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Thought Leadership

The CEO Says: Don’t Name Your Resume, “resume” & Nine Other Head-Smacking Tips for Job Seekers

11/24/2010

 
Well, we've said these very same things, so it's great to hear it from the CEO of a company that's hiring.  If you're not familiar with ERP SoftwareAdvice, they help buyers find the right software for their business. Like the big consulting firms, they research the market identifying the best solutions for each buyer. Unlike those firms, their advice is available to everyone, for free.  In the last year, their website helped 15,206 organizations find the right software.  Check them out and enjoy the POV of Don Fornes, CEO.

SoftwareAdvice.com CEO Don Fornes
SoftwareAdvice.com
CEO Don Fornes

Don’t Name Your Resume, “resume” & Nine Other Head-Smacking Tips for Job Seekers




At Software Advice, we’re hiring like mad, or at least trying to. You might think a growing company with interesting jobs, great pay, top-notch benefits and a cool office would find hiring to be a breeze in a recession like this. Nope.

We want A players on our team - we have 19 so far.

However, we typically sort through about 150 candidates for each hire we make. Only about twelve of those 150 candidates get to a first-round phone interview.

Why so few?

It’s not worth our time to interview any more than that. The incremental effort of interviewing more than twelve out of 150 candidates produces a very low marginal yield of qualified hires. There may be a superstar hidden in the other 138, but it’s not worth our time to dig too deep to find her. Yes, we look at each application, but we do so with an eye for why we should reject the candidate, not why we should hire them. That quickly gets us to roughly a dozen interviewees, and then we switch our mindset to start thinking about who we want to hire.

With that as context, I want to share some of the screens I use to whittle down 150 applications to twelve interviews. I’m not talking about the usual hiring criteria; yes, we absolutely look at experience, achievements, academic credentials, etc. That’s all core and critical. Instead, I’m going to talk about the head-smacking, silly things people do that make me click “reject” in our applicant tracking system (ATS).

One more bit of context: our typical hiring profile is a recent college grad, zero to five years out, looking for a sales or marketing job. Keep that in mind. Here goes:

1. Don’t name your resume, “resume.” About a third of applicants name their resume document, “resume.doc.” “Resume” may make sense on your computer, where you know it’s your resume. However, on my computer, it’s one of many, many resumes with the same name. I used to rename them, but then I noticed the strong correlation between unqualified candidates and the “resume” file name. Now I reject them if I don’t see something really good within ten seconds. By using such a generic file name, the applicant misses a great opportunity to brand themselves (e.g. “John Doe - Quota Crusher”). If you’re qualified enough to sell or market for us, you won’t miss the opportunity to at least use your name in the file name.

2. don’t use all lowercase. i’m not sure where this trend originated. is it some text messaging thing? it’s so easy to capitalize properly on a keyboard. how much time is this really saving you? to me, it screams out, “hi. i’m lazy. my pinkies are really heavy and I’d rather not move them to shift. when i start working for you, i’ll look for other ways to be lazy. i’ll also rebel against authority figures like you, just like i’m rebelling against the english teachers that dedicated their lives to helping me become literate.” seriously though, this bad habit buys you next to nothing and is bound to offend countless detailed-oriented hiring managers.

3. Don’t write like a robot. I’ve noticed a funny phenomenon with many grads that are entering “the real world.” While their speech is still littered with “ums,” “likes” and “you knows,” their writing is exceedingly formal, long-winded and boring. The people that are reviewing your application were young once too. They may still be young. Most of them have a sense of humor. They get bored. Please, don’t make them parse dense cover letters and resumes that read like some robot ate a thesaurus and puked. Just use concise, well-written prose. Keep sentences short. Toss in a joke or two. Show us a little bit of your personality. We’re going to have to work with you more than we see our spouses, so show us that we’ll enjoy it. No robots.

