Most employers ask job seekers to send in their CVs before shortlisting applicants for job interviews. Hence, a professionally-written CV is essential if job seekers want to secure interviews.

To help job seekers learn more about CV preparation, JobsDB organized a CV workshop in August 2009 in which more than 140 people attended.

In the workshop, Tony Chan, Senior Consultant of Adecco shared with job seekers some common mistakes, as well as dos and don'ts in CVs. He said that some items are essential and should be included in a CV:

• Career objective – your expectations in your career; within 100 words
• Company description – since some companies are not well-known, using 1-2 short sentences to describe the business would help employers know the industry you were engaged in
• Achievements – highlight in your previous and current jobs

Chan reminded job seekers that they can add hobby to the CV only if this can show their strengths to enhance job application. As for the email subject in the job application, some job seekers include all possible titles such as marketing executive, senior marketing executive, marketing manager, marketing officer, etc. He said that it is preferred to put the only one title you are applying for in order to avoid confusion and misunderstanding.

Last but not the least, he advised job seekers to check the spelling and grammar of the CVs before sending to employers since a well-written CV can show one's professionalism.

Source: JobsDB HK
Updated: 17 September 2009