Getting a job has never felt harder, with the rise of applicant tracking systems (ATS) resulting in resumes getting filtered out before they have the chance to be seen by a recruiter.
But the reason the software isn’t accepting your resume can be as simple as saving the document in the wrong format, according to former recruiter and founder of project Roar, Catherine Harris.
Resumes are being sorted by applicant tracking systems before humans take a look at them. iStockphoto
“Some applicant tracking systems are hugely sophisticated, there’s been huge investment in there, but some of them are not. The problem is, you don’t know which applicant tracking system you’re going through,” Harris told Sylvia Jeffreys during an interview on her podcast The Pay Off.
“So we need to appeal at the base of the market … they don’t read PDF documents, they don’t like tables, they get messed up by tables and icons and pictures, so all of those things need to be removed out of your resume.”
While Harris has seen some “beautiful resumes”, the effort put into making them look good ends up being to the jobseeker’s detriment since the ATS can’t read them.
This means the best way to make a resume is to go “back to basics” and use Microsoft Word, unless a job ad specifies resumes can be in PDF form.
As for the content of your resume, you need to have the exact keywords both ATS and recruiters will scan your resume for, so Harris recommends printing the job ad and going through it with a highlighter to identify both the hard and soft skills you need to include and use the exact wording for those skills.
Harris summed up the perfect resume as follows: “A Word document, [with] no columns or tables or logos or pictures, and it’s got standardised headings, it is no more than four pages, and it’s really emphasising the last 10 to 15 years.”
Another part of the job application process that’s also usually included on a resume is your referees, and there is more to it than simply asking someone to give you a referral.
Lauren Anderson, workplace expert at Indeed, advises choosing a referee who you’ve worked closely with, rather than a relative or friend or a person you’ve been out of touch with for years as it could cause some doubt.
She also recommended letting the referee know you’ve applied for a job, and giving them some information about the position so they can tailor their review of you to the skills needed for the role.
“While there’s no need to script your referee’s answers, giving them a sense of what they may be asked, and what the employer is looking for, can help them provide thoughtful, relevant examples rather than ones improvised on the spot,” Anderson said.
“It’s also worth reminding them of a specific example or achievement you’re proud of, especially if it’s directly relevant to the role.”
If you’re not sure who to ask to be your referee, especially if it’s been a long time since you worked with a previous manager, there are several other options you can consider.
“Referees don’t have to be limited to previous managers,” Anderson said.
“Academic referees can speak to your ability to learn, take feedback and develop new skills, while character referees – such as a mentor, coach or community leader – can offer insight into how you show up outside of work.
“A mix of referees can give prospective employers a fuller, more well-rounded picture of who you are, while allowing each person to speak to a different aspect of your character and skill set.”