Start with the role you want
Read a relevant vacancy before editing your CV. Identify the responsibilities, tools and experience the employer needs. Then decide which parts of your background provide the strongest evidence. Your opening summary should name your area of work and two or three relevant strengths. Avoid a list of qualities such as hardworking or passionate unless the rest of the document shows what those qualities look like in practice.
Keep contact information straightforward: your name, professional email, reachable phone number and city or region. Add a portfolio link when it helps someone assess your work.
Give each role enough context
List recent employment first, with job title, employer and dates. Briefly explain the environment if the employer name alone tells the reader little. A finance administrator in a small business and one in a shared service centre may have very different responsibilities.
Use selected bullets to explain what you handled, how you worked and what changed. Include real measures when you can substantiate them. When figures are confidential or unavailable, describe the scale, frequency or complexity of the task. Do not invent percentages to make routine work sound impressive.
Make the document easy to use
Use clear headings for experience, education and relevant skills. Keep formatting consistent and check that the text is selectable in the final file. Follow the application’s requested file format rather than assuming one format works everywhere. Remove decorative elements that make the reading order confusing.
List qualifications accurately, distinguishing completed studies from work in progress. Add languages or licences where they relate to the vacancy. Avoid including identity documents, banking details or extensive personal information in the general CV. If documents are needed later, first verify the recipient and the reason for the request.
PUT IT INTO PRACTICE
Turn a duty into useful evidence
Instead of “Responsible for accounts”, try “Processed supplier invoices, maintained the payment schedule and resolved statement queries with the finance team.” If you know the genuine volume, add it. The stronger version tells the reader which part of accounting you handled without overstating your authority.
Your practical checklist
- Does the opening match the kind of role you want?
- Are employer names, dates and qualification details consistent?
- Can someone find your contact details immediately?
- Have you opened the final file and checked every page?
Take it forward
Keep a complete master CV, then create a focused version for each role family. A recruiter should understand your fit from the evidence, not from the number of adjectives in your summary.
