C.V help

Mp4

Mp4

Mp4

Soldato
Joined
21 Apr 2006
Posts
8,460
Location
Eastbourne
Hi all,

Well this is my shambles CV

Atm I'm currently off work as I have had knee operation ill be off for another 3-4 months yet. When i do go back i shall be going back part time as i want to do a photography course at college.

I would like to try and find another company to work for in retail(all food retailers are the same imo but there isnt anyway of going up the ladder at my current store) or IT.
I finished college in 2004.



This is my current CV (used an online service for the CV around 2yrs ago now - that was recomended via here)



Gareth Slade
address here
Home: tel
Mobile: tel
Email: email

PROFESSIONAL PROFILE

I have been working in a food retail setting for 13 years; however, during that time I have been attending college to obtain qualifications in ICT. Also I have gained some practical experience through my college placement. I am now very keen to use my skills and training in an IT environment.

KEY TECHNICAL SKILLS

 Installing and Configuring Networked Hardware and Software, and Operating Systems
 Repair Centre Procedures and Equipment/System Maintenance
 Using the Internet / Virus Removal / Firewalls / Anti-Spyware / Wireless Security
 Website Design / Basic HTML / Dreamweaver

CAREER SUMMARY

1998-2009 Scratch Baker, J Sainsbury’s plc

I began this job after I left school and continued part time whist I attended full time college. Since 2005 I have been a full time member of staff.


• Working on own initiative and as part of a team to ensure that the highest standards of customer service are delivered at all times
• Monitoring and controlling stock levels on the shop floor, replenishing shelves and checking dates on product
• Implementing price reductions having produced accurate forecasts of price reductions based on stock which may not sell whilst ensuring minimal loss to the store
• Adhering to company policies and procedures when arranging for the clearing and disposal of product which has not sold or is out of date
• The making of Sainsbury’s bread products , within time management & sales figures

WORK EXPERIENCE

 Undertaking a work placement in a PC repair shop gaining invaluable and extensive experience in diagnosing and repairing faults
 Assisting with the design and setup of a website for an Eastbourne hotel as well as installing a new computer system(s) and maintaining high standard of customer support.

EDUCATION AND QUALIFICATIONS

City & Guilds: Level III Advanced Diploma for I.T. Practitioners (ICT Systems Support) (Oct 2004)
Level II Diploma for I.T. Practitioners (ICT Systems Support) (July 2003)
Level II Diploma for I.T. Users (July 2003)
Diploma of Vocational Education
GNVQ: Information & Communication Technology
7 GCSEs: Including English and Mathematics

PROFESSIONAL TRAINING

Vocational Multi Skills Certificate
 Self Management and Development  Numeracy
 Personal Health, Hygiene, Safety & Security  Communication(Email,VOIP,Forums)
 Working Relationships  Introducing to Word Processing(MS word)
 Information Technology  Introduction to Spreadsheets(MS Excel)

PERSONAL DETAILS

Driving Licence: Full/Clean
Health: Excellent; non-smoker
Interests include: Computing, Online Gaming, Running, F1 Racing, Space Exploration and Technology
 
I'll get the ball rolling and provide my own opinions.

- No need to say what you have done in the past 13 years. They'll know this by looking at your CV. You need to concentrate on what you have learnt at college so speak more about that and especially the placement - very important bit.

- Perhaps change the summary about Sainsburys. Make it bolder and show that because you were very good at what you did, you stayed on and started at the bottom to move up a bit. Well, did you move up a bit or stay in the same role? 13 years is a long time!

- I like your Sainsburys bullet points. It says what you did but more importantly, it says what sort of qualities you needed. Ie time management.

- I would put the work experience ABOVE the Sainsburys and present the CV from Present -> Past so the more relevant information is at the top.

- No need to put the health bit and make your interests into a sentence.

:)


Edit: It sounds like you were in stock take. Perhaps talk about the software a little bit and the PDAs you used. That is the most "relevenat" bit of your food history - the computer side and you were in it.
 
SideWinder said:
- No need to say what you have done in the past 13 years. They'll know this by looking at your CV. You need to concentrate on what you have learnt at college so speak more about that and especially the placement - very important bit.

- Perhaps change the summary about Sainsburys. Make it bolder and show that because you were very good at what you did, you stayed on and started at the bottom to move up a bit. Well, did you move up a bit or stay in the same role? 13 years is a long time!



:)


Edit: It sounds like you were in stock take. Perhaps talk about the software a little bit and the PDAs you used. That is the most "relevenat" bit of your food history - the computer side and you were in it.
Click to expand...

Thanks SideWinder,

Well i started work for them in 98(on checkouts for 6-7 years) I was part time while i was at college doing computer studies etc. 2004-2005 ish i went full time.

I moved to fresh foods and was in this role for 2-3 years and was asked to do code checking I had to use the sainsburys secure stock loss system to print off a list that tells me roughly what needed to be checked and reduced. Id then go round every day isles by isles and check for dates for the day (which had to be reduced) and advanced dates which had to be monitored if they didnt all sell then they had to be reduced in advance.

Id then have to check long life items. Egg's & whatnot. & then in 2008 i was asked to do stock loss on Produce which i did over an xmas period for around 9 months. I then went back to Fresh foods for a short period (2 weeks) before moving to the bakery to become a Baker which is where i stand now. But i have no idea what is avaliable to me when i go back as of yet.

Since i finished college in 2004 , i find it hard to get in the mood for learning new things at home as i lack a lot of motivation at the moment.
 
