1. Describing duties instead of results
"Responsible for the reporting pipeline" tells the reader your job title again. "Rebuilt the reporting pipeline, cutting month-end close from five days to one" tells them what changed.
2. A profile paragraph that says nothing
If your summary would fit any candidate in your field, delete it or replace it with two lines naming your specialism and scope.
3. One CV for every application
The same document sent to twenty roles matches none of them well. Reordering takes minutes and changes how the document reads.
4. Layouts that fight the reader
Columns, sidebars, icons and colour blocks compete with the content and confuse parsers. A single readable column survives both audiences.
5. Missing or inconsistent dates
Every role needs a start and end. Inconsistent formats look careless; missing ones look evasive.
6. Unexplained gaps
A gap is fine. An unexplained one invites the wrong assumption. A short, factual line is enough.
7. A skills list disconnected from the experience
If a technology appears in your skills but never in a role, expect to be asked about it — and to be found out.
8. Burying the relevant role
If the role that matches the posting is third on page two, the reader may not reach it. Give it space, and make the summary point at it.
9. Sending an image
A scanned or exported-as-image document contains no selectable text. Some systems will store an empty record and file you as unqualified.
Related reading
- CV vs resume: what to send, and when
The two words mean different things in different countries. Here is how to decide which document a given employer expects — and why keeping both is useful.
- How to tailor a CV to a job description
A practical method for rewriting a CV around one specific role: read the posting properly, map evidence to requirements, and reorder for relevance.
- How ATS-friendly CVs actually work
Applicant tracking systems parse text. Here is what that means for structure, headings and formatting — and what nobody can honestly guarantee.
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