Simply Hired UK Blog

Is your CV Sending the Hiring Manager to Sleep?

Guest post by Clare Whitmell

When I was hiring, the CVs that made it into the interview pile were confidently-written “look at what I can do for you” attention-grabbers that didn't make me have to wade through pages of dense text. Faced with ever-increasing numbers of applications, a hiring manager's first instinct will be to whittle down the CV pile, so here are some tips to make them sit up and take notice of you.

Avoid cliches

Don't waffle, don't make claims for yourself that you can't support, and stay away from hype. "Experienced", "excellent communicator", "results-driven" are meaningless, “so-what?” phrases that make hiring managers roll their eyes and move on to the next candidate. 

Write for your reader

Put yourself in their shoes. Why would they want to interview you? What qualifies you? Is it your achievements, as in “a profit-doubling sales rep”, or your qualities “an unflappable and unfailingly courteous customer service pro” for example? Everything in your CV should broadcast your match for the role in clear, engaging language. 

Give context

Frame your experience and achievements in a CAR (Challenge - Action - Result) format to keep the hiring manager reading to the end of your story. For example: "Turned around a failing sales team and dwindling market share by identifying new market segments and revolutionising incentive schemes. Increased profits by 10% in less than 18 months." gives a much clearer picture of your talents and ability to get results than a plain "Increased profits by 10%". As soon as a manager reads “I was responsible for” or “Duties included” you can assume they'll be stifling a yawn.

Be bold

If you use a template, your CV risks looking just like the next one. Instead, think long and hard about what you need to prioritise. Don't be afraid to move around information (such as career history) or to bring key highlights to the fore. By far the biggest mistake job seekers make is not treating their CV as a sales and marketing tool. Lead with your most important selling points (in the top half of your CV) to make a strong initial impression.

Don't be afraid to add a dash of colour to headings, bullet points or section dividers. In a sea of black and white CVs, a little colour makes yours stand out.

Clare Whitmell blogs on CV writing and job search strategy at www.JobMarketSuccess.com and is the Guardian Careers expert on CVs and interviews. 

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Tips for Getting Re-Hired After you’ve Left a Company

There are many reasons for going back to work for a previous employer. Often leaving a job to pursue another career opportunity puts you in a better bargaining position upon your return than if you’d stayed with the company in the first place because you’ve gained new skills and experience.

If returning to a former employer is your goal, here are a few tips: 

1. Getting re-hired is nearly impossible if you left your former employer on bad terms. We offer some tips here on how to leave a job gracefully, but suffice to say your exit should definitely not involve swearing at an airplane full of passengers, grabbing a beer and deploying the emergency slide.

2. Ideally, you will have stayed in touch with contacts within the organisation. If you haven’t, determine who you still know at the company and do some reconnaissance. What has changed since you left? Are there any open roles? If possible, try to find a champion for your cause who holds some sway within the organisation to put your name forward.

3. Update your CV and spend some time thinking about the skills, knowledge, experience and contacts you’ve gained since leaving the company. Prepare to answer some difficult questions. According to Lisa Quast of ForbesWoman, you should be able to articulate the following:

• Where did you go work after you left the company?
• What did you learn in that position(s)?
• How have you improved your knowledge, skills and abilities since you left the company?
• What additional value will you bring to the company if you’re re-hired? 

4. While you may need to swallow your pride to get a foot back in the door at a former company, avoid grovelling as it will make you appear desperate and compromise your ability to bargain. As with any negotiation, go in knowing the minimum level salary you’re willing to accept. If you really want a job at your old company, you may have to be flexible

Have you ever gone back to work with a former employer? How did you find the experience of getting rehired?

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When 1 in 3 ain’t Bad: Call Centre Employment is on the Rise for Graduates

Imagine our surprise to learn that there is one area in which graduates are currently outstripping supply to regular job-seekers. In new research published this week it found that for every three employees at a UK contact centre, one of them is a recent graduate from university or even more highly-educated than that.

UK call centres are experiencing an increase in job applications and interest from graduates in 2010, according to new research by the recruiting expert Hays Contact Centres, in conjunction with the Top 50 Call Centres for Customer Service.* The survey reveals that 55% of call centre managers received more speculative job applications in 2010 compared to 2009, and 72% have seen an increase in applications for advertised jobs.

