Templates
A candidate profile template that clients actually read
A candidate profile template for recruiters: the sections a client-ready candidate summary needs, wording that stays factual, and a filled-in example.
A candidate profile, also called a candidate summary or coversheet, is a one-page document a recruiter puts in front of a CV. It names the role, shows why the candidate fits with each point traced to evidence, covers the logistics clients always ask about, and keeps the recruiter's opinion clearly separate from the candidate's facts. Below is a candidate profile template you can copy into your own format, a filled-in fictional example, wording that stays factual, and the gaps you should name before the client finds them.
What a candidate profile is, and isn't
A good profile is a decision aid for a busy hiring manager. In one page it should answer three questions: does this person meet the brief, can they start when we need them, and what does the recruiter think?
It isn't a rewritten CV, and it isn't a sales brochure. Adjectives without evidence make clients skim. Claims that turn out to be stretched make them distrust the rest of your shortlist.
Profiles earn their place when:
- The client reviews many candidates per role and screens on one page.
- The role has hard requirements to confirm up front, such as a certification, clearance or registration.
- You're submitting contractors, where rate and availability decide everything.
- You're sharing an anonymised profile before a full introduction.
The candidate profile template
Copy this structure. The "Source" column is the important part. Every line in your profile should come from the CV, from your screening call, from something the candidate confirmed, or from your own opinion, and the client should be able to tell which.
| Section | What to write | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Header | Role, client, candidate name or reference, recruiter name and direct line, date | Agency |
| Headline | Three lines: current role, relevant experience, the standout match to the brief | CV |
| Fit against the brief | Each key requirement, the evidence and its status (evidenced, partly evidenced, not shown in the CV) | CV, or call notes, labelled |
| Logistics | Notice period, availability, location and working pattern, salary or day-rate expectation (if agreed), right to work as stated by the candidate (where relevant) | Candidate confirmed |
| Motivation | Why this role and this client, in a sentence or two | Screening call |
| Recruiter's assessment | Your view of strengths and fit, clearly labelled as your opinion | Recruiter |
| Gaps and open questions | What the CV doesn't show, and what you've confirmed or not | Recruiter |
| Next step | Interview availability and two suggested slots | Candidate confirmed |
Keep it to one page. If it runs over, cut the adjectives, not the evidence.
A filled-in example (fictional)
Everything below is invented for illustration.
Senior Data Engineer, fintech client. Candidate ref NS-1042. Prepared by [Recruiter], [date].
Headline: Data engineer with six years building batch and streaming pipelines, currently at a payments company, with recent experience moving on-premise pipelines to the cloud.
| Requirement | Evidence | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Python in production | Python used in three roles since 2019, including the current one (CV) | Evidenced |
| Apache Spark | Built Spark jobs for daily settlement reporting, 2022–present (CV) | Evidenced |
| Streaming (Kafka) | Kafka mentioned in one project; candidate described a consumer service on our call (call notes) | Partly evidenced |
| Team leadership | Not shown in the CV; candidate says they mentor two juniors informally (call notes) | Not shown in the CV |
Logistics: One month's notice. Hybrid, two days in the office is fine. Salary expectation shared with the candidate's agreement: [range].
Motivation: Wants to work closer to product teams and on real-time data. The client's streaming roadmap is the main draw.
Recruiter's assessment (opinion): Strong on core pipeline engineering, with clear and specific answers about cost and reliability trade-offs. Streaming depth should be tested at interview.
Gaps: No formal people management. Kafka experience is narrower than the brief's "extensive".
Next step: Available Tuesday or Thursday afternoon next week.
Notice what the example doesn't do. It doesn't call the candidate a "Kafka expert" or a "proven leader", and it says where each claim comes from.
Turn your next CV into a client-ready submission
Upload a candidate CV, check every fact against the source, remove contact details and export your agency’s branded DOCX and PDF. Your first 10 CVs are free.
Wording that stays factual
| Instead of | Write | Why |
|---|---|---|
| "Excellent communicator" | "Presented the quarterly data roadmap to the leadership team (CV, 2024)" | Specific, checkable, memorable |
| "Expert in Python" | "Python in three roles since 2019 (CV)" | Duration and context instead of a label |
| "Has led large teams" | "Managed six direct reports at [Employer], 2021–2024 (CV)" | The real number |
| "Fluent Spanish" when the CV says basic | "Basic conversational Spanish (candidate's own description)" | Don't upgrade levels |
| "Immediately available" when they have notice | "One month's notice; may negotiate earlier (candidate)" | The client plans around it |
The test is simple. Could the hiring manager point at the CV, or at your call notes, for every statement? If not, cut it or label it as your opinion.
