Anyone got any contacts in the business of professionally reworking your CV (for a fee) such that it better appeals to recruiters and employers?

I'm not a total fvckwit but my recent efforts at job applications have got me nowhere, even for jobs I am totally qualified for and in the salary ballpark. I'm wondering if my CV is sh|te.

If it helps I am an IT Service Manager in a small Managed Services Provider.

Any and all thoughts gratefully received.

John

Some unis give out careers help to anyone, so check the websites of any that are local to you.

It may just be that it's grim out there at the moment…

I used http://www.yourcv.com, £350 for two CV's (one aimed at technical and one at management) – very pleased with the results.

Also get a few updates for free.

A book: The Perfect CV by Tom Jackson is useful.

nextstep is free

Will depend who you get though as to how good they are
My e-mail in profile if you want me to have alook but wont be till weds when I can get back to you

I had some professional help when I was made redundant. Apart from some very minor points they didn't really have much to say.

I'm still out of work 14months later, but I've had plenty of positive comments about my CV.

My point it, you could have the best CV in the world, but a good few job markets are pants at the moment.

THREE HUNDRED AND FIFTY POUNDS?

Jesus.

half a days pay = decent return

Yes, but for those of us who aren't in the 50% tax bracket…

You shouldn't send a "generic" CV if you are applying for a specific job

Such CV's are easy to spot and it looks to those recruiting that you haven't bothered researching the job. Things like education and employment history can be constants but tailor the rest of your application to the specific job you are applying for.

Go through the job description (and personnel spec) and pick out all the things they are looking for then one by one demonstrate that you have got that skill, experience or knowledge.

So if it says you need knowledge of this or that software package say how your experience has given you that knowledge, quote examples of things you have done that show you have that knowledge. Try and keep it brief (recruiters don't like war and peace type applications) and don't tell lies, maybe embellish things a bit because you should make the best of what you have.

So there you go and if you get the job you can paypal me the £350 😉

Ponny, I'm in a similar line of work and spent 6 months trying to get my CV onto the relevant desks. If you send me your CV over I'll gladly give it a quick, free critique for you. Email in profile if you're interested.

edit: Oh, and what ^he^ said.

Yes, but for those of us who aren't in the 50% tax bracket…

Then the return will take longer 🙂

All good stuff, thanks very much to all. I think I will take up the <free> offers to critique before splurging £350! Although, long term I can see the value in that avenue.

Am I the only one who thinks that someone who has skills that command £700 per day ought to have sufficient insight so as to be able to write their own CV 😆

Am I the only one who thinks that someone who has skills that command £700 per day ought to have sufficient insight so as to be able to write their own CV

It’s knowing that there are better folk out there at doing the stuff that needs to be done that is worth the £700 per day.