up a new website myhorizon to support the jobseeker market in Ireland. They are offering CV support because the online advertised jobs market has collapsed. I had a quick look at the site and it certainly looks good and the prices are a real steal. Get on to them straight away –OR MAYBE HOLD UP A MINUTE.

Here are a few questions I would want answered if I was seeking a CV Service

Who is writing my CV?

This is critical as there are too many people working from text books. Unfortunately this won’t deliver in this market place. I don’t doubt the experience of the CV writers with myhorizon BUT I would still like to see a face and a profile.

What am I getting for my money?

A good CV takes 2-4 hours to prepare depending on the current state and the level of experience by the owner. When I see very low prices advertised I question what would I get for this price.

Is there human contact?

How anyone writes or reviews a CV without human contact beats me. How anyone reviews a CV without knowing where you are going beats me.

CV service Ireland

Some months back I attended a jobs fair offered to the staff of one company who were cutting employees. The fair was made up of education providers, recruiters and job boards. I was a guest of one company who had a stand at the fair. My role was to analyze CV’s for the employees and provide CV advice.

The jobs fair initiative was part of a bigger outplacement offering which included CV support and interview support. Two things struck me about that day.

- I was amazed how many employees had not attended the supports offered and were then spending 30 minutes with me.

- I was also amazed at the quality of some of the CV’s from those who had attended. (Amazed in a bad way). They had production line CV’s that lacked impact. Anyway this point is for another article.

Outplacement Services can potentially be a great springboard to help you bounce back into the job market. If they are offered to you – TAKE UP THE OFFER.

CV is a critical part of any job hunting activity BUT this is especially the case in tough economic climate and jobs market. So what makes a winning CV – A CV that stands out in the crowd and delivers those important interviews?

I am regularly asked this question and my response is as follows. There are 3 critical ingredients to developing a winning CV

Content – They say property is about location, location, location. Well then CVs are about Content, Conent, Content. Your CV needs focused content. If you have one CV that you send to all jobs then you are making a deadly mistake. Your CV will need tweaking or even major overhaul for each application. Tailor the information to the employer and watch your results improve.

Information Positioning – This follows on from the content element and is all about getting the relevant information to the reader as quickly as possible. You can be creative here and don’t limit yourself to the rigid formats you have be told. If it is not on the 1st page of your CV then it might not get read.

Visual Appearance – we all like to read something that is easy to read. I don’t mean frills but instead a nice clean CV with plenty of white space and uniformed formatting.

Deliver the above and you will deliver more interviews

From experience many jobseekers like to cut corners wen job hunting. Well if you want to cut corners why not get your CV developed by and expert CV SERVICE provider.

Have you been using recruitments agencies in Ireland?

Are you frustrated by the lack of returned emails or calls?

The below article from the Irish Independent identifies why this could be the case. Read what leading Online Recruitment & SEO expert Ivan has to say about the Recruitment Sector in Ireland ….

OVER a third of recruiters have lost their own jobs, due to the record hike in unemployment.

The industry dedicated to matching vacancies with workers has itself been decimated over the last 12 months with a total of 4,500 jobs lost in what was once a 12,000-strong sector.

Many employment agencies have drastically reduced their staffing levels as the numbers signing on soared by 97pc.

The group representing employment agencies, the National Recruitment Federation (NRF), saw just a handful of clients go to the wall but has recorded a massive drop in the number of employees.

NRF president Frank Collins, said he knew of one agency where staffing levels plummeted from 12 to just one person, and another where they fell from 28 to eight.

He said “green shoots’ were visible in some sectors of the economy, although employers were waiting to see if this would lead to a recovery.

Managing director of recruitment website employireland.ie, Ivan Stojanovic, said his business survived purely because it was not heavily dependent on placement adverts.

“Recruiters have been the hardest hit of any sector,” he said. “As time goes by, it’s getting worse and worse. I believe the figure of those who have lost their jobs in recruitment could be around two out of three.

