A good resume goes a long way. A resume is a vital tool for your job search because it allows you to showcase your relevant abilities and traits for a job on one or two pages. Resumes help hiring managers in making hiring judgments and securing your first interview. That’s why it is important to consider how you organize your resume and what information you include.
Job seekers have probably experienced this: You found a fantastic position, sent in your resume, and eagerly awaited a response from a hiring manager. However, days or even weeks passed with no response at all, leaving you disappointed. Unfortunately, because many companies today use automated resume screening software, this has become an ongoing occurrence in the job market.
What is Resume Screening?
Resume screening is the process of quickly evaluating a resume while looking for keywords and characteristics. It saves recruiters time during the hiring process and leads to a faster onboarding of new employees.
Whether companies screen resumes manually or with tools, utilizing the best strategies will help them uncover the most qualified candidates.
What is a Resume Screening Software?
Recruiters are looking for new ways to improve their hiring process and raise their chances of getting the top talents. Advances in technology present an automated resume screening software for recruiters, which has proven beneficial to many HR teams.
Resume screening software, also known as applicant screening software, helps with the productivity of recruiting and talent acquisition departments. It accomplishes this by collecting all resumes received for each job listing, allowing the team to prioritize which job seeker to invite to the interview process.
A resume screening tool will typically select the top candidates for a post based on keyword search results or responses to particular questions. A resume screening tool is typically included as part of the applicant tracking system (ATS).
Why do Employers Use Resume Screening Software?
ATS and other technologies are designed to make the job of recruiters and hiring managers easier by screening resumes for the best and most efficient hiring. Based on the filters put up in the automated resume screening program, the large volume of resumes received for most occupations results in many unqualified candidates. This strategy screens resumes to save time and effort for both recruiters and hiring managers, allowing them to focus exclusively on qualified candidates.
Pros of a Resume Screening Software
With applicant tracking software increasingly simplifying the screening procedures in greater numbers, many HR professionals are saving critical time and resources to focus on other duties. However, this does not always imply that applicant tracking systems provide wholly favorable effects. While the system has a number of advantages for both businesses and employees, it also has its fair share of disadvantages.
Most importantly, knowing the difference is essential. Below are the advantages of using resume screening software.
1. Saves Time and Boosts Productivity
Recruiters can save a lot of time by using resume-filtering technologies. Since recruiters only have to go through the top few applications rather than analyzing every unqualified applicant’s resume, the time spent for onboarding significantly decreases. Candidates will get through the hiring process more quickly, and hiring managers will be able to make better use of their time.
2. Keeps Job Seekers’ Information Organized
As the applicant progresses through the hiring process, recruiting software automatically tracks and maintains applications, resumes, and employment-related information. Candidate databases allow recruiters and hiring managers to quickly see where each job applicant is in the hiring process. This minimizes the possibility of pertinent data being lost in the shuffle and allows said files to be recovered in seconds with a few clicks.
3. Creates a Pleasant Job Search Experience
Candidates want to progress quickly through the employment process and to hear from the employer on a regular basis. Recruiting software facilitates communication between hiring professionals and job applicants, which helps with these high points of the latter’s experience. Job seekers can also take a more hands-on approach to applying, researching the organization and learning more about the recruiting process while waiting to hear back from the hiring team.
4. Matches Candidates to the Right Jobs
At times, the tracking system will keep resumes that were first disqualified. Just because they weren’t a good fit for the first job the applicant applied for doesn’t mean they won’t be a good fit for another if the opportunity comes. If the applicant meets the requirements for the other position, the application can be tagged and marked for that position. Both the company and the job seeker could benefit from this.
Cons of a Resume Screening Software
Now let’s dive into the disadvantages of using a resume screening software:
1. Could Filter Out Good Candidates
While the ability to search for suitable job applications is helpful, ATS run a possibility of excluding applicants who are valuable but may not have the exact qualifications posted with the vacancy. This can include those who are changing careers as well as fresh graduates who may still have a lot to offer. These algorithms can also reject highly qualified job seekers for reasons other than their qualifications, such as incorrectly prepared resumes or other errors in technology.
2. May Draw Out Unconscious Biases
Resumes provide a picture of a candidate’s academic credentials and professional experience, none of which is a guarantee of success. Worse, by emphasizing pedigree, you are favoring individuals from privileged backgrounds. Perhaps more concerning is the prevalence of racism against minorities in the resume screening process.
3. Can Be Open to Inaccuracies
Candidates who are familiar with and understand the tracking systems’ filtering technologies can take advantage of this hiring procedure. This means that instead of being the most qualified out of the pool, they may merely know how to load a resume with the necessary keywords.
Many candidates fake their resumes and frequently get away with it. Most job seekers are aware of the algorithms and software used to analyze applications and resumes and will add certain keywords based on your job description to avoid these filters. While humans can tell what’s true and what’s not, automated resume screening tools and AI systems can’t.
Tips on Beating the Resume Screening Software
The ATS’ capability to sift through countless job applications each day and filter only the relevant ones has made it a popular solution for headhunters in recent years. So, since it processes and forwards only the most relevant, you need your resume in tiptop shape to reach its destination, the hiring manager or recruiter.
Here are some tips when crafting a resume that will pass the ATS:
1. Only apply for roles in which you are qualified.
First and foremost, ensure that you’re truly qualified for the jobs you are applying for. This does not imply that you must meet every single job requirement or apply for a job just if you have the traditional background for it. If you lack the core skills required for a job, you should avoid wasting your time or the time of a recruiter.
2. Use the right resume keywords.
Use keywords in your resume’s skills summary or key credentials, as well as the education and experience sections. However, avoid overfilling. Your resume will not impress the hiring manager if you include so many keywords that it becomes difficult to read or grasp. Balance is essential.
3. Connect your keywords to unique experiences.
ATS can detect the presence of a critical skill or experience. But people must still evaluate the value and significance of that experience. Include job description buzzwords and keywords that are relevant to your talents and expertise. Instead of simply informing recruiters and hiring managers that you have a skill, this will demonstrate how you’ve used it and the outcomes.
4. Use basic resume formatting.
Your resume layout also plays a role in beating the ATS. In addition to ensuring that your resume contains the appropriate material for an applicant tracking system, you must also ensure that the ATS can interpret that information and provide it to the individual on the other end in a comprehensible format.
5. Submit the right type of file.
Pay attention to how the job portal instructs you to send it. You must specifically conform to that in terms of the acceptable file type. Even though multiple file formats are mentioned as acceptable, try to submit only documents in PDF or DOC formats. Nonetheless, although both are commonplace in resume submissions, applicant tracking systems typically prefer to read .doc resumes, so use this format.
Beat the Bots and Make Sure Your Resume Gets Seen
While having an ATS-ready resume is vital in today’s job market, it takes the whole package to position oneself as the best candidate for the job. That is why, at Resume Professional Writers, we advise clients to make their job application a holistic experience. Will your resume pass the ATS? Check out our free resume review now. You can also chat with our career experts to help you improve your resume. Let’s get to work!
