Category Archives: PMO

Careers Advice, CV Tips, CV Writing, News, PMO, Project Management

Covering your projects whilst on holiday

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OK so we’ve all been there – summer is fast approaching and you are reaching critical stages in your projects, your holiday has been booked for months and your family are excitedly packing their cases ahead of the break. Short of taking your work mobile and laptop on holiday and praying for a decent WIFI connection by the pool – you need to look at how and who can be trusted to keep momentum on your projects in your absence!

I have learned my lesson sorely by entrusting my critical workload to colleagues who promise the earth but when it comes down to it – they are either far too busy with their own schedules or figure it’s not really their problem. So what can you do to ensure all is not lost in your absence?

  • In an ideal world, there would be enough slack in the budget to cover an interim for the period you are away – but reality often dictates no spare cash for such resource. Depending on the impact on the business due to slippage and current investment – you may be able to present a business case to secure funding for a contractor.
  • Speak to the PMO, in another ideal world – there is an established corporate level PMO in place which holds extensive resource maps, (and should already be aware of your absence) to which they can work around resources to ensure a dedicated individual with experience (who has been briefed) can pick up the reins.
  • Plan ahead and create your very own second in command – from the outset, ideally, employ a project coordinator / junior project manager / project assistant who is not used as an admin tool (although if you cover this aspect in your role then exposure to this is required), he/she works alongside you and learns all about the project, suppliers, stakeholders, business requirements as you work together. OK so you may now be saying this is an expensive resource. Is it? You are offering to provide some strong work experience to a professional who is already on the cusp of promotion into delivering a small project. I think we could all easily write a strong business case for this and also gain good buy in from the person to take the role.

Planning ahead and thinking outside of the box are key requirements for a good project professional, don’t leave it to chance – make sure you have cover in place so you can enjoy your holiday and save yourself from stress when the only thing which should be worrying you is which factor sun cream to use. Or of course in the UK which raincoat to take!

Are you currently using these skills in your role? Does your CV tell us this? Are you missing a trick? Get in touch with your CV for a free review exclusive to Project Management professionals! www.thecvrighter.co.uk

Cover letters, CV Tips, CV Writing, Friday Snippet, PMO, Project Management

Cover Letters

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Whenever anyone mentions cover letters I hear the same old sigh and comments such as; “Does anyone actually read them?!”. It is a bit of a lottery depending on who is reading your application but it cannot hurt to write one specific to the role and especially when applying direct to an employer it is courtesy. Remember you are being judged from the moment you make contact with an employer or recruiter – simply writing, “See attached” or even sending a blank email with your CV attached is not good form. Equally, writing a cover letter which is generic is also not adding to your application.

  • When writing an effective cover letter you should look to address the person you are sending properly – if the job advert states the name of the person accepting the application, make sure you address it to them personally.
  • Ensure you state where you saw the advertisement and what the role is (remember HR and recruiters deal with numerous roles at once).
  • Look to add some strong content which matches up your relevant experience to the role itself – if the job advert states it requires someone who has implemented PMO procedures then make sure you add detail about a time or times when you have had this input.
  • Do not copy and paste detail from your CV – you’ve already stated this.
  • If the business product has a strong synergy to a current or previous employer – talk about this, demonstrating your understanding of the way the industry works.
  • Do not be afraid to add into the letter that you will follow the application up with a call to discuss your experience further and state a date; then do as you say you will.

Remember you are one of a number of applicants for any one role – making an effort to tailor your application not only demonstrates your enthusiasm for this role, it also demonstrates your written communication skills and ability to follow up on pieces of work. As a project professional these are key qualities and as stated above, will be judged from the outset.

Making a smaller number of tailored applications will return a higher number of call backs and interview possibilities rather than applying for everything with the word project in it. Remember when dealing with recruitment agencies you will soon gain a reputation if you apply for everything, especially when the roles as so dissimilar. Create a good impression first time around and be remembered for the right reasons – you may not make it into the shortlist for that role but a new role may just be being qualified that has your name on it, a good recruiter will recognise this and have you top of the list to speak to for that role.

 

The CV Righter is a professional CV writing service aimed at project and would be project professionals – we can assist you in tailoring your CV and cover letters for specific roles too.

