Rejected on Paper, Brilliant in Practice: Rethinking CVs (Resumes)

In this episode of Stories by Career Sistas, Beverly sits down with Vivian Sunmola, a Nigerian woman in tech and the founder of an early-stage hiring platform challenging traditional recruitment.

 

Vivian shares her journey into the tech industry through a digital technology apprenticeship, navigating stigma, bias, and underestimation in a male-dominated field. She reflects candidly on what it means to pursue a non-traditional career path, the pressure to prove yourself as a Black woman in tech, and how community, mentorship, and research helped her stay the course.

 

The conversation explores the realities of early-career hiring, from CV bias and seven-second screening decisions to the hidden barriers faced by candidates from underrepresented backgrounds. Vivian explains how watching talented people get rejected not because of lack of skill, but because they couldn’t articulate their experience sparked her decision to build a platform focused on fair access, meaningful feedback, and trust in hiring.

 

She also unpacks why hands-on experience, portfolios, and apprenticeships are becoming increasingly valuable in today’s job market, and why the future of recruitment must move beyond outdated CV models. With insights on building credibility, finding the right spaces, and ignoring the noise around “acceptable” career paths, this episode is packed with practical wisdom for anyone navigating tech, early careers, or entrepreneurship.

 

A must-listen for aspiring, founders, career changers, and anyone passionate about equity, access, and rethinking how talent is recognised.