Your CV Is Not a Job Description
Your CV Is Not a Job Description
One of the biggest mistakes candidates make?
Treating their CV like a list of responsibilities.
Most CVs tell hiring managers what someone was supposed to do.
Very few tell them what they actually achieved.
Hiring Managers Buy Outcomes
Imagine two CVs:
Candidate A
- Managed enterprise accounts
- Ran product demos
- Worked cross-functionally with marketing
- Generated pipeline opportunities
Candidate B
- Closed £1.2m ARR across 14 enterprise customers
- Maintained 118% quota attainment over 3 years
- Increased win rates from 22% to 34%
- Generated 45% of pipeline through outbound prospecting
Who gets the interview?
The second candidate every time.
Numbers Create Credibility
Metrics instantly make your experience more tangible.
Examples include:
- Quota attainment
- Revenue generated
- Deal sizes
- Sales cycles
- Customer retention
- Team growth
- Project impact
- Cost savings
You don't need a CV full of numbers.
But every role should have evidence of impact.
Context Matters
A common mistake is sharing numbers without context.
For example:
"Closed £500k ARR."
Is that impressive?
Maybe.
Now compare it to:
"Closed £500k ARR against a £350k annual target, finishing as the #2 AE out of 18."
Much stronger.
The more context you provide, the easier it is for hiring managers to understand your performance.
Make It Easy For The Reader
Recruiters often spend less than 30 seconds on an initial CV review.
If they have to search for your achievements, you've already created friction.
Your strongest accomplishments should be immediately visible.
Think:
- Clear bullet points
- Quantifiable outcomes
- Promotions and progression
- Awards and rankings
- Notable projects
Your CV Is a Marketing Document
Many candidates think their CV should document everything they've ever done.
It shouldn't.
Your CV has one job:
Get you to the next conversation.
Every line should help build the case for why you're worth interviewing.
At GroTech Search, one of the quickest ways we help candidates improve their interview conversion rates is by focusing less on responsibilities and more on outcomes.
The best CVs don't tell us what you did.
They show us the difference you made.
