Robert Walters Specialist Professional Recruitment
CPA Student Recruitment and Networking Event
Presented by: Leanne Nettleship and Grace Conlon
Date: 8th April 2010
Contents
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Cover letter
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What is a covering letter
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What you should include
Format of your CV
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Hints and tips for writing a perfect CV
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CV sections
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Before sending out your CV
Interview preparation and techniques
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Importance of interview preparation
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How to prepare for your interview
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During the interview
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Types of interview questions
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Differentiating yourself from the competition
Networking
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Importance of networking / What is networking / Rules of good networking / Building your network / Growing
industries
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Goals and objectives of networking / Getting organised
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Follow up
What is a cover letter?
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Opportunity to convey some basic information:
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What position you're applying for
Who you are
Why you want the job
What you have to offer
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Must convey the above objectives in a single page and tempt the employer with some key
points from your CV
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Review company website for job descriptions or search similar employees on linkedIn. Find
out as much as you can about the company and highlight this in your cover letter
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If applying via email, you can write your cover letter in the body of an email or as an
attachment; if you're applying by post, include it as a printed letter
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When employers take on a new member of staff they're looking for two things:
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Someone who can do the job
Someone who wants to do the job – your covering letter can help to convey your enthusiasm
Role you are applying for
Why you are applying
Why they
should read
on and
interview you
Show you are familiar
with their business
Set the scene
Relevant to
them and their
current business
situation
What you are
interested in
Offer additional
3rd party referees
able to talk about
your capabilities
Hints and tips for writing a perfect CV
Your CV is a tool with one purpose: to win an interview
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Avoid coloured paper or type, fancy fonts, photographs or clever delivery approaches
Keep the look simple and make your points clear
Be truthful and don't be afraid to sell your skills
Use the past tense and choose strong action verbs (document inc in pack)
Avoid speaking about yourself in the third person
Avoid jargon and acronyms that other people might not understand .eg. CRO, TB, SOX
Tailor your resume for each specific application
Include the company profile of the organisations you have worked for
Make your CV results oriented: give proof to back up your capability statements
CV sections
Personal Information
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Include your name
Full address
Telephone numbers (day/evening/mobile)
Email address
Qualifications
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List both academic and non-academic qualifications in chronological order, giving grades
Include 1st time passes, top 10, leaving cert points 450+, detail surrounding your degree thesis if it
holds relevance
CV sections
Employment History
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Beginning with your most recent job, include:
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Company name
Your job title
Duration of employment
Reasons for leaving
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Ensure you give a brief outline of the company you worked with which will help give more
relevance to the experience you’ve gained
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Under each position, briefly outline your responsibilities but place the focus on what you have
achieved in the role - this is where you can differentiate yourself
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Do not omit any period of employment or unemployment for whatever reason, as this may
prove awkward at interview
CV sections
Personal Interests
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Listing your interests is important, but do not generalise. For example, instead of simply
saying 'football', you could expand and say that you have played for a local club for the last
four years and are now Treasury Officer for the club
References
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Include a line stating that references are available upon request
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Ensure you have at least two referees that have been made aware and have confirmed they
are happy to provide written and perhaps more importantly verbal references
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Ensure the referees you use are from your most current work history
Before sending out your CV
Check and Double Check
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Before submitting your CV/resume, make sure you check it thoroughly, not just for spelling
and grammar mistakes, but also to make sure that it is a clear representation of you
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Check that the content is relevant to the reader or business you are targeting, so that it will
encourage them to contact you in order to find out more
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Ask a friend to check it, too - someone who works in the industry in which you are applying
would be particularly beneficial
Any questions?
Importance of interview preparation
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Celtic Tiger days of 3% unemployment are gone – currently at 12%
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Employers market once again – wish list
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Interview preparation is often where people fall down
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First impressions last forever, you only get one chance
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The more time you put in to prepare, the easier the interview will be
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Whilst your CV opens the door, the interview keeps it open or closes it quickly
How to prepare for your interview
Research
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Who are you meeting? Check LinkedIn to read their profiles
Where are you meeting? Transport
Company Background – Google
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Year established?
Size of business and their locations?
What do they primarily do?
Read last Annual Accounts to familiarise yourself
Press releases on company website
CV knowledge – know your CV inside out
Job description – know what’s entailed inside out and be able to give examples on each
aspect
Practice psychometric testing / technical testing online beforehand
Prepare two questions to ask at the end of the interview
Thank them for their time
Express level of interest
How to prepare for your interview
Presentation
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Suit
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Directions and transportation routes – punctual
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Strong handshake
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Water
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Folder – CV and references
During the interview
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Listen with enthusiasm
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Answer with enthusiasm
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Have examples to highlight competencies – demonstrate your ability
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Have questions ready
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Department structure
Training – are there any training/development opportunities associated with the role?
3-5 year business plan
I read about your plans to ….. (up to date press release knowledge)
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Body language throughout Interview
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Handshake/closure
Types of interview questions
Competency based – demonstrate with examples of what you have done
Give me an example of when you:
 Worked as part of a team
 Demonstrated leadership qualities
 Worked under pressure
 Demonstrated your multitasking abilities
 Working with clients or people outside the organisation
 Demonstrated effective communication skills
 Worked on a project from start to finish and you’re level of involvement/seniority
 Dealt with conflict/resolved issues
For each competency based question… remember STAR to help formulate your answer:
 Situation
 Task
 Action
 Result
Competency based interviews
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Adaptability
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Client focus
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Tell me about a time when you had to identify the underlying causes to a problem
Results orientation
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Describe the culture of your organisation and give an example of how you work within this culture to
achieve a goal
Problem solving and judgment
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Give an example of a difficult or sensitive situation that required extensive communication?
