When you apply for a position at some larger companies, often a human doesn’t even get a chance to look at your resume. That’s because many HR departments use application tracking software (ATS) to sift through hundreds of applications before turning the narrowed-down batch over to HR. While this saves them time, it means that promising applicants might get tossed out just because their resume don’t have the right keywords.
If HR departments are utilizing technology to make the “perfect match,” you may want to consider trying it too.
Once you have been through the MDL Process and come out the other side with a fantastic resume to get you actively networking, consider that you will still be using it at times to apply for jobs online. And then into the black hole of cyberspace it goes.
There are more than 300 applicant tracking software systems available. How can you hope to optimize a resume that considers them all?
There are a number of websites that can help you, and we’ve had success with www.jobscan.co. Jobscan says it is able to identify keywords used by 90 percent of employers.
In a simple two-step process, you paste your resume’s content into one box and the job description into another. Press a green button and magically you are presented with a match rate and analysis that includes both hard and soft skills matches, keyword matches, a nifty graph that details where your resume and the job description align, and more.
Jobscan currently monetizes through a subscription plan. Users get five free scans per month, but the startup gives 50 free scans to people who have been unemployed for a year or longer.
Try it and let us know what you think!