The document outlines strategies for standing out in the competitive job market for executive roles, emphasizing the importance of tailored applications, effective CV formats, and successful interview techniques. It discusses common mistakes in resume writing, such as using a generic CV for multiple applications and neglecting to highlight relevant keywords. Additionally, it encourages treating the job search as a full-time project with set goals and regular self-assessments to enhance success.

1. How To Stand Out In The Jobs Crowd
Have you got what it takes to secure an executive role? Job
hunting is stressful. Just spending time looking for
appropriate jobs in the paper or on the internet is frustrating
and you know that when you find one or two executive
appointments that you want to apply for, you will be up
against a lot of competition.
Standing out from the crowd is important at every stage of
the process. From your CV to your final interview, you want
to be the candidate that impresses. Whether this is your first
executive position, or you are a seasoned senior manager,
you still need to make your application and interview
different enough to secure the job.
If you’re dealing with an executive recruitment agency, there
are three key areas where you need to be on top of your
game in order to increase your chances of success:
1. On the Phone
Often, your first direct contact with a recruitment firm is on
the phone. A telephone interview is a real test of your skills,
because you can’t use eye contact of body language to
reinforce what you’re saying; you have to rely on being
prepared, focused and flexible so that you create a great
impression.
2. Your CV
The key here is to focus on your achievements and
experience, making everything you put on your CV directly

2. relevant to the position. The internet is awash with
information on how to make your CV more presentable, but
there are some key points to remember:
• Keep it short
• Keep it relevant
• Put your contact details at the top
• Focus on things you've achieved, rather than your skills
3. Your interview
The interview for an executive appointment – either as a
preliminary with the recruitment agent or a first or second
interview with the company – is your best opportunity to
show that you will be an asset to the business. Self-
confidence is important, but not to the point where it could
be viewed as arrogance. Use positive language and positive
body language, give examples to show how you have
achieved results in your current position and ask intelligent
questions. Make sure you have researched the company
well before your interview and double-check the
requirements of the job.
The executive appointments market is a competitive one,
and following these steps could increase your chances of
success.
Choosing the Right Resume from Resume Examples
There are three acceptable resume examples of formats
available, the chronological format, the functional format and
the combination of the chronological and the functional

3. formats. All have different purposes and can be used on
what is best suited for a particular requirement.
When filing a CV it would be best to have a grasp on how
these formats work and make resume examples from them.
Doing the resume examples will enable you to determine
what will work for you.
A resume example of the chronological format has these
major components:
• Statement of Objective.
• Work History and Experiences
• Education and Achievements
• The Personal Data Section
• The Professional Affiliation Section
• The Reference Section
This resume style is best for emphasizing achievements and
professional contributions in an easily readable order. This
highlights successions in career growth and professional
development. What you do here is start with the latest
achievement or employer and work backwards. Most
employers who will call you to the interview will be
interested in the latest company, the position you held and
the contribution you made. This is why for the applicant who
wants his career achievements emphasized and noticed at
first glance, this format work best.
A resume example of the Functional format contains:
• The Objective
• Summary of Qualifications / Profile
• Relevant Skills and Experience / Accomplishments

4. • Employment History
• Education and Professional Development
• The Professional Affiliation Section
The resume example that you will do here is to emphasize
your skills. Note that while technical proficiencies and skills
are the main focus during the presentation, they do not
necessarily have to be in order. The skills that you might
want presented upfront must be the skill you think the
employer needs so that the interview focuses largely on
your core competencies. The resume style is best also for
people who have changed jobs and careers and for those
whe have had gaps in their employment histories.
A Resume Example of the combination format will
include:
• Statement of the Objective
• Profile
• Accomplishments
• Education and Achievements
The resume style is a combination of focusing the skills
while retaining a chronological presentation of work histories
and relevancies.
Practicing on these resume examples will enable you to
compare the advantages and disadvantages and to come
out with your own, self composed resume.

5. The examples written above are very good guides. But even
if you knew that you have done the resume examples right,
you still have to review it if possible with a friend who can
give downright honest comments. Remember that your
resume will be measured against all the other hundreds of
resume in the hiring managers table. If it is does not appear
and sound catchy enough, your resume flies to the basket
under the table faster than you can say your name. So
make it perfect and good luck.
Résumé Writing - Common Mistakes and How to Avoid
Them
Creating a résumé or CV is central to the search for a job,
but is something most of us hate doing. Unfortunately, very
few people are adept at presenting themselves in the best
possible light and this can mean their application is rejected
at the first hurdle.
One of the biggest mistakes most people make is sending
out the same résumé for every application. It’s a big
temptation – you’ve spent hours getting the details and
layout just right, or perhaps you’ve paid a considerable
amount of money to have someone write it professionally.
The trouble is, each résumé needs to be tailored to the job
in question, and it’s vital that you do this if you want to stand
out from the crowd.
What does tailoring a résumé mean? It simply means writing
it specifically for the post you are targeting. To do this you
must recognise the keywords the employer will be looking
for and relate them to your own experience. Keywords will

