London - Next time one of Britain's 2.5 million unemployed despairs at ever finding a job, they might like to think a bit more creatively about how to make their CV stand out.
Specifically, they might like to look across the Channel, to the example set by the Frenchman Philippe Dubost, who caused an internet storm when he mocked up an Amazon.com page offering himself for sale.
By Saturday, up to 100 prospective employers were clamouring to give Paris-based Dubost a job after his CV went viral.
The web product manager plastered his picture across the fake Amazon.com page, inviting prospective shoppers - or companies - to check out his credentials. He shared his dimensions - he's 186cm - and offered those interested the option to select a language. (He's trilingual.)
“So many awesome companies, projects, entrepreneurs, I'm starting to feel like a spoilt kid with too many toys,” he said. “And yes, among those, there are indeed a few opportunities that match what I'm looking for and that I'm going to pursue.”
You can add him to your cart, which brings up a contact form, or even buy related products such as an airline ticket and some Asics running shoes: the simulated page lists his best marathon time among his “product details”. The faked page urges businesses to “Order soon” because there's “only one left in stock”. A list price of $999,999 is scratched out, leaving prospective employers to come up with their own salary offer.
He is available for shipping “anywhere in the world”, reflecting his desire to travel, which is evident from the blog to which he also links. He states he has spent more than five years working on web products, although he revealed it took him two days to design the CV, and says he has an “entrepreneurial mindset”.
The attention to detail is impressive, with customer reviews including a surprising number of one-star ratings, which Dubost, who has only been job hunting since last month, said referred to “lots of ex-girlfriends”.
He said he opted for the Amazon page because he was a “pathological Amazon addict”, and “I wanted to do something fun. Résumés are not fun. They're not fun to write, not fun to read.”
He added: “I thought it would be fun to build a small web product that would feel a little bit like a game you could interact with, like those baby toys where every button you push makes a different noise.”
The scramble for jobs is prompting desperate graduates to come up with ever more inventive ways to sell their services.
Earlier this month, Adam Pacitti, 24, from the Isle of Wight, splashed his image on a billboard in north London begging someone to give him a job. “I spent my last £500 on this billboard. Please give me a job,” the message said.
Latest figures show that 7.7 per cent of the population in Britain is out of work, with youth unemployment stuck at about one million. - The Independent on Sunday