Organisational awareness
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Give an example of how you provided service to a client/stakeholder beyond their expectations. How
did you identify the need? How did you respond?
Communication
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Tell me about a time when you changed your priorities to meet others’ expectations
Tell me about a time when you set and achieved a goal
Teamwork
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Tell me about a time when you worked successfully as a member of a team
Competency based interviews
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Developing others
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Innovation
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Tell me about a time when you had to lead a group to achieve an objective
Relationship building
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Describe a time when you went through a series of steps to influence an individual or a group on an
important issue
Leadership
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Describe something you have done that was new and different for your organisation, that improved
performance and/or productivity
Impact and influence
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Tell me about a time when you coached someone to help them improve their skills or job
performance. What did you do?
Describe a situation in which you developed an effective win/win relationship with a stakeholder or
client. How did you go about building the relationship?
Self management
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Describe the level of stress in your job and what you do to manage it
Describe a time when you were in a high pressure situation
Other types of interview questions
Behavioural – scenario questions to establish behaviour patterns
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Role plays
Case study
Establishing analytical / problem solving / operational / time management / supervisory
experience
Technical – demonstrate level of technical ability throughout work experience
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Accounting and IT
Check what systems / procedures they use and prepare examples
Differentiating yourself from the competition
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Why do you want this job?
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What do you know about the company?
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Talk me through your CV?
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Why are you looking to leave your current position?
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What are your strengths?
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What are your weaknesses?
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How would your colleagues describe you at work? Outside of work?
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How would your boss describe you at work? Outside of work?
Getting the interview = suitable for the job!!
Summary
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Know your CV
Know the role and the company
Know how your experience matches the role and give examples
Always have 1-2 questions to ask – if answered – explain they were already answered
Confident hand shake – hold cold glass of water in reception
Be prepared for everything – HR related / finance related questions
Always remain professional – smile and be genuinely interested
Never discuss negative experiences with previous employers
Bring references with you and leave copies at the interview
Practice psychometric testing and technical knowledge testing online
Always set yourself apart wherever possible
Each interview is an opportunity to impress employers - suitable jobs in the future
If you are keen on the job and you get a good feeling then let the employer know
Be confident – remember, you have a skill set that an organisation needs
Any questions?
Importance of networking
Most people spend 95% of their time focussing on the 20% of jobs that are advertised
How employers hire
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Internal promotion / lateral move
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Internal staff contacts / referrals
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Networking / word of mouth
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Professional organisations
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Recruitment companies
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Advertisements / websites
What is networking?
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Networking is a great way to expand the world you live in
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Formal networking events / continuing education classes / social gatherings
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Prime opportunities to meet new people
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Further relations with those you’d like to know better
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Don’t just “hang out” with familiar people
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Set your intentions and have a workable plan
Rules of good networking
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Be open
Be prepared
Treat everyone as equals
Commit
Be courteous
Circulate
Remember these tips:
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When the conversation lulls, move on:
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“Excuse me, there’s someone I need to meet”
Tell them it was nice to meet them and move on
If you run into someone you have already met and you can’t remember their name, simply
say “hello again, remind me of your name” and remind them of your name
Networking without cringing
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TMAY (Tell Me About Yourself)
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You already have a network – make a list
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E-mails, letters – must follow up
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Keep records
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Two way street – what is in it for them?
Building your network
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Chamber of Commerce
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Fellow CPA students
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Ex work colleagues
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Community groups
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Lecturers, college groups
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Sports memberships
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Friends, friends of friends, neighbours
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Ex clients
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Ex suppliers
Where to look - industries that are growing
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Insurance
Reinsurance
Pharmaceutical
FMCG
Life science
Technology
Online gaming
Green economy, environmental
R&D
Shared service centres with languages
Goals and objectives of networking
People approach networking differently depending on what suits them best
Simple Goal
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Simply introduce yourself to anyone who is standing alone and swap business cards –
relaxed approach
Move on and circulate to someone else on their own
Targeted Goal
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List of delegates beforehand
Identify who you want to introduce yourself to and why
Engage them by being curious about them
Swap business cards – helps you to remember names of who you talked to and where they
were from
Getting organised
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Make a plan
Keep a log book
Contact
Action
Result
Paul Jones , ex colleague
Invited him to link in on 30 March
2010
Follow up on April 7th if no
response
Brian Kelly, CFO of ABC
Wrote email telling him how much
I enjoyed his presentation at
conference with pitch at end of
mail
Call in 2 weeks if heard nothing
Follow up
Most people drop the ball here - this is the most important aspect of networking
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Follow up via email or post out a follow up note within a day or two of the event taking place
OR
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Get connected on LinkedIn and other relevant networking sites
Personalise your ‘offer to connect’ message to them – remind them where you met etc
See who else they know
Ask them to connect you to other people you’re keen to link with
Join Groups on LinkedIn – be selective
Any questions?