Name the gaps before the client does
Hiding a gap doesn't make it go away. It moves the discovery to the interview, where it costs you credibility. A short "Gaps and open questions" section does three things:
- It shows you've read the brief properly.
- It frames the gap with what you know ("not shown in the CV, discussed on our call").
- It gives the interviewer something specific to test, which hiring managers appreciate.
Profile, CV and submission email: who does what
| Document | Purpose | Whose words |
|---|---|---|
| Candidate profile | One-page decision aid | Yours, with evidence labelled |
| Formatted CV | Complete factual record in the client's format | The candidate's |
| Submission email | Introduce, highlight two or three points, ask for the next step | Yours, briefly |
The profile and the email overlap, so keep the email short and let the profile carry the detail. See our candidate submission email templates and the agency CV template guide.
Adapting the template by role type
The structure stays the same, but the weighting shifts with the kind of role:
- Permanent roles. Motivation and career direction matter more. Give the "Motivation" section two or three sentences, and include salary expectation and notice period with the candidate's agreement.
- Contract and interim roles. Logistics lead. Put rate, availability, days per week and working arrangement at the top, and keep motivation to one line. Clients hiring contractors want proof of similar delivery, so make the "Fit" table about recent assignments.
- Executive appointments. The profile becomes a short report. Add scope for each recent role (headcount, budget, geography, reporting line, all as stated by the candidate), and keep compensation detail in a separate confidential note.
- Graduate and early-career roles. Evidence comes from education, projects and placements rather than job history. Be careful not to inflate a university project into professional experience, and say which is which.
- Anonymised profiles. Replace the name with a reference, generalise identifying details without changing the facts, and leave out anything the candidate hasn't agreed to share.
Whatever the role type, the "Source" discipline doesn't change. Every line should come from the CV, the call, the candidate's confirmation or your labelled opinion.
Making profiles faster in CVPitch
A few CVPitch features map directly onto this template:
- Coversheet. A client variant can include an optional preparation coversheet in front of the formatted CV.
- Job match. Paste the job description and each requirement is marked evidenced, partly evidenced or not shown in the CV, with the CV passage quoted. That's your "Fit against the brief" table, and the match doesn't guess.
- Required recruiter fields. Client rules can require fields such as notice period or rate, so they're never missing at approval.
- Labelled additions. Anything you add is marked as recruiter-added. Interview transcripts imported as .vtt files from Zoom, Microsoft Teams or Google Meet become labelled recruiter notes that you choose whether to accept.
- Pitch email. An evidence-cited draft you edit and send yourself.
- Shortlists. Put several approved candidates in one shortlist with a short note for each, then share it through one link or export it as a PowerPoint deck or Excel sheet.
The full workflow is in the guide. For using the profile in a conversation, read how to pitch a candidate to a client.
Frequently asked questions
What is a candidate profile in recruitment?
A candidate profile is a short summary a recruiter sends with or in front of a CV. It sets out the candidate's fit against the brief, logistics such as notice and salary expectations, and the recruiter's assessment, clearly separated from the candidate's own facts.
What should a candidate summary include?
Role and reference, a short headline, the key requirements with evidence for each, notice period and availability, salary or rate if the candidate agrees to share it, motivation, your labelled assessment, gaps, and suggested interview slots.
How long should a candidate profile be?
One page. If it runs longer, cut adjectives and repeated detail from the CV. Keep the evidence and the gaps.
Should the candidate see their profile before it's sent?
It's good practice to confirm the factual parts with the candidate, such as notice, salary expectation and any claims taken from your call. Your own assessment is your professional opinion, but it should still be fair and factual.
Bottom line
One page, evidence for every claim, logistics up front, your opinion labelled and gaps named. That's a profile a hiring manager reads to the end.
Turn your next CV into a client-ready submission
Upload a candidate CV, check every fact against the source, remove contact details and export your agency’s branded DOCX and PDF. Your first 10 CVs are free.