Employers are increasingly rejecting paper CVs in favour of electronic
versions according to a survey of more than 400 recruiters.
Nearly 80 per cent of respondents surveyed by reed.co.uk reveal that if they
had to choose between two equal candidates, one with a paper CV and one with an
electronic version, they would pick the electronic one first every time.
Nearly two-thirds of recruiters polled, made up of both companies and
recruitment agencies, claim they would favour people with electronic CVs when
selecting for interview.
The majority of respondents think it is faster and more efficient to deal
with electronic CVs whether they arrive by e-mail, through a company’s own
website, or from external internet job site. A third of recruiters jump to the
conclusion that candidates with paper CVs are computer illiterate and behind
the times.
Increasingly, job seekers favour the electronic route if given the choice.
Two out of five recruiters report that they receive more than 90 per cent of
CVs electronically.
Paul Rapcioli, director of reed.co.uk, commented: "Not only do most
recruiters receive more than three-quarters of all CVs electronically, it is
actually the paper ones which are most likely to be binned."
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The research finds that London-based recruiters are the most reliant on
technology, with 44 per cent receiving more than 90 per cent of their CVs
electronically, closely followed by the South West with 42 per cent and
Scotland with 40 per cent.
