What is the most common CV mistake?

A CV without evidence of achievements is an empty podium with no winners.

As a branding expert with recruitment experience, I’ve seen 1000s of CVs over the years. Some have been good, but many have been quite poor. Sometimes they are far too long, jargon-heavy or just a bit dull and probably didn’t engage the person who wrote it, never mind the recruiter who was expected to read it.

But without doubt, the most common mistake made on CVs is that they are not achievement-focused. The lack evidence.

It was different in the past when CVs were essentially glorified job descriptions full of terms such as ‘responsible for…’ where you were just expected to include the things you did and nothing more. And that would have been sufficient then, but it certainly isn't now.

Recruiters and hiring managers now expect something more tangible and with more context. They want to know what results you have achieved for the business, the impact you have created, the outcomes to which you have contributed and the value you have added by doing your role.

They need to see proof of what you've achieved to visual you doing the same for their business.

So how do you show achievements and outcomes in your bullet points?

Think of it as a formula - ‘Achieved A by doing B’.

Use action verbs such as ‘increased, improved, achieved, led and delivered’ to highlight the achievement. In fact, that single word can embody the evidence the reader is looking for.

Dull example

• Responsible for managing sales

Better example

• Responsible for managing sales team which improved sales by 25% in the first quarter

Great example

• Improved sales by 25% in Q1 by motivating and managing individuals and team to implement consistent approach and aim for shared, repeatable business success

This last example highlights the business result first and also demonstrates what was done to achieve it.

And it doesn't need to be a long exmaple, just the result. If needed, you can talk about how you did it in more detail in the job interview and go through the STAR steps, but on the CV just focus on the Result part.

Now, if you’re in sales, quantifiable metrics are much easier to identify, but what if you have a job in a field such as HR or engineering, which may not have results that are as easy to quantify?

OK, it may not be possible to use percentage or financial increases, but there is always a business objective to what you do, regardless of your role, otherwise why are you doing it?

Consider questions like these:

1. Have you improved a situation in your company?

2. Have you helped others to do their job better?

3. Have you been involved in cost reductions?

And then think about the results for the business of doing what you did. What changed between the before state and afterward?

Examples

1. Enabled senior colleagues to make informed decisions by analysing account data for indications of fraud, formulating and presenting results in customised summary reports

2. Increased service provision and quality by leading new team and mentoring four Support Engineers, as well as initiating and delivering enhanced training

   
   

As you can see, following the formula ‘Achieved A by doing B’ highlights the result for the business, as well as what you did to achieve it. Add this to a compelling profile and you increase your chances of your CV landing you an interview.

It can be hard to see the wood for the trees when you are writing your own CV. And if you think you "just did my job" at work, you might feel like you haven't got any achievements anyway. But you do, there is always a before and after - and an outcome.

If you'd like some help with identifying your achievements and putting together the best CV possible to get the job that you want, why not try some Career Therapy?

Click ‘Book a call’ on the website for a free intro call or email me at louise@careertherapy.co.uk

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