Consultants: You aren't submitting your CV to a black hole

In the world of consulting, it’s all about who you know and who’s recommending the work you’re doing, RTI Global Health Recruiter Kate Wood told Devex’s Kate Warren in a recent video interview (see below). And in order to network to the max, it helps to have contacts within different donors or to have worked directly with the U.S. Agency for International Development, United Nations or World Bank, for example. Due to the widespread reliance on online job portals, it is easy for job seekers to feel like the resume they submit disappears into what amounts to a black hole, never to be reviewed by a recruiter. But that’s not the case, Wood said, suggesting that she regularly goes into her company’s database to look at CVs. And for consultants, “the same rules apply as if you’re applying for a regular position,” said Wood, who advises consultants to cut out jobs from their CVs that aren’t relevant to the position for which they’re applying. In order to avoid looking like you have resume gaps, qualify the job experience you’ve provided with a line such as “relevant, selected consulting experience,” she suggested. Watch this video to find out what Wood said is a good CV page maximum, and, for global health consultants particularly, how to be selective of which journals you’ve been published in: Check out more career advice stories online, and subscribe to Doing Good to receive top international development career and recruitment news.