CV mistakes costly for candidates

Simple mistakes on CVs and cover letters are costing candidates the chance of an interview or even employment, according to Accountemps.

The temporary staffing service surveyed more than 300 US senior managers at companies with more than 20 employees. The respondents were asked how many typos in an application it took to decide not to consider a job candidate for a position with their company.

Although it was found that managers are more lenient on mistakes than eight years ago, the results reveal that just one or two mistakes are still enough to throw a CV on the unsuccessful pile.

In 2006, 84 per cent of senior manages said they would turn down a candidate for one or two typos. This reduced to 76 per cent in 2009, before falling to 63 per cent in the latest findings.

Max Messmer, chairman of Accountemps and author of Job Hunting For Dummies, explained that a well-written CV is always going to appeal to recruiters.

"The quick and casual nature of communication today shouldn't extend to the job application process. Job seekers should take great care in crafting, proofreading and submitting their resumes," he said.

"Attention to detail is required for most jobs, and a resume should showcase this skill – not detract from it."

Accountemps shared some common mistakes that they had encountered in recent years including replacing 'fired' with 'fried' and 'break' with 'brake'.

While it important for CVs and cover letters to be crafted nicely and read well, recruitment businesses need to still analyse the skills sets and qualifications of the individual.

If these mistakes can be ironed out, then potentially a high quality candidate can emerge.

One way to analyse CVs is through recruitment software. This software can enable businesses to sort candidates by skills or by qualifications to ensure the perfect person is selected in the role and can contribute long-term.