Your CV is too generic

Employers hire for this job, not any job. A Brand Manager role values brand strategy and campaigns, a Digital Marketing role values SEO and analytics, and a Marketing Operations role values CRM and reporting. A CV that weights them all equally matches none of them strongly.

Fix: Keep a strong master CV, then tailor the summary, key skills, top achievements and terminology for each application.

Your professional summary does not sell your experience

Many summaries are wasted on personality words. A good professional summary answers three questions: who are you, what are you good at, and what value do you bring?

Fix: Write two or three lines that name your role, your strongest skills and one proof point, in that order.

You list responsibilities instead of achievements

Responsibilities say what you were expected to do. Achievements show how well you did it. Recruiters want results they can picture.

Fix: Ask what you improved, increased, reduced, saved or delivered, and how big the team, budget or project was.

Your CV is not using the right keywords

You may have the right experience but describe it too vaguely. Compare the two lines below. Do not stuff keywords or copy the job description; make your genuine experience easy to identify.

Fix: Reuse the exact job title and tools from the advert wherever they truly describe your work.

Your CV is too long or too short

There is no universal two-page rule. What matters is relevance. The comparison below shows how each extreme goes wrong.

Fix: Give recent, relevant roles the most space and trim anything that does not support the job you want.

Your CV is full of generic buzzwords

Words like “dynamic”, “passionate” and “results driven” appear on thousands of CVs. Evidence is more persuasive than adjectives.

Fix: Replace each buzzword with a fact, a number or a named project that proves it.

Your career history is difficult to follow

For each role show the job title, company, location and dates, then the most relevant achievements. Industry changes, contract work and short roles are fine when the CV explains them clearly.

Fix: Use one consistent format for every role and add a one-line note to explain any gap or pivot.

Your CV does not match your seniority

The right emphasis depends on where you are in your career. If you apply for a senior role with a list of basic duties, you are underselling yourself.

Your CV is difficult to read

Recruiters may review hundreds of applications. Avoid graphics, charts, icons, text boxes and unusual fonts. Use a clear order, shown in the diagram below.

Fix: Use a single column, a standard font and the section order in the diagram.

You are too close to your own CV

You know your career, so your CV feels clear to you. A recruiter sees it for the first time. Ask someone outside your field what kind of professional you seem to be, what your strongest skills are, and what role they would hire you for.

Fix: If their answers differ from your goal, rewrite the summary and top achievements.