Having passed my Class 1 recently with no experience at all as a HGV driver, i’m now writing out/editing my CV to fit the new career.
I’m a Software Developer therefore my current CV is 3 full pages long which is normal for devs as it’s very technical. I’ve trimmed it down and it’s now at 1 full page. 2 pages but with a few lines on 2nd page.
I’m googling HGV CV’s to get a better view on what the CV should look like for a lorry driver. I have included just 1 experience which is for my software developing career. All compressed in to 1 experience obviously.
I’m trying my hardest to not sound technical or to look like an IT geek but more of a passionate HGV driver (but who can also find his way around a keyboard obviously )
Anyways, when you guys were finding your very first lorry job, how basic was your CV?
Cheers.
(Probably wondering whats with the career change. Its not a change. Just something i’m doing on the side as well as being a dev. I love driving and passionate with driving HGVs).
Mine is 2 pages and never have any bother getting jobs. I have my details and experience on the first page and education such as school and college plus my references on the second.
I removed my degree from the education part of my CV when applying for lorry jobs. You don’t want them thinking “overqualified, won’t stay long” - left the A Levels to show I’m not completely thick and can learn stuff.
Any driving experience you’ve got is worth 10x more than the software projects you did IMO. They won’t understand tech speak. Just get the point across that you have good IT skills and mention all the transferable skills, e.g. work well with colleagues and management, good written and verbal, punctual, reliable, attention to detail, conscientious…
All on 1 page, make it stand out and easy and quick to read.
Don’t bother with all the usual CV ■■■■■■■■ about team playing or honest as the day’s long, no one is going to write ‘‘i’m a useless thieving ignorant ■■■■ taker who’s always on the sick wreck every vehicle i get behind the wheel of ■■■■ the customers off and will pull every minority trump card going once my feet are under the table’’, so all that team player ■■■■■■■■ will be equally ignored for the bulking out waffle it is.
Be careful you don’t come across as paper qualified equal or better than the chap likely to employ you, i have known this to backfire, it’s a driver’s CV not someone applying for a senior management role.
Having passed my Class 1 recently with no experience at all as a HGV driver, i’m now writing out/editing my CV to fit the new career.
(Probably wondering whats with the career change. Its not a change. Just something i’m doing on the side as well as being a dev. I love driving and passionate with driving HGVs).
I know where you’re coming from. I did IT consultancy doing things like network installs and support for SMEs alongside lorry driving for years as at one point I hated both with an equal passion so having something that was the polar opposite to the other kept me sane.
OK so a few years ago I went back to a technical job for a software/hardware company after almost two decades of truck driving. What I did was to write a skills CV. With a skills CV you concentrate on applicable skills to the job and the job history is basically a footnote where you list the last few. Applicable skills to the job would involve things like being comfortable with technology so able to adapt to things like Microlise, problem solving, being able to sort issues out without assistance, being self motivated, able to converse with people at all levels, anything you think would benefit you as a truck driver. Make sure you’re up to speed on things like EU drivers hours and even putting that down as a skill is something many wouldn’t think of.
SJB:
I removed my degree from the education part of my CV when applying for lorry jobs. You don’t want them thinking “overqualified, won’t stay long” - left the A Levels to show I’m not completely thick and can learn stuff.
For much the same reason I don’t mention my Operator’s CPC on my CV- all it’s going to do is make them think “Uh-oh. He won’t be taken in by our BS then”.
Everything I’ve ever gone for I’ve just told them what I’ve done, then nodded and smiled when I was asked interview questions.
Past couple of jobs, yeah same. With a “Oh, so you know **** then?”
Followed by a quick kick out the door.
But it is a new driver here, so a different situation to us.
All you ever put in your own is ‘I’m a team player that thrives on pressure situations and I have an outgoing personality. I have risen to all challenges in my previous roles across the global market. My ability to adapt to skilled tasks at short notice is a character trait that has been documented by previous middle management’.
