Curriculum Vitae Vs Profiles – Is the Curriculum Vitae (CV) on its way OUT and Profile on its way IN?
A Curriculum Vitae or CV is a personal document prepared to present yourself in the job market for a job opportunity. It has had its prominence in every industry and has been the primary tool used by every Human Resources Manager/Recruiter to shortlist a potential candidate.
But how effective is the CV today? Does it hold a lot of weightage especially if it’s not the first job you are applying for? Before we discuss Curriculum Vitae Vs Profiles let us review each document individually-
A. The Curriculum Vitae (CV)
Here’s what a typical Curriculum Vitae (CV) would enlist:
1. Personal Details
Customary on the top of the CV page you will find mention of the Candidates name, his/her address and his/her contact details including a telephone number and an email address.
2. Personal Profile
Below the personal details, is a short paragraph of oneself and one’s career goals. It mostly highlights how best the candidate can handle the said job.
3. Work Experience
Work experience is the employment history. It starts with a mention of the current job held or the most recent job held and goes down to list every previous job till the first. It describes the company name, position held, responsibilities, period, achievements, etc. Though in India, a lot of CV’s do contain information from the very first job, this could be irrelevant after about 10 years of work experience.
4. Educational Qualification
Almost like work experience, your educational background encompasses every degree from school to post-graduation. It contains the name of the institution, year of passing, name of the degree and the marks/grades earned at every level. It could also contain any certificate courses or additional projects undertaken.
5. Other information
This section can contain information about the family, marital status, interests, expertise, accolades in sports, etc which is not primary to the job you are applying for.
6. References
Some people do include 2-3 references for a potential employer to know more about the candidate.
So, this is how a CV would look on the basis of the above-mentioned standard format.
In a country like India, where the number of applicants far exceeds any job vacancy, the best Curriculum Vitae (CV) may just about guarantee an interview call. Sometimes not even that if a candidate with strong recommendations finds his way for the job before you. So how do you expect an HR manager to skim through 100’s of CVs for the best candidate? Or does the automated method of sifting through Curriculum Vitae ensure the best pick?
So, next let’s take a look at a profile now to better understand Curriculum Vitae v/s Profiles.
B. The Profile
Many applicants today, for mid-managerial positions and above are now turning to a smart Profile/Summary instead of the old-fashioned CV. The profile is extremely specific to the job one is applying for and how he/she can bring additional value to it. It highlights skill sets more than the educational qualifications. Here’s what a typical Profile would enlist:
i. Now
Now, I am in the position to take on complete responsibility for the job with my knowledge and skill
ii. How
This is How I will add further value to the job over the next three years
Today, in a fast-paced environment, thinking long term may not endure for any organization. It might be more interesting to know of a short-term strategy and immediate assured results.
So, is it time to replace the old curriculum vitae with a more dynamic document termed as ‘Profile’ or ‘Present Profile’?
Attached below is a sample Curriculum Vitae (CV) and also a sample Profile. Upon reviewing, both and understanding the finer unique and differentiating points, it may be easier to compare and draw upon
Curriculum Vitae Vs Profiles.
So, time to question, will the CV continue to survive or will it soon be obsolete? Dynamic changes are being introduced in every workplace. There is also a new breed of freelancers who look for opportunities project-wise or time-wise. As an employer you want to be sure the ability mentioned is sufficient and straight forward to deliver what is required.
Do give it thought and share with us your viewpoint on – Curriculum Vitae v/s Profiles: Is the Curriculum Vitae (CV) on its way OUT and Profile on its way IN?
Sample A: Sample CV of Kartik Subbiah for comparison Curriculum Vitae v/s Profiles
CV
Sample B: Karthik Subbiah, a young freelancer, who also now shares his Profile in place of the CVs to land new projects
Freelance Digital Marketing Specialist and web designer for start-ups and local businesses
PROFILE
I am Karthik Subbiah. A BBM graduate from SIES, MUMBAI UNIVERSITY batch of 2016. After majoring in Marketing at SIES, I further trained and received a Digital Marketing Diploma from Digital Marketing Training Institute (DMTI), Mumbai.
My strength lies in providing SEO Consultancy and Web design services for start-ups and local businesses.
As a Digital Marketing specialist, over the last three years, I have worked on the various aspects of digital marketing in the areas of integrated digital marketing campaigns, content creation, increasing application downloads, enhancing the value proposition and other new services in pursuit of customer excellence.
I started my career at Hemisphere Technologies, Mumbai which is a start-up company promoting a Social App (Unifie). I handled their digital marketing, wherein paid advertising led to more than 435K+ downloads.
I now work from, India, as a freelance website designer and as a freelance digital marketing consultant creating websites and providing digital marketing, branding and advertising for your product/service/brand anywhere in the world.
As a Digital Marketing Strategist, one of my leading projects includes http://goodearthstaging.com/. For Good Earth Staging LLC, San Francisco, USA, I provide outreach to various online outlets, monitor campaign statistics and analyse data. This start-up within a short span of two years, now enjoys a high ranking on Google for most of its key words. Not only that, it has led to a much higher reach, providing the company with a large number of staging opportunities that helped carve a path towards humongous growth in their revenues. For more information on various projects that I have handled, you may reach out to me and we can discuss further on how I can contribute towards your digital requirements.
My style is creative and unique. My vision and consistent efforts in organic marketing facilitate my customers to reach a larger target audience successfully without spending large amounts on paid advertising. I believe my digital marketing skills can help to deliver long term results for continued return on investment of my clients. As a team player, having led many successful digital marketing campaigns incorporating bloggers’ social media and online advertising, I have been instrumental in creating recognizable brand imaging with the kind of concrete numbers companies strive for.
I am currently available to take up a few more projects as a freelancer and as a consultant for rising start-ups. If you are looking to begin your business with my proven ability at a competitive price, I can lead the way. I also work as a business improvement specialist to bolster small business on its path to growth through digital strategies. I guarantee transformational results for any business, irrelevant of the industry.
Kartik Subbiah:
Email: Karthiiks12(at)gmail(dot)com