collaborative post | The recruitment process in 2024 is mainly an online one. Applicants create online resumes and forward them to inboxes where ATS (applicant tracking systems) scan them. You will likely have received an automated response if you have recently emailed or submitted your resume.
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This process happens without the guarantee that an actual recruiter will ever see your resume. This is why you must create a resume that not only passes ATS technology but also appeals to human recruiters.
Optimizing Your Resume For ATS
ATS systems do not look for the same features in a resume as human recruiters do. Whereas a human recruiter may look for current expertise and education history, an ATS system scans keywords and phrases.
You should add keywords related to the job description in your resume. Highlight skills, experience, and qualifications as mentioned in the job advertisement.
Ideally, you do not want to stuff a bunch of keywords in there if you cannot back them up with real-life experience. Always choose keywords and phrases relating to your experience, skills, and the job description.
You also want to add figures to your resume. If you were responsible for a 50% increase in sales, that is an important figure to add. If you were part of a team that achieved a 30% increase in brand awareness, add that as well.
Speaking of responsibilities, you should add action words and verbs when describing your tasks and duties. Managed, developed, and implemented are all words that make a resume less vague.
Focus on Your Resume Content
Add your latest skills and experience at the top of your resume below your name and title. You can add your education and personal information further down. When you add your job titles and experiences, also add achievements.
At the same time, you do not want to be too flowery or technical with your descriptions. ATS systems understand simple sentences better. The same goes for formatting. Use a consistent format with headings and bullet points. Avoid adding graphs and charts because ATS systems will find them hard to interpret.
Also, typos and grammatical errors are a big no-no. Both ATS and human hiring managers do not appreciate them. Always proofread and edit your resume at least twice before emailing or submitting it.
You should also save your resume in a format that ATS understands. This would be either doc. or docx. Add keywords to your resume file name to increase the odds of your resume being scanned by an ATS system.
Include a Cover Letter
Including a cover letter with your resume is a good idea because it gives you more room for keywords and action verbs. Use the cover letter to introduce yourself and add these keywords when you briefly explain your experience and skills.
Optimizing Your Resume Increases Your Chances of Success
By optimizing your resume, you increase the chances of getting noticed by human recruiters. Combine your optimized resume with an equally optimized cover letter, and before long, you will be heading to your dream job every day.