As opposed to ‘I can barely dress myself properly in the morning. I’m proud of my empty tuna can collection but the neighbours hate me for it. My ability to upset people within under three minutes of being introduced to them is legendary. I couldn’t actually give a ■■■■ about the team as long as I get to go out of the door first every night. I have some things that I’d rather not talk about at all from my previous firm. I have things that I’d like to talk about but can’t because my legal team have expressly told me not to’.
Aside from a list of what you’ve done and when you did it, it’s just paragraphs of bollox puffing smoke up yer own backside innit?
yourhavingalarf:
As opposed to ‘I can barely dress myself properly in the morning. I’m proud of my empty tuna can collection but the neighbours hate me for it. My ability to upset people within under three minutes of being introduced to them is legendary. I couldn’t actually give a [zb] about the team as long as I get to go out of the door first every night. I have some things that I’d rather not talk about at all from my previous firm. I have things that I’d like to talk about but can’t because my legal team have expressly told me not to’.
Terry T:
Mine is 2 pages and never have any bother getting jobs. I have my details and experience on the first page and education such as school and college plus my references on the second.
You won’t get a look in on some of the better jobs without one, and no all that team player ■■■■■■■■ is for college graduate admin pretending to be managers, a well written appropriate CV however will help open otherwise closed doors.
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same here.
never had one,and dont have one.
a few sentences of who you know ect opens most doors if you know the score.
being smarter than the pleb interviewing you would work too well i would imagine,so id just be smart enough for the job that your no doubt going to be getting paid from the neck down.
i suppose a new pass looking at snowflake companies might need to type a load of pishy waffle similar to eagerbeavers offering though.
meaningless mince on a page so they can store it on a pc for future ref mostly?
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
same here.
never had one,and dont have one.
a few sentences of who you know ect opens most doors if you know the score.
being smarter than the pleb interviewing you would work too well i would imagine,so id just be smart enough for the job that your no doubt going to be getting paid from the neck down.
i suppose a new pass looking at snowflake companies might need to type a load of pishy waffle similar to eagerbeavers offering though.
meaningless mince on a page so they can store it on a pc for future ref mostly?
Usually it’s a quick chat on the phone, ending with a “can you pop down and see us”, fill in an application form for file purposes and arrange a start date, most gaffers know the difference between a bloater and a driver.
I started one company after two phone calls, the second asking when I could start and to arrange a hire car for me to use to drive from the depot I’d be working out of to the head office for a quick tour, documentation and collect my truck, straight out the gates quick collection and off to Molnlycke
SJB:
I removed my degree from the education part of my CV when applying for lorry jobs. You don’t want them thinking “overqualified, won’t stay long” - left the A Levels to show I’m not completely thick and can learn stuff.
For much the same reason I don’t mention my Operator’s CPC on my CV- all it’s going to do is make them think “Uh-oh. He won’t be taken in by our BS then”.
Same here. I left it on for management roles obviously but going back driving I took it off.
I went for a mechanics job at our local BRS back in the 80s, and he asked where do you want to be in ten years, I said sat where you are, wrong answer, i said it again in the 90s when at a driving interview and 15 months later i was.
Not sure if a CV is really required if you’re looking for a bit of part-time work, anything with logistics in their name will use agency for part time work and anybody else it would probably be better to go and see personally.
I can see Judian’s point for the better jobs, probably more so with own account work where they are used to dealing with applicants for the core business.
As for my CV, just re-done it, got it down to 2 pages by not putting on any jobs from more than 20 years ago and only really expanding the description of the jobs with relevant experience to the jobs I’m applying for.
I started HGV driving by doing it part-time round my full-time job, but I did find it difficult to get the first job, most companies would have considered a new driver for full-time work but as part-time jobs tended to be weekends which meant nobody in the office, so they preferred to have somebody who knew the job, however, as is the way of things, they needed somebody and I was available, but I had been to see most of the local haulage companies a few times before I got the phone call.
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