– By Softest Team (LinkedIn)

Six years ago, we wrote about rebuilding your CV after COVID-19. That advice still holds, but the first reader has changed. For most roles, the first reviewer isn’t a person anymore; it’s software. Today, the vast majority of companies rely on AI-driven recruiting tools, and modern ATS platforms like Workday and Greenhouse automatically score how closely your CV’s language matches the job description.

Here’s what actually matters for your CV this year, briefly, but concretely.

1. Mirror the job description

AI and ATS tools look for the exact phrases from the job ad, not clever synonyms.

• If the posting says “cross-functional team leadership,” use that phrase, not “worked with different departments.”

• If it lists “Python, SQL, and Tableau,” write those tools explicitly.

Scan the job ad, note the key phrases, and use them where they genuinely fit in your summary, skills, and bullet points. Don’t invent skills, just translate what you’ve done into the language the posting uses.

2. Swap the objective for a value proposition

Generic objectives (“seeking a challenging role where I can grow”) don’t help anyone.

Replace them with a 2–3 line summary that says:

• Who you are (role level),

• How long you’ve done it,

• One or two concrete results.

Example: “Senior project coordinator with 6 years leading cross-functional remote teams, cutting delivery timelines to under 90 days across 12+ enterprise projects.”

A recruiter should understand your value just from the top section.

3. Quantify what you can defend

“Managed a team” is vague; “Managed a 5-person team that grew sales 20% in 6 months” is specific.

Add numbers to your bullets wherever you can:

• People: “Led a 7-person dev team.”

• Time: “Cut deployment time from 3 weeks to 5 days.”

• Money/impact: “Reduced vendor costs by 18%.”

Only include metrics you can explain confidently in an interview. Specific, believable numbers stand out to both algorithms and humans.

4. Lead with skills, and show proof

Nearly 70% of employers say they use skills-based hiring for entry-level roles and many postings drop degree requirements, but a large share have changed things “in name only.”

So:

• Put a skills section near the top with 8–12 relevant skills that match the role.

• Back them up with proof: portfolio links, certifications, or concrete examples in your experience bullets.

If a company truly hires for skills, this helps. If they only say they do, skills up front still make it easier for both AI and humans to quickly see what you can actually do.

5. Use AI to polish, not to lie

More than half of applicants now use generative AI somewhere in their CV. Recruiters are used to spotting inflated claims and generic AI text. 

Use AI to:

• Tighten wording,

• Fix grammar,

• Adapt your language to the job ad.

Don’t use it to invent roles, projects, or numbers. A simple rule: if you’d be uncomfortable walking through a bullet line-by-line in an interview, don’t keep it.

6. Choose the right length for your career

The “one-page CV” rule is useful only for people new to the job market. For most experienced professionals, especially in the Irish market, a one-page CV is not ideal and can actually hurt your chances by forcing you to cut important experience.

• Freshers and people new to the market: 1 page is fine. You can fit education, a few projects or internships, skills, and a summary without needing more space.

• For anyone with real work experience: A one-page CV is usually too short. In Ireland, recruiters expect to see your career progression, key responsibilities, and measurable impact. Compressing 5, 10, or 15 years of work into a single page often means removing the very details that make you stand out.

“Not one page” doesn’t mean “write everything you ever did.” It means:

• Keep all roles and major projects that show how you’ve grown.

• Focus bullets on impact and outcomes, not just duties.

• Trim only what’s genuinely outdated or irrelevant to the roles you’re targeting now.

Modern ATS tools handle multi-page CVs without issue, and Irish recruiters expect to see your full story. A well-structured CV that clearly shows your progression and results is far stronger than a cramped one-pager that hides your real value.

The closing thought

Your CV now has two readers: one algorithm and one person. Write the facts so the machine can find them, and the story so the person still wants to meet you. Whether yours is one page or three, if someone comes to this article asking how to make their CV pass AI screening and still feel human, these six points are the 80–90% they need to start rewriting with confidence.