CV Advice In Kenya: 5 Winning Ways To Write A CV Recruiters Shortlist
Recruiters decide fast. A 2012 eye-tracking study by TheLadders found professional recruiters spent about six seconds on their first fit-or-no-fit decision. The study covered 30 recruiters, but Kenyan adverts often draw large numbers of applications, so expect the same quick first look. Good CV advice in Kenya starts here. Put your job title, your results and your dates in the top half of page one, where a recruiter looks first.
With over a decade in recruitment, I have firsthand experience with what recruiters in Kenya look for. Sometimes we get a lot of questions from candidates who are confused about what CV advice in Kenya they should follow. How they should format their CVs and, most importantly, how they can get noticed and finally stand out, especially when the competition is brutal. Here is a blueprint of the Dos and Don’ts when it comes to an interview-winning CV.
- What should a Kenyan CV include?
This is something many candidates struggle with. They either do too much or not enough. Start with your name, phone number, email address and town. Add a two-line profile with your job title, years of experience and one result.
Then list your work history, education and your skills. Leave out your ID number, marital status and photo. They add length and no value. Use a professional email address with your own name, not a nickname. So emails like ‘KingJoe1994’ are highly discouraged.
2. How long should a CV be in Kenya?
Most candidates use two pages as their default CV length. Graduates and people with under three years of experience should use one page. Managers with long careers should still stop at two. Cut roles older than fifteen years to a single line each.
A short, clean CV keeps a recruiter reading. One thing people forget is that it only takes six seconds to make an impression; make it count.
3. How do you write CV achievements recruiters notice?
Give each job results, not duties. Write what you did, the number and the time frame. For example, “Cut invoice processing time from five days to two by moving approvals to email.” Or “Grew monthly sales from KES 800,000 to KES 1.2 million in one year.”
Numbers tend to make a recruiter slow down. If you have no figures to back you up, use team size, number of clients or branches covered. Delete the phrase “responsible for” from your CV today. This is more common with AI CVs, which is highly discouraged if you want to stand out.
4. How do you tailor your CV to each job?
Open the advert and underline the main requirements. Check that your CV shows each one in plain words. Use the same job title and skill names the employer uses. If the advert asks for “stakeholder engagement” and your CV says “meeting people,” change it.
Employers have changed how they shortlist, and our guide on how employer shortlisting has changed explains what to expect. Send a PDF unless the employer asks for Word. Name the file with your name, such as Jane Wanjiru CV.pdf.
5. What CV mistakes cost you interviews?
Most rejected CVs share four problems. They list duties. They use one version for all roles. They hide results on page two. They carry typos in the first paragraph. Fix these four and your CV already beats many applications.
Where to get professional CV advice in Kenya
But if none of the CV advice in Kenya has worked for you, let us take a look. We offer a free CV review. Experienced professionals and managers who upgrade their CV with us also get three months of job search support from a recruitment account manager.
Email your CV to us today to get an interview-winning CV and give yourself a chance to stand out. You will finally have a CV that will open the doors and get you the shortlist you have been yearning for.