It’s 2017. Do I really Need a CV?

As a recruiter, I come up against this question quite a bit, so let’s explore why a CV remains relevant in the midst of social media, LinkedIn, and tightly networked recruiter circles.

Often I’ll receive a job enquiry will appear in my inbox with a link to a profile, website or digital portfolio. “It’s all on LinkedIn” will be the reply, “Why do I need a CV?”. The reason becomes clearer when we explore how CV’s are used behind the scenes..

Recruiter and HR Databases

Before I moved into recruitment, I never put much thought into how my CV would be used through the recruitment pipeline – I was simply focused on getting all my achievements across in an impressive format. I was surprised by the technical aspect of the business and how important it was to have a CV that worked within those systems – CRM, databases and HR portals that operate with a heavy reliance on a CV in pdf or word format. CV’s may be scanned, profiled for keywords or key skills and added to recruitment databases so candidates can identified in search or informed of relevant roles. CV’s may be adapted to a recruiter's format along with a written candidate overview and some corporate HR portals - despite technology advancements - will only accept CVs in certain formats.. so without a professional CV with good use of key words you may miss out broader opportunities through recruitment data or may fundamentally stall your application if you are dealing with a client with strict HR processes. Yes, there are some companies moving towards LinkedIn profiles as applications but we are not there yet. Blogs, portfolio’s and LinkedIn profiles are valuable supports in your application but a CV remains a critical device. Besides all that, a comprehensive and detailed CV sends a good professional and proactive image.

Your CV tells a bigger story

LinkedIn offers many wonderful benefits to a recruiter – it addresses verification of candidates, with references supporting claims or a ready pool of contacts who could be contacted to gather feedback, but it often fails to portray the full picture of responsibilities and achievements. Your CV is an opportunity to really paint a picture of your role and the achievements made in each role. Detail, results, facts and figures point to a candidate who is results driven and passionate. Confident and eloquent expression (free of spelling errors) also gives a hint to professionalism and ability. But ultimately, the CV offers a great opportunity to hone in on key skills, career highs and achievements with greater clarity. Many candidates can’t recall the results of a marketing campaign off-hand in an interview situation but having all your results on paper help signify that you have a results focus.

Times are changing

Technology in recruitment is constantly advancing and shows no sign of slowing down and recruiters now have a multiple sources to cross-check and build an understanding of skills and personality, these include– social media, industry referrals/feedback, interviews, skills-based or psychological testing. Some companies are offering new and creative ways to apply for roles such as video CV’s, websites or twitter however CV’s remain the necessary first step in application for a job. New technology is allowing candidates to represent themselves in new ways but most often it’s in addition to a comprehensive CV. So don’t discard your blogs, online portfolio’s and websites – they are all highly valuable and help demonstrate your value to a future employer. Just please… include a CV.