Think like an employer
To be successful in your job search campaign you must think like an employer or a recruiter. If you are going to do this right, you need to appreciate the ways that employers sift through the flood of resumes. We call the most common process the screening.
Faced with a pile of hundreds of job applications that recruiters typically receive, a screener would be more then human to give such in-depth attention to every one. In the real world, skim reading of resumes is very much a reality and it is easy to miss crucial information.
Do you know what their objective is?
We can tell you what it is not.
Screeners are nor there to find the best candidate for the job!
What they are looking for is a way to weed out every resume possible. The goal is to present whoever is making the hiring decision with a manageable shortlist of potential candidates - maybe 5 or 10 out of all applications they received. It's a matter of numbers!
What screeners look for?
Well, it depends on how stringent they are. Many will chuck your resume right away if they find any of the following errors:
How these folks can do this?
You might be wondering how these folks can do this, after you spent so much time putting your job application package together.
The answer is plain and simple - they can afford to because it is a buyer's market.
Employers ask themselves if your skills and work achievements match exactly what they are looking for. They check if your cover letter is concise and targeted to the reader. If you have sent a form letter, you can probably kiss the job good bye. The list of reasons to disqualify you goes on and on.
The new screening technology
If you think the process is bad now, just wait. It is going to get better we think (or worse, depending on your point of view). This new technology could be very helpful to you. It could help you find your next job. We call it an