6. be found in the job description and person specification, or
in the job advertisement and on the company website. They
describe the skills, qualifications and experience needed for
the post. Keywords should stand out on your résumé – don’t
forget that in the first round of the selection process, résumé
s are usually only given a 20 second glance. So if the
interviewer doesn’t see what he’s looking for, your résumé is
destined for the shredder.
Here’s an example of targeting: let’s say you are a secretary
who speaks several languages and can take shorthand in all
of them, but are applying for a job in an office where only
English and audio are used. Languages and shorthand,
impressive as they are, would not be the most prominent
skills on your résumé. Instead, you would focus on the skills
required, which might be fast typing, advanced Excel or
Powerpoint. Languages and shorthand would be mentioned
briefly, perhaps under the heading “Additional Skills.”
Another common mistake, usually made by older applicants,
is including their entire work and educational history. It’s
usual (in the UK) for CVs to go back only 10 years in terms
of work and if you have a degree, school qualifications can
be omitted, unless specifically requested or relevant.
Employers occasionally ask for a full CV, in which case you
do have to include everything.
Choosing the wrong format can also condemn your résumé
to the bin - different styles work best in specific situations.
Many people stick to the chronological résumé, but this is
not always the most appropriate. It works well if you have
been steadily progressing up the ladder in a particular
career, or if your most recent jobs are likely to impress the
company you hope to work for.

7. A skills-based or functional résumé is great if you have gaps
in your work history, as you can use it to highlight the fact
that you have exactly the skills the employer is looking for.
It’s also useful if you are moving to a new career or area of
work and your work experience isn’t completely relevant.
A targeted résumé is aimed at a precise job or career, for
example if you retrained as a teacher in your 30s or 40s and
were applying for a teaching post, your work-related
heading might be “Teaching Experience” and your main
skills would all be relevant to teaching, for example using IT
in the classroom and curriculum development. For soft
skills, such as communication skills and team work, you
would use examples from your teaching career.
You may need to have different styles of résumé for different
applications. If we use the previous example of the
secretary, she might have had a series of language related
jobs and is now applying for linguist and non linguist posts.
She could choose a chronological résumé for the language
jobs and a functional résumé for the others.
To sum up, individualise every résumé for the job
concerned, choose the most suitable format for the situation
and remember: keywords must jump out at the reader in the
first 20 seconds.
3 Job Search Tips That Increase Your Success
1) Approach finding a job as if it were a full-time job,
because it is. If you had a job, you would report to work at

8. the same time each day (like 8 am), take an hour (or less)
for lunch, and quit at the same time each day (like 5 pm).
You would work five days every week. And you would work
hard to accomplish as much as you could because your
career depended upon it.
When you are searching for a job, you should follow the
same type of schedule because your future depends upon
it.
Treating your job search like a part-time hobby guarantees
that it will take longer.
So, begin tomorrow by reporting to work and spending the
day on tasks that lead to a job.
2) Approach finding a job as if it were a project. That means
you should set goals for yourself, make plans, and monitor
your progress. You should apply all of the tools and skills
that you used in your last job to the project of finding your
next job.
As you must expect, this is an important project. The sooner
you complete it, the sooner you gain a promotion into a job.
3) Be your own boss. Set expectations for what you need to
accomplish, provide direction, and monitor your work.
Meet with yourself once each week to evaluate your
performance. I recommend doing this by writing two reports.
The first is a candid evaluation of what you accomplished
during the previous week. The second is a description of
your plans for the coming week. Your plans should include
your goals, actions, and priorities.

9. The first time that you write these reports, write an
evaluation of what you have done so far. Describe the
results that this effort has produced. And compare these
results with what you wanted to have.
Next, map out a realistic plan for the next week based on
achievable goals. For example, you could set goals for the
number of people you will call, the number of networking
meetings you will attend, and the research you will conduct.
In the coming weeks, compare the results that you obtained
during the previous week with the goals that you set. For
example, if you planned to attend twelve networking
meetings and you attended only two, you should a) explain
why this happened and b) plan actions that will correct such
a difference. You should also analyze why you missed your
goal because this provides insights on what you need to do
differently. For example, Your goal (e.g., of attending twelve
networking meetings) may have been set too high. Or
maybe there are things you can do that will make it easier to
achieve your job search goals, such as car pooling with a
friend who is also looking for a job.
Finding a job is a full time job. Work through it with a plan
and the support of a good boss (yourself).
You can get more help by downloading a great free app
called CV Examples. Go get it now!