Guide to Writing a CV in CSL Format
We will always seek permission from you before your CV is used in support of any particular bid and in agreement we will retain your CV details on our database. As you will appreciate, however, it helps our clients when a CV submitted by our company is in the house style that they recognise. It is also easier for us to pinpoint information in a CV. With these points in mind, but also with the aim of being able to prepare bids rapidly, every CV is reconfigured in advance into a standard CSL format.
Writing a CV is an important task that requires a great deal of time and effort, but sometimes we have to ask a consultant to produce a CV at short notice.
To help you, we've provided you with a guide to writing your CV and a CV template in CSL format.
Before you begin, you need to have a clear idea of what you are aiming for. It may have been several years since you last wrote out your CV, so make a few notes about your strengths and weaknesses, areas you excelled in during your current or previous position, your ideal working environment, your mid to long term professional goals etc.
We will be looking at your CV to find out what your skills and experience are, that you have good interpersonal and communication skills and the competence and confidence to adapt to the job. These are the attributes you need to put across when writing your CV.
It's amazing how many times we talk to consultants that have the skills and experience that we seek but have not mentioned them on their CV. Do not be concerned if your CV is longer than two or three pages. If you have a lot of experience, please try to put all the relevant information in your CV.
For a CV template in CSL format click here
Specific details required for your CV would include:
1. First Name, Middle Name, Last Name
2. Professional Qualifications
E.g. BSc (Eng), C Eng, MIEE
3. CV Summary
The CV summary should make an immediate impact. It should comprise a brief but descriptive profile backed up by key features of your professional experience, outlining your key skills and selling points. Ideally this should be punchy, precise and no more than three (15-word) sentences.
4. Professional Designation
E.g. a project manager
5. Track Record and Experience
List all previous experience in reverse chronological order. Include your job title, the name of the company and start and end dates. This should be followed by a brief description of the company and of the position held and bullet points outlining your responsibilities and achievements; for example:
- Specific tasks which were required directly by the business, etc.
- Where your role influenced business decisions, direction, etc.
- Examples which showed your personal initiative, self-starter aptitude, etc.
- Tasks which involved team management, motivation, etc.
- Further responsibilities, etc. …
- Successful projects you directed and their direct impact to the business, etc.
- Initiatives you implemented, etc.
- Direct improvements to the business achieved by you, etc.
- Further achievements, etc. …
Please include the names of any specific large projects you have been involved with and any relevant processes and methodologies you have used to achieve your objectives.
6. Personal Profile
Included at the end of the CV is a brief personal summary of details such as nationality, date of birth, professional qualifications and any relevant courses or diplomas, computer skills, languages, professional memberships and personal interests.
When sending your CV to CSL:
- Preferably email your CV to us. If you cannot email it to us then either fax it or post it to us (see our contact details for our fax number and address)
- Please refrain from inserting text boxes as the software for our database can not read information that is not part of the original word document
- Please refrain from placing any passwords or restricted access on you file as this will result in your CV being returned to you to be unlocked
- Before emailing a CV to us, please think about the name and format used. Some of the CVs we receive by email are named "cv.doc", which does not help us if we are receiving a regular number of CVs each week. The naming format we currently use is CSLCV <Your Initials> <Month Year>.doc. So for John Doe sending us his CV in CSL format in July 2004 would help us by naming the CV CSLCVJD0704.doc
- We can only open and process files formatted as MS Word, applications in other formats will be returned as are unable to read them
- Although there are a wide variety of fonts available in MS Word, all our documents are produced in Ariel. We would prefer your CV in this format but please do not feel you are obligated to do so
Thank you for your co-operation with these requirements.
What Happens Next?
If we feel your qualifications and experience are suited to our main areas of consultancy work, we would either contact you or ask you to contact us to arrange a convenient appointment for an induction interview at our offices in Stroud. See Induction Interview Advice, for further detail.
After your induction interview, if you agree, your CV will be added to our database and checked against current requirements to see if there is anything suited to your skills and experience and if there is then we will contact you directly. If you do not hear from us then we do not currently have a suitable requirement, someone will contact you should something suitable arise.
N.B. Submission of your CV does not guarantee that we will be able to find you a job as we are not an agency.
When you send your CV and any other information about you, we take this as confirmation from you that it is accurate and not misleading. We also take this as confirmation that you wish your details to be submitted to potential clients. Please ensure to let us know if you do not want your details sent to specific companies. If you become aware of any errors we make in processing any information relating to you, please let us know straight away and we will put it right. You can and should update us regularly on the content of your CV and other personal information. We will not use your personal information for direct marketing purposes. Feel free to let us know at any time if you no longer wish us to use your CV and personal information.