Do you mention every contract on your CV?

[MrMarkyMark]

Vetting aside, you're allowed to take time off, 6 weeks can easily be a holiday, hell I took 7 months off doesn't yet seem to be an issue.

Exactly, I have around 3+ years such time on my contracting CV.
Last 5 contracts have been screened IB roles no one has ever given a tulip.

[gables]

Vetting aside, you're allowed to take time off, 6 weeks can easily be a holiday, hell I took 7 months off doesn't yet seem to be an issue.

[VectraMan]

Your cv is your shop window, sort of, so it's up to you what you want to put there. If there's a reason a client wants to vet you and needs to know your entire work history then they should ask for it.

I have a 4-week gig on my c.v. It says something like "short term project", which is what it was. An old client contacted me out of the blue and asked if I could do a few weeks work, which was handy as I'd just finished something longer term. But I suppose it could still look like I walked out after 4 weeks or was canned after 4 weeks.

[jjdarg]

In that case, I wouldn't be worried too much about it if you get picked up by a subsequent client; they are poaching you from elsewhere anyway. You may have to explain it when you look for later roles, but you might say that the role or the organisation wasn't a good fit for your skillset or something like that. If you only end up having done a month and didn't contribute you may be able to stretch that gap with using month/year anyway.

[PTP]

Thanks for all the replies

I haven't quit yet. The client is an awkward one - I could tell that from day 2.
The contract I had before this got extensions up to 2 years.

4 weeks ago I applied for another contract without putting it on my CV (just 2 weeks into this job so not really done/contributed anything up to that point). Last week I heard back and I've got a phone interview.

And another job came up late last week that I've applied for where I have put it on my CV.

[SueEllen]

If you've had a contract that does your CV more harm than good (e.g. you left after just 6 weeks or your applying for other contracts just 6 weeks in to your current contract), then is it sensible to leave it off your CV?

Why did you leave after 6 weeks? Was the contract suppose to be short, was it canned or was there other issues? If the issues weren't down to you then simply be up front and open about them as you don't want to have clients who don't except you.

Would the client "smell a rat" if at interview they asked what did you do in that 6 week period and you mentioned a job that wasn't mentioned on your CV, or similiary if the first time they see it is on the vetting forms?

If you leave things off then you may forget you have done so and will look like a liar when explaining something you have done in that area using that as an example.

I was told to leave of a concurrent part-time contract by an agency but I've refused to as I have ended up talking about it in interviews as I had it for 2 years while doing other stuff.

Or couldn't you argue that your CV is just meant to show the highlights of your experience? Just like the webiste/ sales literature of a business doesn't list every client they've worked for.

If your CV is chronological then you aren't showing the highlights of your experience. If your CV is functional then you can leave things of as it is highlighting your experience. However most agents and most clients do not understand functional CVs.

[malvolio]

Then again I've been challenged at least twice on the basis of several short contracts and no apparent renewals. The answer is I get those gigs to fix things - usually broken business processes - and I do it quickly and properly: if I'm there too long it's because I didn't do it properly first time. I do have long gigs on there as well, they're the ones where I'm building from scratch or stuff like major migrations.

To answer the OP, after the "Who am I" and "What have I done that's relevant to your role" stuff, I've got the last five years' in summary detail on there followed by a one-line list of everything I've done - and to hell with the overlaps.

[ShandyDrinker]

Clients don't tend to understand they way we work and we treat your CV as they would a permie so if they find you've missed something off or been a bit liberal with the truth expect to get walked there and then.
If you are willing to be devious and hide stuff from your client are you really the person they want on site?

If you use that CV to apply for anything that does finance or security vetting you are going to get found out and contracting is a small world so you don't want to start getting a reputation.

Personally I'd rather someone that was upfront and honest why they only had 6 weeks on site rather than a liar. There are many good reasons why it was only 6 weeks so may not be a detriment to your application. Being devious is.

NLUK is right in that the you don't want to start getting a reputation.

However, I would argue that it isn't clear cut. I've previously found to my detriment that if you are upfront about having contracts which are short in nature for whatever reason, potential clients then judge you on the basis that you have had a number of short term contracts with the typical interpretation that short term contracts=must be tulip. No one is interested in the underlying story. I've little doubt this is symptomatic of the fact that it is currently a buyer's market.

I generally believe that honesty is the best policy... but... if you are not given a fair crack of the whip then you have to do what you have to do.

I know of a contractor, currently doing very well for himself in the city, who is at best stretching the truth and at worst out and out lying on his CV and I know for the last few years has been earning the best rates of his career. His technique is leave a role off here, extend dates there but he still seems to get work and through vetting in these places.

You have to take the level of risk you are comfortable with but realise that if you do eventually get found out telling a real whopper, it could be game over for your contracting career.

[stek]

I always list mine in month-year format, you can 'hide' two months easily there, ie end Feb 2012, start of next one Mar 2012 could mean ended 1st Feb 2012, huge gap, started next one 31st Mar 2012.

I don't do this for neferious reasons, just that I can't remember fuk all and CBA checking exact dates.

That's for CV, never had an issue, obvs for SC it's time to dig the actual contracts out.

[ruasonid]

On occasions where I have been running multiple concurrent contracts I tend to put only the most relevant contract for the role I'm applying. Otherwise I've found the agent and/or clients get confused, very confused.

[northernladuk]

Clients don't tend to understand they way we work and we treat your CV as they would a permie so if they find you've missed something off or been a bit liberal with the truth expect to get walked there and then.
If you are willing to be devious and hide stuff from your client are you really the person they want on site?

If you use that CV to apply for anything that does finance or security vetting you are going to get found out and contracting is a small world so you don't want to start getting a reputation.

Personally I'd rather someone that was upfront and honest why they only had 6 weeks on site rather than a liar. There are many good reasons why it was only 6 weeks so may not be a detriment to your application. Being devious is.

[PTP]

If you've had a contract that does your CV more harm than good (e.g. you left after just 6 weeks or your applying for other contracts just 6 weeks in to your current contract), then is it sensible to leave it off your CV?

Would the client "smell a rat" if at interview they asked what did you do in that 6 week period and you mentioned a job that wasn't mentioned on your CV, or similiary if the first time they see it is on the vetting forms?


Or couldn't you argue that your CV is just meant to show the highlights of your experience? Just like the webiste/ sales literature of a business doesn't list every client they've worked for.