Delving into the mind of a CV reviewer

Step 1 

View the CV and flick through the pages to formulate first impressions, in a matter of seconds.  MINDSET TRIGGER NUMBER ONE – do I like the feel and look of it? Am I looking for reasons why I should place this CV in the YES pile; or, do I get a not-so-great feeling about it, and I am looking for reasons why I should place this CV in the NO pile. It's easy to make a quick judgement here .. But this is the judgement that my thought processes are likely to develop ..

Step 2

Quickly assess who you are, what you are and why I should hire you. MINDSET TRIGGER NUMBER TWO – go straight to the personal summary statement to quickly determine these things. No time to actually read your CV and figure this out for myself, so your candidate value proposition needs to be clear as a bell. This will determine if I read on with a more positive, ambivalent or couldn’t-care-less MINDSET.

Step 3

Continue to scan the CV and look for key qualifiers that are important to the hirer. MINDSET TRIGGER NUMBER THREE. 

• Option 1- could be - this is a page-turner, I’m highly engaged and I’m now reading with interest and in fact very easily picking out interesting points that tips the balance and I’d like to explore further at interview; 
• Option 2- my interest is dwindling, this CV is not easy to read and doesn’t tell me much of what I really need to know, creating more questions than answers – it could be a contender, but one for the ‘Possible’ pile; 
• Option 3- totally disengaged, not working for me, no, not answering my questions, no key qualifiers demonstrated, no evidence of success – it’s an easy No.

My point being ...

Even if you are a great fit for the role, and you may even be the best-fit applicant for the job amongst the crowd of CVs being considered – if your CV doesn’t actually evidence the key skills, experience and knowledge the hirer is looking for, ALL your career brilliance that YOU know you have and how you have successfully contributed in the workplace, then you will never get the chance to journey pass GO and no chance of collecting that £200. 

Don't underestimate the power and influence of a high-impact CV. It really does make a difference. 

"You just need to know how to play the game" 😁