1. SACCO

(i) Finance Manager

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(ii) IT Service Delivery Officer

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2. Group of Companies

(i) Accounts & Admin Officers

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(ii) Risk & Compliance Officer

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(iii) Hotel Network Administrator

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(iv) Executive Assistant

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(v) Research Assistant

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3. WFP

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How long should my CV be?” This is a question that has been pondered for years by jobseekers and is still a cause of debate across the recruitment industry. Although there is no single, definitive rule, the general consensus is that you should try to keep it as close to two pages as you can.

This can be difficult to achieve, especially when you have years of experience you want to show the prospective employer. So, to create an interview-winning CV, it’s vital that you understand the importance of CV length and theWhy is brevity important?

To understand how the length of your CV affects your ability to land job interviews, you have to look at it from the point of view of the recruiters. The average recruiter can easily sift through hundreds of CVs a day, so they simply don’t have time to read anything too lengthy. Your document, therefore, needs to be short and sharp to get your message across quickly.

Your CV is like a piece of marketing material that advertises your services to potential employers. You need to ensure that it connects with its audience and tells your story without boring them.

Pare back older roles

One of the easiest ways to shorten a drawn-out CV is to cut descriptions of your older roles to a brief summary. Recruiters do not need to know about what you did 10 years ago in great detail, so there’s no need to go into it. Your recent roles should contain the most detail to highlight the value you can bring to a new employer, but older roles are really just included to show your career path and background. If you’ve got a lot of experience, you can simply list your oldest roles to save space.

Filter out irrelevant details

If you have a broad skill set and lots of career achievements then it’s only natural that you will try to cram them in to make a big impression. However, many jobs will actually call for a very niche set of skills, making some of your attributes surplus to requirement.

Take a good look through the job adverts that you are applying to, and find out what the most sought-after requirements are – if you find that your CV includes a lot of skills or experience that are not being asked for, then you can cut those areas down or remove them from your CV altogether.

If you are applying for a broad range of roles, then it’s OK to have more than one CV, with each tailored towards a particular niche in your industry.

Avoid cliches

The use of cliches is unfortunately quite common in CVs and hugely disliked by employers. Typical expressions include “works well in a team or individually” and “go-getter with an entrepreneurial mind set”. The reason they are so disliked is that they don’t actually tell the reader much about you and they are often not backed up with any proof. Instead of writing “excellent team leader”, give examples of occasions where you have led teams and highlight details of the results. This way you can prove that you’re an excellent team leader without wasting valuable space on meaningless and overused phrases.

Don’t waste space with personal details

The only personal details that need to be on your CV are name, phone number, email address and rough geographic location – using minimal space at the top of your CV. Recruiters just need to be able to contact you and know roughly where you can commute to – prior to interview, they don’t need to know things like your date of birth and full postal address.

You should only include hobbies and interests if they are relevant to the roles you are applying for or if you have any major achievements that might impress potential employers. If you do include interests, keep the section very brief and at the bottom of your CV.

Credit : theguardian.com

A recruiter can be your short cut into a new job. With a good understanding of industry trends – and insider knowledge of that particular employer’s preferences and needs – a recruiter will be briefed to find exactly the right candidate with a specific set of skills, experience and qualities. To even be considered for the role, you need to make sure that your CV hits the right notes with them.

Recruiters can be generalists working in a number of sectors or headhunters specialising in one, but there are a few pet hates they all share. Avoid these and you’ll be giving yourself a better chance of getting into the yes pile each time.

Functional or quirky formats

Functional (or skills-format CVs) are often recommended for career changers, or those who have taken a break in their careers. These layouts typically have an enhanced skills section at the beginning of the CV, with a brief work history following.

But recruiters generally hate these layouts. Roseanne Stockton of Nu-Recruit and Chester Businesswoman of the Year 2013, says: “Unless you’re going for a quirky/design led job, use a traditional style as it makes the task of sifting so much easier.”

Think about layout from a recruiter’s point of view. A recruiter will be looking for similar experience or a solid employment record to prove your ability to do the job. This is most easily achieved in a traditional chronological format, where job titles and employer details are prominent, and achievements and career progression are in context.

Lack of relevance

Zena Everett, director and career coach at Second Careers and career guru at Mumsnet, has researched how headhunters, recruiters, employers and HR professionals screen CVs. She found that they all – without exception – looked first at the most recent work experience and job title. These must be relevant for the CV to get a second look in a competitive job market.

