This is my personal opinion. Every manager has their way of checking out CVs. And what is he looking for? But I am quite sure that the below points annoy all of us. And since for the last position I have advertised we got 1400+ CVs, this means you’re out.

Basic description of the company you worked for

No, we are not aware of every company in the town, even in the same industry. State in a couple of words what is the core business of the Company you work for. If you are able to be very precise, it is better. If your company is a part of a larger group, let us know. Large companies have different processes and procedures compared to SME’s. Based on what I need I will opt for someone from SME or a large system.

A bit about the organizational structure

To whom did you report, how many colleagues you had in the team. Especially in procurement, I have seen so many different structures. Sometimes procurement is part of operations, sometimes finance. Sometimes an executive report to the GM. Based on this the recruiter can determine the seniority of your current position. As you can see in this post: https://abcofprocurement.com/procurement-positions-and-job-descriptions/

Positions in procurement are not showing the seniority of the position, nor the job description.

What exactly did you buy?

I had recently an interview. The CV stated that the candidate procured building materials. During the interview, we came to know that he was procuring construction steel, cement and blocks. We are, yet, looking for someone who procured wall paint and tiles. Building materials required for the repair and maintenance of buildings in use. All this is, in fact, building material. But not the one we are procuring. So, unfortunately, this was not the profile we needed. And a big disappointment for the candidate.

Your contribution

In junior roles, it is difficult to list achievements and finished projects. We understand this. But we love to hear what was your contribution. Have you been the one doing project administration? Negotiating prices? Or taking care of the deliveries? First of all, it will show that you are a team player. Secondly, we will be able to see where your strength lies. And, remember. Every job in the team is important. No matter how good the Procurement Manager has negotiated the contract, it still needs to be delivered. And the fact that you took care “only” of the delivery reveals that you are responsible and detail-oriented. As, obviously, everything got delivered to your company.

Numbers, numbers, numbers

Procurement is very different between organizations. Some teams deal with a huge volume of small orders. Some the opposite. In some cases, it is easier to handle procurement for a multi-million project than day-to-day operational procurement of a production facility. Share the numbers. But, don’t break the confidentiality policies of your current company. We desperately want to know how many orders you handled monthly. How many items or SKU’s. The number of vendors you had registered. And also refresh your memory before the interview. It will look very confident during the interview.

Systems and software, you have used

Almost every organization uses some kind of ERP or similar software. And teaching someone to use a system takes time. Therefore, if you worked on the same system, it is a big advantage. If you, at least, worked in a similar system, it is still a plus. At least, you are aware of the basic principles of using an ERP.

The same goes for Office 365 package and communication tools. Nobody wants to spend time teaching you to use Google meet or Zoom. Just state shortly what had you used in your daily work. If needed, the recruiter will ask for details.

Do not use abbreviations and industry-specific language

The first contact with your potential employer is usually a member of the HR team. And they have no idea if being an SME in your latest CBS installation project is a good thing for the role he is recruiting. He must as well not know what you mean by the fact that you handled 250 SKU’s and contracted 50 AMC’s per year. So, use the complete word and try to make it understandable. Once you are in discussion with the Subject matter expert you can show that you understand the professional “lingo”.

A couple of years back I wrote a similar post on LinkedIn. And several comments were very negative, pointing out that I am looking only to make my job easier. But it goes both ways. If you are not the person the company is looking for, they will find out during the interview. And then you have wasted time and effort, and feel quite miserable. While actually, it was not even your fault.

Secondly, if you lay out all the facts and the recruiter find that you are matching his initial requirements, your chances to go past the first interview increase significantly. And this is the aim of the CV, isn’t it?