Creative Ways To List Your Job Skills & Get Your CV Noticed

Your CV is the most important document when it comes to job search, how you have written it will determine whether or not you get the job you want. This means that when drafting your curriculum vitae you have to ensure that you do it in a way that sells your skills well.
Also, with the crowded job market, you need to ensure that your CV will grab the recruiter’s attention and differentiate you from the other candidates in a good way.
According to Muthoni Ndegwa, a recruitment manager at Corporate Staffing, “How you list your skills will determine whether or not a recruiter calls you. You need to ensure that your resume showcases high-quality skills and field experiences.”
The competences and skills section of your curriculum vitae is a very important part of your resume because it is what will determine whether you get an interview or not.

Tips On How To List Your Job Skills

1. Match them to the job description
When writing your skills for the job, ensure that you try as much as possible to match them to the job description. This will help show the employer that you can do the job that they require successfully.
Look for keywords in the job description and include them when writing the skills.
2. Give Details
Don’t just list your skills such as; communication skills, good leadership skills etc. You need to elaborate these skills by showing how the skills you have can be used to perform the duties of the position effectively.
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For example,
Accounting: Skilled in handling general accounting principles such as reconciliations, petty cash management, preparing management accounts, the general ledgers, balancing of accounts among other accounting functions.
Economics: I am highly skilled in all elements of economics for example micro and macro economics, production and consumption.
Financial skills: I have gained substantial knowledge in summarizing financial status by collecting information and preparing statement of financial position, monitoring actual expenditure against the budget.
Auditing: Knowledgeable in statutory audit; verifying the reliability, authenticity and integrity of payment vouchers, schedules and financial data and providing independent assurance to the management on the implementation and effectiveness of the internal control system.
Financial Accounting: Knowledge in analyzing business operations, trends, costs, revenues, financial commitments, and obligations to project future revenues and expenses or to provide advice.
Tax and statutory: Well versed in various taxes (VAT, income tax and withholding) with knowledge in the preparation of statutory payments i.e. (PAYE, NSSF, NHIF) and payroll.
Detail oriented: I value accuracy and ensure every duty I undertake pays close attention to details and captures all the valuable data in terms of cost monitoring and compilation of detailed financial reports
Integrity and Discipline: High levels of integrity demonstrated in my ability to follow instructions from my superiors without question as well as handling financial information with confidentiality.
ICT Competence: Proficient in navigating MS. Office suites, email and internet. Additionally, I am also skilled in using sage pastel and QuickBooks.
3. Quantify your skills
Another great way to show that you are indeed the best candidate for the position is to quantify your skills. Now this cannot be done for each skill but can be a great way to differentiate yourself from the other candidates.
For example, Good Leadership Skills: Coordinated a 10-person team of sales executives which increased the number of clients by 40% in just 6 months.
SEE ALSO >>> 7 Sections That Every CV Must Have
Knowing how to make your CV work in your favor is a great way to better your chances at landing a job. Take time and come up with a good CV that shows you are qualified for the job because that is the only way you can convince a recruiter.
If you feel you need professional help to write a CV that gets you interviews, you can contact cvwriting@corporatestaffing.co.ke.
By Michelle Wanjiku