For recruiters to put you forward to an employer, they need to see that your background matches the role. A simple way to ensure that you’re giving your CV the best possible chance is to search the job description for key criteria, then make sure you include relevant details on your CV that show you’re a good match. Remember to quantify your achievements and be specific about how and where you added value to an employer.

Relevancy also means using the right keywords. This is especially important if you’re applying online, where your CV might be automatically filtered at the initial stage of the recruitment process. Check that you’re using appropriate terminology for job titles, skills, responsibilities and achievements. If the job description is short on keywords, look at a range of similar roles to get an idea of what’s commonly required.

If you’re aiming to change career, make sure your CV supports your new goals. Learn to extract the most relevant details from previous experience, minimising what’s not relevant. You may also need to tweak job titles to more closely reflect the job you aspire to. Don’t just rely on recruiters in your job search: networking, voluntary work or side projects are other good strategies for career changers.

An unclear focus

At the higher end of the job market, it’s essential to have a clear career goal, advises Zena. Headhunters are interested in people who know what they want next in their career, but who aren’t desperate to move at all costs. She says: “If you want to be headhunted, position yourself as a passive candidate. You will move for the right role, but aren’t actively on the market.”

A weak profile

Cliche and fluff (phrases such as “innovative problem-solver”, “dynamic individual”, etc) can detract from an otherwise strong CV, says Zena, while a strong initial statement can improve a weak one: “A personal statement should summarise what the candidate has done in the past, what they want to do next and the skills/knowledge/experience that bridges the two.” Aim for a brief, factual snapshot, backing it up with examples in the rest of your CV.

Missing, inaccurate or hard-to-find information

When recruiters are dealing with hundreds of CVs, the time they can allot to each is severely limited. Don’t imagine that they will be settling down to study yours in order to work out where to place you. Instead, they’re briefed to find candidates for a particular role, so make the key details clear and easy to find. Check before you submit your CV that it can pass a “five-second” test: is it obvious from a quick scan what role you’re applying for? Have you included relevant keywords and factual evidence to support your application?

Don’t make a recruiter have to work to piece together information. Roseanne says that dates are often forgotten, but are essential. Give the months and year of employment – not just the year.

It sounds obvious, but spelling and grammar errors can also get your CV discounted, she says. Keep your CV to two pages and clarify any unusual jargon or terminology.

Generic cover letters

“More candidates get knocked back by having generic cover notes than CVs, as they show you haven’t read the job spec,” warns Roseanne. Make sure yours is relevant and brief, showing how you match the role requirements. Make it the body of the email, attaching your CV as a Word document.

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There’s nothing like that hallelujah moment when the perfect job posting makes its way to you. You eagerly scroll through the details, while picturing your shiny new desk and awesome new colleagues.

But wait (and cue the record scratch sound)—you don’t quite meet the required qualifications. You know you’ve got what it takes, but your resume tells a different story.

Whether you’re making a career change or just pushing yourself to the next level, there are plenty of times you may find yourself applying to a position you don’t fully align with. Here’s the good news, though: There are plenty of ways to paint a picture of yourself as a qualified candidate. Besides the obvious—tailoring your resume, submitting an unforgettable cover letter, really explaining in the interview why they should hire you—here are five tricks that will make the hiring manager excited to learn more about you.

1. Use Your Connections—or Make Some

A connection is how Christine Wilson, founder and CEO of MtoM Consulting, ended up hiring a financial analyst as a social media strategist for her agency’s hospitality accounts. Turns out, this number cruncher had been open with his employer, a real estate holding company, about his aspiration to move into a more creative field. So, his boss helped him make a professional shift by recommending him to Wilson.

As Wilson explains, “Getting a referral from someone who has a lot of respect and credibility can make a world of difference.”

Even if you’re not making a major career change, having that personal connection will make it more likely that a hiring manager will be willing to chat despite a few missing qualifications. If she already trusts you—or someone she trusts trusts you—she can feel more confident taking a bit of a risk.

Just make sure to make it as easy as possible for that person to recommend you. Besides being a great employee, this means having some easy materials—such as a resume in tip-top shape or a sharp personal website—that the person referring you can send along to his or her contacts.

