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HOW TO FILL OUT A SKILLS INVENTORY

It’s not only Liam Neeson who has a particular set of skills, we all do, what are yours?

Sun Tzu wrote ‘know yourself before learning about your enemy’ and the strategies he employed over 2,500 years ago are still as relevant today. The simple fact is if you don’t know your own product perfectly, how can you expect others to buy it?

The Skills Inventory is the starting point of the job application process. It is a simple document you can produce that catalogues all your achievements, the activities and tasks you have done to date, and the skills they required. 

It is designed to be an honest but strong self-assessment which gathers all the important points that need to go into your CV, ensuring that no key information is forgotten or missed. 

In our previous post, What employers are looking for we listed the top soft skills employers were seeking in prospective candidates:

This list is a good place to start, giving you an idea of the main qualities you need to demonstrate to potential employers and helping you begin to put together your own valuable skills. At this stage write everything that you can think of, you can always take things out later that might not be relevant.  The more ideas, the better. Remember, interviewers will often ask you for two or even three examples of each skill so think of as many examples as possible.

The Skills Inventory can be drawn up in a simple table, identifying the skill you possess, the source of the skill (where you acquired it), the date, examples of the skill and a CV sentence, the sentence you are going to write on your curriculum to explain it.  

Here is an example of a skills inventory:

Once you begin filling in the Skills Inventory you will surprise yourself by how many qualities you possess, some you may have forgotten about and others you may not have thought relevant. You will have accumulated these skills from all kinds of situations you have faced; at work, during your studies, or in your personal life. They will demonstrate a strong set of transferable skills valued by all employers. 

The CV sentence requires you to use strong verbs that really sell you, so we’ve put together an extensive list to help you. 

STRONG VERBS

Want to know more? Read our next article The Job Description Detective.

If you would like more information on how we can help you with your CV or interviews ...