10 reasons why you should update your CV, now!

Recommends Vijay Sivaram, national head-Recruitment Solutions, IKYA, "One of the key signs is when your responsibilities change in your work profile. This could be anything from your role being multifunctional, additional certifications, increased team size, change in designation or level.




"Today's headhunters and HR departments of corporates expect interested candidates to send in their resume within 48 hours. Thus it is always best to keep it ready rather than sending an old profile that would diminish your chances of even getting an interview."



Also update your resume to include specific information about how you helped reduce the turnaround time for any process, helped augment productivity for your team or were appreciated by your supervisor.



Skills acquired not reflected in CV

"If you have been upgrading your skills often enough, then make sure your resume reflects those. This may include professional activities, certifications you have acquired, the new course you have taken at work, the papers you have

presented at a trade body or association or in your own company and trainings attended," says Abhijit Bhaduri, chief learning officer, Wipro.



Bhaduri goes on to suggest: "A resume is a great marketing tool. Like all good marketing tools this should result in generating demand for your skills. If you look at your old resume and find nothing to add, wake up -- it is time to update your skills. Without new skills added to your repertoire, it will be tough updating your resume."




Make it more accessible to headhunters

Use industry-relevant buzzwords, jargon and phrases to pop up in search engines. Look up benchmarked resumes to pick the tags and keywords and find them a place in your resume. Remember to include only relevant keywords to avoid repetition and irrelevance.



CV rests heavily on past glories

Sivaram maintains that: "While India continues to see a large-scale hiring plan, it is critical your resume is always forward-looking. A key point is when you read your resume it should give you the feeling that you are reading it for the next vertical move.



"If your resume continues to only dwell in your history and not your current capabilities, it's time for updating. One must remember that updating your profile is a 20-minute exercise and if you are not keeping track of what's in and what's out, your resume is most probably going into the archives."