If you don’t have a connection, well, now’s the time to start building some! Reach out to recruiters and ask if you could chat about how your qualifications might fit into roles you’re looking for, ask your existing networks if they know anyone relevant they could introduce you to, or cold email someone from the organization you’re hoping to get into asking for an informational interview. Don’t ask for the job outright, but start by building a relationship and see where that takes you.

2. Look Beyond the Obvious Skills and Experience

Despite that daunting list of specific qualifications, unique functions of your current job (or previous roles) may translate really well into the one you want even if they aren’t listed in the job description. These are called “additive skills,” career expert Sara McCord explains, and they are “something unique that you bring to the table—in addition to everything that’s expected.”

“Think about it,” McCord says, “If you’re slightly underqualified, there’s a reason why. If you spent the first two years of your career in a different sector, you bring experience from that industry.” So instead of shying away from the skills and experiences that make you different than the desired profile, find ways to spin them to your advantage!

Or, maybe a casual hobby has given you the real expertise the company is looking for, even though it’s not something you’ve been paid to do before. For example, the financial analyst Wilson hired had a talent for taking amazing photos of his adventures and had the Instagram posts (and following) to prove it. Wilson explains, “Because he used his personal work to show us that he could do what we needed, I was far less concerned that he never had a day on the job we were hiring him for. We can help him build a lot skills, but he already has an eye for the visual, and that’s something we can’t teach.”

Another awesome addition to your resume (that job seekers often overlook!) is volunteering. According to the 2016 Deloitte Impact Survey, 85% of hiring influencers are willing to overlook resume pitfalls when an employee includes volunteering on a resume—but only 30% of resumes include volunteering!

Long story short, you may have more to bring to the table than the full-time positions you’ve been paid to do, and it’s your job to show hiring managers why what you’re bringing is exactly what they’re looking for.

3. Get Their Pain—and Show You Can Solve It

To show employers you really mean business, invest your time in their business. Putting the effort into doing work on the company’s behalf during the interview process reflects your passion and gives a sneak peek into how you could benefit the organization.

Start by doing a deep dive into the company’s online presence, keeping tabs on the key players in the news, and chatting with anyone you know who works there to identify pain points or growth opportunities—things that are holding the organization back now that you think you could help it do better. Then, rather than a typical cover letter, write a “pain letter,” outlining what you see as one of the team’s biggest problems and the solutions you would bring to the table if hired. This reinforces that you’ve done your homework and are excited about hitting the ground running.

Or, take it up a notch and do a pre-interview project that showcases your abilities in a splashier way. For example, when Nina Mufleh was hoping to get a job at Airbnb, she created a thorough report on the global tourism market with recommendations on where the company should focus next. Not only did she clearly spend time on the work, but her passion for the company and desire to contribute was infused throughout the content.

There are so many directions you could take this: prototyping a redesign of a mobile app that solves usability issues, outlining a content marketing plan that you think could help a company grow its audience, providing potential solutions to pain points in a company’s customer service experience, or anything else you feel like you bring to the table.

But whatever you do, you should consider publishing your project online, using a simple website building platform like Squarespace. Even if you don’t get the job, sharing your impressive work with the world is likely to help your personal brand (and maybe even attract other hiring managers). Mufleh, for example, shared that while her project did get her an interview with Airbnb, the ultimate value was much bigger, driving 445,000+ visits to the project website, 14,000+ LinkedIn profile views, and interviews with dozens of other high-impact companies.

4. Make Your Online Presence Shine

One place that hiring managers might go if they’re intrigued but uncertain about you? The internet. So you should make sure your online presence represents the person you want them to think you are.

Just like you tailor your cover letter and resume, you can tailor your online presence. For example, creating a personal website brings your career story to life and connects the dots for a potential employer as to why you’d be the right fit. According to Aliza Licht, founder and President of LEAVE YOUR MARK LLC and author of Leave Your Mark: Land Your Dream Job. Kill It in Your Career. Rock Social Media, “A personal website is really the new resume. Of course, you should have a good LinkedIn profile that’s filled out to perfection. But a website—especially in a visual industry—is where you can share your work and park everything you have done.”

Plus, with a sleek site, you’ll look professional and legit. Unless you’re a developer, use a service like Squarespace to make a stunning site without a lick of coding knowledge. Start small with a single-page site and continue to enhance it over time.

