To write a professional yet interesting and informative SAP CV or resume is not easy!
Do you find writing your CV dull, boring and even frustrating? Have you been turned down by companies because your CV was "not good enough"? Maybe you have not even passed the agency checking stage? Agents tend to screen CV's using keyword checking software but clients read them - how to create a balance that gets you past the agent but keeps you interesting to the client?
When you start writing your introduction, it is important to catch your future employers attention - you might not have more than a few seconds to be able to do this, so make it work!
As you may know, you never get a second chance to make a great first impression and often you never get a second chance with the same hiring manager or even agent!
I hope that this article will help you on the way to a great CV/Resume.
When you start writing your introduction, it is important to catch your future employers attention - you might not have more than a few seconds to be able to do this, so make it work!
As you may know, you never get a second chance to make a great first impression and often you never get a second chance with the same hiring manager or even agent!
I hope that this article will help you on the way to a great CV/Resume.
Important things to think about when you write a SAP CV/Resume
Simply put, an SAP CV is supposed to document what work you have actually done in an SAP project, you would think this would be easy, except for one small problem!
Problem:
When writing a CV you need to think about the audience you will be aiming the resume to, this is the solution we suggest to all members of www.ConsultantBox.com which is the SAP dedicated reputation building site.
Who will actually read it?
There are two separate audiences both with special needs which you will need to consider if you are going to get the job.
1. The client - knows (ideally) what kind of skills and/or person they need on their project and can take your CV, read and understand it - they need the facts but do not have time to read every gory detail such as "executed P_563 procedure"
2. The agency - it is vital to remember that agents are not SAP experts and usually use a keyword checking tool to locate your CV among the thousand on the database, they have a specific job spec from their client and will use those details to locate consultants from the database - so if a client ask for experience in "execution of P_563" and it is not listed on your CV you will never be seen for the role. It is also important to understand that many agents will never read your CV and will instead scan through your CV for the selected keywords and then pick up the phone - this is why agents call so often for jobs which are unsuitable. The agent may have "phone time" goals where they have to be actively on the phone a certain amount of time each day in order to get paid.
Solution:
1. You will need to write a CV which an agent can understand quickly and easily. Don't try to complicate it as if you do, you will loose out on possible work.
2. The CV should consider both parties and deliver all the information a client will be looking for at the top of the CV and all the information required by an agent at the bottom - as keyword checks are like agents in that they make no distinction if the information is at the top or the bottom of the page.
3. The CV should be written well, but be aware that some more novice agents will not read further than "SAP" before they give you a call.
Make a note of them as they are not the ones you want to keep sending your CV to.
However, there are agents who does get it right and finds the matching candidate for the job and a contract is drawn up. Sometimes you can be unlucky as by the time your CV arrives, the client has either changed his/her mind about the requirement or they have filled it internally. Yes, this does happen - a lot!
So, how do you format a CV that deals with most of these issues?
1. First list your Name, Nationality, any work Visa's held and Position Sought, under these you will need to write a fairly short summary that explains, in simple terms (for the agents) what you actually do in an SAP project and for the clients what you are looking for in your next role.
2. Following the summary, you should list your Project Details, including the Dates (from and to), Client (or industry if you prefer) and your Position (or Role).
This is where you write all the technical details which your future clients read to get a better understanding of your skill set and experience. Always list your latest job first on the CV - the higher up the CV the better chance there is of it actually being read - when writing this list ensure that your actual work history is demonstrated clearly, emphasise the work you were actually involved in.
3. Many times consultants leave the name or contact details of their references on their CV - Do not do it!! Agents who find them and will contact them and not to check your references but to pester them for recruiting work - all of a sudden, if this happens you can imagine the reference you will get from a former admirer who has had 100 phone calls from agents because of you!. Simply make a note - "references are available on request"
4. Below your Project Details, add your education - including your SAP courses, these should be listed including the course number as well as a one line brief summary - this simplifies word searches on your CV. Please also add any university degrees, professional qualifications etc as this makes it easier for the client to arrange any visa applications for travel etc. Remember this is where a lot of keyword searching will happen.
5. Language knowledge is becoming more and more important in this day and age - add your language skills, including your level of written and oral experience, be objective when describing your skills - if you can understand but not write a language state that.
6. Before sending your CV to an agent ask for confirmation that your CV will not be sent or used without your prior written permission, if a CV turns up twice on a hiring managers desk from two agents that CV will usually be binned to avoid problems with "agent fights" later.
7. Send a covering email to the agent explaining what you do within SAP. When it comes to sending your CV to agencies, make sure that the agencies you are using, are indeed SAP specialists and always request to know where your CV is being sent to. This stops any duplications of your CV arriving on a clients desk. Should it happen, you tend to end up being ignored by the client as it is too much hassle to find out which agent he should use to contact you for an interview. It is easier to take a look at the next candidate which is only represented once by one agent.
