The future of CVs

Is your CV sitting on a dust-filled filing cabinet somewhere? 

Some people claim the CV has had its day, and that new forms of showcasing your skills are more valuable. But before you gleefully scrunch up your resume and toss it in the bin, stop to consider where and when it might still be useful.

As much as you wish your CV would magically update itself – it won’t. And one thing’s for sure, you won’t be able to climb that career ladder without a dazzling, fresh CV that shows you in the best possible light.

Death of the CV?

Rumour has it that the first recorded CV is accredited to Leonardo da Vinci, written in 1482. Have CVs become a little outdated? Sure, but that doesn’t mean they don’t still have a place in our world. It’s less of a case of CVs disappearing into oblivion, and more about how they need to evolve. If anything, now more than ever, it’s crucial that your CV is up to date, fresh and relevant. 

According to a survey from Kloodle, 42% of UK students consider the traditional CV format to be outdated when applying for jobs as it is not ‘dynamic enough’. Plus, employers are tired of seeing the bog standard ‘hi my name is Bob and my skills are X,Y,Z and I got nine A’s at GCSE.’

Our world is turning digital, and therefore it’s wise to make sure your CV translates to digital too. Nowadays, for most jobs, you wouldn’t want to look like a digital dinosaur and walk into an interview with a two-page printed CV and no digital footprint.

Don’t see your CV as a standalone thing. Sure, you need an epic cover letter too, but that’s just the beginning. It’s all about how you present yourself online as well as in person, especially if you work within the digital sector. 

Express your professional profile in new and innovative ways. For example, some people have a website or creative graphic which acts as a kind of CV, and a lot of employers love to have a quick peruse of people’s personal blogs.

Are CVs needed? 

In general, most people’s CVs are in need of a serious makeover, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t needed. CVs won’t disappear altogether, they just might be presented in different formats. And with so many apps and creative digital tools, why wouldn’t you use clever design to make your CV pop?

In time, more people will store, edit and update their CVs digitally and save them on the cloud. And instead of being painfully dull and uninspiring, they will continue to take on new formats and layouts, as employees become more accepting of more unusual style CVs.

 A key aspect of CVs in 2017 is that they need to be adaptable. Did you know that applicants generally only spend about 76 seconds reviewing a job posting before deciding to apply? Well, in a competitive marketplace, you need to show you’ve paid attention to the role, and what better way to do this than altering your CV on the cloud to reflect the right skills for the job?

When it comes to your CV, don’t take a one size fits all approach. It shouldn’t be a one page doc that get sent to every single job application. Instead, your CV needs to be responsive, easy to adapt and constantly reflect the new stuff you’re learning and the roles you are applying for.

 

Your social footprint

As well as your CV which contains all core info about your career and achievements, your online social footprint will continue to steal the limelight. Making sure your personal brand comes across favourably on sites like LinkedIn, Instagram and Twitter is almost as important as your CV. Plus, it’s a great way to save space on your CV, you can use sites like LinkedIn to share additional info about yourself that you may not have room for.

Employers will use this initially to rule people out, sometimes before they even look at your CV. So take down that Tweet about what you ate for breakfast (unless you are a food blogger of course) and swap it with something that shows off your personality. Oh, and you might also want to change that profile pic of you doing shots or dancing in a bar.

 

 

Give your CV a much-needed detox

Just like you would detox your body from toxins, it’s handy to give your CV a thorough detox. Get rid of all that stuff you don’t need, and replace it with juicy information that will entice employers.

But before you get your knickers in a twist at the mere thought of digging out your CV that’s been unedited for years, chill. We’re here to help. Thankfully, we offer a super handy CV detox service, that will help get your CV to oh so awesome instead of an absolute snooze fest. 

It’s time to sell yourself! And we do the whole shebang. As well as using our supercharged brain power to help you write a killer CV, we can help spice up your cover letter and show you how to get the most out of LinkedIn. Contact our CV detox team now if you want to bag your dream job.