Great cv but getting nowhere in job hunt

ThisIsTheNewHit

Hi all, this could be a bit of a long post so apologies in advance.
I'm job-hunting at the moment in Birmingham with little success. I really like the look of my cv and there is a lot of great experience on there such as the following; degrees from two Russell Group universities, a year at the world's most prestigious investment bank, over a year at the UK financial regulator, lots throughout that emphasises transferable skills e.g. written and spoken communication, research, analysis, IT etc.

But I don't have any luck when it comes to applying for jobs. I'm on several job boards and LinkedIn etc., where there are a lot of one-click applications. Most don't get back to me, and if they do, it's always a rejection.

Part of the problem might be that I worked as a professional gambler full-time for six years. It isn't phrased that way on my cv though and it actually gave me lots of transferable skills that would be beneficial to employers. I was considered a world class expert in my (somewhat niche) field and I consider myself to be a very intelligent and decent person overall. It's clear whenever people meet me that this is the case.

I had a meeting with a recruitment consultant a few months ago and they were absolutely gushing with praise for me, saying I was an exceptional candidate etc. The manager said she'd been in recruitment for twenty years and hadn't seen many people with more to offer than myself. Unfortunately the consultant himself then proceeded to ghost me and stopped replying to my emails, for some reason.

But most recruitment firms don't seem to want much to do with me, which I find really baffling, as I know I would add so much value to any company or organisation. Even for low paid admin roles that would pay the bills, I don't get considered.

For the last few months, I have been working as a Brand Ambassador for experiential marketing agencies. I feel this has significantly improved my cv as it proves I'm happy to work a 'proper job' in addition to providing me with yet more skills. It's not ideal though as it's gig economy work and I've spent most of November at home by myself as there hasn't been work on.

I'm pretty open-minded in terms of what I want to do, which could also be a problem. My job search isn't particularly focused, but I have recently been applying for Marketing Analyst/Marketing Research Analyst-type roles, as that's what I think would be a good fit for my experience and interests. When I met the people from the agency a few months ago, this is what they said they'd put me forward for.

Does anyone have any tips or advice as to where I go from here?
Do I ask friends and connections if they might know of any openings that might be suitable?
Do I go back to recruitment agencies now that I have an improved cv? What's the best way to approach them?
Do I widen my search to other cities e.g. Manchester and London?

Is there anything that I should be doing but I'm not?

Thanks in advance to anyone who might be able to help.

Jox

Make sure to tailor your CV and covering letter to each role. Yes, ask friends and family if they have any suggestions, advice, contacts they can help with. Keep applying online. Would you want to move to London or elsewhere for a job?

ThisIsTheNewHit

I would rather stay in Birmingham if I could. But if I had to, I would move to a different city if the job required it.

Marcon

ThisIsTheNewHit wrote: »

Hi all, this could be a bit of a long post so apologies in advance.
I'm job-hunting at the moment in Birmingham with little success. I really like the look of my cv you might, but clearly employers don't. Have you taken a step back and considered how it looks from their perspective? and there is a lot of great experience on there such as the following; degrees from two Russell Group universities, a year at the world's most prestigious investment bank, over a year at the UK financial regulator, lots throughout that emphasises transferable skills e.g. written and spoken communication, research, analysis, IT etc.

But I don't have any luck when it comes to applying for jobs. I'm on several job boards and LinkedIn etc., where there are a lot of one-click applications. Most don't get back to me, and if they do, it's always a rejection.

Part of the problem might be that I worked as a professional gambler full-time for six years. It isn't phrased that way on my cv though and it actually gave me lots of transferable skills that would be beneficial to employers. I was considered a world class expert in my (somewhat niche) field and I consider myself to be a very intelligent and decent person overall. Right, you're not short on self-confidence, which is good. Being arrogant is always something to be aware of - even if that isn't true, there is always a danger that you can project that image to others It's clear whenever people meet me that this is the case. Hmm...really?

I had a meeting with a recruitment consultant a few months ago and they were absolutely gushing with praise for me, saying I was an exceptional candidate etc Yeah, they say that to most candidates they meet. . The manager said she'd been in recruitment for twenty years and hadn't seen many people with more to offer than myself. Unfortunately the consultant himself then proceeded to ghost me and stopped replying to my emails, for some reason. Why didn't you pursue and get some feedback on why? Were you concerned you might hear a few home truths, or you just couldn't be bothered?

But most recruitment firms don't seem to want much to do with me, which I find really baffling, as I know I would add so much value to any company or organisation. But they don't share the view. Find out why not Even for low paid admin roles that would pay the bills, I don't get considered. If you present a glittering career, why would anyone take the risk of recruiting you for a short time while you look for something worthier of your talents?

For the last few months, I have been working as a Brand Ambassador for experiential marketing agencies. I feel this has significantly improved my cv as it proves I'm happy to work a 'proper job' in addition to providing me with yet more skills. It's not ideal though as it's gig economy work and I've spent most of November at home by myself as there hasn't been work on.

