Writing Efective

CVs

D1-English 1-10-Writing Efective CVs Silvia Girimonti

Adapted from www.caterer.com
Skills required
As the hospitality jobs oten re!"ire very speci#c set o s$ills% it is
a&visable to create t'o CVs( a general CV or the in&"stry an& a CV
speci#c to the role or 'hich yo")re applying*
What are employers loo$ing or+
Employers are loo$ing or people 'ho can a&& val"e to their b"siness
by &emonstrating e,ceptional service an& commitment* -o".ll be
e,pecte& to meet an& greet a variety o c"stomers an& be
comortable &ealing 'ith all sorts o novel sit"ations* A lot o
hospitality jobs 'ill also re!"ire yo" to be on yo"r eet or long
perio&s o time*
/or these reasons% employers 'ill be loo$ing or people 'ho are0
Willing to serve others
1olite an& rien&ly
Clean an& neat
2eam players
3ealthy an& #t
Able to thrive "n&er press"re
D1-English 1-10-Writing Efective CVs Silvia Girimonti
Willing to be 4e,ible in their 'or$ing patterns
5n a more senior position% s"ch as a hotel manager% yo")ll be
e,pecte& to0
6anage a team
Demonstrate commercial sense 'ith promotions an& mar$eting
campaigns
7ecr"it an& train staf
6anage an& report b"&gets an& #g"res
D1-English 1-10-Writing Efective CVs Silvia Girimonti
PAR !" Writing #our CV
2he #rst thing to i&entiy is e,actly 'hich s$ills the employer is
loo$ing or* /or e,ample% front of $ouse staf% s"ch as concierges
an& resta"rant 'or$ers% 'ill nee& c"stomer service s$ills( 'hereas
bac$ o ho"se 'or$ers 'ill 'ant to highlight their pro#ciencies 'ith
coo$ing% cleaning an& organising* Write down a list of #our skills
so #ou can refer %ack to it w$en compiling #our CV.
Personal details
6a$e s"re yo" incl"&e yo"r correct a&&ress% telephone an& email
&etails* -o" &on)t nee& to incl"&e yo"r &ate o birth% nationality or
ethnic origins an& yo" sho"l&n)t nee& to incl"&e a photo either*
Personal statement
Al'ays remember to concentrate on 'hat yo" can ofer the
company% not the other 'ay ro"n&* 7emember also to reer bac$ to
the job a&vert or &escription to ma$e s"re yo" highlight yo"r relevant
s$ills an& e,perience* &on't %e scared to t$ink outside t$e %o(0
yo" may have &one vol"ntary 'or$ or comm"nity projects an&
learne& val"able transerable s$ills in the process*
Skills overview
2his is arg"ably one o the most important areas on yo"r CV* Al'ays
$eep in min& the ollo'ing points 'hen 'riting it0
3o' &oes yo"r e,perience #t in 'ith yo"r employer)s nee&s+
3ave yo" receive& any recognition or a'ar&s or yo"r 'or$ in
the past% e*g*% employee o the month+
Do yo" have any relevant statistics or #g"res that &emonstrate
yo"r achievements+
/rom a linguistic point of view% there are 237EE &iferent orms
that yo" can "se to en"merate yo"r s$ills0
1. 1ast participle0 e*g*% communicated efectively with a great
range of customers.
2. 1resent participle or ger"n&0 e*g*% communicating efectively
with a great
3. 8o"ns0 e*g*% efective communication with a great
D1-English 1-10-Writing Efective CVs Silvia Girimonti
Career $istor#
Again% a vital part o yo"r hospitality CV* Emphasise the parts o yo"r
career history that are most relevant to the position yo")re applying
or* /or e,ample% i yo")re c"rrently in a bar job% b"t are applying or
the position o concierge% tal$ abo"t yo"r c"stomer service s$ills an&
yo"r ability to comm"nicate an& efectively serve a broa& range o
c"stomers*
Education and training
Asi&e rom any aca&emic !"ali#cations% employers 'ill 'ant yo" to
tell them abo"t any training yo")ve "n&erta$en% s"ch as oo& saety
training% or health an& saety co"rses* Since yo")ll be &ealing 'ith the
p"blic or most jobs in hospitality% &on)t be shy abo"t mentioning
things li$e #rst ai& co"rses either*
Volunteer and c$arit# work
Employers 'ill be impresse& i yo")ve got e,perience in r"nning or
participating in charity campaigns% as it sho's commitment an& a
'illingness to see a project thro"gh to the en&* 5t also sho's that yo"
are mat"re an& have a sense o responsibility to the general
comm"nity* 9"t please0 &on)t lie:
Additional skills and e(perience
