CV of the week

Hi guys,

Been a while since I've had one of these....

This was actually a CV someone sent me for a Creative PM role.

CV of the day

Not had one for a while but this is the actual CV I was sent for one of my copywriter roles...

CV of the week

This weeks winner of CV of the week award goes to the person who sent me this :-)

CV of the week

This weeks CV of the week award goes to the person who emailed me this when applying for one of my design roles.

lol.

Job seekers, did you know...

Job seekers, did you know...

When applying for jobs, your CV landing on the same desk over and over via multiple different avenues can sometimes have a detrimental / ‘spammy’ effect...

Keep track of your digital CV footprint, where it goes and who it goes to.

Cover note made me LOL

Someone sent me their cv with this..... "interesting" cover note.
Made me LOL.
What do you think of it?

CV of the week award

I am lucky enough to represent some of the UKs leading brands and as a result the roles I work on are some of the most desirable in the market. This can lead to 500+ applicants for any one role.

Unfortunately 90% of the CVs I receive don't make the grade and some win the CV of the week for, humor,  shock value, poor quality, or delusion. 

What do you think of this one?

So you're a copywriter?

Freelance Copywriters needed for general creative projects, social media, TTL  campaigns and stuff - must be able to come up with better words than "stuff".

Had a chat to one of my clients about copywriters today. Funny because this week I screened 450 copywriters for one role only to find 10 are suitable to shortlist. Out of that 10 probably 5 will be suitable to send to the client and only 1 will be booked.

There are 3 different kind of copywriters a deal with:

Product Copywriters

Jr 100 to 150 per day

Mid 150 to 170 per day

Snr 200 per day

Content Copywriters

Jr 100 to 150 per day

Mid 150 to 170 per day

Snr 200 to 230 per day

Creative Copywriters

Jr 150 to 200

Mid 200 to 230 per day

Snr 250 to 350 per day

Product and Content writers usually have an English Language qualification or Journalism / blogger backgrounds.

Creative Copywriters will have an advertising qualification and be from an ad agency.

If you are a freelance copywriter please get in touch!

January 2015 - The eyes chico, they never lie

I hope you all had a good break and have enjoyed the first week back to work.

As always, January brings new hope, but also new CVs as job seeking activity increases by about 37%.

Todays winner of the bizarre CV award goes to this chap who sent me his CV which included this unusual image of (I presume) his eyes.

CV of the week

Here is todays CV of the week.

Yes, this is the actual CV that was sent to me for a job.

My day can only get better!

CV of the week

Now I get a lot of CVs but this one won the CV of the week award...

Yes this is the actual CV that was sent to me...

Weekly Jobs Round-up

Thanks to everyone who made themselves available for the current roles I am working on.

Here is another update for you with all the latest creative and production based jobs added over the last week!

Simply comment below or DM me to let me know if any of my roles are of interest and I will send you all the juicy details!

Please note - to be considered you must be London based and free w/c 15th of Sep.

• Agency Keynotes Designer - on-going freelance work
• Agency Digital Designer - 3 month contract (corp brand)
• Agency Flash Designer / Animator on-going freelance work
• Agency 3D Studio Max specialist – on-going freelance work
• Agency Proof Readers – Italian and German languages
• In-house Marketing Designer - 2 months with presentation design exp
• In-house Digital Designer - 1 month with UI / UX transactional exp
• In-house MW Copywriter - rolling freelance with agency exp (superbrand)

We always need creatives of all levels, designers, artworkers and des / devs so feel free to send me your details on a speculative basis.

For more info on perm roles check out our website or my twitter page. Good luck!

Next weeks hot jobs!!!

The Creative Recruitment freelance department has been super busy and new clients, briefs and roles have been flying in every day.

Next week we will be busy working on many more exciting new roles. The companies are very desirable and easily some of my fav brands. Here is a snap shot of what we will need for next week:

•          Digital Design - All levels
•          Integrated Creative - Mid weight
•          E-commerce Retouching
•          Visualisation and hands on production
•          Flash Design and animation

If you are available for next week onwards or know a friend who is interested in my specialist sector please feel free to contact me via DM, Twitter or email.

Have a great weekend! D.

The Balloon Packer applicant

EMPLOYMENT HISTORY:
 Jun 2010-Jul 2010  Balloon Packer
1 Packer  
2 Sorting out customers’ orders
2 Setting up scale to weight balloons
3 Packing bags into & boxes
4 Storing orders to warehouse
5 Printing labels for customer’s orders




A job is a job I guess...

First unusual cv of the new year

Back in the office and its all systems go for 2014.

New roles flying on every day - designers offline, designers online, studio managers and email producers / front end devs all needed for some of the best clients in London.

