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CV writing for public finance professionals: Put yourself in the reader’s shoes

Published on: 9 Mar 2016

Whatever your role within the world of public finance, if you are considering updating your CV you simply must focus on impressing your reader. Putting yourself in the shoes of the reader is undeniably the most important part in preparing to write a CV. It’s a fundamental notion that marketing professionals everywhere use in all their work – understand your target audience and find common ground.

Plan before you write

You should spend a great deal of time researching and planning your CV. A quickly written CV that screams ‘it’s all about me, me, me’ without any thinking for the person reading it is a sure fire way to not get an interview. You should be asking thinking, ‘what qualities and skills are employers looking for in my field?’ Do your research; look at company websites, job boards and other materials so you can find the answer to this question.

The importance of the person specification

The most crucial source of information in any application is the person specification, as opposed to the job description. The job description tells you what the role requires you to do. The person specification tells you the skills, knowledge and experience needed to carry out the role. Your CV will be assessed against this. So, if you read a person specification and you feel an instant connection – then you know this is a job you can thrive in. Make sure your CV covers the elements stated in the person specification.

Values and culture

Values and culture, sometimes called the ‘employer brand’ is becoming more and more important to organisations. You can have all the technical skills in the world but if you do not ‘fit’ from a values perspective then you could be destined for failure; recruitment exercises can be costly so organisations are keen to get this right. Be sure to read organisational websites, they often have pages on their values and culture. If it sounds like you then it’s time to get that CV sorted.

Putting pen to paper

When it comes to putting your planning into action, focus on the employer; the person who will be reading your CV. In practise this means aligning everything you do with what the reader wants to see; use the person specification to help you with this and leave no stone unturned and no question unanswered. If you are applying for a specific job be sure to weave in words that reflect with the organisational values and culture.  Sprinkle these throughout the CV.

Remember, it’s not about you; it’s about what you can do for your potential employer. Take your time to research and plan and give employers what they are looking for; make yourself the most hireable finance professional you can be.

This article is written by Neville Rose, Director of CV Writers. CV Writers are the official CV writing partner to PF Jobs. In addition to CV writing, they can help with cover letters, Linkedin profiles and much more. They also publish Perfect CV which includes a CV check, CV template and a series of how to write a CV videos.