Even executive job seekers do not escape the reality that applicant tracking systems (ATS) are used by companies and recruiters for all levels of potential candidates. Because of their efficiency to track keywords and phrases, these ATS systems have an influence in the hiring process that is not likely to go away in the near future.
Resume format is very important – ATS systems tend to grab information in predicta...
Repetition on your resume is good when it involves keywords, skills, accomplishments, and education that applicant tracking systems, recruiters and hiring managers are using to identify what they want most in a new hire. But repetition is not good when:
Repetition takes up valuable space you could use for new information.
You repeat duties or tasks you mastered long ago without showing any progress. However, if a j...
Resumes are a popular topic on LJNRadio for good reason, and for this episode Tim Muma takes a slightly altered approach. He speaks with Jessica Holbrook Hernandez, president and CEO of Great Resumes Fast, who brings her experienced insights with her. The strategy she brings to this show is finding a way to take one's early resume - often short and light on experience - and finding ways to create a stronger, more profession...
Every so often I like to celebrate Halloween by reviewing some resume nightmares. This time, let’s focus on the resume monsters who lurk within us all (cue Phantom of the Opera music).
Take the Verb Vampire. This is the guy who leaves every verb in the present tense for a job that he last held 10 years ago. The Verb Vampire forgets that updating a resume means more than just adding his latest position; he has to go...
Resumes are usually written using one of a trio of strategies. There’s the chronological resume, the functional resume and some hybrid of the two. A different approach can make your resume stand out, and the CAR approach is one option that adds to the chronological or functional structure to make the case for your candidacy as compelling as possible.
As an additional benefit, it can make sense of a search process t...
In June this year, I published a blog post on mistakes that do-it-yourself resume writers make, including mistakes with numbers, punctuation, spelling and factual information. Lately I’ve seen a few more mistakes which would be easy to avoid or fix:
Overloading the resume with exclamation points (!) and adjectives. Exclamation points have no place in a resume (unless they are part of a title). Adjectives are fine...
The abyss. The black hole. The Great Emptiness. These are just some of the terms I’ve heard for applicant tracking systems (ATS). They are not unwarranted. Many, if not most companies use ATS software to automate their recruiting processes by scanning the applications for keywords and then assigning a score to them. Only those profiles that meet a certain scoring criteria will be forwarded along to an actual human. Th...
Whether you are a seasoned executive or a manager with an eye set on elevating to an executive level role, you need to be aware of how the below resume writing tips impact the effectiveness of your job search.Here Are 5 Important Resume Must-Haves For Better Pizzaz 1. Profile section.According to Dummies.com, “A career summary [profile] section should be a descriptive selling point distilled from your past accomplishments t...
You may have found yourself in the same boat as many of my clients when it comes to the frustration of filling out job applications online. It can seem like an effort in futility—attempting to navigate a potential employer’s ATS software just to get your resume uploaded and then praying a real person calls you for a follow-up interview. I’m going to tell you what I tell my clients: Don’t agonize over online applications bec...
Resumes have evolved over the decades. In fact, knowing what to EXCLUDE from your resume (the “bad apple” details) is just as important today as what you should INCLUDE.Yes, figuring out what to include in your resume can be confusing.Deciphering the contradictions made by experts can be overwhelming, which exacerbates the problem even more.As a manager and executive, you may approach this challenge as you would other issue...