Recruiters should get ready for a new breed of CV that better reflects our ways of working, writes Dr Tim Sparkes
More than half of millennials have some form of a digital CV, but just one in 10 provided one at their last interview. While this may not mean that the CV is dying – perhaps it’s an indication that the traditional CV format needs a rethink – it certainly points in the direction of change.
It’s a trend that is challenging recruiters and pushing CVs closer towards endangered territory, raising questions such as: what a world without CVs look like? Which industries could do without traditional CVs? But the question we should be asking is: which jobs and industries wouldn't suit alternative processes?
Experience has taught me that the successful candidates are not necessarily those with the most impressive CVs. In fact, success is usually related to how willing potential recruits are to adapt and grow with a job. When your role is changing, you can't rely on core competencies – you need to look at mindset or meta-competencies. These aren't the qualities traditionally listed on CVs; they are attributes such as learning agility, or the ability to develop new competencies. While they aren’t skills per se, they are critical to navigating our fast-paced world.
The CV will undoubtedly remain important in service-based industries, but that’s not to say that most business-to-consumer roles will become just as much about mindset as they are about skillset. It’s unlikely that CVs will become entirely redundant, as people still need to demonstrate that they are suited to the role they are applying for. In other words, the changes and innovations in the recruitment industry will suit generation Y and millennial job-hoppers who are keen to develop their experiences.
There is even some evidence to suggest that some candidates don't believe they have to prove themselves before being promoted or hired – they expect to be promoted and then prove themselves, suggesting that they don’t possess those skills in the first place, but intend to learn on the job.
That being said, the power most definitely lies with the candidate, not the employer. In fact, the employer has become the candidate. There is research suggesting that 50 per cent of the US workforce will be working as freelancers by 2020, indicating the power of the candidate in an age where younger workers can and will go just about anywhere.
Equally, this means there's enormous pressure on the employer to attract and retain the best talent. New innovative retention strategies in particular are going to be critical. Expertise and skills are not as good long-term indicators of performance and tenure as motivation, cultural alignment and mindset.
In a world without CVs – whether it’s just around the corner or a distant dot on the horizon – mindset will be key.
Dr Tim Sparkes is practice lead at Hudson Talent Management