2his is or anything else yo" eel might be relevant to the job* -o"
co"l& mention any other lang"ages yo" spea$% any s$ills or
e,perience 'ith oo& preparation or coc$tail ma$ing% any cash
han&ling s$ills% even a typing spee&* Al'ays remember to lin$ it bac$
to the job yo")re applying or* 2here)s little val"e in mentioning yo"
have a typing spee& o ;0 'or&s per min"te i yo")re applying to be a
'aiter:
Personal attri%utes
9"il&ing a career in hospitality means having the rig$t attitude an&
personalit#) 'hich is 'hy incl"&ing a personal attrib"tes section can
really &emonstrate ho' yo" 'o"l& be val"able to a partic"lar
employer* 5t)s not essential to incl"&e this section% especially i yo")ve
covere& it in yo"r personal statement% b"t it)s certainly
recommen&e& i yo" have little or no relevant e,perience*
1ersonal attrib"tes might incl"&e0
Well presente&
D1-English 1-10-Writing Efective CVs Silvia Girimonti
Con#&ent comm"nicator
7esponsible% reliable an& honest
/ast learner
1"nct"al
References
A simple )reerences available on re!"est) 'ill s"<ce here* 2he $ey is
to pic$ reerees 'ho have $no'le&ge o yo"r s$ills an& can sell yo" to
a potential employer* 6a$e s"re yo"r reerees are a'are yo")ve given
their &etails an& ma$e s"re yo" brie them as m"ch as possible on
the job yo" are applying or* 1erhaps even sen& them a copy o the
job &escription*
PAR *" +anguage ,istakes
3ere yo" have the most common spelling% grammar an& p"nct"ation
mista$es0
,istake !" -our vs. -ou.re
2he cl"e is in the apostrophe* 5 yo" "se an apostrophe% it.s a
contraction o the 'or&s #ou are* =n the other han&% #our means
%elonging or relating to #ou*
5ncorrect0 5 'ill call yo" on /ri&ay i #our in the o<ce*
5ncorrect0 1lease #n& attache& my CV in relation to #ou.re job
posting on
Correct0 1lease get in to"ch 'ith me at #our earliest
convenience*
Correct0 2onight% #ou.re 'aiting tables si, to eleven*
,istake *" /ts vs. /t.s" $e evil apostrop$e 0again1
2he apostrophe is one o the most 'i&ely mis"se& p"nct"ation mar$s
in the English lang"age* Get it 'rong an& yo" co"l&0
Change the meaning o a sentence
>oo$ rather st"pi&
D1-English 1-10-Writing Efective CVs Silvia Girimonti
5t.s !"ite easy to get this 'rong% b"t a han&y little tric$ is to replace
its 'ith $is ?or hers@ an& see i the te,t still ma$es sense*
/ts is simply a gen&erless version o $is an& $ers* 5 the sentence
still ma$es sense% yo".ve got the right one* >i$e'ise 'ith it.s A j"st
replace it 'ith it is to test its coherence*
5ncorrect0 /ts easy to get a job in hospitality 'hen yo" have the
right CV*
5ncorrect0 A !"ali#cation 'on.t g"arantee yo" a job on it.s o'n(
yo" also have to have the right attit"&e*
Correct0 With so many job a&s% it.s not s"rprising that
Caterer*com is the 8o* 1 choice or hospitality recr"itment*
Correct0 A hospitality CV sho"l& impress employers as m"ch as
its o'ner 'o"l&*
,istake 2" Apostrop$es and plurals"
-o" sho"l& 8EVE7 "se an apostrophe beore the S in a pl"ral% even
'hen pl"ralising abbreviations li$e DVD or CD*
5ncorrect0 5 thin$ there may be a e' t#po.s on my CV*
5ncorrect0 5 have &iferent CV.s or &iferent job applications*
Correct0 2here)s no reason 'hy yo" sho"l& have to incl"&e
photos 'ith CVs.
,istake 3" $eir) $e#.re and $ere
Also the possibility o spelling t$eir 'rongly A even i yo" manage to
"se it in the right conte,t: $e#.re is a contraction o t$e# are(
t$eir is possessive% meaning %elonging to% an& t$ere is a location*
5ncorrect0 $eir are more possible mista$es 'ith these three
'or&s than 'e can list here:
Correct0 Where are t$eir CVs+
Correct0 $e#.re over t$ere.
,istake 4" Accept vs. E(cept
-o" sho"l& accept the job ofer% e(cept i yo" &on.t 'ant it*
D1-English 1-10-Writing Efective CVs Silvia Girimonti
,istake 5" Could.a) s$ould.a) would.a
A mista$e people oten ma$e is 'riting 'or&s as they so"n&* 5t.s easy
to get convince& that $ave sho"l& be spelt of% since 'e say it say so
!"ic$ly* 9"t never let it creep into yo"r 'riting:
5ncorrect0 5 'o"l& of got that job intervie' i 5 ha&n.t ma&e all those
spelling mista$es on my cover letter*
Correct0 -es% yo" 'o"l& $ave.
