Job Hopping on a CV

inglorius

I've recently started applying for new roles after reformatting my CV however I still am not comfortable regards the content most particularly the apparent number of roles I have undertaken in the past 10 years. This concern was amplified today when I received feed back from a recent interview that my application wasn't going to be progressed due to the number of jobs I've held recently.

As a quick summary I've held about 7 jobs in the past 11 years, I am on my 3rd job this year after being made redundant in May, taking on a 4 month interim role then have worked in my current role for 3 months. Some of my roles prior to that have been for 6 months (boss was a dictator and nearly quit before finding another role) but this just adds to the bittiness.

My question is would it be acceptable to exclude roles of 6 months or less on my CV or if they were interim? If so how do I account for the time gaps? Or is it acceptable to annotate each post with reasons why I left or would this draw more attention to them?

Any advice would be gratefully accepted.

TELLIT01

You really are between the rocks and a hard place. If you leave gaps in the CV questions will probably be asked at interview - if it gets that far. Some potential employers may bin the CV because of the gaps as they want a full employment history. As you have found out, many employers don't like people who they think are likely to up and leave at the drop of a hat.
It's certainly acceptable to explain why previous employment ended e.g. redundancy, fixed term contract etc.

inglorius

TELLIT01 wrote: »

You really are between the rocks and a hard place. If you leave gaps in the CV questions will probably be asked at interview - if it gets that far. Some potential employers may bin the CV because of the gaps as they want a full employment history. As you have found out, many employers don't like people who they think are likely to up and leave at the drop of a hat.
It's certainly acceptable to explain why previous employment ended e.g. redundancy, fixed term contract etc.

Thanks for the reply, another idea would be to use years and not months and years on my CV to mark my work history, this way at least the couple of short term stints I had in roles for less than 6 months would be able to not be shown on my CV without highlighting any employment gaps, does this suggestion seem valid to you?

Bogalot

inglorius wrote: »

Thanks for the reply, another idea would be to use years and not months and years on my CV to mark my work history, this way at least the couple of short term stints I had in roles for less than 6 months would be able to not be shown on my CV without highlighting any employment gaps, does this suggestion seem valid to you?

From a recruiter's point of view only stating years would ring alarm bells. I'd be (quite rightly) questioning what you were hiding.

Be honest, and be prepared to answer questions on why you've moved about. If your reasons are valid then I wouldn't lose sleep over a decline, chances are if it wasn't that they'd have found another reason.

Undervalued

inglorius wrote: »

Thanks for the reply, another idea would be to use years and not months and years on my CV to mark my work history, this way at least the couple of short term stints I had in roles for less than 6 months would be able to not be shown on my CV without highlighting any employment gaps, does this suggestion seem valid to you?

A CV is a statement you produce so one school of thought would be that as long as what it says it true then it is OK. In which case you could omit a short term job which began and finished in the same calendar year.

However, if you provide it in answer to a question requesting your full work history then what you propose would not be acceptable.

Some employers have a zero tolerance policy towards anybody who provides misleading (or worse) information when seeking work.

TELLIT01

When I had to provide a full work history I would simply put the years for jobs more than 10 years ago, but month and year for anything more recent. If I was reading CVs I would wonder why if somebody only put the year for recent employment history.

jamesperrett

Could you not stay a bit longer in your current job? Looking for a new job after only 3 months given your previous history doesn't look good to a potential employer. Unless the current job is a fixed term contract, it would be worth sticking it out for longer to improve your CV.

Fireflyaway

I wouldn't leave out stuff but would do what you suggested and make a note of your reason for leaving. Redundancy can't be helped and if it was a temp position that's not your fault either. If you don't put an explination on your CV it might just get binned prior to shortlisting.

cardsguy

I would say holding a job for 2 years is more than enough - staying more than 2 years in the same role, doing the same things without a promotion or extra responsibilities just tells me you are happy standing still.

asajj

inglorius wrote: »

As a quick summary I've held about 7 jobs in the past 11 years, I am on my 3rd job this year after being made redundant in May, taking on a 4-month interim role then have worked in my current role for 3 months. Some of my roles prior to that have been for 6 months (boss was a dictator and nearly quit before finding another role) but this just adds to the bittiness.

Are you ready to answer as to why you have held that many roles within 11 years? If you were particularly unlucky and made redundant, you can easily put this on your CV. (Job 1: between xx and yy, the reason for leaving: Redundancy).

If you had interim roles, again you state them and any recruiter will understand that it was a short-term position.

However just to say that the boss was a dictator is simply not enough. Working life is not all glitters and fairies. You just get on with things at times, I wouldn't look for a new job if i was you and try to stick with what I have unless there is a really pressing reason.

Dird

cardsguy wrote: »

staying more than 2 years in the same role, doing the same things without a promotion or extra responsibilities just tells me you are happy standing still.

Sometimes people actually enjoy their role/work environment I know many people who have been "Senior X" for 15+ years because they like the tech & don't like the idea of being middle management/team leader