We work with high-performing professionals every day. But even the people at the top of their game struggle with self-promotion and recognising their achievements. Take this case study with Krzys as an example – the candidate found the confidence to go for their next senior role with Krzys’s belief and support by showing her own strengths. You might be ready for the next level in your career or need a confidence boost to see what you can achieve.
So, how do you create a next-level CV? Tailoring your CV and spell-checking only scratches the surface of a good CV. And with most hiring managers taking 30 seconds or less to review a CV, you need to make yours stand out. We’ve gathered our consultants’ top tips for writing a CV to help you level up your career.
Self-reflection
Before putting pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard), take time to self-reflect. How would you describe yourself in three words? What are your core values? What are your career goals? And most importantly, what are your key strengths? This might seem like a simple exercise stating the obvious, but it’s an empowering starting point when it comes to creating a confident and clear CV.
How do you describe yourself and articulate your strengths? Try carrying out 360-degree feedback – send a short survey to colleagues and friends, asking them to describe yourself and your strengths. This can provide fresh insights and help you build your CV with confidence.
Key achievements and experiences
Listing your key achievements and experiences is easy, but how do you make them stand out? Here are the steps you should take to enhance each achievement and experience:
2. Return to the list and add metrics and results to each bullet point.
Example 1: Led company-wide financial strategy development, driving a 25% increase in profitability over 3 years.
Example 2: Developed software automation scripts for cloud infrastructure, reducing deployment times by 50%.
Example 3: Implemented an employee engagement initiative, increasing overall engagement scores by 25% within a year.
3. That's where many end their CV writing, but to go that extra mile, expand the bullet points further by linking these accomplishments to your strengths, values, or the three words that define you. This demonstrates your strengths in action and adds depth to your CV and tells a more cohesive story.
Example 1: Led company-wide financial strategy development, driving a 25% increase in profitability over 3 years by aligning financial goals with the company’s long-term vision, ensuring sustainable growth, balancing immediate wins with long-term resilience.
Example 2: Developed software automation scripts for cloud infrastructure, reducing deployment times by 50%. By automating complex processes, I reduced the potential for human error, allowing teams to focus on higher-value tasks and increasing overall project efficiency.
Example 3: Implemented an employee engagement initiative, increasing overall engagement scores by 25% within a year by identifying pain points and introducing tailored programs, creating a culture of open communication, which strengthened morale and team cohesion.
Remember, tailoring your CV is just the basics when it comes to applying to roles. Having this bank of achievements, you can pick and choose the ones that relate the best to the job you’re applying for, which makes the process easier. Having specific and personalised stories within each bullet point
Showcase career progression
Demonstrating your career progression is a must. If you’ve been promoted within the same business, highlight what led to that promotion. For example, mention the key project or achievement that earned you the promotion, followed by the additional responsibilities in your new role. This gives hiring managers a clear view of your growth trajectory validating your efforts and recognizing your potential.
Use keywords strategically
Keywords are essential whether you’re applying directly or through a recruitment agency. The hiring manager already knows what they need from the person they’re looking to hire. Most recruitment agencies also use ATS (Applicant Tracking System), which can scan CVs for relevant keywords. More than 70% of CVs are rejected because of ATS, which is why we work closely with each of our candidates to help them create a top CV before passing them on to our clients and use our own expertise and initiative when looking at CVs for vacancies rather than relying on the AI of ATS.
The best place to find these is the job description. they will usually show the exact person they’re looking to hire. This doesn’t mean you should add them sporadically. You can incorporate them into your skills area, your summary, or within your achievements where they fit naturally.
Be concise
Effective communication is key when moving up in your career into more senior roles. You should be able to articulate your career concisely. Keep your CV to the point with impactful language. A CV with a large word count and going into too much detail would be an instant red flag to hiring managers.
Avoid long-winded descriptions by keeping each bullet point to one to two sentences long. And ideally, limit each role to 5 bullet points maximum. While a one-page CV isn’t mandatory, be mindful of the length, with some hiring managers discarding 50% of CVs that are longer than two pages. When we work with you, we make sure your CV’s quality is the focus, as it’s the content that truly matters, not the length. We will always vouch for you regardless of the length, as we know your CV’s quality will make you stand out.
Tell your authentic story
Telling your career story doesn’t have to be a boring list of your roles and responsibilities. People want to work with people, so infuse it with your personality, passion and a touch of humour.
This helps you stand out from other applicants and serves as a great conversation starter during interviews. If your CV starts to feel too long, use your cover letter to provide more context.
Preparing for the C-Suite?
For those looking to step into C-suite roles, your CV needs to reflect your career accomplishments and your strategic impact at a leadership level. Focus on showcasing how you’ve influenced company-wide decisions, managed key stakeholder relationships, and driven long-term growth. Highlight any experience working with boards or shareholders and your ability to lead organisational change.
Tailor your CV to emphasise results—consider revenue growth, cost reductions, or market expansions under your leadership. Additionally, consider using C-suite-specific keywords such as ‘corporate governance,’ which demonstrates your understanding of business ethics and regulatory compliance, ‘strategic leadership,’ which highlights your ability to lead with a long-term vision, and ‘business transformation,’ which showcases your experience in driving significant change within an organisation.
Ready to share your CV
Drop your CV off with us using the form below, and our consultants will take a look.