Executive Recruitment and Management Consultancy from Prism Recruitment Language Selection

CV Preparation

Drawing on several decades of experience in the executive recruitment market, our consultants offer the following advice:

The general recruitment industry view is that a CV should fit onto two sheets of A4 paper – certainly no more than three.

Your personal details and contact information should be clear and easy to identify, preferably placed at the start of your CV.

Keep your CV concise and to the point. Avoid using jargon or phrases that are only used by your company.

When structuring the career history section of your CV, work in chronological order, with your current/most recent position first. Prospective employers will be far more interested in your recent responsibilities and achievements, rather than what you did 10–15 years ago.

A brief description of each company you have worked for (size, products/services, market position etc.) will help a reader who is not familiar with your industry.

Don't include details of references, unless requested. It provides someone with an unwelcome opportunity to ‘check you out’ before an initial interview.

When responding to specific advertisements in the press or on–line, make sure you follow the response instructions accurately, and that your CV highlights all your experience which is relevant to the appointment in question.