I’d heard very little about video CVs until last week, when three connections hit my in-box: a company promoting them (click here), a business school careers advisor asking me if her students should make them, and an example of the thing itself at a recruitment event.

Now I’m all in favour of platforms that give candidates/job seekers a way of presenting more information about themselves, but it needs to be relevant, and worthwhile!

The video CV I saw was a 90 second film from an MBA student in the US. The opening shot was of him walking down the stairs from the entrance of his mid-Western college, introducing himself, his business school and his subjects studied. It then switched to him sitting on the grass apparently talking to three fellow students, while he voiced-over a description of his qualities and attributes. Finally, he talked straight to camera in a head-and-shoulders sequence that was probably filmed in a classroom. In this last portion he talked about his work experience and his career plans.

Now, I’m not sure if I learned anything about this fellow that I couldn’t have gleaned from a CV and a telephone conversation. Maybe if he were applying for a job in media, or where presentation skills were important, I could see the point of the video. But the thought struck me: supposing I had to spend my working day looking at video CVs, rather than reading them? How long would that take? How easy would it be for me to scan a video quickly to pick up the key points in someone’s career history.

So, my reply to the careers advisor was No.

I’m not convinced about the worth of a video CV. Do you disagree with me?