Normally, once you have discussed the role with the agent and agreed to be represented by the agent, you should be given the name of the client - after they have your CV, but before it is sent over to the client in question.
8. Finally, make sure your CV is correct at all times. Do not add or take away projects or positions - there will always be a way of finding out the truth and any 'mistakes' can invalidate any contract.
I hope this will help you in arriving quickly and safely at a new SAP project or SAP job. This is not a complete list so if you know of something else that would help, then please add your comment.
Problem:
When writing a CV you need to think about the audience you will be aiming the resume to, this is the solution we suggest to all members of www.ConsultantBox.com which is the SAP dedicated reputation building site.
Who will actually read it?
There are two separate audiences both with special needs which you will need to consider if you are going to get the job.
1. The client - knows (ideally) what kind of skills and/or person they need on their project and can take your CV, read and understand it - they need the facts but do not have time to read every gory detail such as "executed P_563 procedure"
2. The agency - it is vital to remember that agents are not SAP experts and usually use a keyword checking tool to locate your CV among the thousand on the database, they have a specific job spec from their client and will use those details to locate consultants from the database - so if a client ask for experience in "execution of P_563" and it is not listed on your CV you will never be seen for the role. It is also important to understand that many agents will never read your CV and will instead scan through your CV for the selected keywords and then pick up the phone - this is why agents call so often for jobs which are unsuitable. The agent may have "phone time" goals where they have to be actively on the phone a certain amount of time each day in order to get paid.
Solution:
1. You will need to write a CV which an agent can understand quickly and easily. Don't try to complicate it as if you do, you will loose out on possible work.
2. The CV should consider both parties and deliver all the information a client will be looking for at the top of the CV and all the information required by an agent at the bottom - as keyword checks are like agents in that they make no distinction if the information is at the top or the bottom of the page.
3. The CV should be written well, but be aware that some more novice agents will not read further than "SAP" before they give you a call.
Make a note of them as they are not the ones you want to keep sending your CV to.
However, there are agents who does get it right and finds the matching candidate for the job and a contract is drawn up. Sometimes you can be unlucky as by the time your CV arrives, the client has either changed his/her mind about the requirement or they have filled it internally. Yes, this does happen - a lot!
So, how do you format a CV that deals with most of these issues?
1. First list your Name, Nationality, any work Visa's held and Position Sought, under these you will need to write a fairly short summary that explains, in simple terms (for the agents) what you actually do in an SAP project and for the clients what you are looking for in your next role.
2. Following the summary, you should list your Project Details, including the Dates (from and to), Client (or industry if you prefer) and your Position (or Role).
This is where you write all the technical details which your future clients read to get a better understanding of your skill set and experience. Always list your latest job first on the CV - the higher up the CV the better chance there is of it actually being read - when writing this list ensure that your actual work history is demonstrated clearly, emphasise the work you were actually involved in.
3. Many times consultants leave the name or contact details of their references on their CV - Do not do it!! Agents who find them and will contact them and not to check your references but to pester them for recruiting work - all of a sudden, if this happens you can imagine the reference you will get from a former admirer who has had 100 phone calls from agents because of you!. Simply make a note - "references are available on request"
4. Below your Project Details, add your education - including your SAP courses, these should be listed including the course number as well as a one line brief summary - this simplifies word searches on your CV. Please also add any university degrees, professional qualifications etc as this makes it easier for the client to arrange any visa applications for travel etc. Remember this is where a lot of keyword searching will happen.
5. Language knowledge is becoming more and more important in this day and age - add your language skills, including your level of written and oral experience, be objective when describing your skills - if you can understand but not write a language state that.
6. Before sending your CV to an agent ask for confirmation that your CV will not be sent or used without your prior written permission, if a CV turns up twice on a hiring managers desk from two agents that CV will usually be binned to avoid problems with "agent fights" later.
7. Send a covering email to the agent explaining what you do within SAP. When it comes to sending your CV to agencies, make sure that the agencies you are using, are indeed SAP specialists and always request to know where your CV is being sent to. This stops any duplications of your CV arriving on a clients desk. Should it happen, you tend to end up being ignored by the client as it is too much hassle to find out which agent he should use to contact you for an interview. It is easier to take a look at the next candidate which is only represented once by one agent.
Normally, once you have discussed the role with the agent and agreed to be represented by the agent, you should be given the name of the client - after they have your CV, but before it is sent over to the client in question.
8. Finally, make sure your CV is correct at all times. Do not add or take away projects or positions - there will always be a way of finding out the truth and any 'mistakes' can invalidate any contract.
I hope this will help you in arriving quickly and safely at a new SAP project or SAP job. This is not a complete list so if you know of something else that would help, then please add your comment.
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