Top 5 CV myths

Top 5 CV Myths

Drafting a CV can be difficult and sometimes confusing. There are various sources out there that give different, and often contradictory pieces of advice. As maritime recruitment, HR and executive search experts, we see a huge number of CVs and can share our experience on which are usually successful, and those that are not. The results may be surprising!

Here are some common CV trip-ups and how to steer clear of them:

 

    1. Keep it short
      It is a common belief among candidates that a good CV must be kept to no more than 2 sides of A4 paper. The truth, however, is not so simple. While a shorter CV may be better for those applying for more junior positions, for senior roles, the recruiter will want to see the full breadth and depth of your experience. In this case, a longer CV gives you more space to outline your roles, responsibilities and success stories – a shorter CV may be taken to indicate a lack of experience, leaving you behind the curve! 

    1. Only list your highest educational achievement
      Candidates are often told that after getting a degree under their belt, earlier qualifications are not necessary. While this is true after a few years of experience in the workplace, for those starting out in their careers it is still worth including GCSE or A-Levels. With limited experience to speak of, school qualifications help to demonstrate if you’re a high-flyer.

    1. List your achievements, not responsibilities
      Many CVs we see from candidates have their daily tasks outlined in list form. However, prospective employers want to read about your work achievements, rather than what is essentially a job description for your current role. So, try to include quantifiable achievements or insightful figures that demonstrate your strengths and the results that you’ve delivered.

    1. Give your hobbies and interests pride of place
      Showing your interests are helpful as they humanise candidates, but professional experience should always take pride of place. Hobbies are worth including if they demonstrate an achievement, such as grade 5 piano or climbing Ben Nevis, but leave them until the end!

    1. Invest in a personal, branded CV
      Unique, personal CVs are great for showing creativity when applying for roles where that is necessary, but think twice before investing in an all singing all dancing CV for every sector. Recruiters and employers handle high volumes of applications and use automated software to input CV details into their internal systems. These systems often struggle to recognise non-standard CV formats, and may be confused by unusual tables, shadings, or patterns. This can jumble up information and impact your application, so stick to serif fonts and keep imagery to a minimum.

Flexible & hybrid working, a recruiter’s perspective

meeting

“I remember being asked by an insurance client in January 2020 what the market trend was for people wanting to work a one day a week from home. I said there was definitely an uptake in people wanting to do that. They laughed, almost hysterically.

In 2019, I was asked by a candidate what the likelihood was of finding them a fully remote role in Private Practice. They were experienced and going by all accompanying testimonials, an exceptional candidate, but there were no roles offering fully remote working available then.

Fast forward a couple of years, that same insurance client now offers remote and hybrid working, and that same candidate is now working fully remotely in Private Practice. Of course, this will be of no surprise to anyone, and it is no secret that the market has changed drastically in the past two years – primarily due to the covid pandemic and the proven ability for people to work effectively from home.

In truth, remote and hybrid working is continually evolving. Our HR Consulting colleagues who run the Maritime HR Association ran an Information Exchange recently looking at remote and hybrid working trends within the maritime industry. You can read more about this on our blog page.

https://spinnaker-global.com/0_27-07-2022-report-an-insight-into-hybrid-and-remote-working-practices-in-maritime.

It is important for us as recruiters to let clients know up front if a candidate has a preference or need for a particular working arrangement. For example, if they need to work remotely one day a week for childcare purposes. Think of it in the same way you would want to disclose your salary expectations up front too. The market is becoming ever more candidate driven, so we also contact potential employers for our candidates even if there is no active vacancy. In fact, over half of the people I found new roles for in the last 12 months were not actively looking but were happy to be kept updated with new opportunities. We don’t bombard our candidates, but you never know, that role you never knew you wanted could be just around the corner….”

Tom Brooks is a Senior Recruitment Consultant on the Spinnaker Legal, P&I and Insurance desk.

To view current legal and insurance vacancies, please visit the jobs section on the website, or if you just want to have a discussion about active roles or the wider market, please contact him in confidence.

t: +44 (0) 1702 480 142

e: [email protected]