Category Archives: Careers Advice

Careers Advice, CV Tips, Job Applications, Project Management, Project management career progression, Project Management Careers Advice, Project management CV, Recruitment, The CV Righter

Asking for help – why does it seem so hard?

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We’ve all been there – having a moment when we really could do with some support in something we do. Having googled for hours and found snippets of information which help to build up a rather bitty solution. CV writing is no different and I have lost count of the websites which offer some advice on how you should be doing things, however there are no real practical examples of profiles, bullet points etc  for project professionals which can become very frustrating.

One of the most common questions I was asked as a recruiter was “why is my CV not working?” often candidates wondering if there was an unwritten rule by recruiters which stopped them being picked over others. Of course there were always the candidates who were adamant that their CVs were the best thing since sliced bread as they know how good they are. I have said it over and over but it isn’t necessarily the best candidates who get the interviews, it is the best CVs. Hiring managers have such high expectations when it comes to a CV, it is not just the well formatted and spelling error free CV they expect to see. They want to know a whole lot more about you and how you work. They want to see examples of projects and methods of delivery as well as how you add value, what sets you apart from others and whether you have a good understanding of what it is you do. The art of CV writing comes down to including all the above in a concise and clear format. Not just a list of duties, contextualise those duties and that additional information about some of the challenges you have come up against. Merely delivering on time and to budget just doesn’t cut it, if anything there is concern for those who never face big challenges such as slippage and tricky stakeholders. Let’s face it, you will have been very lucky to always have an easy route to success so how would you cope in a more challenging environment where you have to work much harder to gain buy-in and succeed?

This is where The CV Righter can help you with your project management CV; project management covers a multitude of roles from programme, portfolio, projects, risk, change and business analysis; from support roles through delivery and team management / direction. We offer a no obligation CV review for project professionals wanting to understand how your CV reads to others. Think of us as a sounding board, you may not like all you have to hear but the information is constructive and wouldn’t it be better to know where the weaknesses are in your CV rather than keep assuming that it is great and that it is the recruiters and employers who clearly cannot see you are perfect for the role!

We also understand that you may want to write your CV yourself – I always say, if you can do it then do. However you may need some assistance and a sounding board to work with along your journey – this is also a service we can provide, it doesn’t cost as much as you might think. For those who are adamant to go it alone we have a free CV writing booklet with examples of the various elements of the CV and advice on how and why certain aspects need to be addressed in the CV – providing a recruiters perspective.

It is nice to give something back having worked in recruitment specifically for project professionals for 5 years – that is why we offer the free CV review and free CV writing booklet, we are happy to talk through what services we feel would be of benefit to you and clearly state prices. Plus we have a process which means we will not stop working on your CV until you are happy with it – unlike a lot of off the shelf CV writers, we make sure you are completely comfortable with the content and even invite you to take your CV and try it with recruiters and hiring managers to gauge reactions. If you feel it is not working, we rework. Although to date we have received only good feedback from clients’ mainly stating that they have got the job (some after months of trying before taking our service, others who came to us before making the application for their ideal job), others have received lots of interest from recruiters (having not had any or very little interactions despite applications and having their CV in PM databases) or those who aren’t particularly looking for a new role but want to be in a good position for when they do – who have a new found confidence about themselves as project professionals.

Don’t be afraid to ask for help – it is openly given at The CV Righter, whether it’s some free assistance or a paid package, we can help. Get in touch today with your current CV and see what we can do for you.

Careers Advice, CV Writing, Friday Snippet, Job Applications, Project management CV, project management resume

Making your CV as good as food

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Just making my lunch I stood away to admire what I was about to eat and it made me think about CVs – before you ask, I don’t eat, sleep and live CVs but I am always thinking about new ways to bring a professional document to the forefront of a recruiter/employers mind.

So, my comparison comes down to how you draw-in a potential employer. Often hiring managers have little time to review CVs and lunchtime proves to be a good time to run through a short-list, it will have to be good to gain uninterrupted attention!

Your CV is next to be reviewed, have you thought about what your USP (unique selling point) is? Have you made a sandwich of all your skills and experience which would spur a hunger to want to try it? Your CV can work just like this, looking attractive from a distance and containing all the ingredients to satisfy the palette requirement that day. The sandwich looks so good, anyone being shown it would want to take a closer look.

