Brand Building CVs

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Brand Building CVs

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The Perfect CV

The perfect CV is a concise and well written

communication that clearly demonstrates your ability

to produce results and describes your strongest

attributes in a way that motivates employers to

interview you.

CV is not your biography. It is your prospectus for the future.


Clearly Demonstrate

The CV does more than describe. By the way it is put

together, it actually shows the reader:

what you have achieved & how you do things

type of company you like to work for

how well you have mastered written communication

how you think of yourself

your qualifications and additional training

how well you will get the job done


Target Selected Employers

Your CV is a directed communication to a particular audience:

- employers whom you have selected as meeting your qualifications.

Yes, we see you in the driver’s seat in your career.

You select job/company targets that match your career interests,

skills and qualifications – and pursue them.

The CV is designed to communicate specifically to that audience and to no

other – as a ‘live’ document it needs constant revision.


Building the Branding CV

When compiling a CV there are a number of points that should be taken into account:

An effective CV cannot be compiled in 30 minutes. It will take several drafts to get the CV right so don’t sell yourself short with a quickly drafted document.

Avoid reproducing a series of job descriptions as your work history. This is of little value to the prospective employer and will not help your cause.

A CV written by someone else may help you to get called to an interview but make sure you are very familiar with the content and comfortable talking about each point.

A four or five page CV will not act as an effective marketing tool. Try to reduce the CV to two well-written pages.

Be thorough and creative looking for ways to differentiate yourself.


Critiquing your CV

Questions which you should ask are as follows:

Does the C V show achievements and results?

Have I included experience and work done which is most appropriate for

he job I am applying for?

Have I described my employers and contextualised my role

Have I included relevant professional development in the CV?

The profile should be drafted so that it positions you strongly for your future career. However take care not to exclude ancillary career options or routes.


Finally, checking the quality of your CV

Get a friend or colleague who knows you well to look at your CV

and ask them if it adequately describes you.

You may find that they will help you identify selling points that you

have overlooked.


Some Common CV Writing Mistakes

Too Long (preferred length is two pages – i.e. resume form of CV).

Disorganised – information is scattered around the page – hard to follow.

Poorly typed and printed – hard to read – looks unprofessional.

Overwritten – long paragraphs and sentences – takes too long to say too little.

Too sparse – gives only bare essentials of dates and job title.


Ten Most Common CV Writing Mistakes

Not oriented for results – doesn’t show what the candidate accomplished on the job

Too many irrelevancies – height, weight, sex, health, are not needed.

Misspellings, typographical errors, poor grammar – CV’s should be carefully proof

read before they are printed and mailed.

Tries too hard – fancy typesetting and binders, photographs and exotic paper stocks

distract from the clarity of the presentation.

Misdirected – too many resumes arrive on employers desks un requested and with

little or no apparent connection to the organisation – cover letters would help avoid

this.


For further information on personal branding/CVs, please contact:

Paddy CollinsTorc Consulting Group

4 Lower Pembroke StreetDublin 2

Ph : +353-1-662 3020 E: [email protected] www.torc.ie

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