4. Don’t spam hiring managers. It’s easy to tell when a candidate is just applying to any job out there to see if anyone will call for an interview. Unlikely. Hiring managers want to know that you are excited about the position. They know that passion for the role is critical to success. Take the time to understand the company and the open position. Write a cover letter or email that explains your interest in the role and your qualifications. Tweak your resume to match the hiring criteria. On our web application, we ask applicants to answer three questions. Why? Because spammer applicants will just enter simple answers of a few words; applicants that care enter well-written, thoughtful answers. We delete the former immediately. Remember, these jobs are competitive; the only way to compete is to stand out...in a good way. Spam won’t.

5. Don’t expose your licentious personal life. We’ve all read about social media missteps - those unfortunate photos of you passed out drunk, covered in flour (“antiqued” as my co-workers call it), profane words written on your face. Honestly, I understand. If Facebook and camera phones were around when I was in college, I’d still be blushing in embarrassment. Now that you want a career, put that stuff behind you. Start managing your reputation online and off. One of our three application questions asks for the applicant’s proudest achievements. Today some guy answered that he had produced and stared in his own music video. Kinda cool, I thought. That is, until I clicked the link and witnessed the puerile lifestyle of which he remains so proud. Reject. As a rule, I’m not going to pry too deep into your personal life, so don’t jinx yourself by showing us you at your worst.

6. Don’t talk badly about your former employer. If you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all. This is especially relevant in the hiring process. When I read negative comments in an application or cover letter, I’m shocked. My problem with this is twofold. First, it typically takes two to tangle. I assume there is a high likelihood that this applicant finds trouble wherever they go. Moreover, talking badly betrays a lack of “political judgment” - a critical skill set for the workplace, whether you like it or not. When I hear a candidate say that their last employer was incompetent, a micro-manager, or unfair, I assume I’m next on their list. The candidate may be right; their former employer may be horrible. I’ll pass on the opportunity to find out.

7. Proofread your resume. It’s unbelievable the number of spelling, grammar and punctuation mistakes I see in resumes. Again, this is a blaring clue telling the hiring manager that you don’t check your work and you don’t pay attention to detail. More than one error and I’m clicking reject. Why so harsh? Because I don’t want to have to double check your work when I hire you. Hiring managers want leverage, not more work. It’s really easy to have someone review your resume. Friends, family, career counselors - all these folks should be willing to give it a quick read. Fresh eyes can catch those typos you’ve glanced over ten times. Take the extra effort and avoid the nearly automatic “reject” reflex that hiring managers have when they spot your errors.

8. Format your resume nicely. Take the time to format your resume nicely. It’s one of those small clues hiring managers look to for an indication of your attention to detail, organization and pride in your work. If you send me a sloppy resume, I’ll reject it knowing that you are likely to do sloppy work if I hire you. There are standard formats out there; use them. Don’t reinvent the wheel. Don’t get creative (unless you are applying for creative jobs in design, advertising, etc.). For sales, marketing, finance, administration, etc., stick to a clean, one-page format like the Wharton School Template. Don’t make us figure out your resume format when we’re busy trying to figure out you.

9. PDF your resume. Not everyone uses the same operating system and word processor that you do. I use a Mac. I don’t have Word - don’t want it. My ATS can’t handle .docx files. A lot of the resumes I see come through horribly garbled. So much for that nice formatting you did (Did you?). PDF, or portable document format, is a simple solution. Anyone with Adobe Reader - most any corporate computer has it installed - can open a PDF file and see exactly what you intended them to see. Most ATSs read PDFs just fine. Most any Mac application can print/export to PDF. If your Windows apps won’t, go download one of the many free PDF creator applications and PDF your resume. It’s so easy. It’s so free. It’s so appreciated.

