HOW ARE COVER LETTERS DIFFERENT FROM CVS?

Your CV is designed to contain the most impacting facts about your job history, responsibilities, skills, qualifications and achievements, and these generally do not change significantly. We never advise targeting CVs to specific roles – this is where the all-important cover letter comes in. The letter should focus specifically on the job you are applying for and will point out as closely as possible how you match their requirements. It is targeted more to your present and future objectives, whereas your CV represents previous roles and accomplishments. 

Very often the letter will be the first information that an employer or recruiter reads about you, so it is important to take the same professional approach and make the same strong impression that your CV offers. If your letter is full of grammatical and spelling errors, the employer may not even choose to read your fabulous newly prepared professional CV.

Both documents have the common purpose of proving that you have the right skills, knowledge, aptitude and attitude to excel at the job you are applying for. But there are clear distinctions between both the structure and intent of the two documents. Job hunters should be aware that their cover letter and CV are complementary, but unique documents.

Your cover letter should be more than just a repeat of the information in your CV. It should almost never be more than 1 page, and along with showing employers how you closely meet their requirements, gives more insight into your character, values, motivations and interests than your CV delivers. The letter is more appropriate for conveying why you are interested in a specific role or company, how your values motivate you to pursue a job, or why the culture of the company particularly appeals to you.

One of the main differences between your cover letter and CV is the amount of details contained in each document. The letter is less detailed and more targeted. For instance, your CV will most likely state that you work well in the team environment. The job advertisement for a role you are interested in states that this is a requirement, so on the letter, you give an example of how you work well with teams – “I was a key member of a team that delivered a mission critical project before the deadline, and we were all rewarded with a bonus”. Showing employers ways in which you meet what they are looking for, and how other employers found you were a valuable employee, is a very powerful way to get their attention and be invited in for interview. 

We advise all our clients not to undervalue the impact that a professionally prepared cover letter can have in the recruitment process. What about sending your CV with an email? Sometimes advertisements provide a contact person’s name and recommend sending your CV to that person – this is when you can compose a short and to-the-point email (1 paragraph) to introduce yourself and state that you are applying for the role and confident that you meet their requirements.

WHAT ARE TRANSFERRABLE SKILLS AND WHY ARE THEY SO IMPORTANT?

There are a lot of catch phrases that are often used in today’s CVs and Resumes, such as ‘team player’, ‘excellent communicator’ and one that pops up often but on face value doesn’t mean much, ‘transferrable skills’. What are these exactly and why are they so important in securing a new role?

In a nutshell, everybody has transferrable skills and they don’t just apply to work. They are skills and abilities developed across a lifetime from your experiences – play, study, hobbies and interests, volunteer activities, travel and general life skills. All of these abilities come with you into your job and play an important role in your ability to manage different situations that arise during the work-day. Some examples include:

Communicating, listening, reasoning and sharing ideas and thoughts

Interpersonal relationship management, working well with other people and managing interactions with people from different backgrounds and with different communication styles

Literacy and numeracy, being able to read, write, measure, count, process and understand information

Organisation, prioritising your workload and managing your time effectively

Problem solving, applying reason and logic to issues that arise on a daily basis

Customer service and sales skills

Negotiation, persuasion, conflict resolution

Creative thinking, imagination and curiosity

Goal setting and deadline driven

Positive attitude, showing respect to colleagues, working collaboratively

The list is much broader than this. Every activity you undertake requires a multitude of skills – if you go for a walk with some friends, you need to manage your time and organise your arrival, interacting with others, maintaining awareness of your environment and safety issues, being willing to learn and open to the opinions of others, resilience so that you push through any tiredness or physical difficulties, and a positive attitude so that you are a contributor to the group.

It is easy to dismiss transferrable skills as not being important, but many employers in New Zealand are small businesses, and don’t need a computer genius, but need staff who are willing to work hard, will get on with the team, do more than is asked of them, and contribute to a positive work environment – all of these highlight your potential to be an asset to the employer. One of the most overlooked ways of demonstrating your transferrable skills is through volunteer experience, which I always include in CVs as much as possible. It not only points to your abilities, but to your social conscience and that you are the kind of person who likes to give back, contribute and help others. Employers value these attributes.

In every role, there will be some skills that are specific to the position or the company, and they are generally non-negotiable. But each individual position also requires a different combination of transferrable skills that show your value as an employee above and beyond your core competencies. It will be of benefit to you in your job search and in getting your CV prepared, to take some time to identify what your transferrable skills are and incorporate them in your CV and cover letter using practical, real world examples.