I must have blogged on this previously but not for a while so I thought it was worth re-visiting. Contrary to popular opinion, the CV remains part of the recruitment process and in fact, the most important part because it's the first stage in getting you in front of a potential employer. A poor CV will not secure an interview. Recently I've found myself having to amend a number of CVs for candidates and it can be quite frustrating. It's as if we've forgotten that a strong CV is the passport to a great role - it's worth investing time and energy to get it right. I don't believe that you need to pay for it so steer clear of CV writing cowboys. If you can put a few hours aside over a weekend you will reap the rewards.
If you're currently thinking about updating your CV, take a good look at the last one that you used. The worst CVs that I see are those where 'updating' merely means adding a new paragraph with the current role and leaving it at that. Thus the dates are often out of kilter (usually 2 jobs are dated 'to present') and the tenses used are all mixed up. Old roles refer to the present tense rather than the past. If it's clear to me that there has not been a lot of attention to detail then it's clear to an employer. And that's enough to rule you out of the equation. That's because attention to detail is cited as one of the most desirable skills in a strong client services candidate.
So I often recommend starting from scratch. It might sound like a pain but in fact it's often easier to do that than it is to try and edit an old one. This also prevents you from having an 8 page CV where really you could easily condense some of those historical roles. Employers don't want to look at 8 pages. It's still true that the 2 page CV is the best - although I appreciate it is tricky to stick to that, particularly in modern times when individuals move jobs much more frequently than in the past.
A strong personal profile at the outset is good. But another gripe of mine is that it is often just a list of blah words. Ambitious, hard working, intelligent, flexible, leader, team player - just a list of words. It needs to be succinct and relevant both to you, your skills, and what you want out of your next role. It's the first thing that an employer will read and therefore could be the difference between you going in the yes pile rather than the bin.
Next up is to start with your employment history with the most recent first. I'm a fan of bullet points and key facts. Stick to specific skills and successes. When talking about your historical roles, make sure the past tense is used and make sure it's not the same bullet points (you'd be surprised how many people just copy and paste for every job they have ever had!).
Education needs to go in there. Put the dates in - if you don't the employer will work it out for themselves. Whilst you don't necessarily need to list every GCSE grade, you do need to state your degree classification - if you don't, the employer will assume it was a third.
Interests. Not a long list but it's useful for an employer to see that you are an engaged and active person with interests outside the office. Not necessary to add what your golf handicap or fastest marathon time is or the names of your pets.
Photo. Entirely your call. As with interests, be prepared that employers may judge you for the wrong reasons (of course they shouldn't but they are human). I've seen all sorts - a guy lying down with a tiger, ladies in bikini tops with a cocktail in hand. I think these days, most employers will automatically look a candidate up on LinkedIn so for that reason you don't really need it on the CV but if you do want to include, make sure it's professional and shows you off as your best employable self. Don't shoot yourself in the foot!
In our industry (creative services and marketing) we are not yet into computerised recruitment. I was recently shocked when a career advisor had recommended some CV tips to a candidate and it was all 'words' that would be picked up by AI and then a robot would decide if you got an interview or not. We're fortunate for the time being that our process is all done by humans!
When you're happy with it, check the CVs for typos. Most businesses still prefer UK spelling to American. Get someone else to proof-read it. I'm always happy to offer tips so feel free to send it over. Of course for specific roles I will often recommend tailoring the CV to that particular role but if you have a strong generic CV at the ready, it's easy enough to make minor amends if you need to.
Remember the CV is the first thing that a potential employer will see. They'll likely have multiple CVs to review so it's worth making sure that it's as good as it can be. If you recruit yourself for your own team, have a think about what you look for when you are reviewing CVs - that can also be very helpful!
You don't need to be a champion copywriter to get it right. Just a bit of time to properly consider what you do, what you have done and what you want to do in the future. Good luck.