Candidates

Decide how you would like to write your resume.

Mention things you are good at, but do not go over the top. You can oversell yourself.

Don't mention things that you are bad at or say negative things about yourself in your resume.

Make sure that the resume you write conjures up the right image of you and your skills, capabilities and achievements. If you do not match the picture you have painted with your resume at the interview, then your application will not be taken further.

Be careful when you use abbreviations - they can be misunderstood.

If you are not happy with your resume or you only seem to get rejection letters then get a professional resume writing service to write it for you. However, you will have to pay for it but it could save you a lot of time and lead you to a successful interview faster.

Educational Qualifications

List your qualifications and education history.

If you have a university education you don't normally need to list which high school you attended (unless you feel that this is relevant to the job you are applying for).

Professional Qualifications

List your professional qualifications and membership of professional associations.

If you recently completed a university degree or equivalent, then you may want to list the courses you studied if the subjects you studied but only if they're relevant to your target job.

Training Courses

List any work related training courses that you attended, including company courses and any you attended on your own initiative and list the qualifications you gained. You only need to list the important courses. No one really cares if you went on a time management course as everyone gets sent on these courses!

Work Experience

If you have been working for a number of years you probably do not need to include any part-time jobs, vacation jobs, voluntary work or unpaid work experience. Charity work could be included in your interests. However you might want to include these jobs if they covered a period of unemployment, or a time when you were not working for any other reason, or you feel that some of the experience you gained will be useful in your next job. You should normally concentrate on your two most recent jobs (unless you were only there for a short time), because employers are usually most interested in these.

Start with your most recent or last job and work backwards. Treat internal promotion as a new job and record the dates separately, list your job title (e.g. Manager, Supervisor, etc), the job title of the person you reported to (e.g. Director, Manager, etc) and when you started and finished in each job.

Give the name of the company and include a brief description of the service they provide (using the terms they would use to describe themselves). Set out your main responsibilities, achievements, duties, and skills that could be transferred to another employer. Be specific and positive about your skills.

Include your level of responsibility if any, e.g. 'responsibility for departmental budget of $100K and managed 10 staff'. In particular list any achievements you had in each position, including project delivery, increases in sales/productivity and cost savings made. Quantify your achievements if possible. 'Increased sales by $100K' is more interesting and positive than just saying 'Increased sales'. You should try to include some achievements such as meeting deadlines, budgets, etc, and any information that may be relevant to your next job.

Major Achievements

When you are listing your achievements in this section, only list 3 to 6 of your most important work achievements; your other achievements can be described under the work experience section. You should only list achievements which are significant and relevant to your next job and indicate how you achieved them.

This section is very important as an employer will only invite you for an interview if they can see a benefit in doing so. Your achievements may sell you to an employer and encourage them to interview you rather than someone else. Think carefully about your achievements.

Other Experience

List any general computer skills you have other than your technology sets, including the make and type of equipment you are familiar using, the software and operating system used, e.g. Microsoft Windows 98, Microsoft Office XP.

If you have foreign language skills which may be relevant for any jobs which you are applying for, list them and indicate whether your skills are spoken, written, business or technical. Also indicate your level of fluency: fluent, good working knowledge, etc. Only list these skills if they are relevant to the jobs you are applying for as no one really wants to hear about a French language course you did at school a long time ago.

Interests / Hobbies

List your interests, hobbies and any sports you play along with any positions of responsibility you hold or have held in any club or organization. Say what your responsibilities and achievements were.

References

You do not need to list referees on a resume, but it is a good idea to think about whom you could ask now.

Summary

List your major skills, strengths, personal qualities and achievements. Be specific, e.g. good team player, excellent written skills, versatile, able to motivate others, etc. Look at your staff appraisals or at your references.

The following points are just a guide. Interviews are varied and do not always follow a set pattern so they cannot therefore be easily categorised. However, our experience of successful interviews, along with feedback from our clients, indicates that your chances of success will be enhanced if you bear in mind the following points:

Company Background

Prepare yourself with as much information about the company and role as possible - visit the company's website as it should provide good information about the products/services the company offers. Try to gain an understanding of the structure of the company and the market the company is in.

Interviewers

Establish how many people will be interviewing you. Find out what their roles are within the company and preferably what their interview techniques are like.

Location

Find out exactly where it is you have to go for the interview and what site you will be working at (if relevant). Make sure you have a map or directions as well as information on parking or the nearest railway station.

Punctuality

Ensure you give yourself plenty of time to get to the interview. It is not a good first impression if you turn up late.
 If, due to unforeseen circumstances you are going to be late, contact the company to inform them of your expected time of arrival and let us know that you have done this. On arrival, apologise immediately and explain your reasons.
 Arriving early will give you the opportunity to read some information on the company in the reception area and gather your thoughts.

Dress

Dress smartly, be aware of the company culture and ensure you dress to impress. Decide what you are going to wear the night before to avoid making the wrong choices.

CV

Ensure you have read through your CV so you are able to answer any questions relating to it.

On Arrival

When meeting the interviewer(s) for the first time, greet them with a smile, a strong handshake and be polite. Maintain good eye contact at all times, especially with the interviewer to whom you are responding to. Match the style of the interviewer i.e. if they are formal try and be formal etc. Look and act interested.

Interview Techniques

An interview is a sales situation. You are selling yourself; therefore it is important that you find out what the interviewer is looking for. Don't forget, however, that it is also a sales situation for the company - your opportunity to get the information you want from them. Ask questions and show a real interest in the position and the company, perhaps based on the information you previously received about them. Ensure that you leave with enough information to make an informed decision on whether or not you wish to proceed. Aim for questions that indicate an interest in their line of work or products and your enthusiasm and interest in the role itself, rather than holiday entitlement, pensions etc. Be prepared with answers for questions you think they may ask you. Some standard interview questions are:

• Why do you want to work for us?
• Why do you want this job?
• What do you know about our company?
• Why did you choose your profession?
• What are your strengths/weaknesses?
• What do you like/dislike about your current job role?
• Why are you looking for a new position?
• What has been your greatest achievement to date?
• How would you describe yourself?
• How would your friends or colleagues describe you?
• What are your future aspirations?
• What can you offer to your new team/company?

Focus on your achievements when responding to questions, and portray every response in a positive way.
 If you do not understand a question, don't guess the answer - ask them to explain the question further. If you do not know the answer still, tell them you do not know and explain how you might go about finding the answer out.
Don't talk too much; think before you answer a question and do not reply solely with one-word answers such as yes or no.
 Prepare your own questions in advance but make sure you use them in the context of the interview and take into account information that the interviewer has already provided. This will make you look interested in the company, and want to find out more about the role you are applying for. Some typical questions are:

• What are the company's future plans?
• What is the likely career development pathway in the next few years?
• What possible training could I receive in this role?
• How would you describe the culture of this company?

Feedback

At the end of the interview, if the opportunity arises, ask them how they felt the interview went. Also, if you are interested in the position, it is important to tell them.

Finally, ask what the follow up procedure is, and when you could expect to hear from them. Thank them for their time.