Jobseeker Tips - Part 2

Your CV essentially markets a product (you) to a prospective buyer (employer). You should view your CV as a ‘living document’, ideally reviewing and updating your CV every three months with details of your latest work achievements, training course attended, etc.

There are two types of CV:

• Chronological CV – promotes experience rather than skills. The most basic would simply be a list of employers and job titles. It is essential that in your CV text you give brief details of your previous employers’ business and of the tasks and functions that you performed. A chronological CV is most suited to application for promotion or for a job with in the same sector or industry
• Functional CV – concentrates on selling what you can do rather than where you have worked. Here, you are showing that you have the transferable skills to do the job your applying for. This type of CV has advantages when attempting to move to a new profession or sector

Some people aim to combine the two approaches to writing a CV, summarising their career to date, their transferable skills followed by a section outlining their employment history.

Your CV should promote you by describing your qualities, abilities, experience and achievements. It should demonstrate your skills (what you can do) and experience (where and how you used these skills) in the most favourable light.

Basic CV principles

• Impact – your CV should have impact
• Quality not quantity – give the maximum and best quality information possible using the minimum number of words. In general, a CV should be two pages long
• Communicate – it is essential that all dates and information logically fit together
• Selling points – ensure that your strongest and most relevant selling points are clearly displayed on the first page of your CV
• A core CV – create a basic CV that can then be tailored to individual posts by the addition of specific and relevant achievements.
• Update it! – no CV is ever truly completed – it should grow with your experience

Next update - find out about the types of interview you may have to attend.

Entry Level Fundraising Role - £9p/h Full Time

We are looking for driven candidates to join the Face to Face Fundraising team of a leading Homeless charity in London.

Face to face fundraising is telling people all about a charity and inspiring them to become a supporter through regular donations by direct debit or standing order.

We need a team of you to work for this leading homeless charity that provide emergency accommodation, support towards recovery and help to prevent rough sleeping.

It is a full time 5 days a week role 10-6. £9ph plus holiday. This is a fabulous opportunity and is both challenging and rewarding and you will need to speak excellent English and possess exquisite communication skills.

If this is an opportunity you can see yourself in then please email your CV to LJ LJ@peopleunlimited.co.uk and get started quickly.

Why?

• Guaranteed long term work, full time with holiday pay!
• Weekly pay with pay increases for high achievers
• A great team
• The best face to face training in the sector
• Career progression
• Get involved with the cause first hand with project visits every 6 weeks and in your initial training
• A well known charity
• Get a ground roots experience of fundraising
• Insight into how a charity operates

Kick start your career in this competitive sector today and make a difference to London!

INTERVIEW DATE: ASAP
You will need to undergo a telephone interview.

KEY OBJECTIVES

• To recruit new long-term supporters, donating via Direct Debit
• To maintain professional standards whilst representing teh charity on the streets, ensuring both the reputation of the charity and street fundraising are maintained
• To ensure good communication with team members, Team Leader and The Public

TASKS AND RESPONSIBILITIES

• To recruit new donors in accordance with the daily, weekly and monthly targets as set by the Field Marketing Officer and Team Leader
• To ensure that charity information is disseminated effectively and correctly
• To be an active and supportive member of the Face to Face team
• To have excellent time keeping skills, being at the right time and place each day as
  stipulated by the Field Marketing officer
• To work within and adhere to the guidelines of the Public Fundraising Regulatory Association, as indicated by the Team Leader and Field Marketing Officer

To exercise a duty of care over the fundraising equipment as supplied by the charity for the purposes of face to face fundraising, ensuring that you have the correct equipment on a daily basis

KEY COMPETENCIES & EXPERIENCE

• To be flexible and adaptable
• To have the skills of diplomacy and discretion when required
• Tenacity and ability to bounce back from negative situations
• Excellent negotiation and communication skills
• Experience of working in a team

WORKING STYLE

• A mature style, capable of inspiring members of the general public
• Excellent team building skills
• Creative, with the ability to think laterally and spontaneously
• Goal-orientated and highly motivated
• Committed to the concept of collective responsibility, with particular regard to donors and supporters
• Sensitivity to, and willingness to develop an understanding of, the issues faced by homeless people

Please email your CV to LJ LJ@peopleunlimited.co.uk to apply for this role.

Job Seeker Tips - Part 1

Working in the charity or not-for-profit sector can be extremely rewarding. Employees get to feel good about their impact on positive change and get to work with other like-minded, passionate people. Once you’ve decided to work for a value-led organisation there are a number of ways to facilitate your job search. The below tips give you an overview of the kind of activity you need to be doing to find your perfect, feel-good job.

At People Unlimited we’ve been helping candidates find the right job since 1990, register your CV with us to see how we can assist you.

Research
If you are considering a career move into the charity or NFP sector, ask yourself:

• Why do you want to work in the sector?
• What can you offer?
• What can it offer you?
• Are you ready?
• Who are you targeting?
• Where do you want to be in 2/5 years?

If you want to work within a particular sector, such as health or animals, research your subject comprehensively and identify which charities you would like to approach.

forum3
forum3 is Europe’s largest careers and volunteering event, created by People Unlimited, we’ve been running it since 2001. To find out more about forum3 visit: http://www.forum3.co.uk/

Voluntary work
Volunteering is probably the most effective way to learn about the sector and about fundraising. Volunteering allows you to learn first hand about the different roles that exist, how they interrelate and what the responsibilities are on a day-to-day basis. Identify the charities you would most like to work with and the causes you support. Contact these charities and ask about their volunteering programmes.

V Temps
People Unlimited have teamed up with vinspired, the national charity promoting volunteering amongst 16-24 year olds, on a brand new social enterprise, V Temps. V Temps matches young people with temporary opportunities in the NFP sector in London that are part-paid and part-volunteering.

To find out about joining the V Temps scheme please contact LJ (Laura Jane) Loftus by email or on 020 7939 7432.

Relevant Skills and Experience
Are your skills relevant for the charity you want to work with? Have you any skills or previous experience in a useful area such as:

• Administration
• Office management
• PA/ Executive Assistant
• Human Resources
• Marketing
• Finance
• IT
• Press Office
• Public Relations
• Communications
• Sales

Ensure your relevant experience is emphasised on your CV. The skills you will have learnt in these roles are easily transferable to the charity sector.

Fundraising Jobs
Fundraising is about showing donors why the work that a charity does is important and persuading them to give on a regular basis. Fundraising is similar to marketing and sales, so individuals with this background should have relevant transferable skills.

There are different types of fundraisers:

• Corporate Fundraisers – a fast growing and high profile area of fundraising. Giving by companies is varied and ranges from a one-off donation by the company Chairman to major marketing initiatives.
• Trust Fundraisers – Grant Making trusts are independent grant-making bodies that get their income from investment or their own fundraising. They are set up specifically to give money away for charitable purposes and for community benefit
• Community & Events Fundraisers – consists largely fundraising by the general public. Volunteers will implement many of the fundraising initiatives, such as sponsored walks, bike rides, etc
• Individual Fundraising – individuals are by far the biggest givers to charities. An Individual Fundraiser needs to capture potential donors and persuade them to give, ideally on a regular basis
• Legacy Fundraising – legacies are an enormously important source of charitable funds. Legacy fundraising generates money by getting supporters to leave a gift as part of their Will.

Next we'll talk about how to format your CV.