GUIDE TO A SUCCESSFUL CV

 IT IS IMPORTANT to know that your CV is your sales document. It has to capture the reader’s interest in the first few paragraphs. 

Therefore, it is important to include relevant information in the early part of the CV.  It is realistic that you will be approaching different types of companies, so it is important to tailor the style of CV to suit e.g. large or small companies.  Remember, your CV is a tool to use to get interviews; it is unlikely that you will be offered a job on the back of your CV. Therefore, it is important to only include relevant information, leaving the reader feeling that they should interview you to find out more.

 An ideal template would be as follows:

NAME, AGE, ADDRESS ETC.

Put all forms of communication that someone may use to contact you. Think carefully before putting the company email address down as you may not wish your current employer to find out you intend to leave.

 PROFILE

 Be sensible and at the same time general. Avoid committed words such as Hate, Don’t and Only which are too overpowering and may make you sound inflexible. Use words such as find, enjoy, challenge i.e. I find working on my own enjoyable, but take the challenge of teamwork in my stride. Rather than I like working on my own and only work in a team when I have to.

EDUCATION

Most recent qualifications first, then finish with additional/vocational qualifications.  These should be things like a Customer Care Course and NOT swimming awards, music qualifications etc.

EMPLOYMENT

In reverse chronological order (giving the month and year that you started /finished), if you have not had a job before, include any work experience. If you have had periods of work through an agency, include the name of the agency and the type of work you were doing and the names of the companies you were assigned to. Be sure to cover any gaps in your career history with the truth, i.e. re-training, travel, long term illness, etc.

HOBBIES AND INTERESTS

 It is important that you indicate that you have a life outside of work, include any sporting activities, clubs and society memberships. Try to think of what really interests you and how it may enhance your application. If possible avoid interests such as socialising because everyone socialises, just like everyone breathes in and out all day!

 REFERENCES

 Put available on request, you do not want to give away too much information to someone you do not yet know, especially if you are still working for a referee.

 COVERING LETTER

 Is a good way of highlighting any specific skills that an advert asks for, that are not that evident from your CV. Avoid being too formal and using “Long words” or complicated grammar in order to impress. Keep it simple and to the point. Write to a person if you can get a name, if not, use Sir/Madam and do not start the letter I am writing to you… as this is obvious to the reader and is too fussy. Type the letter where possible and send it on A4 paper remembering to check the postage weight if you have a large CV. CV’s can be written on a home computer (either your own, or friend or relative’s) or at a library. If you borrow a PC, it is important to remember to keep a copy on disk so that you can go to a copy shop and get it printed. Alternatively, there are companies such as A1 CVs that will produce you CV for a fee. These services are often found in the lineage adverts in the recruitment pages or in the local phone book.

There are several opinions with regard to the style of a CV; some people believe that yellow paper and HUMOUROUS fonts in Funny letters will impress / make a difference. However, this is not always the case, so prudence says that a conservative CV will act as a good introduction.  There is plenty of time to express your personality at interview.

RE: EASTER BANK HOLIDAY DEADLINES – Important information re your pay

As you should be aware Good Friday falls on Friday 2^nd April 2010 with Easter Monday on Monday 5^th April 2010.

Because of this we have slightly different timesheet deadlines as outlined below:-

Week Ending                        Timesheet submitted by                          Pay Day

28^th March 2010                   17.30pm – Friday 26^th March 2010             Thurs 1^st April 2010

4^th April 2010                       12 noon Thursday 1^st April 2010                Friday 9^th April 2010

Please note that due to the bank holidays there are no extensions available to these deadlines – therefore if your timesheet is late your pay will be delayed by one week. 

We would like to take this opportunity to thank you for your hard work for Team and wish you a very pleasant Easter Bank Holiday weekend.  If you have any queries please give us a call.

On May 20th 2010 Julian from our Poole office will be taking part in an extreme event to raise money for 3 Cancer Charities including Macmillan via a charity set up in a friend’s (Sophie Drury) memory – www.sophieslegacy.org

Following on from his marathon effort in Rome last year which saw him and his friends raise over £107,000 – 40 of Sophies friends and family are undertaking a ‘mountain Triathalon’. In teams of 4 the friends will complete a 53 KM course:

Paddling – Teams will paddle a craft constructed of two canoes lashed
together to form a catamaran. With two team members in each side they will
paddle a 12Km route on Ullswater. Unlike other sections of the challenge this part involves limited ascents and descents.

Hike – The hike will take each team on a circular ascent of Helvelyn. The peak is 970m and is the third highest point in England. Starting from the lake shore at an altitude 145m the route will return to the start point 12km later.

Cycle – As with the hike the cycle route is circular starting and finishing at the event base in Patterdale. The route will be of mixed terrain, partly on tracks partly on roads. The total distance will be 29Km incorporating plenty of hills.

If you would like to sponsor Julian please donate through the Sophies Legacy website www.sophieslegacy.org

By Tim Saunders

The UK needs to work harder at reducing the amount of people who are unemployed.

That is according to data from the CIPD (Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development), which has found that UK unemployment stands at eight per cent.

Of the other 26 EU member states 13 have lower unemployment rates.

