Careers - Objectives and the Curriculum Vitae

By Lindsay Scott

Arras People receives hundreds of CV's every month from people all across the project management spectrum - from people applying directly for advertised posts or through our registration process. Hundreds of CV's using different styles - layouts sourced from books, friends, the company standard or specialist CV service providers.

What do you think is the most underused and undervalued space on your CV? In a poll of 100 CV's we currently hold on record only 5% use the CV to show a prospective employer what it is they're looking for. The objective also often gets confused with the personal profile so what exactly is it?

The objective is "a statement of what you want to do for an employer", for example:

"Objective: To obtain a challenging project co-ordination position within a public sector organisation which will allow me to continue developing my project management skills, with a long-term aim to progress to the role of Programme or Project Office Manager."

Anything written in the objective must also be clearly backed up in the rest of your CV and this can take the form of a personal profile and then the normal chronological layout of your works experience.

So why do we encourage people to spend time writing their objectives? For a number of reasons; it makes your application stand out from the 100's of others the client may be reviewing, it shows the employer you've taken the time to think about your application and above all else it makes you the most ideal employee on paper!

So what do you need to think about when putting together an objective? Here's a list of some of the do's and don'ts:

• Don't be too general - there wouldn't be much point in including an objective in the first place

• The objective should take into consideration your skills, abilities, aspirations, education and interests

• Write a new objective for each position you apply for - difficult when there's a limited advertised job specification but make the effort

• Remember to tell the employer in your objective exactly what it is that you can do for them

• Be realistic and sensible in your aspirational goals

• Take time to do the objective properly and get friends or family to review it

Lindsay Scott is a Director and Senior Recruitment Consultant at Arras People - The UK's Programme and Project Management Recruitment Specialist. For further information and articles please visit http://www.arraspeople.co.uk


More Resources

How To REALLY Look For A Job
Are you looking for a job -- really looking? Or are you simply waiting for employment to fall into your lap?If you're like about 75% of the job seekers I've met over the past nine years, you're probably doing too much waiting and not enough searching.Stop.
Job Search 101
The whole job search effort is completely exhausting and at times just plain pathetic. It is what it is and if you are unemployed know that the job search experience is one familiar to everyone at some point and time, so don't feel alone.
So You Want A Promotion - What Do You Need To Do To Get the Champagne Corks Popping?
The champagne corks have been popping to celebrate your promotion.You have a well paid job you love - its really interesting.
Salary Negotiation: How To Earn More Money and Respect From Your Employer
Despite how important fair pay is to most of us, effective salary negotiation is an often misunderstood and avoided topic. Current research indicates the average duration of a position today is 3.
Finding Employees For Insurance Industry Jobs
Finding the right employee for any job opening can be a challenge to say the least, and this is no truer than in the insurance industry. With considerations ranging from experience and education to their personal skills, the decisions faced by recruiters and employers can be of critical importance.
Common Résumé Mistakes
Using a general résumé.DON'T DO IT! You cannot successfully use the same résumé to apply to several different jobs.
50 Things To Do To Your Boss That Are Fun For You, But Not For Them
1. You're eavesdropping and you hear your boss has reservations at his favorite restaurant.
How to Work Effectively With Recruiters
"R-E-S-P-E-C-T / find out what it means to me" is a line made famous by Aretha Franklin, and one that recruiters have adopted as their mantra. This is probably because there is a love-hate relationship between candidates and recruiters.
The 4 Job Search Facts You Need To Know!
Are you harboring bitterness or anger towards your current or past employer?Do you find it difficult to be upbeat when interviewing or networking because of past job experiences?Have you spent sleepless nights worrying about how to explain your choppy resume?If you are currently in the job market, you need to dump this baggage fast!Here are 4 key job search facts you need to know:Fact #1:Your past employer is not investing hours in a personal vendetta against you.Fact #2:Employers know that the demise of dot.
Acceptance is the Answer to All Our Problems
Many people today have lost jobs after decades of service; many others suffer within jobs they can see no way out of. In order to survive a painful job loss - indeed, any type of painful loss - we must come to some acceptance.
Job Interviews: Plan Your Appearance to Make a Great First Impression
Your personal appearance is a critical component of that all-important first impression when you walk into the room for your interview.So plan ahead!Some people don't think about what they're going to wear until the morning of the interview.
The 7 Tough Job Interview Questions That Can Make or Break You - and How to Answer Them
Some interview questions are asked so frequently that they've become classics. Practically every interview you go on you'll be answering one or more of these seven interview questions.
In Control - Inside Tips on Interview Success
No, you can't control how the interview will be conducted, nor can you control the outcome. But you can influence it greatly by the way you present your personality and your skills.
Top 10 Skills for New World of Work
There are many changes coming in the world of work, such as increased competition, the need for more education and certifications, and the trend to change careers 5-7 times in a lifetime. No matter what job or career path you decide to take, there are some basic skills that all employers look for.
Job Interviews: Ill File a Grievance!
I recently went to a retirement party with my husband for one of his co-workers. I worked at this same place six years ago (that's where I met my husband, but that's another story), so I knew most of the people at the party.
Can You Actually Fail A Personality Quiz?
Q. I didn't get a job that I interviewed for.
Job Interviews: Six Steps to Acing a Telephone Interview
Telephone interviews are becoming more popular these days. Whether that's good or bad depends on how you handle them!Sometimes telephone interviews are used as a pre-screening technique for all candidates.
Career Success: Get Ahead of the Crowd
Regardless of where you open your briefcase or palm pilot each day - at a large corporation, a small business or the end of your dining room table - the key to staying employable the rest of your life is your own creative action. The person who is going to be successful is not going to succeed just because of good work.
Personal Grooming: 8 Top Reasons Why You Can't Take It For Granted In Your Career
Most people when they landed "the dream job" after an interview or even got "the deal" of the lifetime in their businesses, sadly to say tend to slack on their grooming habits and it even goes to the point that they are wearing their pajamas going to the office. It seems that's very extreme but it happens.
Multiple Skills for the 21st Century
(excerpted from The Weekend Seminar - Skills for the 21st Century 1999 Version)I find it's important to not walk into the 21st Century without multiple skills. But what I also find is that if you are already in sales, network marketing or have an entrepreneurial business (or plan to in the future), you can gain the needed skills for the future while you create your income now.

