Do Jobseekers still need a CV?

With the increase in reality TV, video applications and social media pitches in the recruitment process, are traditional CV’s a thing of the past?

We don’t think so. In fact we’re pretty sure that the CV in its traditional form will be a crucial part of job hunting for quite a while yet, and here’s why!

It offers you complete flexibility

With a traditional CV you are in complete control of what information to include and how that information should be included. This has very clear benefits, for example when you do not want to mention certain job roles or reasons for leaving positions. Your CV is not a document to list your complete career history, and as a result you are able to use it as a piece of marketing for your own personal brand by tailoring it to highlight the aspects that are relevant to the job you are applying for and “gloss over” any that don’t add value to your chances.

Being totally under your control, your CV can be twisted and moulded to put you forward in the best light for different roles that could demand your skills in different priority order. For example as you progress through your career you will probably change the focus of your CV from educational achievements as a graduate to work based experience as a more senior professional. Being able to mould your CV can also come in handy if you have had a diverse selection of jobs in the past and want to order them by skill sets in order to bring coherence to your experience.

Stand out from the crowd

Your CV is totally individual and as a result you are able to fill it with marketable factors that make you ideal for the job you are applying for and that make you stand out from the crowd. It’s a document that can be built entirely around your strengths and the value you can bring to a company.

Freedom of Design

There isn’t one single standard design for a CV and so you are able present your employment history however you choose. There are recommendations as to writing an IT CV – based on studies of where recruiters look for certain information, however these are merely guidelines. You can add diagrams, themes, branding statements and testimonials as well as colour and graphs in order to either demonstrate creativity or just to stand out from the other plain CVs that are likely to land on a hiring managers desk.

Conversation starter in interview

A CV is a great conversation starter in an interview and so enables you to have some impact on guiding the way the interview goes. By mentioning career highlights on your CV you are opening up the possibility of questions on this and giving yourself a chance to discuss something positive. You don’t need to go in to detail on your CV as this leaves room for you to add to a story in interview, simply mentioning key points such as the problem, your action and the result is usually enough.

If you are looking to get the most out of your CV, we have partnered with the Top CV to offer FREE CV reviews – click here for more information.

Do you agree? Will the traditional CV be around for a while or do you think new media will overtake?

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