Thread by @MsXulu, So, I promised to share a few pointers on how to handle [...]

So, I promised to share a few pointers on how to handle your job search. I know there are many other great professionals here who regularly share their insights so take what you can, add your inputs, etc. This is MY contribution.
Here goes:

1. The CV - I personally believe the CV is now outdated as there’s no need to have a LinkedIn profile plus a CV. But employers still require this. Keep your CV short, max 2 - 3 pages. Yes, no one has time to read a 10 page CV. Even with 20yrs exp my CV is 2 pages long.

Cut out unnecessary details that have nothing to do with your ability to do the job. You are opening yourself up to discrimination & bias. ID No, date of birth, physical address, hobbies, health status, which church you go to - not important.

Why? The ID/DOB = recruiters can discriminate against you for being too young/too old. Remember that recruiters are human being with biases. Address = they can think you are too far & eliminate you from the process on that basis. Believe me, this happens even to this day.

Hobbies/religion/politics = unless it’s related to the job, then don’t! In fact, half of the time nobody cares that you like fishing! If you state that you support a certain political party & the recruiter doesn’t like that party what do you think is likely to happen to your CV?

And yes, we will tell you how little we care about your politics or your religion, etc, but the fact of the matter is you will encounter very few unbiased recruiters so rather give yourself as many chances to be interviewed as you can by leaving out unnecessary details.

Please regurgitating job descriptions onto your CV! My advice is include name of your employer, job title (no abbreviations pls), a few lines that help me understand what the job purpose was, followed by your main responsibilities. What gets me excited is your accomplishments.

I want to know what did you achieve in your job? What are you most proud of? What value did you add to the company? What did you learn? If you failed at something, it’s ok, but what did it teach you? - Be prepared to answer this if you get an interview.

Avoid overusing “assisted, supported, helped, checked”! Because if all you did was assist & support others - did you actually do anything? Use words such as “Developed, initiated, implemented, produced, etc...”. Get someone who is good at articulating things to help you.

I’ve seen people use a short introduction of themselves on their CV. This is fine, but please make sure your introduction is a summary of who you are, your critical experiences & is succinct enough. Don’t repeat things contained in your CV.

The use of photographs - there is no wrong or right. What I can tell you is that it can work in your favour or against you. It depends on the person looking at your CV. Remember the biases I mentioned earlier? Yes! So, you might appeal to someone’s eye or not. What do I mean?

Imagine the recruiter has a leaning towards people with long wavy hair (yes, it’s a thing & it happened to me once) & you rock a nice uncombed Afro. They might see it as untidy & we know the views held by some people on black hair. This recruiter might decide you are untidy, etc.

and you don’t make it onto the shortlist. But remember, the recruiter is usually not the one who decides on whether you get the job or not. They might think you look untidy only to find that Cebile is the hiring manager & hair is not on my list of job requirements. Because you

chose to include a picture on your CV, you might not even get an interview with me because of someone else’s biases & stereotyping. So, if you decide to include a picture let it be a head&shoulders clear shot. Look at LinkedIn for some guidance. Just keep it simple & authentic.

The point is for as long as recruitment is done by humans there is always going to be a chance of discrimination. My point is, eliminate opportunities for discrimination as much as you can on your CV so that you maximize your chances of an interview.

Let’s talk about the flow of your CV - again, no wrong or right. Just make sure your CV flows in a logical manner. Always start with your most recent work experience & work backwards. Preferably, your qualifications should be at the end of the CV, again latest qual on top.

Your subjects do not matter. It’s the qualification that matters! Please stop including your high school subjects & your marks. Unless all you have is matric & you are applying into an entry level job, my advice is save space on your CV by eliminating this.

After 10 yrs in the game, your matric results & subjects are really no longer that important. The general guideline is that only include things that are relevant to the job you are applying for. The many short courses you’ve done in-house might also be irrelevant.

Detail your recent work experience, relevant qualifications, special training. But that expired First Aid certificate you did in 2003 doesn’t belong in your CV anymore. There are plenty of professional CV writers who can help you fine tune your CV or LinkedIn profile.

What if you have 25 yrs experience & your CV is a mini-booklet? My advice is that you only detail experience of the last 5 - 7yrs. For a complete picture, list everything else in numerical order - just employer, job title, period of employment.

The cover letter? I personally don’t read cover letters. It’s usually a waste of my time. I don’t see the point. But that’s me. I honestly only want the details on what experience you have, what’s great about it that I should hire you? Basically. A note on the email is fine.

Something like “Dear Xxx, please find attached a copy of my resume, in response to the Marketing Manager role advertised. Regards, Xxx”! If you look forward to hearing from me, it’s fine but no need, really. Just be professional & polite. That’s all.

Having said the above, if they ask you for a Z83, a separate covering letter, a CV, copies of all qualifications & a copy of your ID & your baptismal certificate then do so, dear brethren. Completely unnecessary if you ask me. I don’t know what people do with all this info!

Imagine getting 1000 applications for a job and asking for all this? WTH, bazalwane? As HR professionals we also need to take responsibility & drive change in our organizations. Some of the adverts & job requirements are ridiculous & simply contribute to unemployment!

I’m almost done! Understand what is being asked for. I admit some adverts leave a lot to be desired, but generally the requirements are clear. When we say apply for a job even if you don’t meet all the requirements, we don’t mean apply when you only meet 1 out of 10 criteria!!!

I asked for Senior Brand Manager, with 5-7yrs strategic brand management experience. I received some good CVs & I wish those people all the best! But I also received many CVs which were way off the mark

People complain that they never get a reply or that companies send them automated replies & not a human being actually giving them feedback. I know it’s hard guys, but please also understand that we have to screen CVs that should not have been sent to begin with.

I mean this with all the sympathy & pain I feel at the high rate of unemployment, please don’t misunderstand me. All I’m saying is make sure you meet most of the requirements before you send your CV. You stand a better chance to get a response.

I know there are companies who advertise jobs just to tick a box. I cannot answer for them. All I know is that sometimes companies advertise jobs to see what talent is available in the market for their future staffing plans. So, it’s not always a bad thing.

I remain hopeful that technology will help to make the job search process easier & less frustrating for everyone!
In the meantime, ask questions during your job search & we will help provide guidance where we can. “We” = includes all my other HR gurus on the TL!

I forgot the part on references = don’t add them to your CV unless you are specifically asked to. Also, make sure you ask your referees for permission before you put them on your CV. Get their correct contact details & share your latest CV with them as well.

Maximum of 3 references please. We are not going to speak to 5 people! Your friends & family don’t count unless they employed you at some point! Your pastor also doesn’t quite count unless the church was your employer! That’s it for today!!!

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