This article seeks to enlighten you on why your resume hasn’t landed you an interview based on the Applicant Tracking System Software (ATS) standard.
Do you know why your resume haven’t landed you a job yet? A resume can be a document created by candidates to give their qualifications, skills and accomplishment, however, a wonderful resume could be a crisp and careful self-marketing tool that depicts one’s important and distinctive competencies relevant to a corporation for a specific job role.
A crisp resume helps emphasize the qualities and work experiences of someone that is most relevant to the duty position being applied for.
Many times, I hear people say they require a resume which will offer them employment and I simply mock their cognitive content. Your resume is a self-marketing tool that helps you get an interview thus securing your dream job. If your resume appears thus smart and you cannot defend it, then how does one intend obtaining the job? It’s one factor to own an ideal resume and it’s another to strike excellently after you get invited for an interview.
In the twenty-first century, several organizations created the use of a system called ATS (Applicant Tracking System Software) [1]. Today, what began as an enlisting answer for big employers, is becoming a common tool and for corporations of all shapes and sizes. Thus, ATS is a variety of software package utilized by recruiters and employers throughout the hiring method to gather, sort, scan and rank the work application they receive for his or her open positions.
The big question is, how does this ATS work? Well, this machine acts as an electronic gatekeeper. It assists to sieve unqualified applications, these, therefore, referred to as software really parses a resume content into classes and so scan it for specific keywords to work out if the work application ought to be passed on to the recruiter. Sadly, this can be wherever most applications finish their journey, many candidates hoping to receive a decision, text or mail for an interview might never receive any, unknown to them, ATS already weeded out their applications as unqualified candidates.
If a resume isn’t written and formatted with the human following system(employer’s perspective) in mind, a professional candidate may be simply skipped over. The hiring manager can then evaluate the candidates with the measure of doubt to be matched for the position. ATS is appropriate to toss the least-qualified candidates.
Have you been applying for various jobs and nevertheless no calls, texts or emails tantalizing you for an interview, then based on ATS you are taking one or a lot of of these wrong steps:
Reasons Why Your Resume Has Not Landed You An Interview
1. You Don’t Carry-Out Proper Research Before Beginning a Job Application
Before beginning your job application, you need to ensure you understand important facts about the company so you can accurately illustrate that you know what the organization is about and how you can offer value if you get hired. But mind you, researching doesn’t mean knowing the company’s name. It means making sure you know every major part of the organization, understanding the company’s mission and value, and knowing how you can add more value to the company.
By carrying out proper research about the company, you’ll be aware of the company’s terminologies and how to draft this into your application so as to attract the employer to invite you for an interview and hopefully land your dream job, that’s the aim of having a winning resume/cv right?
2. One Resume for All
It is very common to find candidates using one resume for all job applications. Hiring managers can tell when you submit a generic resume, cover letter and other application materials instead of spending the extra time customizing each one. Not only does it make you an unmemorable applicant, but it also makes hiring managers and potential employers think you don’t really care enough about that position or company. Not customizing each application also leaves room for error. You should design each resume based on what the job listing requires.
Do not apply for different job roles with a single resume. This might just be the reason your resume haven’t landed you an interview. Different job roles and companies for different resumes. You dig?
3. Your skills/competencies and expertise weren’t listed early enough
It is not all applicant tracking systems that are able to properly read and parse information stored in the header and footer sections of a Word document. But nevertheless, your skills and competencies should come early enough on your resume. But this can be a successful move only if you must have done proper research and know the necessary skills and expertise needed to be included in your resume/cv. Remember, your resume/cv is a self-marketing tool in order to land you an interview, so do not sleep on the bicycle.
4. You Didn’t Optimize Your Resume With Rich-Keywords.
Another reason your resume haven’t landed you an interview is probably because your resume isn’t optimized with rich keywords. One of the best ways to ensure your resume is compatible with an ATS is to optimize your resume with keywords. Unlike a “buzzword,” which is typically considered to be a fluffy marketing term such as “proactive” or “self-starter,” keywords represent the soft skills and hard skills you possess and the expertise you’ve acquired over the years that qualify you for your target job.
You failed to use eye-catching resume design with a clear hierarchy. You include data that is a resume killer. Your font is inconsistent. Your summary is not professional and eye-catching.
You are too busy to proofread your applications before submitting. You don’t match your format to your purpose. Your resume doesn’t include skills and experience requested by the ATS, and much more.
Other Reasons You Don’t Get Called For An Interview:
5. Not a match for the job
If your resume is yet to land you an interview, it may also be because you were screened out by an automatic system or a hiring manager due to the language in your resume didn’t match the requirements listed within the job posting. It’s important to take time to highlight the skills that qualify you for the position on your resume.
6. Overqualified
This may sound unbelievable, but being overqualified may just be one of the reasons your resume hasn’t landed you an interview. There is a perception by employers that you are overqualified. Being overqualified can hurt your candidacy. Use your cover letter to explain why you’re applying, your enthusiasm for the role, and what you can offer the organization. If this is looking like the reason behind your not getting an interview invite, you may not tune your CV down a bit so as not to intimidate your employer. Remember, wisdom is profitable to direct.
7. Inability to follow directions
Your inability to follow instructions as requested or follow the directions for the appliance can prevent you from getting a feedback for interview. An easy way for employers to narrow the applicant pool is to eliminate the candidates who didn’t provide the requested information. If you couldn’t follow instructions once you applied, the employer may doubt that you simply would be ready to follow instructions if you were hired. Make sure you’ve covered all the bases, especially once you apply online for employment.
8. Accomplishments aren’t showcased
Your resume and cover letter don’t reveal your accomplishments and don’t show how you have impacted the bottom line with prior employers. Using numbers to quantify your achievements is an excellent way to impress an employer.
9. Mistakes
There were grammatical and/or spelling errors in your documents. It’s not always easy to catch your own mistakes. Carefully proofread all your job application documents, and, if you can, have someone else look them over for you.
10. Generic cover letter
If your cover letter is generic and not tailored to the work, it may ruin your chances of being invited for an interview regardless of how great your CV may be. The goal of a cover letter is to sell your accomplishments. You should write on what you’ll offer the corporate, not what you would like during a job. Be specific, and customize your cover letters so they highlight your best attributes.
11. Lack of credentials
You don’t possess a required educational credential. Many jobs have a required level of education or equivalent experience. If you don’t meet those requirements, you may not be considered for the position.
12. Short on experience
You lack relevant work experience within that role and/or industry. If you don’t have the proper experience, you almost certainly won’t get an interview. You could have applied for employment a step or two further up the career ladder than is perfect for getting selected at now. If that is the case, start with an entry-level position, then try applying again after you’ve gained more experience.
13. The job doesn’t seem like a fit
When you fail to make it clear how the work fits into your career plan, this van be a problem. Is the experience you have on your resume related to the position for which you’re applying? Have you shown the employer why this job would be an honest fit both you and therefore the organization? If it wasn’t clear, you may likely not get invited for an interview.
BOTTOM LINE
Applying for jobs has gone beyond just referral or presenting a shabby-looking resume that lacks rich content. For you to land a job interview, your resume must be concise and ATS friendly (don’t forget this). Stick to the information provided in this article and apply them.
Congrats in advance!
Reference
[1] (N.d.). Jobscan.Co. from https://www.jobscan.co/applicant-tracking-systems
