As the Human Resources Manager at Trendhim, I have helped hire over 50 teammates over the past year. These 50 new people were selected from over 1,000 Curriculum Vitae … and I would like to share 8 tips with you to make sure you submit the best CV and application possible (Daniel Baun, Human Resources Manager at Trenhim and author of book “Heartcore Business” – to make sense of your professional life).
Successful CV: a structured CV
Most hiring managers start with your CV. Make sure to include a good photo (a requirement in Denmark) and clear contact information. Keep the body of your resume structured. A simple spacing error or typo might seem trivial, but it sends the message to the recruiter that you are ignoring the small details. Every point and word on your resume says a lot about you. Make sure they say “winner”.
Read also >> The best examples of CVs to adopt
Successful CV: be precise
Recruiters scan your CV in just a few minutes. They must therefore retrieve the information they need very quickly. A complicated CV will be ignored. Conversely, a clear, concise and precise CV will be appreciated. Everything you include in your CV should be written clearly and specifically. The recruiter is looking for things that you have achieved and learned. State exactly what you did in previous posts. Bet on your achievements.
For example: “Newsletters twice a week for 5,000 readers, starting with 280 readers. The open rate went from xx to xx. Sales went from xxx to xxx. ”
Details are key and will make all the difference.
Successful cover letter: answer the questions in the job offer
Answer the questions asked in the ad, avoid off-topic at all costs. Jobs that do not have specific questions are always full of questions. Find them. Answer it. Ignore them and your chances of landing the job will be gone.
Read also >> 4 examples of successful motivational emails
Make a success of your cover letter: put some personality in it
Many cover letters lack passion, personality, and attitude. Convince the recruiter from the first sentence. Make your application worth it. It is a balance between specificity and personality.
Make a success of your cover letter: dare the originality card
Stand out. Why should the recruiter choose you and not someone else? Playing with originality and creativity will also allow you to hold the attention of the HRD reading your CV, who will probably have read a dozen before yours and who will read another ten afterwards.
Stay yourself
It's more important to be yourself than to be funny. If you are naturally funny, it will show. Keep an eye on the tone in which the offer was written. Was it written with humor? This is the key to the answer. Recruiters want real (inspired) people, not just copy and paste sent to 10 companies at the same time.
Proofread yourself to succeed in your application
Never rush. Have a friend read your cover letter and CV before sending them. Write it today and reread it tomorrow before sending it.
Read also >> 5 mistakes not to make … before writing your CV
PDF, and nothing else
Never send your CV or cover letter in .docx or .pages formats. Always send it in PDF format. It also allows you to control things like spacing and structure.
