Top Technical and Hard Skills for Your CV

What Are Technical Skills and Hard Skills?

Technical and hard skills broadly cover a similar skill set, and you’ll typically list both in the same section of your CV. However, there are some differences between technical and hard skills, so it’s worth knowing what each covers before you write your CV.

Technical skills tend to include job-specific abilities that require training, certifications, licences or particular expertise. Most technical skills are directly related to a specific job or industry, and you’re likely to need either experience, a qualification or training to gain proficiency in them.

Hard skills are also measurable and teachable abilities that can contribute to your performance in a job. However, they tend to be more universal than technical skills, and could apply to various jobs and industry sectors.

Why Are Technical and Hard Skills Important for a CV?

Technical skills and hard skills are important for a CV because they immediately give the reader an idea about your suitability for the role. Depending on the job you’re applying for, technical and hard skills could be essential for carrying out your everyday duties. As such, if you don’t already have those skills, or you’re unable to show examples of when you’ve used them in your career to date, you could instantly be disadvantaged.

While soft and transferable skills are becoming more important in the UK job market, technical skills and hard skills still provide the foundation for many jobs. If you’re interested in working in a highly technical or specialised role, you’ll want to focus on developing the necessary hard and technical skills. Likewise, for any role requiring a professional qualification, licence or certification, hard skills are typically essential.

Industry sectors that emphasise hard and technical skills include finance, technology, engineering, healthcare, construction, law or specific trades such as plumbing or electrical professions. Any job that requires specialist skills, use of specialist equipment or machinery and positions that require a detailed understanding of industry regulations is likely to demand a strong understanding of technical and hard skills.

In an increasingly competitive job market, and with the growing influence of technology on working practices and standards, many of these industry sectors are demanding technical skills more than ever. The growth of the tech sector in the UK has facilitated increased demand for various technical and computer skills. The UK skills gap includes demand for expertise in cybersecurity, cloud computing, data analysis, DevOps and AI/machine learning.

Skills shortages are leaving an increasing number of UK companies unable to fill their advertised vacancies. According to UK government figures, skills-shortage tech vacancies (jobs that fail to be filled owing to lack of skills, qualifications or experience among candidates), reached 43% in 2022 (1). Similar studies found that 36% of all job vacancies in the UK were the result of skills shortages in an organisation (2). As such, if you can display the desired technical and hard skills UK employers are lacking, you’ll put yourself in a strong position for success in your job search.

Examples of Valuable Technical and Hard Skills for the UK Job Market

Here are some examples of technical skills and hard skills for different industry sectors in the UK:

IT

Technical skills: Programming languages (Python, Javascript, R, C++), database management (SQL), DevOps, operating systems (i.e. Linux), Intrusion Detection and Prevention Systems.

Hard skills: Data analysis, UX development, technical writing, project management, cloud computing, cybersecurity.

Marketing

Technical skills: Adobe Creative Suite, Google Analytics, SEO, martech platforms (Hubspot, Slack, MailChimp, Salesforce), content management systems (CMS).

Hard skills: Project management, marketing strategy, campaign planning, writing skills, design skills, data analysis.

Finance

Technical skills: Accounting software (i.e. Xero, QuickBooks), advanced Excel skills, business intelligence software, enterprise resource planning software, database management, regulatory knowledge.

Hard skills: Financial planning, budgeting, forecasting, reporting, financial analysis, risk management, cash flow, accounting principles.

Healthcare

Technical skills: Electronic medical records systems (EMR), HIPAA compliance, CQC regulations, operating machinery (i.e. X-ray machines, CT scanners, MRI machines), administering medication and treatments.

Hard skills: Clinical knowledge, patient assessment and diagnosis, medical terminology, care techniques, administrative skills.

Engineering

Technical skills: CAD software, ANSYS engineering simulation software, programming languages (Python, MATLAB), Six Sigma methodologies.

Hard skills: Project management, regulatory compliance, process optimisation, data analysis, quality assurance.

How to Identify the Right Skills for Your CV

The right technical skills for your skills-based CV will depend on the role you’re applying for, your qualifications and your experience. Some jobs and industry sectors place greater emphasis on technical and hard skills, while some require a stronger focus on soft skills. Additionally, the more senior and experienced you are, the more likely you are to need strong technical skills. Employers looking to fill entry-level positions are often less likely to expect candidates to have well-developed hard and technical skills.

Here are a few tips for identifying the right skills for your CV:

Research Job Descriptions

The first task in understanding the type of hard and technical skills to include in your CV is to research job descriptions. There you’ll find extensive details of the skills profile employers are seeking in candidates. Review job descriptions for various roles with similar or related job titles, to get a strong impression of the types of skills employers value most highly.

To gain a stronger impression of the most important skills for your CV, consider using an AI assistant or chatbot such as ChatGPT to analyse a job description or a collection of job descriptions. These types of tools can identify the most critical technical skills and hard skills included in job descriptions. This will give you a valuable, objective analysis of the most essential hard skills for your CV.