D1-English 1-10-Writing Efective CVs Silvia Girimonti
,istake 6" +oose vs. +ose
>oose is an a&jective% lose is a verb0 'e.& all li$e to have a bit o
loose change% b"t 'e)& hate to lose it* An& yo" &e#nitely 'o"l&n.t
'ant to lose o"t on a job beca"se o poor spelling*
,istake 7" /t.s all a%out #ou 0not #ourself1
5ncorrect0 Will that be =B or #ourself8
5ncorrect0 -o" have to motivate #ou to get all the 'or$ &one*
Correct0 -o" sho"l& sen& an email to #ourself as a remin&er*
Correct0 As 5 mentione& previo"sly to #ou9
Al'ays% al'ays as$ someone 'ith a goo& grasp o English to rea&
yo"r CV over beore yo" sen& it*
PAR 2" /nefective CVs
3ere there is a list o :ve t$ings t$at are guaranteed to put an#
recruiter of. 2a$e a loo$ at yo"r CV no' an& see i yo".ve incl"&e&
any o them0
!. ;ne(plained gaps
2here.s nothing more s"spect on a CV than an "ne,plaine& gap% s"ch
as a e' months bet'een jobs% or a year ater college beore yo"r
#rst job* 9"t i yo" &i& something li$e travelling an& broa&ening yo"r
horiCons% that)s great: Dse it as a positive thing an& &on)t shy a'ay
rom mentioning it*
*. ;nnecessar# negatives
8o &o"bt there.s a very goo& reason 'hy yo" let yo"r last job( an&
it)s probably beca"se yo" realise& yo" 'ere e& "p 'ith the job or
yo" ha& nightmare colleag"es* 9"t &on.t try to e,plain it on yo"r CV*
E"st state the act that yo".re no' available or 'or$% an& i the iss"e
comes "p at intervie'% then go into the &etails* 3o'ever% never
criticise yo"r ol& company at intervie'*
2. /rrelevant detail
5t.s goo& to incl"&e personal interests an& hobbies* 5t sho's yo" have
a lie o"tsi&e 'or$ an& are a 'ell-ro"n&e& person* 9"t be'are o
incl"&ing too m"ch irrelevant &etail*
D1-English 1-10-Writing Efective CVs Silvia Girimonti
3. Vague claims and clic$<s
Avoi& phrases li$e F5 'as responsible or the resta"rant.s &ay to &ay
operationsG% or F5.m an e,perience& an& s"ccess"l barmanG% or F5.m
a team playerG* 2hese clichHs &o nothing to help the recr"iter
"n&erstan& yo"r achievements in yo"r last job* 5nstea&% provi&e
speci#c &etail* 2ell them that yo" have spent seven months 'or$ing
in a bar that has &o"ble& ta$ings in the time yo" have been there*
4. +ies
="tright "ntr"ths might help yo" get an intervie'* =n rare occasions
they might even get yo" a job* An& very% very occasionally yo" might
be able to hol& &o'n that job or a 'hile* 9"t in the en& yo".ll get
o"n& o"t* So &on.t &o it*
PAR 3" ransfera%le Skills
ransfera%le skills are t$e general a%ilities #ou develop t$at
are useful across a range of diferent =o%s and industries.
$e# mig$t %e role>related) tec$nical or general. /f #ou know
#ou don.t $ave a $uge amount of e(perience) it.s still possi%le
to %ag #our ideal $ospitalit# =o% %# identif#ing w$ic$ of #our
skills are transfera%le ? and t$erefore valua%le ? and
emp$asising t$em w$en #ou make applications.
What are the $ey transerable s$ills+
As 'ell as n"meracy an& lang"ages% most hospitality employers 'ill
be loo$ing or0
Commitment an& motivation
5nterpersonal s$ills0 can yo" relate 'ith others an& orm goo&
'or$ing relationships+
Comm"nicating efectively0 can yo" ta$e an& give instr"ction+
Sel-a'areness0 $no'ing yo"r strengths A an& 'ea$nesses
6anagement an& lea&ership
Decision-ma$ing ability
=rganisation% research an& thin$ing ahea&
D1-English 1-10-Writing Efective CVs Silvia Girimonti
Employers every'here val"e these s$ills beca"se they mean yo" can
solve problems an& satisy c"stomers A an& it.s no &iferent 'hen
yo".re loo$ing or hotel an& resta"rant jobs* Goo& interpersonal s$ills
an& organisational ability are probably the most important abilities
yo" can ofer% along 'ith high energy an& the enth"siasm to 'or$ as
a part o a team* An& &on.t orget the essentials0
1"nct"ality
Goo& time management
Attention to &etail
Ability an& 'illingness to enlist help 'hen necessary
Willingness to accept responsibility
-o" can &evelop all o these in j"st abo"t any role* 5 yo".re j"st
starting o"t% yo" can e,plain ho' yo" &evelope& them &"ring yo"r
e&"cation or as part o hobbies an& activities* 2o get a better i&ea o
the re!"irements% loo$ at a&verts or the sort o hospitality jobs
yo".re intereste& in* See 'hat s$ills are mentione&0 'hich &o yo"
have an& 'hich &o yo" nee& to 'or$ on+
D1-English 1-10-Writing Efective CVs Silvia Girimonti