An exciting future
There is one saying that I think resonates more than ever in the competitive job market and that’s ‘honesty is the best policy!’
I have lost count of the number of times I’ve seen a CV that has an ‘omission or two’. Candidates have left jobs off because “they were only a short period of time”, or “they aren’t relevant” I’ve seen gaps in CV’s that are left as just that… gaps!
I may sound like a crusader on this but the one that makes me put my head in my hands every time and makes me shout NO!!!!!!! is when a candidate tells me that a recruitment consultant told them to leave the job off! Why I ask? Most replies start with “it’s just not relevant” or “no one will know” or the classic response “there’s no need to put mistakes on your CV nowadays”
Honesty is the best policy and if you edit your CV to erase positions that didn’t work out for you it will, as my child says, come back to bite you on the behind. And it will hurt. Perhaps not physically but it will hurt, guaranteed.
So why the need for a CV at all? Well I passionately believe that a CV should reflect a person’s work history, their achievements, their personality and their ability to deliver a piece of information that the reader will want to explore and expand on at a face to face interview. The reader should be assured that the information is accurate and correct, and that it can be corroborated by third party if necessary. That’s it, not rocket science but the key to it all is honesty.
This isn’t another recruiters top 10 tips for a perfect job winning CV, this is a recruiter’s advice which you’re welcome to disregard or disagree with. If you would like my top 10 tips and more guidance I suggest we talk one to one. Email me at mark.britton@lifecoreconsulting.com
I hope that you haven’t seen this as a rant, just a genuine piece of advice. Be honest in your CV. Don’t leave out roles, no matter how short the tenure may have been and no matter who tells you its ok. It may just bite you on the behind at your next interview, and who knows that could be with me!
For more straightforward career guidance and advice in the medical devices and life Sciences sectors, let’s talk.
Related White Papers
