As a recruiter, I'm always getting people asking me for advice about their job search. That's fine with me. I enjoy being helpful. If they've gotten that far, the conversation usually commences with a discussion of phone interview questions.
However, a majority of the time, they are really asking because they happen to have been trying for months and can't get an interview.
Almost everyone will begin asking me questions regarding what's wrong with their resume, as they simply imagine that there has to be some problem with their resume or background which is keeping them from receiving a call back from the company's human resources department. Their conclusions are reasonable based upon everything they have heard. They have followed the standard wisdom by submitting resumes to email addresses as instructed on job postings, or they've submitted resumes through job boards. That's the way the employers tell everyone it works.
The thing is, that resume submission just happens to be the lowest result yielding activity involved with job searching. That shocks many people who don't work with hiring or staffing. I tell people that they are putting all of their effort straight into the activity that delivers the smallest amount of results, and it shocks them. So, I've got to supply them with some background and explain.
I generally skip making reference to certain technology factors that have an impact but aren't the main story. For instance, there are an array of automatic document scanning programs being used that search 1000s of submission searching for certain keywords. If the precise keywords don't show in the resume, then nobody ever sees it. However, who knows if the person in recruiting vetting the applications even knows the right keywords to enter into the search field. That can especially be true for very technical positions.
My explanation usually starts by discussing my average experience with an employment posting. When I create an advertisement for a position, regardless of how detailed the ad or strict the qualifications required, hundreds of people apply throughout the first day. So, after an hour or so, there is a giant digital pile of paperwork for me to read through. In addition, people are calling the office, other interview are going on, contracts are being negotiated, and other searches are happening all simultaneously. The bottom line is, that like most professionals, I am in a time crunch.
So, with regards to that pile of resumes, most people find a point and get started. It could be the first submitted. It could be the last in at the top of the email, or maybe it's somewhere in the middle. Usually then, they simply scan through the resumes until they find 3 to 5 solid candidates to interview. Following that, the review process stops, and the phone interview process moves on with those 3-5. All additional applicant's files collect dust and don't get touched unless they fail to hire one of the ones previously identified.
Following a shocked period of silence ,as the other party processes that information, I then move ahead to share better alternatives for job hunting. So, don't assume that the reason why you aren't getting interviews or phone calls is because of something lacking in the substance or form of your resume. Often, a perfect person for a position is just lost in the realities of the time constraints of the human resource function.
However, a majority of the time, they are really asking because they happen to have been trying for months and can't get an interview.
Almost everyone will begin asking me questions regarding what's wrong with their resume, as they simply imagine that there has to be some problem with their resume or background which is keeping them from receiving a call back from the company's human resources department. Their conclusions are reasonable based upon everything they have heard. They have followed the standard wisdom by submitting resumes to email addresses as instructed on job postings, or they've submitted resumes through job boards. That's the way the employers tell everyone it works.
The thing is, that resume submission just happens to be the lowest result yielding activity involved with job searching. That shocks many people who don't work with hiring or staffing. I tell people that they are putting all of their effort straight into the activity that delivers the smallest amount of results, and it shocks them. So, I've got to supply them with some background and explain.
I generally skip making reference to certain technology factors that have an impact but aren't the main story. For instance, there are an array of automatic document scanning programs being used that search 1000s of submission searching for certain keywords. If the precise keywords don't show in the resume, then nobody ever sees it. However, who knows if the person in recruiting vetting the applications even knows the right keywords to enter into the search field. That can especially be true for very technical positions.
My explanation usually starts by discussing my average experience with an employment posting. When I create an advertisement for a position, regardless of how detailed the ad or strict the qualifications required, hundreds of people apply throughout the first day. So, after an hour or so, there is a giant digital pile of paperwork for me to read through. In addition, people are calling the office, other interview are going on, contracts are being negotiated, and other searches are happening all simultaneously. The bottom line is, that like most professionals, I am in a time crunch.
So, with regards to that pile of resumes, most people find a point and get started. It could be the first submitted. It could be the last in at the top of the email, or maybe it's somewhere in the middle. Usually then, they simply scan through the resumes until they find 3 to 5 solid candidates to interview. Following that, the review process stops, and the phone interview process moves on with those 3-5. All additional applicant's files collect dust and don't get touched unless they fail to hire one of the ones previously identified.
Following a shocked period of silence ,as the other party processes that information, I then move ahead to share better alternatives for job hunting. So, don't assume that the reason why you aren't getting interviews or phone calls is because of something lacking in the substance or form of your resume. Often, a perfect person for a position is just lost in the realities of the time constraints of the human resource function.
Source : By Luanna Lippincott,About the Author:
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