Match Skills to the Role

The next step is to tailor the skills on your CV to match the role. If you have a draft version of your CV that you adapt for each specific job application, you’ll want to spend some time adapting and amending the skills based on the requirements of the employer.

For more senior or technical positions, you may wish to change the tone of your CV to focus more on your hard skills. On the other hand, for junior or less technical positions, you might wish to give your hard skills less prominence.

If you want to place more emphasis on your hard and technical skills on your CV, be sure to include examples of how you’ve used those skills in your day-to-day work. In your work experience section, emphasise how they’ve contributed to positive outcomes and achievements in various jobs. If the role is highly technical, it’s not enough to simply list your hard skills in a skills list – employers will want to see evidence of how you’ve utilised those skills in your work.

Complete a Skills Assessment

Another way to identify the right technical skills and hard skills for your CV is to complete a skills self-assessment. You can do this by yourself, or you can use an online tool to walk you through the process. The skills assessment will help you better understand your biggest assets and strengths, and the areas you need to improve on.

Remember, while you’ll want your CV to reference all the key skills mentioned in the job description, it’s also important to include a few unique, valuable skills that other candidates might not possess. This is where a personal skills assessment can be useful.

How to Present Technical and Hard Skills on Your CV

Below are some key tips for how to present your technical and hard skills on your CV. For more tips on presenting your skills in your CV, check out Jobseeker’s CV articles.

Presenting your skills in the CV skills section

There are several places where you might consider placing your hard and technical skills on your CV. The most obvious place is in the skills section. To present your technical skills in your skills section, you have several options:

• Use a combined skills list, including hard, technical skills and soft, transferable skills.
• Split your skills sections out into separate lists for hard and soft skills.
• For particularly technical jobs, you may also wish to include a dedicated technical skills section.

Placement and formatting of CV skills section

If you’re using a traditional, reverse-chronological CV format, you’ll typically place your skills section below your work experience and education sections. If, however, you’re using functional, skills-based CV templates, you could place your skills towards the top of your CV, above your work experience section.

Present your skills list in a bullet-point format. If you have space, and you haven’t explained elsewhere in your CV, it can be valuable to add a brief explanation of how and where you’ve used your hard skills. For example:

Showcasing hard skills in your work experience section

Another place to mention your hard and technical skills is in your work experience section. Follow these tips for referencing hard skills in this part of your CV:

• Use bullet points under each job entry to show how you used your skills in your everyday duties.
• Reference how your hard skills have contributed towards successful outcomes for projects and employers.
• Quantify your skills by offering data, metrics and outcomes that showcase the positive impact they’ve made.

For example:

Referencing Technical Skills in Your Cover Letter

Another great place to showcase your hard skills is in your cover letter. Choose one or two key technical skills to focus on in your letter. Select cover letter templates that give you the chance to write more in-depth explanations of how you’ve used those skills to positive effect in your career to date. Your cover letter is particularly useful for showcasing hard skills for technical roles, where these skills will play a critical role in your everyday duties.

"Technical skills and hard skills are important for a CV because they immediately give the reader an idea about your suitability for the role."

Common Mistakes to Avoid with CV Technical and Hard Skills

When listing your hard and technical skills on your CV, avoid these common mistakes so your CV can make the strongest possible impact:

• Listing irrelevant skills: Adding technical skills to your CV that aren’t relevant to the job description is likely to do nothing to improve your job prospects. While you might want to include some unique skills that aren’t listed on the job description, make sure they’re still relevant to the role.
• Including outdated skills: Keeping skills on your CV when they’re no longer relevant to the role you’re applying for, or when they’ve been surpassed by new technology or working practices, can be harmful to your prospects. Skills such as ‘Microsoft Word’, for example, are so common that employers will probably assume you’re already familiar or proficient. As such, they won’t make you stand out from the crowd.
• Failing to tailor your skills for the job: Using the same skills list for every job application, without tailoring it to the job description, is a sure-fire way to reduce your chances of success. Carefully tailor and curate your skills list to showcase the skills necessary for every individual job you apply for.
• Adding too many skills without explanation: Providing a long list of skills in a bullet-point list without any explanation is unlikely to impress employers. It’s fine to highlight a few key skills in a short skills section list. However, you’ll also want to make sure you show how you’ve put these skills to good use in your career throughout your CV.

Key Takeaways for Technical and Hard CV Skills

Selecting the most appropriate and impactful technical and hard skills for your CV will go a long way to making your application successful. Tailor your CV to the job description, including matching keywords and skills, as well as evidence of how you’ve used those skills to positive effect in different roles. Jobseeker offers a wealth of CV examples and templates to help you present your skills in a professional and eye-catching way. Sign up today and you’ll also find plenty of cover letter articles and resources to help you create a winning application.

Sources:

(1) TechRepublic: Top IT Skills Trends in the UK for 2024

(2) Statista: Proportion of skills shortage vacancies (SSVs) in the United Kingdom from 2011 to 2022