Executive Job Seekers: Creating an Impactful CV

Looking to refresh your CV for your next leadership move? In this Cultivate-hosted webinar, Tony Pownall and Craig Malcolm from Cultivate Executive Search share real-world advice on what makes a CV stand out at the senior level - including structure, tone, language, and strategy.

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Whether you're actively job-seeking or just want to be ready for the right opportunity, this session is ideal for executives, senior professionals, or anyone needing to articulate a broad career in a clear and compelling way.

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You’ll walk away with practical, honest insights on:

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• Structuring a strong CV
• Crafting your professional summary
• Using AI without losing your voice
• Avoiding common mistakes that weaken your impact
• Navigating career gaps and contract work
  
  
  

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A summary of the key content includes:

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CV Structure and Content

• Focus in detail on the last five years of experience; earlier roles can be summarised.

• Use a consistent format for each role: context, scope, and key achievements.

• Keep it to two or three pages with plenty of white space and a clean layout.

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Professional Summary

• Include a short introduction (three to five lines) at the top of your CV that captures who you are and what you bring.

• Especially helpful if returning from a break, changing industries, or repositioning.

• Avoid generic phrases like "results-driven team player" and instead be specific and clear.

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Tone, Style and Clarity

• Use plain language that sounds like you, professionally.

• Remove filler and empty statements unless you can support them with examples.

• Clarity and readability are more effective than complex wording.

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Using AI Wisely

• AI can help refine or reword your CV but should not replace your voice.

• Always start with your own draft to ensure accuracy and authenticity.

• Be cautious of overly generic or robotic outputs from AI tools.

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Achievements Over Duties

• Focus on the impact you delivered, not just the tasks you were responsible for.

• Use action-driven bullet points that start with strong verbs like led, delivered, increased, or improved.

• Quantify achievements where possible, such as "Reduced costs by 18%" or "Managed a $5M portfolio."

• Include three to five relevant achievements for each recent role, aligned with your target job.

• Highlight the scale or scope of your work, including team size, budget, or reach.

• Keep each point concise and avoid repeating similar examples across roles.

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Gaps and Contracting

• Briefly explain any career gaps to maintain timeline clarity.

• For contract roles, highlight results and repeated work with clients or agencies.

• Be consistent in how you present contracts, especially if you’ve worked through one provider.

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Show Personality

• Add a short "Interests" or "Personal" section to give a sense of who you are outside of work.