One article stated that the ‘blooming’ number of graduates is made up of candidates who are quite highly skilled too. Many of them have MA’s, or a Masters in business administration. But what kind of personality profile are these people, and why do they seek out a contact centre as an employer in particular?

And despite long-held beliefs that contact centres are generally shoddy places to work with poor pay on offer, generally, contact centres provide a large amount of security to a prospective employee. Employee benefits are generally quite strong, with many having contributory pension schemes, a company lunchroom and other perks like full medical and dental benefits. 

Are you surprised at all by these findings? Do you think a customer service contact centre is a good place to start your career, why or why not? Please sound off in the comments below...

* The research was carried out by Hays Contact Centres, in conjunction with the Top 50 Call Centres for Customer Service, a benchmarking initiative created to improve the performance of call centres and instil best practice across the industry.

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Job Seekers’ Week in Review

A roundup of this week’s most useful articles and blog posts for job seekers:

• Contact centre employment may be emerging as a viable choice for graduates. A recent study by Hays Contact Centres in conjunction with the Top 50 Call Centres for Customer Service initiative finds that one in three new contact centre employees is a University graduate.

• On our own Simply Blog, we looked at the many ways to get your foot in the door as a contract employee and whether or not experts think it is a good idea to start a Gap Year this January.

• The Guardian’s Ian Wylie did a feature on whether green jobs really target solutions to climate change. In the story, Wylie finds that a number of mature students are finding green jobs to be a viable career path and are going back to school as a result.

• Along those lines, the Interns Anonymous blog looks at whether volunteering for a non-profit is a more ethical job path. According to the post, even for the most charitably-minded interns, often a job that doesn’t pay their bills can’t pay their way.

Coming up this week we’ll be featuring another Guest Blog Post from one of our esteemed CV and Recruiting Experts, Clare Whitmell; offer advice for getting re-hired by a former employer; and why Contact Centres are going through a jobs revitalization.

Share our job seeker tips and advice with your friends! Follow us on Twitter at @SimplyHiredUK and spread the word.

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Should I be Worried about Starting a Gap Year in January?

Many new graduates may be starting to worry that their CV is looking a little bit sparse if they haven’t been hired by September or October.

Should you worry at all if you haven’t managed yet to become a new hire, and instead are contemplating taking a year abroad to volunteer, teach ESOL in a foreign country or just immerse yourself in a new culture overseas? Will a minor gap on your CV make your employment history look ‘stale’ and send you directly to the rejection bin?

Not according to a recent blog post by social media recruiter at the Brazen Careerist. She offers the following opinion on the subject: 

I think that these claims are exaggerated, or at least relegated to top-level jobs in large firms.  For the average person, a strong record of volunteer work, contract or consulting gigs, and a plausible explanation of time off in the cover letter is usually enough to stay in the game.

Furthermore, Margaret Morrissey, of the campaigning group Parents Outloud, told the Guardian she advises unsuccessful university applicants to take a gap year:

There aren't even the jobs for unlucky teenagers because they are being grabbed by older people. If you don't get a place, it will be totally disappointing, but there are other options. Do something positive like volunteering. But keep your finger on the button and don't forget about applying to university.

If you’re planning a gap year there are several considerations to keep in mind. Money is generally tight for most gap-year takers so it’s worth planning ahead. The Daily Mail offers a couple of quick tips to parents and leave-takers, including having a lower-cost credit or debit card that doesn’t charge for overseas withdrawals (Nationwide is one that offers lower interest on overseas debit charges), and by using travel cheques from Travelex and Caxton FX.

Accidents and injuries are also far too common when you are overseas. If you are travelling through Europe in particular, make sure you have an up-to-date overseas travel insurance plan and ensure you hold a valid European Travel Health Insurance (EHIC) card.

In case you lose contact with your loved ones once you are overseas, always establish the closest inexpensive internet cafe and feel free to top up on a pay as you go mobile or telephone cards before you go.

Orange and O2 UK also offer good traveller services offering flat-rate costs for calls and texts for a small monthly rate. In all, it’s worth looking into having your personal phone unlocked before you’re stuck checking emails in dodgey internet cafes when your PIN and credit details could be at risk!

So are you considering taking an extended leave from your job or from secondary school? Please feel free to sound off in the comments below!

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