Despite being the leading paragraph in your CV, the “Profile Statement” is commonly underutilised and given fairly minimal thought. This is the attention-grabbing headline to your CV, it really sets out your stall for what’s to come and deserves proper consideration and well thought out content.
Why have a Profile Statement?
Having a profile statement at the start of your CV is a great way to showcase who you are and what you are going to bring to an employer. The idea is to give a brief snapshot of your skills and experience and, when written well, can really make your CV stand out from the crowd. All too often profile statements can come across very vanilla and don’t grab the attention of the reader. When CV space is at a premium, you want to make Every. Word. Count! So here’s Working Girl’s 8 top tips on how to pull together a show-stopper of a profile statement and ensure you present the best version of yourself from the outset…
Top Tips:
Be Concise: You are wanting to write somewhere between 50-200 words, it’s really not a lot, so you need to make the most out of the words you use and ensure what you write is relevant.
Consistency is Key: Whether it is the 1st or 3rd person you prefer to write in, just be sure to write in the same person throughout your profile statement.
Keep it Professional: This isn’t the time or place to be writing about your interests at the weekend or your love for global travel, showcase your skills and strengths, along with your sector exposure, which the employers need for the role.
Do Your Research: If you are at a loss for what to include in your statement, a good place to start looking is at the jobs you are wanting to apply for; what are the role profiles asking for in their new hire; what skills are particularly important to them and what are the keys aspects they have highlighted in the role? Armed with this information, you can drop into you profile statement the key areas and main buzz-words where you have had the experience in.
Be Relevant: Companies want to read CV’s which are relevant to the role they are hiring for. They want to be able to quickly see that you have the skills and experience they need for the role and they don’t want to have to search deep into your CV to find it. By tailoring your profile statement and including aspects of the role profile in your statement, it immediately shouts how relevant you are and will naturally encourage them to read on.
Add Value: Your profile should ultimately add value to your CV (otherwise there really is no point to doing one!) Stay away from using too many adjectives, e.g. enthusiastic, reliable, confident etc. Instead, keep it factual and write about your relevant skills e.g. strategically focused, possess a demonstrable track record of motivating and developing a team, experienced in insight driven marketing campaigns etc.
Career Aims: Finish your profile by highlighting your motivations for considering a new move and the focus of your career goals.
Check it: Once completed, read your profile statement aloud and also have a couple of people read over it for you, make sure it flows properly and packs a punch!
So there you have it, by investing more time in your profile statement and ensuring it is factual, fitting to the role and flows, will take your CV from flat, to fabulous and grab the reader’s attention from the get-go!
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