How do I get I successfully submit a resume without being rejected?

Every employer isn't using AI but are reviewing resumes for the top needs as listed on the job listing. Not all ATS systems pull up key words, but when scanned recruiters do the same. You need to adjust your resume per position application. Spending that time will pay off. Also, it's a tough tough market, patience and perseverance will serve you well. Also, processes to completion is not quick.

So I started typing this and then by the end, kind of realized I went off on a rant so here’s my four cents.

That is not how it works. Very few companies in the US actually use AI in the job application process. For many reasons, bias built into those systems and the potential liability that comes with that among them.

Yes, you will have people trying to get you to pay good cash money for an “ATS compliant resume” but there is no such thing.

I have experience with 7 or 8 different ATS and with different configurations of those systems.

I and every recruiter I know look at EVERY SINGLE RESUME that applies to our open requisitions. It's literally our job. And why wouldn't we? You know how happy I am when I get people applying and I don't have to go out and source candidates!

The ATS is basically an electronic filing cabinet that stores resumes, allows recruiters to manage and track candidates through the interview process, it’s where offer letters are generated.

There typically is no sorting involved with the application process.

Here's what happens (on all the systems I've ever used) when a candidate applies to one of my open requisitions: I click on their name in the list of new applicants for that requisition. Their resume has not been ranked. It has not been sorted for keywords. It has not been "scored". It has not been filtered.

I click "download resume". It downloads in whatever form - Word doc or PDF - the candidate uploaded it. I look at their resume. With my eyeballs. Every single one.

Please don't waste your time trying to "outsmart" an electronic filing cabinet.

Keywords are just skills or experience that we use in our search strings to find candidates (which is different than applying). Ideally, they should just be an organic part of a person's resume. Loading your resume up with words you think recruiters or hiring managers want to see may get someone to click on your resume but if the experience isn't there, it doesn't matter how many "key words" you stuff your resume with.

I also personally don’t understand the advice to customize your resume for every single position you apply for unless you’re applying for wildly different positions. Your experience is your experience. And who has that kind of time on their hands? Not me. If you’re having to significantly customize your resume for each position you’re applying for, I’d say you need to refine your search.

You know what gets a resume noticed? Being qualified for the position applied for.

I just had a conversation this week with a hiring manager – I was covering for a colleague and he had sent a bunch of resumes to his hiring manager before he left for vacation without reviewing them first. When I spoke with the hiring manager, he was like “why are so many of these candidates off target?” He was quite surprised when I told him that typically 75 to 80% of the candidates that apply to my open requisitions are not a fit. Sometimes it’s higher. We can’t control who applies.

JOBSEEKERS – I have two recommendations – please learn to read a job description. Virtually every single day I have this conversation with myself: “why in the world did this person apply to this requisition?”

AND PLEASE – FOR THE LOVE OF WHATEVER YOU HOLD DEAR – PLEASE use some critical thinking skills when you’re considering advice.

I’m not saying there are no good resume writers or job coaches out there. There are. There are also tons of people out there preying on desperate and/or vulnerable job seekers for clicks or money – trying to convince you that they have the secret sauce that is guaranteed to get you a job in three weeks paying $30k more than you’re making now. If you just pay them $1,000 to redo your resume or take their BS “course”.

Ask yourself “what is this person’s background?” “what makes them qualified to dish out this advice”? Are they a recruiter with years of experience, using an ATS daily, offering advice for free or are they someone who got themselves a job and now fancies themselves an expert - or someone who lost their job and now decided they’re a job search expert – and wants to charge you a lot of money. Or a barista working their side hustle. No offense against baristas intended.

There are tons of free resources out there on places like LinkedIn and TicTok where recruiters are engaging with jobseekers every day.

For example, just yesterday someone on LinkedIn referenced some TikTok dimfluencer who apparently has a video up saying that unless you have your references on your resume and unless one of those references is your current boss, that’s a big red flag. What that is is 100000% pure BS.

There's so much wrong with this BS advice, I don't even know where to begin.

1. Companies are moving away from checking references. The last 3 companies I've worked at didn't check references. These days, companies typically do employment verification. They verify the dates you worked there and your title. It's usually all done electronically.

2. Even if the company still does check references, they don't belong on your resume. Neither does "references provided upon request". That's a given. In this day of rampant identity theft, you should not be putting your reference's - who are doing you a favor by being a reference – name and contact info out there.

3. The first anyone at your current company should know you're looking for a job is when you turn in your resignation. A job search can take a long time these days. If you make it known you're looking to leave and leadership is looking for people to lay off, guess who may get an express ticket to the front of the line. When managers are assigning new projects, do you think they're going to be assigning the best, most interesting projects to the person that they know already has one foot out the door?

4. People have been fired when their boss found out they were looking for a new job.

Some other ridiculous myths out there as “advice”: having the green “open to work” banner on your LI profile makes you look desperate. You have to have a professional head shot for your LI profile (co-inka dinkaly enough that guy’s friend just happened to be a professional photographer – shocker, I know). That recruiters won’t reach out to you if you have an AOL.com email address.

I promise you – NONE of these things are things recruiter care about. We care whether or not you have the skill set/experience/background for the position we’re looking to fill. End of.

Then there is the truly damaging “advice” I’ve seen like stop applying to jobs and use 85% of your time networking. Does that even SOUND like it makes any sense? Not to me it doesn’t.

It seems like some candidates don't want to hear that they're being rejected by a human but they are. I'm the bot.

Rant over. Please let me know if y’all have any questions.