Strategy prospective employers deploy to evaluate your resume & career credentials.

In my role as career & leadership coach for working & executive professionals, I indulge in the process of creating that winning resume, compelling LinkedIn profile & crafting job search & networking strategies to apply for that dream job/roles.

We generally ask ourselves what process does a prospective employer follows to shortlist a particular resume. Nowadays, it is less of human element & more of chat bots & systems which uses a scoring based model to evaluate the attractiveness of a resume for a particular role before it reaches a human hand.

These systems follow a particular algorithm & programming language for screening.

I am going to talk about key considerations which employers consider when screening your resume. The program gives score to resume based on below mentioned predetermined parameters:

1)Keyword matching

The algorithm generally look for specific keywords related to your knowledge, skills & abilities in your resume & try to match it with those enumerated in the job description. Next in line are the keywords for qualifications /job specifications which shall include degrees, certifications,licenses, training & education. From here, each candidate is  given a particular score on the basis of % of keyword matches. Besides, employers can also give emphasis to order of magnitude for skills, knowledge & abilities. So one skill set or ability might have a great weight to be a potential fit for a particular role. More sophisticated algorithms also calculate length of your relationship with your previous/current employer based on the dates mentioned in your resume which have weightage on score assigned to your resume.

2)  Optimising your resume

You would like to write a resume customised to a particular job role. So you should include specific terms in your resume that align with the job description. Make sure that resume hits the right keywords. If you are applying for a job role that requires specific competency related to corporate finance, make sure you include that specific skill in your resume. For instance, if organisation is looking for a skill set in DCF method of valuation, you should not right include valuation as your skill. You would be better off to include DCF as specific skill set.

3) Keyword clues

You should focus on surface level attributes found in job requirements such as length of experience, education qualification, training, certification etc. These are observable attributes which can be readily evaluated. Next clue is the background. Do you have the requisite background & expertise that makes you apt for a particular role. You should be able to demonstrate ability to undertake particular activities such as preparing/building reports, conducting analysis etc

4) Soft skills

Finally, you should also include non-tangible skills such as people management, team work or any other phrases that defines your ability to undertake particular task. For instance if a job description ask for managing entire project from planning to its closure, you should be able to articulate how will take up such task. Different algorithms have different ways to interpret what is being communicated. In addition to this, your resume should have strong adjectives such as “ efficiently” , “ successfully”.

5) Mistakes to avoid

 Do not write a generic resume which goes too far from those required in the job description which makes algorithm throw up. Besides, do not use super cool or fancy fonts. Use also include bullet points instead of tables. Avoid using more specific, unique or creative terms. These does not go well with the algorithm machine.

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