I'm pretty open-minded in terms of what I want to do, which could also be a problem. My job search isn't particularly focused, but I have recently been applying for Marketing Analyst/Marketing Research Analyst-type roles, as that's what I think would be a good fit for my experience and interests. When I met the people from the agency a few months ago, this is what they said they'd put me forward for. So what happened next? How thoroughly did you follow up to ensure this happened, or ask why it didn't happen?

Does anyone have any tips or advice as to where I go from here?
Do I ask friends and connections if they might know of any openings that might be suitable? Why wouldn't you do that? They can only say no (or say nothing)
Do I go back to recruitment agencies now that I have an improved cv? What's the best way to approach them? Go and see them - they can only say no
Do I widen my search to other cities e.g. Manchester and London? You aren't getting anywhere where you are, so what better options do you have?

Is there anything that I should be doing but I'm not?

Thanks in advance to anyone who might be able to help.

You've painted a glowing picture of yourself and your qualifications and experience, but if all these wonderful facets of your character and experience are having the desired impact on other people, why aren't they beating down your door to come and work for them? By your own admission, nobody wants to know and you really need to establish why. It could be nothing more serious than you are coming over as over-confident to the point of arrogance. Perhaps try toning down your cv and see if that gets you anywhere when you apply for some more jobs.

ThisIsTheNewHit

Marcon wrote: »

You've painted a glowing picture of yourself and your qualifications and experience, but if all these wonderful facets of your character and experience are having the desired impact on other people, why aren't they beating down your door to come and work for them? By your own admission, nobody wants to know and you really need to establish why. It could be nothing more serious than you are coming over as over-confident to the point of arrogance. Perhaps try toning down your cv and see if that gets you anywhere when you apply for some more jobs.

I would say my cv is impressive, rather than overconfident or arrogant. I've had friends look it over, I've had their feedback and edited it according to their suggestions.

Toning down my cv would be somewhat depressing. Shouldn't I be proud of my achievements, rather than removing them in order to just secure any job at all? I have some impressive brand names on there that should be helping to open doors for me, in theory.

It may be that my experience is a bit too muddled and unfocused. But there are underlying themes of research/analysis/communication that should be applicable and useful for many different roles.

shortcrust

I think you need to be open to the possibility that your confidence is in fact over confidence which may be blinding you to problems with the way you’re presenting yourself. Ignore the recruitment agent patter - they’re salespeople and you’ve fallen for the shtick - and get someone who is objective and neutral to look at your CV etc. I don’t say that to put you down or to dishearten you, but you’ve got to recognise flaws in a thing before you can fix them.

One big thing that occurs to me is once you go past entry level positions, employers want to recruit, and are able to recruit, people who’ve actually done the job. Transferable skills come a really poor second to that. Maybe getting experience at a lower level than you’d ideally want might be a good step.

ThisIsTheNewHit

shortcrust wrote: »

One big thing that occurs to me is once you go past entry level positions, employers want to recruit, and are able to recruit, people who’ve actually done the job. Transferable skills come a really poor second to that. Maybe getting experience at a lower level than you’d ideally want might be a good step.

An entry level position in Marketing is probably what I'm looking for. I understand that I'm not going to get the money I was on ten years ago in London and that's fine, seeing as I'm essentially starting again with my career.

Jox

Yes you probably will have to start at entry level and show enthusiasm to progress. I have some recruitment contacts in London, maybe they could advise you?

dartmouthpartners.com

linearpartners.com

walkerhamill.com

ThisIsTheNewHit

Jox wrote: »

Yes you probably will have to start at entry level and show enthusiasm to progress. I have some recruitment contacts in London, maybe they could advise you?

dartmouthpartners.com

linearpartners.com

walkerhamill.com

Thank you, I shall try those firms.

MovingForwards

I had to tone down my CV when changing from a professional career of nearly two decades. It took several attempts and a rewrite for each role I applied for, my friends also said my original CV was impressive, as did every recruitment agent I spoke with; apparently I would easily get a job offer.

Agencies went quiet on me, agencies ignored my applications for roles they were doing on behalf of companies, if I directly called them about it the response would be I was over qualified, over experienced, would get bored.

I gave up on the agency adverts and just targeted one company I wanted to work for; 29 applications were submitted in 7 months, several interviews attended, a few to attend when I got offered a role with the second department to offer me an interview (it was postponed for 2 months), the role was offered to me the week after my interview and I started the following week.

You have to look at your CV and be ruthless with it, make sure it's in the current CV style with bullet points and have a good covering letter.

theoretica

Look for jobs which have application forms rather than accepting CVs - a problem with 'one click' application is all the hundreds of other people who will click too. A more detailed application process is more effort and fewer people will put proper effort in.


It is a challenge writing a CV or application that shows you have done impressive things so far but know you are entry level in other fields.