Employers are also likely to scope out your social media profiles, so be sure that what you post enhances their perception of you. This can be as simple as making sure you’re not just posting pics of your lunch, but also sharing links to relevant industry articles or opinions on what’s happening in your field.

5. Show Your Passion

From the very first email correspondence to that final interview, if you’re really passionate about the position and the company, make sure you show it! When hiring managers can feel your excitement, they’ll be more excited to continue the conversation with you over more qualified (but less enthused) candidates.

Kristy Nittskoff, a recruiting expert and founder of Talent-Savvy, recalls making an unconventional hire when she worked at a startup. A woman with 15 years of experience in education wanted to join the team as a database developer. She took courses on the side, and her motivation to dive right in was clear.

“We weren’t necessarily looking for a junior database developer, but she wanted it so bad, had the right personality, and enough of the groundwork in place, so we decided to give it a shot.”

In short: Be genuine, be excited, and learn some ways to show off your passion without coming off too strong.

Finally, remember that if you try all of these tricks but don’t get an offer, sometimes it’s not you, it’s them.

No matter how well you clicked, how eager you are to learn, or how spot-on your skills are, Nittskoff says that some companies just don’t have the resources or structure to invest in someone who needs more training, coaching, and mentorship than they can provide. But don’t let it get you down. Look for other places where you can take your skills and grow, and make sure to stay in touch to evolve the relationship as you evolve in your career.

Credit : themuse.com

Interviews are difficult enough without attempting to answer the question of what your desired salary is. Many interviewers won’t ask this question during the first interview, but some will, so you need to be prepared. It’s a tricky question to answer because you don’t want to underestimate your own worth, but you also might want to avoid being taken out of the running if you request too much. Once you get to the negotiation part of the interview process, there are several ways you can attempt to negotiate a higher salary. However, in order to get to that point, you may need to answer the question first. Your answer may depend on where you are in the interview process, but you should be ready to answer in any situation.

Consider the context

If you see a question about salary on an actual application, you may need to answer it; otherwise you will simply leave the spot blank. You can go ahead and leave it blank if it isn’t required, but if it is, consider these options from CareerRealism: You can answer $0, you can answered a desired salary based on your market research, or you can answer a range (this is probably the best option if the form allows you to enter it).

If you are asked about your salary during an interview, then you will have to answer the question. You want to avoid undervaluing your worth, but you also don’t want to ask for an unreasonable amount. Some companies will have a set salary that they are going to offer. If the interviewer tells you this ahead of time over the phone, or during your first interview, then you should respect that number. If you are uncomfortable with the amount, then you may need to look for a different job.

Of course, there’s always a chance that they are simply checking to see how little you would work for, but if a hiring professional is working with a set salary offer that you can’t accept, you will waste their time as well as your own if you string them along.

Avoid the salary question if possible

You can try to move away from the question by asking for more specifics of the job requirements. You could also ask about the benefits package, and take that into consideration when it comes to your desired salary. It also might help to give a range because that way the interviewer will know if they can afford to hire you, but you won’t be locked into a specific number that you might regret later.

You can also try to turn the question around by asking the interviewer if they have a range in mind. They may answer you outright, or they may bring the question back to you. According to PayScale, you shouldn’t give the first number, and the answer to this question is almost always to avoid answering it if possible. You can also respond by saying that you are looking for a good fit, and that you are confident that their pay is comparable to the rest of the market.

It’s also important that you complete research about the market for your field. Sites like Salary.com and Glassdoor can be a great way to help you determine your current worth. Knowing how much your skills and education are worth can also be a strong negotiating tool.

How to answer it if necessary

In the end, you may have to answer the salary question or risk seeming difficult to work with. However, if you can turn the question around and avoid answering it, usually your best bet is to try to do so. The exception is that if you really will only accept a job for a specific salary, you might as well tell the interviewer.

At some point you will have to answer the salary question, but if you can avoid answering until you are further through the interview process (ideally at the end after the company gives you an offer) you will probably be in a better place for negotiating the salary you want because you will be sure the company wants you to work for them.

If you’re thinking about making a big career change, you’re not alone. More and more people are making at least one big shift during their professional life, and they’re doing it successfully. Chances are, you already know that you need to tailor your resume, learn how to tell your career story, and explain your transition in a compelling way. So you’re good to go, right?

