Maximizing Your Job Application Success: Tips from Career Experts in Munich and Berlin

Munich/Berlin. Whether it’s your first real job or a change after a long time: anyone who is faced with writing a convincing application quickly has a lot of questions in their head. What’s in the cover letter? Do we still need that today? And how long can my CV be?

According to Berlin career consultant Esther Kimmel, there is one thing you should keep in mind with every application: the word “application” contains the word advertising – and on behalf of yourself. It is then worth putting the effort into your own application. Because good application documents, she says, also boost your own confidence. “Looking at your own life with pride is always a good basis for a job interview.” So: get to work!

The CV: highlight key qualifications

Candidates should put together their resume or CV (curriculum vitae) in an achievement-oriented way – and focus on crystal clear key performance indicators, says Sebastian Kohler, co-founder and co- managing partner at the personnel consulting firm Kempkens x Kohler. “What I have achieved must be expressed in three sentences like a pyramid.”

It might look something like this:

1. Responsibility: Was I a managing director, a team leader or an employee?

2. Performance: What have I achieved in the last few years? Was I able to build a team? Or was I in a sales position and was I able to increase sales?

3. Contribution itself: Did I deliver something? Was I part of a team or was I fully responsible for delivering this service?

Today, team decision makers would pay more attention to these KPIs and factors that could differentiate the profiles from each other rather than qualifications or references from previous employers. Accordingly, they will be considered at the latest in the job interview.

Esther Kimmel advises to adapt your CV to the position you have chosen so that the main essential qualifications are immediately visible. “A CV should not be a boring mandatory exercise, but a successful work sample that allows the HR manager to assess whether the candidate is up to the job.” “New design” is based on the motto “form follows function” the clarity of the most important information. It is best to spread the information over two pages in a way that makes sense and is aesthetically pleasing.

The Cover Letter: A departure from the norm

“Just don’t choose standard formulas and don’t write too long,” says HR consultant Sebastian Kohler. Esther Kimmel also advises: “The cover letter should always fit on one page. ” And above all, you should not make the mistake of writing your CV again: “That is usually useless and boring.”

While the CV tends to cover the past, the cover letter looks forward and also takes into account soft skills such as communication and team skills or leadership qualities. For example: courage to deal with unpleasant things and find good solutions or to be able to create an environment in which employees work with motivation.

Applying takes time.

Above all, the cover letter should make it clear what added value a candidate can bring. It should also show what attracts you to a particular company, what motivates you and what you hope to achieve from this new position, there is a standard logic in every application: “I am the right person for the job!” That message can be delivered “by breaking down what’s most important: rigorously, plausibly and precisely, in real numbers” – not through long cover letters and extensive CVs.

What defines my personality?

It’s good to see that people are interested in things outside of work.

Sebastian Kohler

HR Consultant

And how much should candidates tell about themselves today? “Hobbies are often very interesting,” says Sebastian Kohler. “Sometimes the cultural fit between a candidate and a company is more important than a testimonial from their previous job.” Volunteering is also motivating for personnel decision makers.

Sometimes when applications have become “mass production”, the key is to introduce the human factor into the profile, says Kohler. According to Esther Kimmel, the hobbies you express do not have to be unusual. “It’s good to see that people are interested in things outside of work.”

Trust work networks

To ensure a successful application, job seekers should rely on job networks such as Xing and LinkedIn. Personnel decision makers actively use them for recruitment. “So I recommend that my candidates be easy to find and set the barrier threshold for communicating as low as possible,” says coach Esther Kimmel.

If you want to draw attention to yourself, you should think of networks as databases. Kimmel’s tip: “Choose and place keywords wisely and ask yourself which keywords are most likely to be found for the positions you want.” For someone in public relations in a sustainable industry, keywords like PR specialist, PR manager, CSR, sustainability strategist or Corporate Communications Manager are suitable.

Last but not least, contacts via Xing or LinkedIn could help you emphasize your interest in a company or application. For example, by sending a networking request to the responsible employee in the HR department – with a personal message that you have just applied for a specific job in the company.