Last edited:
- Your personal profile should be written in the third person, no use of I, Me, etc.
- As Sidewinder says, it already says what you've been doing before - put some adjectives in to describe & sell yourself - hardworking, motivated etc.
- All work related experience should be presented as most recent and work backwards.
- You need to have a dedicated Hobbies & Interests section. Less than one line of interests isn't enough. As mentioned put them into prose, be more specific about which bit you like about what. I'm sure you can fit more sports related interests in there too. Any music interests? Even if it's just listening/watching live music, it's still an interest.
 
-No need for the "; however," in the Personal Profile section IMO, it implies that there may be something wrong with what precedes it. Maybe rephrase it a little.
-Remove "Basic" in front of HTML
-"Introducing to word processing" should presumably be "Introduction"
-General observation: It seems to be over 5 years since you took your qualifications, as a prospective employer I would be asking why it has taken so long for you to make the move into IT (so have an answer ready for this question and also stress what you have done in recent years to keep your skills up to date). If your professional training was more recent, put some dates on it to give the impression that you have been steadily developing and improving yourself over the intervening years.
 
I used to work in a recruitment agency, and if there weren't references on the CV we very rarely bothered processing them. Of course, if they have very good experience in an industry which we required staff for then we would take it further but if it's a pretty bog standard CV of which we got loads each week we had to filter them somehow and references were usually the first option.
 
HangTime said:
-General observation: It seems to be over 5 years since you took your qualifications, as a prospective employer I would be asking why it has taken so long for you to make the move into IT (so have an answer ready for this question and also stress what you have done in recent years to keep your skills up to date). If your professional training was more recent, put some dates on it to give the impression that you have been steadily developing and improving yourself over the intervening years.
Click to expand...

Well i have no answer for why its taken so long to get in to IT. I have never had an oppertunity to do so. My quallifications these days mean nothing its all A+ etc now. I've helped various people with computer issues but that is it ive not really gained done anything since college.



I have Refrances on seprate A4 paper which i can give if they ask for them (i ushally wright - ref on request)
 
Ahleckz said:
I used to work in a recruitment agency, and if there weren't references on the CV we very rarely bothered processing them.
Click to expand...

Might be true for one company and not for others then. I have recently applied for 3 seperate job agencies - Brook Street, Hayes and RHR - and all have accepted me without references. Brook Street asked me for references and i supplied them.
 
SideWinder said:
Might be true for one company and not for others then. I have recently applied for 3 seperate job agencies - Brook Street, Hayes and RHR - and all have accepted me without references. Brook Street asked me for references and i supplied them.
Click to expand...

Whilst that's possible, I think you'd be better off listing references - or at least saying 'Employment & Character references available on request' or something similar - if you can. You want to make yourself as employable as possible.
 
Ahleckz said:
Whilst that's possible, I think you'd be better off listing references - or at least saying 'Employment & Character references available on request' or something similar - if you can. You want to make yourself as employable as possible.
Click to expand...

I would agree with doing the one line at the end or something.

I suppose it depends on the CV. Using my own as an example, my work history is from large companies so it would be very easy to get a reference from them. Whether it be from a large clothing retailer, a supermarket or even my University.

Also, say i included references and they actually wanted different references from specific companies, i would have lost a bit of space with useless information. I know i'm going on and on about space but there was some stupid statistic out which i'll try and find which said that the average employer spends around 10 seconds browsing a CV. In that short period of time, you need to include the most essential bits of information.
 
Yeh I think it's important to at least state that references can be made available. Mine just says 'References Available' at the end.
 
Maccy said:
Yeh I think it's important to at least state that references can be made available. Mine just says 'References Available' at the end.
Click to expand...

Fair enough.

Surely though everyone can have references available though? So why does it need to be said? Especially if the CV covers at least 1 year of work somewhere.
 
Listing references was definitely the done thing in the 20th century (before things like email and mobile phones were commonplace) but these days a lot of people don't put them on the CV. It's pretty easy for the employer/agency to get hold of references from the candidate nowadays should they require them.

Obviously if there is a particular reference you want to promote for whatever reason, then by all means include it, but I doubt many frown on a lack of them these days.

Could be different for more generic 'high street' recruitment agencies I guess who are wanting to match you to any role rather than those looking to hire for a specific vacancy.

Anyway going back to the OP you say when you return to work you are looking at retail or IT, do you have any preference (guessing the latter)? I would imagine that your CV should be fine for retail positions (maybe try to sneak in any supervisory experience you may have had, however temporary/brief). If you decide to try to break into IT make sure you show a lot of enthusiasm and make it clear that during your time off you have decided that this is the true career path for you. Obviously you would be starting at the bottom but stress the fact that not only have you put in the effort to study alongside working, you also have a lot of real world experience in work (albeit another industry) which would set you apart from all the people in the 18-22 bracket with similar aspirations but who have done very little other than education.
 
SideWinder said:
Fair enough.

Surely though everyone can have references available though? So why does it need to be said? Especially if the CV covers at least 1 year of work somewhere.
Click to expand...

May have had a crap previous employer who wouldn't give a reference? I'm not sure on the main reason to be honest, I've just been told by a few different people to write it at the end :)
 
HangTime said:
Anyway going back to the OP you say when you return to work you are looking at retail or IT, do you have any preference (guessing the latter)?
Click to expand...

Thanks for that HangTime,

I am Still at work (Food retail with Sainsburys) but have been off since 25th Dec 2009 due to a knee dislocation / operation. I am looking for another retail role or somewhere to move up the ladder etc. If i can get my foot in the door with IT with a junior role id be happy as anything
 
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