For a free CV review visit: www.thecvrighter.co.uk

Careers Advice, CV Tips, CV Writing, PMO, Project Management

CV reviews for Project Management professionals

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When was the last time you had your CV reviewed? Your CV is the key tool to gain interest by hiring managers and recruiters. I have had a fair few enquiries recently from candidates wanting to understand why they had applied to many roles with little or no feedback; often describing their job applications disappearing into a “big black hole”, never hearing anything back. There are a number of reasons for this, one being that you may be one of up to 100 applicants (sometimes more depending on role type, location, salary etc.), as a rule of thumb the recruitment process will filter down the list of applications to a manageable shortlist of candidates to speak to or interview outright. When I asked the candidates if they had chased up their applications, a good percentage said yes but felt fobbed off with standard responses such as “candidates with a closer match to the experience required made the shortlist”. When pushed for further feedback the recruiters and HR staff were reluctant to provide any useful feedback stating the CV was OK. However, if the CV is “OK” and you feel you have a strong synergy to the role requirements, why are you not making shortlist? I always recommend going back to the recruiter for further feedback as it is important when you feel your CV says XYZ – why it doesn’t to the person reviewing it for the role.

As a professional CV writer, specialising in the field of project management I have sat on the recruitment side of applications too – I have spent many an hour discussing candidates CVs with the applicants in order to assist them in getting the right information down on the CV to ensure successful applications for roles in their field. As such one of the services we provide at The CV Righter is to perform a free CV review for candidates where a one to one appointment is made and areas of the CV are discussed. I have found the feedback for such a service to be very positive, after all another person’s perspective is always beneficial but particularly when that other person has actually done the job and recruited for hundreds of roles spanning, PMO, project management, programme management, portfolio management, change management and business analysis to name a few.

If you feel your CV needs that competitive edge and you feel you have gone as far as you can with it but still are not securing interviews – then it may be time to let a professional CV writing service take a look. We offer a competitive value for money service which is tailored to your needs. If the CV does not require a complete rewrite then we talk through areas that do need work and charge accordingly. We also offer an insight into the recruitment aspect of applications and advice on how to move forward with success by taking a detailed account of what you do at the moment and equip you with new approaches to applications and getting noticed in your field.

Get in touch with your CV for a free CV review – be prepared for honest and constructive feedback, we believe you can only add value if you know where you are going wrong. Visit www.thecvrighter.co.uk and make contact through our contact page.

Careers Advice, CV Tips, News, PMO, Project Management

Are you using LinkedIn to its full potential?

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LinkedIn is a fantastic, free, self marketing business tool. Originally created as a business networking site, it has evolved over the years to become a powerful tool in the recruitment world. As such the pressure is on to ensure you are utilising the tool effectively as employers are checking your profile not only for potential employment but for current employees to understand how you are networking. Networking has long been a fantastic way to enhance your special interest groups but has also become an integral part of successful business in a risk averse world – the old saying, “it’s not what you know, it’s who you know” really does stand.
So what can you do to ensure your profile is saying all the right things?

  • Make sure you state your current and previous employers / job titles / dates, as a bare minimum.
  • Try to add some detail to each role, treat the profile as a CV but don’t just copy and paste your CV into your profile. Think about adding something different / extra – chances are, those reading your profile have also seen your CV.
  • Get some recommendations from current and previous employers – also clients and colleagues can be great, they all operate similar to references and give a reassurance about you in a working capacity.
  • Write a good profile, think about what you want the reader to gain from this and what your intentions are moving forward – don’t state you are looking for new work if you haven’t discussed with your current employer.
  • Keywords are as important in your LinkedIn profile as they are in your CV – they will help you rise up the searches towards the top of the list.
  • Connect to all your former colleagues, friends and associates. Grow your network; try to avoid randomly sending invites to connect to those you do not know. If there is a particular reason you wish to connect to someone, write them a message explaining why. Etiquette on this site is not to treat it like Facebook, sending out lots of requests to get as many connections as possible. You should know your connections or at least explain and show willing that you will get to know them.
  • Join groups and get involved in discussions – there’s just about every type of group now available on the site, join some of particular interest and add to the discussions. Some ask advice or generally want opinions. By joining in, you can quickly gain a reputation for expertise in a particular field. PMO and Project Management groups are very active on the site.
  • Don’t just use it when you need something – time and time again I have seen connections be dormant on the site for months and even years then suddenly, they are in touch asking for work. Again this is not good etiquette – touching base every now and then is the best course of action as it keeps you fresh in people’s minds but also won’t seem quite so bad if you do need assistance with getting a new role.

As with anything written about you, ensure you have someone proof read it and let you know if anything doesn’t make sense. It’s usually best to have someone who doesn’t work at your business do this for you as you need to avoid internal terminology and someone who knows the projects. An outsider perspective is ideal, a partner or best friend is ideal. They don’t generally know what we do at work beyond office gossip and job titles – if it makes sense to them, you’re onto a winner.

The CV Righter can assist with creating and writing content for business networking websites, for a free review of your current profile or CV get in touch: www.thecvrighter.co.uk