Having said that I am receiving interesting applications - including this CV from a hopeful job hunter.

As you can see this cv is impossible to read - I did let the person know...

Interesting cv.... for the wrong reasons

Hi guys, as you know I receive cvs and folios all day. Most of the time they are an impressive read and a captivating source of rich imagery.

Today I was sent this:

Keep in mind that this is a designer applying for a designer role... I'm not a fan of the clip art, colours, different fonts used and typos. I  have covered up the name and details of the person who sent it to me but tell me what you think? do you like it, good, bad, indifferent?

Here is an older post for a cv I loved! Check it out and feel free to hit me up on twitter @deancousin if you have other cvs that catch your eye.

How to deal with job applications

It’s not uncommon for me to receive anything up to 50 applications per day and I pride myself on being fully committed to responding to all successful (and unsuccessful) applications, as painstaking and tasking as it is.

My responses are tailored to each individual, they are honest, but more importantly they’re designed to keep a lasting relationship with my potential applicant. I’m building my talent pipelines.
You see, keeping applicants on my radar is vital to my role. Everyday new positions and opportunities for candidates are popping, so if the job wasn’t right this time, next time I know exactly who to call.
But just today, I received the following feedback from one of my applicants:
“I'm really surprised that a multi award winning creative director with the work, awards, contacts, experience and clients that I have, just gets this automated response?? Can you explain why?”

If you’re an applicant and you’ve found been in this position, don’t give up! I know it’s frustrating, but you just have to take it on the chin. It’s all part of the process. If you’re seeing endless knock-backs start rethinking your CV or folios. Make sure what you send is appropriate for the spec.
And you should ask for feedback, but ALWAYS remain professional. If you’ve been left with your feathers ruffled, don’t let them know about it. You might ruin your chances of them asking you back in the future.

The job market is highly competitive –ferocious in fact. Recruiters, hiring managers and talent scouts get flooded with hundreds of CVs. It’s a quagmire and time for screening is limited. You’ve sussed it… this is exactly why you’ve had little or no feedback. So, perhaps a generic or  automated response is to be expected. Smart recruiters will do what I do, and keep you in their talent pipeline for future openings.

Make sure your CVs and cover note (if you do one) are clear, punchy and informative, bullet points, brand names and sector experience are the key highlights you need to include. People don’t have time to read reams of information. So, one last piece of advice for all the essay writers out there in you, give it a miss…

Good luck.

Best CV ever!

If you haven't already seen this wonderful link for a super cool cv then check it out :-)

CV link here

Thanks to James Pook for the link.

How do I manage multiple agency representation?

Ever found yourself asking that question?

The truth is that all astute job seekers are going to get their credentials out there and begin dipping their toe in the water, as quickly as possible. And the way to do this is via multiple applications (which can often blur into one), numerous registrations with recruitment agencies and getting signed up onto as many job boards as humanly possible. 

This 3 tired approach is often fruitful, resulting in several avenues leading to roles that you’re applying for. Great, if you’re an active candidate eagerly seeking a new role.  Not so great if your details repeatedly land on the same hiring managers desk.

So, try and consider the following when using the 3 tier approach: 

Ask yourself when you last applied directly or via an agency to the potential hiring company?

If I was given a pound for every time I heard someone say “I can’t remember” or “I think I applied”, I’d be quids in. My point is you need to be diligent and pin this down. Keep track, make a note in your calendar or diary. In most cases a period of 6 months is suitable to be reintroduced to a firm and submit another application.

Ask your recruiter for the name of the company they’re sending your details to.

If they can’t disclose the name due to confidentiality then try to find out as much info as possible about the company and role. Common sense questions like ‘where are they based’, ‘length of contract’ and ’what market they’re focused on’, should stand you in good stead. This way you can use your powers of deduction and identify similarities, if briefed by another agency. If you think it’s one you’ve been to already, then tell your recruiter right away and they can decide if it’s worth putting you forward again.

Show loyalty.

For some reason this seems to be a quality lacking in today’s job seekers. Maybe this is down to the extremely competitive conditions of the job market at the moment, but as a senior recruiter, I can tell you that I’m naturally drawn to job seekers who show integrity and ones I can see myself partnering with. No one will hire you if they think you’re going to jump ship if another exciting opportunity presents itself. So try and be selective about where you’re sending your CV and go for top choices first when applying for roles.

Be honest.

This is my top tip for you. Recruiters always appreciate an honest approach, so don’t be afraid to be open and up front from the get go. 

If you have any questions about how to handle multiple representations, feel free to comment below or get in touch via twitter @deancousin 

Happy job hunting.

Recruitment vid - worth watching if you are into recruitment

Great vid here - worth watching if you are into recruitment.

Vid