If you are using recruitment agencies in this tough market you need to change your approach. What worked previously will not work now. Find out how to make your CV stand out for recruiters on this site.

Worky.com is a new Irish Recruitment Social Networking site.

When you write a good CV for your next Job in Ireland, make sure you do not apply to it on the Jobs sites. Since according to Worky – Job sites don’t work.

Here you can find more about Worky.

Measurability have launched two new websites to expand their CV & Interview Service to jobseekers in Ireland.

The first site www.cvsolutions.ie offers a professional CV writing service nationwide. CVSOLUTIONS delivers high quality CV’s to jobseekers across a range of levels, roles and industry sectors. You can also find excellent CV tips and advice on the site (although this is still being developed).

If you need help with a CV visit www.cvsolutions.ie now.

The second site www.interviewsolutions.ie offers professional interview coaching to jobseekers. INTERVIEWSOLUTIONS delivers a high quality interview preparation service tailoring programmes to meet individual needs. Again you will find some free interview tips and advice on the site.

If you need help preparing for interview visit www.interviewsolutions.ie now.

Below are some quick CV tips to help your CV satnd out in the crowd. Some experts suggest that there are about 120 applicants for every job advertised. Is your CV standing out in that pile of paper?

Don’t let the spelling and grammar gremlins ruin your chances. I am not going to write too much about this basic stuff. Spelling, Grammar and Clean & Simple format.

First page of your CV is the important page. If it doesn’t make 1st page it is not important info. Don’t assume that an employer will take the time to read beyond this. Help the reader save time and energy by locating relevant data as early in the CV as possible.

Less is more – focus your content to relevant data. Try not to clutter your CV with irrelevant information. Help the reader find what they want – emphasis on relevant and less emphasis on irrelevant data.

Achievements and successes bring a CV to live and help you stand out in the crowd. This could be that little edge that makes your CV stand out over the competition.

Remember there is a CV workshop in Dublin on 25th April run by Paul Mullan & Jane Downes – for more info email info@measurability.ie

Excellent workshop in Dublin on Saturday 25th April. The chance to work with two of Ireland leading Career Experts – Paul Mullan & Jane Downes. The workshop will focus on Job Search Strategies, Impact CV’s and Interview Skills. This is a MUST ATTEND for anyon out of work or changing careers. As we are all aware the job market is highly competitive in Ireland – fewer jobs and more cometition for them. You must stand out at every stage – finding the jobs, targeting the jobs and performing at interview.

The workshop will help jobseekers in three key areas –

Finding Jobs – effective job hunting

Targeting Jobs – Make your CV stand out

Landing job offers – Performance at interview.

If you would like more information or to book a place please email paul@measurability.ie (please quote the site you found the workshop details on). Full workshop details below

This powerful workshop is led by two of Irelands leading “on the ground” Career Experts – Jane Downes of Clearview Coaching Group & Paul Mullan of Measurability. It will enable the opportunity to access expert opinion and advice in three key areas;

• Job Search Strategies – How to access the hidden job market.
• CV’s & Cover Letters – How to market yourself & get more interviews
• Essential Interviewing Skills – How to sell yourself & get more job offers

Workshop & Booking Details

Date: Sat 25th April 2009
Venue: Bewleys Hotel Dublin Airport
Address Baskin Lane Cloghran, Dublin
Workshops: 2 separate workshops – morning and afternoon
Time: 10.00 – 1.00pm & 2.00pm – 5.00pm
Cost: €120

Each workshop is limited to 15 places so book now to avoid disappointment – email paul@measurability.ie or via booking for contact us

Paul Mullan is a Career Doctor for the Independent in Ireland. Every few weeks he offers free advice to readers across a range of career issues. You will find the Career Doctor column in Irish Independent Jobs & Careers section every Thursday. Below are two of the more recent questions and answers as they are quite topical in this market place.

CV & Job Hunting explains the importance of getting your CV and Job Search Strategies right.

Upskill in Ireland explains why you should upskill and the benefits of upskilling.