Why No One’s Reading Your Resume And Five Ways To Change That
Increase your chances of landing an interview
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It’s ballsy of you to job hunt during a pandemic.
The audacity — I like it.
There are a myriad of reasons you may be applying for jobs in 2021. Grim prospects and downsizing companies haven’t slowed you down one bit.
And why should it?
There are still hundreds — no — thousands of remote positions opening daily on job boards. So, you apply to one, and wait. Then you apply to ten.
No callback. That’s fine.
But twenty turns into fifty, then a hundred, then two hundred and now you’re down the rabbit hole of self loathing and depression.
Where did you go wrong?
You’re obviously qualified. You just need to get your foot in the door and wow recruiters.
Alas! Nothing seems to be working
If you scour LinkedIn you’d notice the desperate posts of recent graduates and laid off workers asking for tips on how to move forward. Some persons have been applying for months with no response. Others get a call back here, an interview there, but no concrete offers. Some even reach interview three of five just to be ghosted half-way through.
I live on LinkedIn.
It’s slowly becoming my favorite social media app. There are countless inspirational stories and opportunities to make meaningful connections with paths for advancement.
But what I’ve learned while making a quaint network of connections is this: humans are not your first point of contact when you submit your resume. AI (Artificial Intelligence) is.
That’s right. All those sci-fi movies where robots take over the world are slowly coming to fruition. And the anarchy begins with them taking bread out our mouths and stalling our job application process.
Ok. Maybe I’m exaggerating.
AI hasn’t quite taken over the world (yet). But, most resumes are funneled through an ATS (Application Tracking System). Meaning, an automated software is going through your resume line by line and checking (and probably misinterpreting) your qualifications to see if they match up with the description of the job you’re applying for.
Guess what? Technology isn’t perfect.
And that, ladies and gentlemen, is why despite your colorful resume and years of of experience you still haven’t landed your dream job, your niche job or even A JOB!
I know. I was dumbfounded too. How dare they leave my precious resume in the unreliable tentacles of technology!
But let’s be frank. For any one job posting there are possibly hundreds, even thousands of persons applying for the exact same position as you. No one wants to sift through waist-high piles of fluff to get to your portfolio.
Unfortunately, that means that if your resume is not ATS compatible it gets tossed with the garbage — where it OBVIOUSLY doesn’t belong.
The following four pieces of advice is what I’ve noticed while wading the cesspool of job hunting.
They will help you convert your resume into an interview-landing, attention-grabbing testament to both your work ethic, and the robot’s.
1. SIMPLIFY YOUR TEMPLATE
I get it. You want your resume to be eye-catching. Guess what? ATS doesn’t care!
The most important thing is to have your information clearly sectioned and formatted. The key is consistency, sticking to margins and proper spacing. You don’t want too many fonts, font sizes or colors.
Have you ever tried to parse your resume while completing an online application only to discover the information is all over the place?
Consider that when the ATS scans your resume it may portray a similarly inaccurate version of your resume.
It’s tempting to be flashy. But let’s save that for after we’ve landed the job.
2. YOUR RESUME IS TOO LONG
Your resume should be one page long. No one told me that. I packed my resume with complicated jargon and technical language. Sometimes it inched towards 3 pages.
Even if the AI gives its stamp of approval, hiring managers won’t give your resume the time of day, unless they know you personally.
Stick to short, profound sentences that mirror your achievements and capabilities but also run parallel to the job description.
3. RUN IT THROUGH A RESUME SCANNER
I would 100% recommend hiring someone to check your resume. The best of the best are nesting on LinkedIn, but guess what? They are so good that the waiting time is 3 weeks to months just to get them to review your resume.
I believe it’s worth the wait, but some of us don’t like waiting that long.
Consider running your resume through online resume scanners.
A few I recommend are ZipJob, ResumeWorded and Job Scan.
N.B. These come with a price tag. For example, Job Scan offers limited capabilities for free, but for an optimized experience it costs $49.95 per month.
4. PLACE THE EXACT JOB TITLE IN YOUR RESUME
Let’s say you’re applying for a Product Management position. Even if you’ve never held this position, make sure “Product Manager” appears somewhere on your resume. For example, placing the job title of the role you’re applying for in the objective/summary portion of your resume increases your chances of being recognized as a potential candidate by the ATS.
Saying something like, “Innovate Sales Strategist seeking the role of Product Manager…” is a great opening line before expounding on your transferable skills.
5. MATCH YOUR RESUME TO EACH JOB DESCRIPTION
Unfortunately, this sometimes means making a different resume for each position. This isn’t necessary for all persons because some candidates apply to similar jobs. Other persons may find that they have transferable skills and test their luck at applying to varying positions.
It’s important not to lie on your resume. It’s also important to evaluate all the roles you’ve ever had and realize that you may have played a greater function in your position than you realized. For example, auditors can easily fit into Risk Analyst roles because they complete many of the same tasks. Also understand that many companies modernize job titles. Someone who has experience in Human Resources at one company can easily become a “People Partner” at another.
Take some time to reflect on your functions. Google job descriptions of your past and current roles to see if your roles can be summed up by a different description you never thought of.
Keep an open mind and good luck!
