Top Tips On CV Screening
Finding the right person to fill a vacancy is time-consuming. How do you navigate your way through the pile of applications? Think about other aspects that would make a candidate suitable for the role. Desirable factors are their ability to work in a team, knowledge of products, or technical talent. We have some pointers on screening CVs and preparing a shortlist.
Be Clear About Your Needs
This starts with an accurate job description and list of qualifications. One good way is to set out the competencies that the candidate should have demonstrated in their career. Make sure that you comply with employment regulations – for example you cannot specify years of experience or discriminate on the basis of age.
Screen For Essentials
To sift the applicants set up screening criteria. Define a set of ‘essentials’ that would make up the perfect employee for the job. This could be based on skills and experience, or other aspects such as salary, hours worked and location. If you are facing a huge number of applications, your ‘essentials’ list can be shorter.
Then Screen For Desirables
Think about other aspects that would make a candidate suitable for the role. Desirable factors could be the ability to work in a team, knowledge of products, or technical talent. You now have to look at the balance between the essentials and the desirables.
Use A Scoring System
A refinement to the screening criteria is to score the candidates on how they meet each of your chosen ‘essentials’ and ‘desirables’. This may sound complicated, but it will help you grade candidates in a logical manner, and provide a good record of the way you chose the final winner.
Beware Of Buzzwords
How often have you come across CVs that gush with ‘motivated’, ‘passionate’ and ‘extensive experience’? These are words with no meaning in a CV, unless the applicant qualifies them by explaining how they gained that extensive experience, for example.
Decode The CV
Most CVs fall into two types: the chronological and the functional. The first lists employment and activities in date order, the second by the functions handled. Either way, cast a critical eye. The chronological format is comparatively easy to read and grasp, but look out for anomalies, for example, in employment history or change in career. It is more difficult to decode the functional CV because it does not link the functions to the jobs listed by the candidate.
Look For Achievements
You can tell a great deal about the candidate by the way they describe their working life. Some CVs emphasise achievements, while others detail their remit or responsibilities. A person who has ‘developed marketing strategy which led to increased sales’ has accomplished something, while another candidate may simply have been responsible for ‘setting weekly sales targets’.
Look For A Career Path
Promotions and handling of extra responsibilities are signs of a focused candidate, who is dedicated to a chosen trajectory. If you have CVs from applicants into their first or second jobs, take a forensic look at the language they use to describe their work. Is it clear or hyped? And do their extracurricular activities show aptitudes and skills relevant to your business?
Online Screening Can Be An Option
If you are dealing with a high volume of applications, then online checking may help, whether by sifting CVs, psychometric testing or filtering self-test questionnaires. But be aware canny applicants may be able to game the system. They can, for example, write CVs simply to match key words, which means that good and equally well-qualified candidates using other terms will be ignored.
Spot The One That Almost Got Away
Remember that some candidates will not fit into the straitjacket of the traditional CV and send what one American expert calls the ‘jagged resumé’. Such applicants can be resourceful, resilient and curious. They bring a different set of talents, have the potential to enhance your business and may well deserve a place on your short list.
Author: inksmith