10. When you get a job, don’t job hop. Finally, here’s one last piece of advice that goes far beyond the job application. When you get a job, try your very best to stay at it for at least two years, preferably more. We understand that the job market is fluid and you are not likely to stay with us long enough to get the gold watch. However, we do want to get a couple years of productivity from you if we’re going to invest in training and mentoring. One of the first things I look for on a resume is some demonstration of tenure. Had three jobs in your first year out of college? Reject. Four jobs in your first five years out? Reject. I’ve got to assume that you were fired repeatedly or you’ve got a bad case of career ADD. Got a good story about all that job hopping? Unfortunately, I can’t afford to take the risk.

I know I sound like a grumpy old man. I just can’t help but share this inside scoop on our screening process. I know it might reduce my screening effectiveness if I share my criteria. However, if you read this and fix your application, that tells me you are coachable and you care. Let’s interview.

If you are an A player, I hope you’ll get a good laugh out of this. Moreover, I want you to know that there is a company out there working hard to find you. We’ll hire you. We’ll appreciate you. We’ll reward you handsomely. Please apply! Just take your time on the application.

Don Fornes is the CEO of ERP Software Advice, an online resource that reviews HR and ERP software. This article was originally featured at: Don’t Name Your Resume, “resume” & Nine Other Head-Smacking Tips for Job Seekers and is reprinted here by permission of the author..

Paul Hicks
11/24/2010 03:10:59 am

Don, thanks for the advise, just one question. You say do your resume in PDF, on an other LinkedIN job advise from a recruiter, they say DON'T do it in PDF it's to much trouble to have to open and wait for a PDF or to convert; they say do a "word" format as most people in the world can open this format - which one is it ??? Paul.

Bryant Turnage link
11/24/2010 03:21:46 am

Thanks for sharing this valuable advice, Mr. Fornes. Most of it isn't new, especially for those of us who have been among the long-term unemployed, but you present a clear, well-thought-out set of standards.

The question I have for you and others counseling job seekers is this: Should we hold employers to the same standards? Given the competitive job market (boy, is that ever an understatement), it seems that many employers and recruiters have ever-higher demands of perfection and broad, deep skill sets and experience from applicants. Yet I continually see vague job postings with poor spelling, grammar errors, and basic pieces of information missing. There are also many times when job board postings or company web sites seem to broadcast the message, "We don't care about you." Sometimes these things are indicative of a larger problem of a corporate culture that will be unpleasant as a work environment, but job applicants don't know if it's simply a case of a rushed job posting or an unintended message. Then there are the convoluted application processes, the ATS application systems that require more than an hour's time to complete, or sites that require someone to register, create passwords, and so on. Some employers ask for references with an initial application, or request information that is otherwise inappropriate at such an early stage (or ever).

Now, most job postings or company web sites won't make all these errors, but some will have quite a lot. Job seekers are in dire straits right now, and they often feel they must apply for job openings when they come along, even if in healthier economic times they might view these as warning signs. Maybe I've just been looking too long, but it seems I see more and more of these problems as time goes on. What advice would you give to applicants? Do we overlook errors on the part of employers and recruiters that would immediately cause our resumes to be deleted if the situation were reversed, or do we demand the same standard as employers have, and accept that this gives us a far smaller pool of companies to even consider?

Derek McLennan link
12/2/2010 11:51:03 pm

Paul,

I would use a PDF format unless the potential employer requests other wise.
By doing so you can reduce the chances of your resume information becoming garbled or having formatting issues.

Derek McLennan
12/3/2010 12:18:26 am

Bryant,
I agree with 100%. Employers are requiring more from job applicants than from their HR department or third party administrators. This is an “Employers Buyers Market” the “Seller” (potential employee) has to make sure all of their “I’s” are dotted and T’s crossed and their resume is free of any grammar and punctuation errors.
If you like the company I would overlook the grammatical errors on their job board.
If it’s a recruiter with grammar issues! That would he a HUGE red flag to me and I would ask them for references.

Eric Kramer link
12/14/2010 08:30:45 pm

Most of Don's information is good basic common sense. His PDF suggestion is an example of the large amount of conflicting and often subjective information job seekers receive. As a career coach I advise my clients against submitting PDF resumes. Most applicant tracking systems do not handle PDFs and Don should update his ATS to handle docx.