Dr John Philpott, the CIPD’s chief economic adviser, said: “The UK may draw comfort from having lower measured unemployment than the EU average but in truth we are no better than a mid-table performer in the EU jobless league. Taking ‘hidden joblessness’ into account makes the UK’s relative performance look less impressive still, and once again highlights the scale of the macroeconomic and employment policy challenge that awaits us in the next few years.”

Average unemployment in the EU (European Union) is 8.9 per cent with UK performance particularly poor in relation to male unemployment (9.1 per cent in the third quarter of 2009).

Only eight EU member states have higher male unemployment rates than the UK: Estonia, Ireland, Spain, Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary, Portugal and Slovakia.

However, the situation is exactly the reverse in relation to female unemployment with only eight EU member states having lower female unemployment rates than the UK (6.7 per cent in Q3 2009).

Helen Stacey – Head of Operations at Team Recruitment adds “we have certainly seen the local unemployment market change direction in a positive way, even in the last 8 weeks.  This can only be good news for our clients, our candidates who are looking for work and the wider local economy.  The increase has been across the board on all 3 disciplines that we deal with – Commercial, Industrial and Technical staff both temporary and permanent.  Alot of the roles we are taking on are starting as temp but will lead to permanent jobs which shows confidence from businesses that the increase in business will be longterm.  Anyone looking for work should give our Poole office a call on 01202 445700 or our Chichester office on 01243 816615″

Appointments: Team Recruitment appoints head of operations | News | Recruiter.

The last few weeks have seen a flurry of activity in the local recruitment market.  Here at Team we have seen an increase in the amount of bookings & vacancies we have taken on from our clients – both existing and new!Helen Stacey – Head of Operations & Business Development comments “this is a great sign for the local economy, we are hoping that it obviously continues in the same upward vein.  We have taken  bookings for electronics assemblers, solderers, software engineers, toolmakers, CNC millers & Turners, Sales & Marketing administrator, receptionist, finance assistant and Sales people amongst others.  Some of the roles are temporary with immediate starts, and  a lot of these will lead to permanent jobs.  We have also seen an increase in demand from clients looking to recruit straight permanently onto their books which is a very positive sign”

So if you are looking for work or know someone that is you can either email your cv to admin@teamjobs.co.uk or give the Team a call on 01202 445700.

LET OUR TEAM WORK FOR YOU

The latest Report on Jobs from KPMG and the Recruitment and Employment Confederation has shown acceleration in permanent placements, the fastest since July 2007.

February figures also showed vacancies increased at their sharpest rate for over two-and-a-half years with a stronger rise in permanent placements in February, but the slowest increase in temporary staff billings for three months.

The supply of candidates to fill vacancies continued to rise in February, but at a slower rate. The latest increases in both permanent and temporary/contract staff availability were the weakest since April 2008.

REC chief executive Kevin Green, pictured, said: “The UK jobs market is continuing to improve. Increasing employer confidence has resulted in the best performance we’ve seen in permanent employment for two and a half years. High-end sectors such as IT are showing particularly strong growth and we are also seeing significant increases in demand for admin and back-office support.

“Looking ahead, there are indications that recruitment in the public sector could drop off fast. A new approach to public sector resourcing is now critical and will have a direct impact on the wider employment outlook. We question whether the public sector has the right capability in place to lead the necessary transformation and put in place staffing structures that will keep costs down while improving public services. Rather than responding with random job cuts, the public sector needs to embrace radical reform. Flexible working must be seen as part of the cost solution, rather than the problem.”

Head of Operations & Business Development joins Team

February 1st 2010 saw an exciting development in Team Recruitment’s history.  Local business woman Helen Stacey, formerly a founding director of Smart Group Recruitment Solutions joined the operations of Team Recruitment as Head of Operations & Business Development – responsible for the development of the Poole & Chichester offices. 

Helen has worked within the local recruitment industry for 22 years and her knowledge is enviable.  She has had experience of recruiting for temporary and permanent staff across all 3 disciplines – Commercial, Technical and Industrial.  She has extensive knowledge of recruiting for high volume, Industrial clients particularly in the market for EU workers.  Helen sat on the Governments Migrant Workers taskforce in 2007/8 and is actively involved with Dorset Chamber of Commerce, sitting on both their council and the Services & Marketing committee.

She is also actively involved with the local business community via networking and PR events.

Helen comments “I am delighted to have joined such a professional group of consultants and staff at Team Recruitment Solutions.   I am sure that my marketing, networking and business knowledge and contacts will be put to great use over the coming months.  I am particularly excited to be working back within the recruitment industry especially locally in Poole.  I have spent the last 12 months working within a different industry sector and decided that the time was right for a return to the industry that I know and love!  I am also looking forward to the challenge of learning all about a new geographical area by working with the team at the Chichester office.”

Team Recruitment was established by Jason Gault & Clive Wood in 2002.  Team was borne from the concept of providing a recruitment solution that was based on the highest quality of service at all times with absolute commitment and outstanding value for money.

Team Recruitment has grown consistently over the last 7 years and now employs nearly forty people and has seven offices spread across the South Coast. New areas of expansion have included two separate companies Team Medical and Team Brain Injury Support. This has taken Team into new areas that have proved very successful and was built on the back of the success of Poole and Chichester.

If you wish to contact Helen please give her a call on 01202 445700 or email her at helen@teamjobs.co.uk