Not necessarily. Although there are plenty of resources out there to help you make the shift, there are still some not-so-obvious, yet common mistakes that can trap you if you aren’t aware of them. Beyond the challenge of telling your story, individuals making this move often fumble in unexpected ways that can stall progress and leave them feeling like the whole transition was a terrible idea.

Here’s what not to do.

1. Going it Alone

It’s scary to change careers, partly because fear of failure is real. This fear can make it nerve-wracking to tell your friends, family, and network about your plans. You figure you’ll announce it when you succeed. Part of this instinct is a result of how social media shapes our perceptions. Seeing the best of everyone’s lives online can make it hard to admit when something in your own life isn’t going how you anticipated. It’s easier to tell a story of success rather than ask for help in the process.

But if you want to break into a new industry, the people you already know are where you need to start. They’re very often your best possible assets. Evidence suggests that even those long-lost Facebook acquaintances that you aren’t close with might just be your ticket to a new path. Social media is not just for vacation selfies and political rants; it’s a powerful tool that you can use to get a head start on your search. Tell your friends—IRL and digital—about the change you want to make, and you may be surprised with a connection you never thought about. If you have connections from college, mentors from a past job, a distant cousin, reach out. Don’t wait until you get frustrated by the process—connect early to avoid feeling helpless or lost.

2. Avoiding Big Questions

Major life decisions deserve introspection, but if you can believe it, there’s a right way and a wrong way to go about this seemingly straightforward exercise. I’ve seen too many career changers think about what they want to leave behind, rather than what they want to move toward—and why. If you’re in a job that you hate, and you want to get out as fast as possible, you might not be asking yourself the necessary questions about your career move. Are you trying to use a different skill set? Make a bigger impact in your community? Feel more challenged?

Think hard about why you want to shift from marketing to finance, or from sales to product management. Understand why you want to get your MBA. If you want to be successful in a new career, you need to know why you want to be there. It’s OK if you can’t think 10 years into the future, but try to think about the next three to five. How will this career transition help you grow, better your life, or set you up for your future goals? Until you can answer these kinds of questions, any satisfaction you get from escaping your current job will likely be temporary.

3. Getting Impatient

The job search takes time, and if you’ve done your introspective work and finally made the decision to switch careers, you may begin to feel frustrated by all that you still have to do. You want that new track ASAP, but the reality of a career change is that it’s rarely a speedy process. Unlike moving to a new role in the industry you have experience in, the transitional move is often complicated. In fact, you may have to consider a side gig to get your foot in the door. An internship is another possibility. If you’re not ready and aware of the commitment involved, you may feel like giving up before you even really get started.

One of the best ways to avoid burnout is to start with a realistic step-by-step plan for your career change. Working with a friend, on your own, or with career coach, give yourself a minimum of six months (be prepared for it to take twice as long though) to research, polish, and tweak your documents and narrative, network, get industry practice, and apply to jobs. If you find something sooner, great! But do yourself a favor and take the pressure off of making the transition with speed.

4. Applying to the Wrong Jobs

So you’ve informed your network (and continually worked to build and strengthen it), sought and gained introspection, and planned out the next several months. There’s still one more common yet not quite obvious mistake I’ve seen time and time again: choosing the wrong roles. Either you become so narrowly focused on the one title/job/role you want and only apply to the (very few) jobs that fit your preconceived notion without exploring new opportunities, or you start applying for everything in the new field with little attention paid to whether or not it’s even a right fit for you. Both usually result in a lot of anxiety.

As with most things, striking a balance is key here. No job is a perfect reflection of its description, and you may pass up a really interesting opportunity if you’re only focusing on a few keywords. Career changing is a journey, and you should be ready to take on some unexpected challenges in whatever new role you find. Don’t automatically pass up that marketing role at the boutique firm just because it also involves some customer service or budget management.

You may find that you have a knack for wearing multiple hats and like the variety. But if you find a marketing role at a sporting goods company when you’re an indoorsy bookworm, you might want to think twice before just hitting send on the application. So before you hit “pass” or “apply” on any job, take the time to really read the description, learn about the company, and see if you can picture yourself there. Then you’ll be able to make an informed decision.

Whether you’re changing your track after only a few years, or after 25, keep in mind that you have the skills and the savvy to be successful in your new field. Avoiding career-changing mistakes will save you from burnout and help you get to where you want to be.

Credit : themuse.com