How to write a successful resume
A resume is your key to get your next job. I personally consider your CV being the most important step in your job search. In our industry, we have seen many candidates with amazing skills but without an attractive resume struggling to get an interview. Put all your chances on your side and write a successful resume and here below is how to do it.
1.Your goal is to produce a document which w
ill attract the eyes of the Hiring manager or recruiter. Recruiters look at hundreds of resumes every day so they only spend a few seconds on a resume before deciding if it is worth having a deeper look. Hence it is vital that your resume is clear, neat, and spacious and also highlights at a glance your most relevant skills. Firstly, make sure to have same theme font, text size, same space, bold coordination. Limit the colour to one maximum. Secondly, bullet points are a great tool for making your CV easy to read and straight to the point. List your job responsibilities with bullet points. A line is ideal. Moreover when using bullet points for your responsibilities, choose keywords relevant to the job you are applying for to describe your duties.
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2. Tailor your c.v.
You have heard it millions of times, it is essential you tailor your CV to each role you are applying for. Highlight your relevant experience matching the job description and remove any which are not irrelevant. Most importantly, pay great importance to keywords! Keywords are the main skills or responsibilities that the employer is looking for and will be the first word we will look for on your resume. A lot of recruiters will search by key words before going in details in your resume. Make sure to demonstrate by using the same keywords or sentence how you have the skills required in the job description. Start by using action words at the beginning of each bullet points such as Responsible for, Coordinating a team of, Assisting with etc…Please note that if you have the experience required but don’t have the right keywords on your resume the recruiters might miss out on your background.
3. Key Achievements.
Key achievements are great as they will make you stand out from another candidates. There are two ways of describing your key achievements. One way is inserting them on the first page of your resume and list all your achievements during your career. The other way is after each work experience write about 1 or 2 big achievements you have done during this role. Don’t forget they need to be relevant to the job you are applying for. It is all about getting the attention of the reader!
4. Length of your resume. 
For some employers the length of the resume makes a big difference. In my opinion, it doesn’t matter as it depends how you present your CV.Ideally a 4 page resume is great as it is concise and easy to read. However, if you have many years’ experience and find it hard to keep it to 4 pages, what you might want to do is to have a synopsis of your job experience on the first page so reader can have a quick glance at where you work, what you did and if they want more details, they can go look for the work experience on your CV.
5. LinkedIn needs to mirror your CV.
Consistency is the key to success! For your CV, make sure it is consistent with your LinkedIn profiles as we recruiters might find this suspicious if it is not. Particularly, pay attention to your job titles and start and end dates. Each time I receive an application, I check the candidates Linkedin profiles and confirm there are no gaps. To conclude, it is very important to spend time on your resume, you will see a return on your investment pretty quickly. Remember a resume can always be changed and tailored as many times as you want. A way of making sure your CV is successful is by measuring the amount of call backs you are receiving when applying for a jobs If it is too low, then review your CV and apply with your new resume and see if it works better. Last but not least, spelling needs to be absolutely perfect. Always ask 2 other people to review your CV to correct any spelling mistakes.
Leila Boubahlouli
I.T Recruitment Consultant
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Employers won’t notice normal looking CV’s. I hope I could improve how my CV looks to get a the job.
Thanks for the feedback James. From our experience it is important to have a tailored resume based on the job you are applying for. Also clear key duties and key achievements. Your CV doesn’t need to be flashy or in colour however it does need to be easy to read and clear.
Leila Boubahlouli
IT Recruitment Consultant
02 8257 0512