It’s a strange subject, we know. But we’re all about helping people, and we would be doing executives a disservice if we didn’t highlight some of the (let’s be polite) less honourable aspects of the sector.
If you are currently unaware of some common CV sector malpractices then you should find the following both helpful and enlightening.
It’s highly unlikely. It’s not the kind of thing that some CV firms want people to know about. Some firms keep quiet about typical malpractices in the hope that people won’t notice.
And do people notice?
Some do, but most don’t.
Or at least not at first.
Frequently, the penny doesn’t drop until their ‘professional’ CV doesn’t match expectations in the competitive executive job market. And even then, some people still don’t make the connection.
The most common and biggest deception is pretending to be something they aren’t. For example, some self-styled ‘top’ firms with apparent ‘top’ writers produce very standard products.
Well, we’ve been improving the CVs of self-styled ‘top’ CV firms for 20+ years now. There are usually lots of issues (minor and major), and edits are never enough. Indeed, by necessity, our default is to rip up their CVs and rewrite them properly from scratch.
Surely, an exaggeration?
Not at all.
The transformation is usually both radical and dramatic. And clients are often surprised at just how much we improve.
Moreover, it’s very easy to prove.
Simply ‘put us to the test’ and you should see the gulf in quality before your very eyes.
What differences are there?
Each case is different, but this page lists some typical improvements we make (as well as an indication of why people tend to miss numerous issues (big and small) on typical professional CVs.
Where do you want to start?
If you scratch the surface of the claims of many CV firms then you should find that not everything stacks up or is what is on the tin. You should find this page helpful if you’d like to discover more.
It’s a good question. Probably the biggest factor is that people tend to take things at face value and give the benefit of the doubt. As such, a lot of people are wooed by slick salespeople, impressionable statistics and marketing gimmicks such as guaranteed interviews. Most people don’t scratch the surface, question things or even think logically (because some of the gimmicks aren’t even feasible if you think about it logically).
We can’t tell you which CV company to choose. That’s entirely your choice – and rightly so.
All we can do is highlight longstanding issues in the CV sector that executives really ought to be aware of (but many aren’t).
The rest is down to you, your gut and your intuition.
At the very least, we hope this page (and the links) has given you food for thought.
If you’d like to discover more, we have written some articles that executives are finding helpful. A good one to start with is What Makes for a Good CV, but if you’d like to view other articles then you are very welcome to do so by clicking here