More Careers & Employment Information:

Related Articles

How To REALLY Look For A Job
Are you looking for a job -- really looking? Or are you simply waiting for employment to fall into your lap?If you're like about 75% of the job seekers I've met over the past nine years, you're probably doing too much waiting and not enough searching.Stop.
Job Search 101
The whole job search effort is completely exhausting and at times just plain pathetic. It is what it is and if you are unemployed know that the job search experience is one familiar to everyone at some point and time, so don't feel alone.
So You Want A Promotion - What Do You Need To Do To Get the Champagne Corks Popping?
The champagne corks have been popping to celebrate your promotion.You have a well paid job you love - its really interesting.
Salary Negotiation: How To Earn More Money and Respect From Your Employer
Despite how important fair pay is to most of us, effective salary negotiation is an often misunderstood and avoided topic. Current research indicates the average duration of a position today is 3.
Finding Employees For Insurance Industry Jobs
Finding the right employee for any job opening can be a challenge to say the least, and this is no truer than in the insurance industry. With considerations ranging from experience and education to their personal skills, the decisions faced by recruiters and employers can be of critical importance.
Common Résumé Mistakes
Using a general résumé.DON'T DO IT! You cannot successfully use the same résumé to apply to several different jobs.
50 Things To Do To Your Boss That Are Fun For You, But Not For Them
1. You're eavesdropping and you hear your boss has reservations at his favorite restaurant.
How to Work Effectively With Recruiters
"R-E-S-P-E-C-T / find out what it means to me" is a line made famous by Aretha Franklin, and one that recruiters have adopted as their mantra. This is probably because there is a love-hate relationship between candidates and recruiters.
The 4 Job Search Facts You Need To Know!
Are you harboring bitterness or anger towards your current or past employer?Do you find it difficult to be upbeat when interviewing or networking because of past job experiences?Have you spent sleepless nights worrying about how to explain your choppy resume?If you are currently in the job market, you need to dump this baggage fast!Here are 4 key job search facts you need to know:Fact #1:Your past employer is not investing hours in a personal vendetta against you.Fact #2:Employers know that the demise of dot.
Acceptance is the Answer to All Our Problems
Many people today have lost jobs after decades of service; many others suffer within jobs they can see no way out of. In order to survive a painful job loss - indeed, any type of painful loss - we must come to some acceptance.
Job Interviews: Plan Your Appearance to Make a Great First Impression
Your personal appearance is a critical component of that all-important first impression when you walk into the room for your interview.So plan ahead!Some people don't think about what they're going to wear until the morning of the interview.
The 7 Tough Job Interview Questions That Can Make or Break You - and How to Answer Them
Some interview questions are asked so frequently that they've become classics. Practically every interview you go on you'll be answering one or more of these seven interview questions.
In Control - Inside Tips on Interview Success
No, you can't control how the interview will be conducted, nor can you control the outcome. But you can influence it greatly by the way you present your personality and your skills.
Top 10 Skills for New World of Work
There are many changes coming in the world of work, such as increased competition, the need for more education and certifications, and the trend to change careers 5-7 times in a lifetime. No matter what job or career path you decide to take, there are some basic skills that all employers look for.
Job Interviews: Ill File a Grievance!
I recently went to a retirement party with my husband for one of his co-workers. I worked at this same place six years ago (that's where I met my husband, but that's another story), so I knew most of the people at the party.
Can You Actually Fail A Personality Quiz?
Q. I didn't get a job that I interviewed for.
Job Interviews: Six Steps to Acing a Telephone Interview
Telephone interviews are becoming more popular these days. Whether that's good or bad depends on how you handle them!Sometimes telephone interviews are used as a pre-screening technique for all candidates.
Career Success: Get Ahead of the Crowd
Regardless of where you open your briefcase or palm pilot each day - at a large corporation, a small business or the end of your dining room table - the key to staying employable the rest of your life is your own creative action. The person who is going to be successful is not going to succeed just because of good work.
Personal Grooming: 8 Top Reasons Why You Can't Take It For Granted In Your Career
Most people when they landed "the dream job" after an interview or even got "the deal" of the lifetime in their businesses, sadly to say tend to slack on their grooming habits and it even goes to the point that they are wearing their pajamas going to the office. It seems that's very extreme but it happens.
Multiple Skills for the 21st Century
(excerpted from The Weekend Seminar - Skills for the 21st Century 1999 Version)I find it's important to not walk into the 21st Century without multiple skills. But what I also find is that if you are already in sales, network marketing or have an entrepreneurial business (or plan to in the future), you can gain the needed skills for the future while you create your income now.