Your choice of words could be the deciding factor in whether your CV makes it through an initial screening. Improve your chances with these three tips.
Use relevant industry keywords
Some organisations use scanning software to filter out CVs not containing specific keywords — the words or phrases associated with a particular role or industry. For example, keywords for a charity campaign manager role could be "direct marketing" or "budget management". Jobs in HR might specify experience in "recruitment" or "training and development".
Including appropriate keywords gives your CV a better chance of being passed on to the hiring manager, so analyse the job description (and also those for similar roles) to identify particular qualifications, skills, or types of experience. To ensure you're covering all possibilities, include synonyms, examples or variations of the same word in both your CV and covering letter. For example, if you're applying for a Java programming role, you could include program, programmer, and Java.
Incorporate your keywords naturally within your CV so they also read well. Good places for keywords are your profile/summary, skills and work history sections. You can also use them as headings (for example, for broad areas of expertise, such as training, or employee retention for an HR position) or in a table (to present lists of technical skills.)
Your keywords should reflect the seniority of the role. If you're applying for a high-level position, emphasise your leadership and management skills over lower-level skill sets.
If you're changing career, it's especially important to choose keywords which are relevant to your target sector. Be careful how you describe skills and achievements gained in a previous career: you might need to rewrite these to align them more closely with your current career goals, or to minimise any doubts about the relevancy of your experience.
Make sure you give examples to back up each of your skills or strengths.
Avoid vacuous phrases
Phrases such as "problem-solver", "excellent communication skills" or "results-oriented" are more likely to be basic requirements of the role than keywords. Used without examples as evidence, they're so general as to be meaningless. If you find that you're filling your CV with phrases like this, scour the job description again to find more specific requirements. Choose the most important and address each one in your CV.
Write in specifics
Including achievements in your CV illustrates your potential value to an organisation. Quantify the impact you had wherever possible. Rather than a bland "excellent communication skills" prove it with a striking example: "Translated dry insurance policies into jargon-free, customer-friendly mailing shots, resulting in 20% increased business".
Choose success stories which are as relevant as possible to the hiring manager's concerns, so you can demonstrate your ability to address their specific needs. Avoid passive forms and dull sentences that start with "I was responsible for..." Instead, use vivid vocabulary that leaves an impression, such as "pioneered", "championed", or "spearheaded" rather than "started", or "began", for example. Provide the background to your stories: describe the challenge or situation; detail the action you took, and give the result. For extra impact, highlight the real extent of your achievement by putting it in the context of industry norms or the current economic climate.