The most significant suggestion to me is the job hopping one. An amazing sign of the times that Don suggests 2 years as an acceptable tenure at a company. Used to be less than 10 years was questionable! How companies and employees will manage such fluidity is a critical and emerging issue.

Mark Liberatore link
12/15/2010 05:12:01 am

Many recruiters rejected my resume in PDF. So much so that I finally stopped sending it and defaulted back to a Word 2003 .doc format. They seem to demand it. Thoughts? Ideas? Suggestions?

Linda Cooper link
12/15/2010 08:16:47 am

Unfortunately Eric, you are misinformed assuming that the ATS can just be formated to accept .docx formatted resumes.

The X at the end of the file extension indicates that the document has XML (Extended Markup Language) formatting which is a programming language used frequently with web pages. XML formatting within a document is a Microsoft Word option that is not available to those that use other Operating Systems such as Mac or Linux. Often the conversion software to open these documents garbles the information and makes the entire document unreadable.

ATS programs are not all Microsoft based or run on servers that can parse the XML format within a document. Sticking to a universal format so the ATS can properly parse the resume without the added code used in XML documents is a more logical answer than expecting everyone to conform to what suits you. PDF is a universal format that is available to everyone regardless of their server/desktop operating system.

It is the extra code used to create the document to look pretty that causes the headache for the ATS user. The ATS is a computer program to read the document. It could really care less how it looks, it only wants to match the keywords in the resume to the keywords in the job listing. PDF files when correctly saved separate the text from the rest of the formatting which makes it easier to read by both human and machine.

For job seekers such as Mark, the issue is their office IT person may not permit them to update the PDF reader on their work computer. Have you thought about sending your resume in both .doc and .pdf to save the extra step of having to resend your resume? You can still have the same file name as both files will be in different formats. Just an example Mark, my own ATS will accept and parse PDF, DOC, and RTF. However since the program is written for our Unix based server DOCX gets mangled and won't display correctly.

Geoff link
12/15/2010 12:06:41 pm

Yes, you do sound like a grumpy old man. (I'm 50, by the way.) The notion that many of us actually have "jobs" in the traditional sense these days is quite outmoded. I work from purchase order to purchase order. The agencies I work for have no plans to keep their contractors employed beyond their current sale. So if it looks like people are "job-hopping", it is much more a function of an employment world where companies do not want employees.

SN
12/28/2010 11:56:23 pm

Most of that is good advice. When I was a recruiter I hated getting resumes labelled "resume". However, you are in the minority when it comes to being unable to accept word files - part of an employer's job is to clearly indicate acceptable file formats. You should specify that you want resumes sent in pdf format only. It is unreasonable to expect candidates to be able to guess at the type of computer you use and the resume format. Just say "please submit resume in pdf format" in your job listing.

Jeanne Murray link
1/25/2011 09:47:28 pm

old & stodgy advice. In the DoD arena if you use a one page format, you can be certain to NOT be hired. If one has 15 years experience at a variety of places, you best be showing it!

Karen Masullo link
1/25/2011 10:07:24 pm

Hi Jeanne, while one may not agree with Mr. Forne's POV, he does have a business that hires and this is his process.

I think that this is what is important for the job seeker - there are many "right" ways. The onus is on the job seeker to know their particular market audience and assure their message is appropriate to that audience. As you point out, perhaps this information is not well-suited to one seeking federal employment.

Thank you for your contribution to the discussion,

Karen Masullo
Managing Partner
Rescueresumes.com

Nicole
1/27/2011 03:48:30 am

“hi. i’m lazy. my pinkies are really heavy and I’d rather not move them to shift. when i start working for you, i’ll look for other ways to be lazy."

That made me laugh out loud (enough so it gave me the energy to write that out...)

Thanks for the laugh during the job hunt!


Comments are closed.

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