Hit rates

It seems to have been a day where recruiters have been emailing me their "regret" letters. So it's been a bit of a "bad" day in that respect and it got me thinking about my CV and its contents and wondering if I need to change its contents. Of course, not to tell lies about my experience or achievements, but to try to get a bigger hit rate in terms of being invited to interview.

I have some experience of writing CV's for others but find it difficult to be self critical. I hear myself saying the same things that clients say to me when I talk to them. "I can't write about myself so need you to do it for me" they say.

And now I'm having to consider how do I sell myself? What is my brand? What are my achievements? Where and how have I added value? How do I hit that target more often and get more interviews?

I don't want to continually change my CV for every role that I apply for - that seems like a route to disaster. I know from professional experience of interviewing candidates who clearly have been talking to the wrong CV at interview because they can't remember what they wrote.

But I think I can possibly have two CVs - one for applying to permanent roles and one for interim roles. That seems like a potential option. They are two different targets and therefore can be addressed differently.

For an interim role, it feels like the idea would be describe in more details the achievements in my roles and make them live for the recruiter.

For a permanent role, it still needs achievements but there also needs to be a reflection of the businesses where I have operated and the commercial knowledge I have acquired.

Plus in these days of the social media, recruiters can also look at your on-line presence. So I will need to look at my Linked In profile and make sure it reflects me well.

So I have decided to seek silk on this matter and talk to some trusted colleagues and ask their opinion. Apologies if I don't speak to you direct but you can always leave a comment here if you should wish or email me directly.

(c) Iain Williamson 2012