The Paragraph That Gets You Shortlisted
How senior leaders write the most important part of their CV, the opening that tells their story.
Includes the AI prompt I designed for senior leaders, so you can write it in under an hour without starting from a blank page. Your details stay private and you can unsubscribe at any time.
Does the first paragraph of your CV truly reflect who you are?
When someone reads your CV, they are not just looking at dates and job titles. They are trying to understand who you are and the person behind the experience. At senior level, that first read often takes less than 30 seconds and your opening paragraph decides whether they keep going.
In three sentences, you can set the tone, show your value and signal where you are heading next. It is not about listing everything you have done. It is about bringing clarity to your story and helping the reader quickly grasp what you stand for.
I am a dynamic, enthusiastic and ambitious executive leader with extensive experience of the health, social care and voluntary sector, specialising in community wellbeing. I have a high level of emotional intelligence and am a collaborative leader who develops and leads great teams across diverse directorates. I embed a culture of learning and innovation to achieve success within challenging environments...
A highly experienced Chief Executive with a career rooted in health and social care, community wellbeing and integrated services for adults and older people, from prevention through to complex care. Brings deep expertise in leading complex, multi-site organisations operating within regulated, politically sensitive and multi-agency environments...
Nothing important was lost. It simply became possible to read.
Inside the guide
Whether you are applying for a new role, updating your CV after years in the same post, or preparing for a career change, this is the starting point that sets the tone for everything else.
Send me the free guideWhat leaders say about working on their CV with Heather
"After a long and fulfilling career in the Civil Service, I was daunted by the idea of writing a CV for the first time... I was surprised at how much the resulting CV sounded like me but sharper and more focused, and frankly more impressive. I now feel confident applying for roles I would have previously overlooked."
"Heather set up a call to talk about how I position myself for future roles, what roles to consider and how to ensure that I tell a succinct story about my specific situation... I immediately applied all of Heather's suggestions and have seen a measurable change in my application: interview success rate."
"It has been a very long time since I updated my CV and Heather very kindly drafted a CV that aligns with current market expectations... Heather knows her 'stuff' and translates this into meaningful outcomes for those she works with."
Hello, I'm Heather I'anson
I help experienced professionals navigate career transitions with confidence, using 30 years of recruitment and leadership expertise. I have spent my career in board-level recruitment and executive search, sitting on the side of the table where shortlists are decided.
I wrote this guide because the opening paragraph is the part of the CV senior leaders find hardest to write and the part that matters most to the person reading it.
Write the paragraph that gets you shortlisted
Download the free guide now and take the first step towards a CV that opens doors.
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