Which CV Format?

To get yourself noticed in the current climate it is vitial to use a CV format or template which will best represent your skills & experience. There are any number of ways of laying out a CV and there are 5 common formats used: Chronological CV, Functional CV, Performance CV, Targeted CV and Alternative CV. Which one do you use!? Below are some of the positive and negatives of two popular formats which may help you decide.

Performance CV

In a Performance CV your employment history is shown in reverse chronological order, with your most recent job first. Job titles and company names are strongly emphasised and duties and achievements are described under each job title. You should use a Performance CV when you are seeking a job which is directly in line with your past experiences or your last employer was a household name. The only difference between a Chronological CV and a Performance CV is that the Performance CV highlights a list of your major achievements near the start of your CV.

Advantages:

1. If you are planning to stay in the same field/work area.
2. If you want to show-off your promotions.
3. If the name of your last employer is highly prestigious.
4. Most people prefer this format to the other formats listed here because it is easy to see who you have worked for and what you did in each particular job.

Disadvantages:

1. If you are planning to change career direction.
2. If you have frequently changed employer.
3. If your work history has been patchy in recent years, either through unemployment, redundancy, self-employment, ill health, etc.
4. If you do not have many achievements (you could just leave out the achievements section as in a traditional Chronological CV) or your achievements are not in line with what you want to do now - either leave out the achievements section or consider using a Functional or Targeted CV.

Functional CV

This type of CV highlights the main functions/achievements of your whole career and it can therefore be very useful if you have had a varied career or you are seeking a change of career direction. In this format, job titles and company names are given less dominance or even omitted in some cases.

Advantages:

1. If you want to emphasise abilities and achievements that have not been used in your most recent job(s).
2. If you are changing career direction.
3. If you have had a large number of jobs and you would prefer to describe the experience you have gained in total.
4. If you want to include voluntary/unpaid experience.
5. If your work history has been patchy in recent years, either through unemployment, redundancy, self-employment, ill health, etc.

Disadvantages:

1. If you want to highlight promotions/career growth - you could include this sort of information on the second page of your CV, but it would not be as prominent as on a Performance CV.
2. If your most recent employer is highly prestigious, because their name will not be prominently displayed on the first page. You can get round this by putting their name in both the profile and cover letter.
3. If your job has only a limited number of functions.
4. Unusual CV format - may not be liked by everyone.

Further CV Format & Template Advice

Would you like some further advice on your CV Format or Template? Why not ask the experts? TheEngineersCV.co.uk is a team of professional consultants with a combined 18 years experience within Engineering Recruitment. We provide One-to-One Career Guidenace and Interview Coaching Services to Engineering professionals across the UK and Europe.