Life is about choice and some jobs require more or different meat, some require a great deal of salad with the right amount of mayo whereas mustard is key for other roles (or rolls). This is why it is important to make sure that you have a truthful CV which showcases your actual skills and abilities in an attractive and easy to identify way. By producing a well written piece which clearly contextualises your skills rather than a dull list which tells the reader nothing, you are starting to make the document interesting.

Put yourself in the hiring managers’ shoes – busy and needs to create a shortlist for interviews. Is he/she going to pick a CV which out of hundreds looks the same and doesn’t tell him how you work or what your true skills are or will he/she pick a CV which shines above the rest because it intrigues him/her by ticking the boxes of requirements AND says so much more? Do not be fooled that a lengthy CV will do this either – no one wants to be over-faced by a large meal right! Keep it to a size which will say all the right things in a clear and concise way.

Careers Advice, CV Tips, CV Writing, PMO, Project Management, Project management CV, project management recruitment, project management resume

Recruitment for Project Managers – how to make it work

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I was approached this week by a new client asking me how recruitment works – having been in a permanent role for some years he is looking to go interim and wanted to know what the formula is to make recruiters sit up and take notice of him. There is no hard and fast rule as such – naturally the recruiter has a list of requirements from their client which need addressing in the CV, if your CV does not touch on these requirements then you will be discarded and often forgotten about. So what actually makes a recruiter work for you? For a start you need to really understand your own skill set and how this works in the project environment, clearly contextualising your experience and the project benefits is key to the basis of a good CV. Making sure you apply for roles which meet your abilities will put you in good stead with the recruiter and if you are not quite right for that role you have a better chance of being remembered for the right reasons, as from the start you have demonstrated your understanding of the role itself and are not just applying for anything.

If you have a wealth of experience managing a diverse range of projects then the recruiter needs to see the projects most relevant to the role you apply for, however this does not mean you need to leave out other information. The trick is to present a summary of the types of projects, complexity, budgets and team size / locations / skill sets, then you need to talk about how you deliver, the difficulties you have encountered and your specific aptitude – you may be great with demanding and difficult stakeholders or you may be great at manipulating data or balancing finances. Everyone is different and what the recruiter wants to know is what sets you apart from others. Talk about key achievements, don’t be fooled into thinking that delivering a project on time and to budget is an achievement – you are paid to do this right! Think about how you got there, what hurdles did you overcome, what have you learnt from the project and what measures have you adopted for future delivery?

All of this information needs to be kept to a maximum 3 page but ideally a 2 page CV, it can be difficult to edit and condense this information which is why a second pair of eyes can be extremely effective. We offer a free CV review at The CV Righter where honest and constructive feedback is presented to individuals – there is no obligation to take up the CV writing service however should you decide to take the service up then you will only be charged for a service bespoke to you. If you do not require an entire re-write then you don’t pay for one. The review is performed by a former project management specific recruiter and will be executed as such which will give you a valuable insight into how recruiters actually view your CV.

Careers Advice, CV Tips, CV Writing, Friday Snippet, Job Applications, Project Management Careers Advice, Project management CV, project management resume

Not needed a CV for 10 years; where do I start? – Friday Snippet

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Been in a role for a long time whether it be self-employed or employed so haven’t needed a CV? What to do? Don’t panic and follow this step by step guide to achieving an attractive, attention seeking and professional resume.

  1. Create a list of your career history, noting dates, role titles, company names and basic remit to start.
  2. List your key achievements to date – keep to examples which demonstrate where you have gone above and beyond the call of duty or made a real difference. Simply noting down projects you have managed to time and budget does not demonstrate an achievement as such (you were paid to deliver the project). However if you have implemented a new programme structure to the business or dealt with particularly difficult stakeholders etc. then talk about it.
  3. Perform a skills audit – start by drawing a line to represent the project timeline, then note down core areas you have exposure to such as writing the business case, planning, Risk & Issues, supplier management etc.
  4. Take a template from the internet to start – fill in the areas you can easily do, such as dates and achievements etc. then refer to the following blog posts which will assist you in filling in the gaps:

Now you should have a good solid document to work on – you’ll need to spend some time tweaking and rewriting, but you will soon find that what seemed a wall too high to climb is merely a hurdle along the way to getting back into finding a new role.