As a recruiter with over 13 years’ experience within the secretarial and office support area, I talk to dozens of professionals each day about the challenges of the current market.

The job market has definitely tightened meaning fewer opportunities. An increasingly competitive job market allows employers to be picky.

With this in mind, what does it take to stand out from the crowd and secure a top position at a time when the market is flooded with candidates?

Start by writing your CV for the digital age. This means understanding that the software scanning CVs uses an algorithm to determine how relevant your skills are to the job. The software scans experience, skills and length of time in each role and then predicts the likelihood of you succeeding in the role. More and more companies and recruiters are adopting this software so your CV must be loaded with keywords to enable you to be found!

Ask yourself if your CV content adds value? Or implement the ‘So what?’ test. Prospective employers are looking for you to demonstrate added value i.e. volunteering, competing in an unusual sport or fund raising all illustrate and engaged and committed individual, being a member of a gym, enjoying trips to the cinema or socializing with friends, not so much.

Once you’ve mastered your CV, be prepared to elaborate on any part of it during interview. Always use past experiences as proof of your ability and enter the interview confident you can articulate your specific skills and accomplishments concisely and in an interesting way. Remember, if you land an interview it’s likely your skills will be put to the test so ensure your CV matches your skills and don’t be tempted to elaborate.

Its then down to you to make yourself memorable in a positive way. First impressions count, be punctual, have a firm handshake and maintain eye contact. Chipped nail polish and candidates neglecting to remove outdoor clothing are recurring interview etiquette faux pas.

Hopefully following these simple steps will ensure you are perfectly placed one step ahead of your rivals.

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So now you’re fully qualified! You’ve passed all your exams and done your time to become a fully fledged chartered accountant. But what next?

With over 6,000 newly qualified accountants this year alone, what you really need is a CV that’s going to get you noticed above the competition. Here are a few tips:

First impressions count

Aim for 1.5 – 2 pages but avoid using large fonts, double line spaces, and eccentric type faces to fill up the space and make it look longer – they didn’t work at school and they don’t work now! Ariel, Calibri or Times New Roman, in size 11 is the norm.

There’s a fairly standard layout for CVs, which is usually:

• Name, address and contact details, plus visa status where applicable, as a header
• A brief personal summary, where you work, your strengths, your goals etc.
• Education details (e.g. university, school, A-levels, GCSE grades etc)
• Any language skills and level of proficiency
• Your work experience, starting with the most recent first and working backwards
• Personal interests and achievements

Show your personality

It’s really important to express your personality as this is what often separates you from other job seekers. This doesn’t mean witty one-liners, more that you should add some detail on what you do outside of work so people get an idea of you as a person. If you’ve climbed Kilimanjaro, or knitted a blanket for charity, then that’s worth mentioning and it will really make you stand out from the crowd.

As a newly qualified accountant, your CV is more likely to be ‘chronological’ rather then ‘functional’ which is more common at the senior end when you are targeting a specific role or company. Your employment history on a chronological CV should follow the traditional format of: dates of employment; name of employer; size and business type; followed by your job title; responsibilities you’ve had and any specific achievements in the role. Try to avoid short 2-3 word bullet points – a coherent sentence for each bullet reads much better.

The best CVs for a newly qualified accountant in practice should also include your top two or three clients and what you did for them. Perhaps it was a specific IFRS conversion Or maybe you audited one of your clients’ overseas entities? It really helps to give potential employers a good feel for what you’ve done and the types of companies/industry sectors you’ve had exposure to.

Check – and then double check

Finally, read it and re-read it to check for any spelling mistakes and grammatical errors. Get friends, family or colleagues to give it a once over too before you apply for a position, because once you’ve pressed send, you can’t get it back!

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During the recession, working well as part of a team was extremely important.  Many companies relied on staff pulling together during high pressured times, often taking on more work during hiring freezes.   Now that the economy is in better shape, being able to work well within your team is just as important – both in terms of being able to work well as a team and fitting into existing team cultures.  Now that it’s a little less ‘heads down’, companies are more willing to invest in their teams to encourage more collaborative working; through team events, training events or ‘organised fun’.

If you’re interviewing for a new role, you will probably see ‘good team working skills’ on the job description.  It’s important not to dismiss this as a permanent presence on all job descriptions because it’s becoming more and more important to have these skills. If you play a team sport then that’s an obvious example of your experience of team playing, but it’s often more difficult to demonstrate ‘team playing’ at work.  You may get on well with your work colleagues, but do you work as a team?  Do you work to the team’s objectives or just focus on your own?

Before every interview you should have one example of good teamwork in the workplace and also have an example of when you’ve found it difficult working as part of a team – perhaps there was a conflict or someone was not pulling their weight. There’s a chance you won’t get asked about your negative experiences but companies want employees who will fit within their teams both from a technical and cultural perspective, and being able to deal with conflict within a team environment is important, especially in growing teams.

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