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C.V Plus Group

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Most job applicants would agree that the Resume is an indispensable part of any application for a new job. Unfortunately, many applicants neglect to include a Cover Letter with the Resume, judging it as frivolous and insignificant. However, the presence (or absence) of a Cover Letter can make or break a promising candidate’s job application. Here’s how to write a Great Cover Letter.

1. Address  and Contact Information

How can an employer contact you without your contact information? Before drafting your sentences, include your name, address and contact information at the top of the page towards the left. This should be followed by the date of the letter. Further down, include the recruiter’s name, designation and address to indicate that this is a personalized letter addressed specifically to the company. This will prevent recruiters from thinking that the letter is one sent en masse to hundreds of companies.

2. Salutation and Greetings

After typing out the employer’s contact details, do not forget to follow with a salutation. Start with ‘’Dear Mr. Tan’’ or ‘’Dear Ms Lee’’. This short phrase serves to build rapport between you and the recruiter. It indicates that you are actually communicating to him personally. Even though it may seem like a no-brainer, you should always ascertain the gender of the recruiter concerned. Nothing is worse than being called ‘’Ms’’ for male recruiters or ‘’Mr.’’ for females.  

3. Subject Heading

After the short greeting, include a subject heading to give introduce the content of the letter. The heading should make it clear that the letter is a job application and should mention the name of the appointment concerned. A possible model is ‘’Re: Application for Senior Technician’’

4. Introductory Paragraph

The first paragraph is where you would like you would like to introduce yourself briefly and to make the recruiter feel like reading more of the letter (recruiters often do not read beyond the first paragraph, so it is important to capture their attention). Mention what attracted you to the job that you are applying for. If the job is a private banker in the wealth management line, you could mention ‘’my passion for the finance industry and my desire for career development drew my attention to the post of private banker open at your organization’’. This could be followed by a summary of what makes you an ideal candidate for the post.

5. Second Paragraph

The second paragraph is where you will need to prove that you are the right man for the job. Highlight your employment credentials and emphasize the parts where it is directly relevant to the activities of the target organization. You may wish to discuss specific experiences to further convince the recruiter of the authenticity of your experience.

6. Third Paragraph

At the end of the second paragraph, the employer should already be ready to take you on and arrange on interview. The third paragraph serves to convince him that he will not make a mistake by placing his trust and resources on you. Effective Cover Letters take this opportunity to highlight other assets such as Community Involvement or Hobbies. Mentioning these details highlight that you are a balanced candidate and would be able to integrate into the organization without a hitch.

7. Concluding Paragraph

Reaffirm why you are the ideal candidate by reiterating your major skills, your wealth of experience and other factors which make you more suitable for the job. Conclude the Cover Letter by thanking the recruiter and by requesting an interview. This could be done subtly like in ‘’I look forward to hear from you’’ or ‘’ I look forward for an opportunity to meet and to discuss in greater detail’’.

The article is located at http://ezinearticles.com/?Top-Five-CV-Blunders&id=1368250

The one thing common to most job applications is the Curriculum Vitae. This 2 to 3 page document is expected to contain the applicant’s employment history, special achievements and relevant personal details. Unfortunately, many applicants still fail to write their C.Vs properly and end up failing to snag the job interview. What are the top five blunders that job applicants make when they design their C.Vs?

1.Making the C.V too fanciful

Many job applicants think that the C.V is an invitation card or a fashion art piece. They put in fanciful font, insert little shapes and pictures, and even change the font sizes, all the time thinking that this demonstrates creativity on their part. However, it is important to remember that the C.V is actually a formal document for consideration. It may not sit very well with an executive recruiter who is not in the mood to joke. An overly fanciful C.V may also tell the recruiter that the applicant is not professional and is not serious about the job.

2.Overemphasizing their Job Responsibilities

Some job applicants have significant job experience. When they write their C.Vs, they list all their previous positions and make a long list of the responsibilities that they held in a certain position. This makes their C.V long and boring, especially for the recruiter which has to read through thousands of resumés. Overemphasizing your job responsibilities may also make the applicant seem like a boaster.

3.Divulging sensitive information

Some job applicants think that the more personal details which they give,the more accessible they would appear to the recruiter. They put in details such as their NRIC number and all their contact numbers. Some of these details are not even useful when the recruiter assesses the candidates suitability for the job. Another problem is that the applicant’s privacy may be compromised if overly private information like the NRIC number is available to many companies at a time.

4.Omitting Contact Information

A few job applicants prepare a well written C.V with most of the important details. Everything is present: the employment history, the references and education history. The only thing that is missing is the contact number. Imagine the employer who looks through a candidate’s C.V and is impressed by all his accomplishments and experience. He is about to ring him up for an interview. And lo and behold , there is no contact number on the resumé.And circumstances arrange that there is nothing on the cover letter. Even with the best intentions, the recruiter will never be able to meet this candidate.

5.Using a generic C.V

The average job seeker submits his C.V to more than one company. The only problem is that the same generic C.V is used for all the job applications.In this generic C.V, the candidate tends to list all his skills and experience. The only problem is that the employer is looking for a candidate that can fulfill specific job requirements. All the skills listed may not be relevant to the job. As a result, it is important that the applicant looks into designing the C.V for specific jobs, and tailoring the C.V to its requirements. Writing a C.V is definitely not a walk in a park, and neither should it be written simply. Job Seekers should always make sure that their C.Vs are adequately detailed and to make sure that there are no language errors that may compromise his chances of getting a job interview.

When someone sends in his CV, the first thing a C.V Consultant does is to evaluate the CV throughly. The consultant checks through the CV to make sure that every essential detail is there. Are the personal particulars complete? Did the applicant forget to write an Executive Summary? Any missing information has to be requested from the client. Next the consultant or resume writer (as some call them) checks the CV for grammatical and other language errors that may compromise an application. Afterwhich the CV is typed out with all the information included and a draft forwarded to the client.

On average, it seems that the CV writer can take about 4 hours working one each CV. But of course the time taken depends on the complexity of the CV. For example, an executive with many years of experience would probably have a much longer and complex CV compared to a fresh graduate looking for a job.

The C.V Plus Group is probably Singapore’s first C.V Consultancy. Essentially, we are a little group writing C.Vs and Cover Letters for our clients. We have a dedicated team of C.V Consultants who come from strong journalistic and business backgrounds who are qualified to write resumes or CVs. Our corporate website is www.cvplus.com.sg

And coming back to the main question, what is the Resume Blog. This blog is actually an avenue for our CV writers to come and share their tips and ideas on resume writing and job applications. We also hope that the online community will be able to give us their comments for further improvement. So we hope that you will enjoy and benefit from this blog.

Till the next post.