How recruitment agencies read resumes in 10 seconds and faster
Brad Remillard
How recruitment agencies read resumes in 10 seconds and faster.
(Translation is published with the kind permission of the author, comments in my brackets)
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10-20 seconds to read the resume? - probably, it will seem to you defiant. It even seems disrespectful to some candidates - how can you read a resume during this time? Some even get annoyed with us, recruiters, when we talk about it. I hope this article will help everyone understand how we do it. I understand that not everyone will like it, and many will still be angry, but at least you can understand how this happens.
First, I would like to clarify that I have been engaged in the recruitment of staff for over 30 years. I am sure that during this time I reviewed at least 500,000 resumes. I can’t prove it, but I reasonably believe that this is so, because 46 resumes per day is quite an average. I remember when I analyzed hundreds of resumes per day and most of them in less than 20 seconds. I would even say that, on average, each took 5-7 seconds.
So I want to note that if you hear and read about “reading a resume in 20 seconds,” this is not entirely true, since it is even more likely “ reviewing a resume in 20 seconds.”
Here I describe my approach to analyzing hundreds of resumes in a short time; others can do it differently, and I will be happy for your comments (see the link to the author’s blog below).
First, I set the hierarchy Certain items that must be in the resume are required, otherwise - your resume is rejected. That is, at first I just put the little wings. Basically, 80% of my time is spent on this culling (in the original “knockouts”). There are exceptions, but here I am dealing with the 80/20 rule. Kryzhiki are not cumulative: if I find out while viewing your resume that one of the items is missing in it, then I exclude you from the further process.
1. Place of residence.
If my customer is in Los Angeles, and you are not - goodbye. Almost none of the clients will want to pay for your move from their own pockets, and I don’t think that for most of them it’s worth it. Especially in big metropolitan areas like Los Angeles. If they still need to consider the relocation of the candidate, it is only for a position that requires some completely unique experience that exists in the units. This I can estimate in about a second.
2. Industry
If my customer is from the banking sector, and your experience in manufacturing is goodbye. These two industries are so different that the client often will not even discuss it. This is true in both directions: if you worked in production, then I am not going to consider someone from the banking sector. 2-3 seconds to determine this.
3. Official duties.
If I am looking for someone in sales, and you are not engaged in sales - goodbye. In general, companies pay recruiters for the most suitable candidates. We are never looking for the ideal , but we should look for those closest to the ideal. Clients do not need recruiters who are looking for someone with a completely inappropriate job profile. 2-3 seconds to decide on this item.
4. Level.
If I’m looking for a candidate for the position of vice president, and your position is a “middle manager”, and you have never worked at the level of vice president, goodbye. There are, of course, exceptions, but let us recall the 80/20 rule. Again, the customer pays me for the most suitable candidate. Basically, this is too big a leap from the level of the middle manager to the level of vice-president, all other things being equal. The converse is also true: if I am looking for a candidate for the position of manager, and you are a vice president, goodbye. Yes, I know that you can competently perform the work of a manager, but it is clear that you have already made a career in the past. Most clients and recruiters are not eager to risk losing you in this position if the position of vice president is revealed. Less than 5 seconds to understand this.
5. Recent experience.
Partial overlap at this point. If I’m looking for someone with international sales experience in the aerospace industry, and the last time you occupied a similar position in the industry 20 years ago, working in retail since then, goodbye. I can find people with more suitable experience, and this is exactly what my customer expects of me. 5 seconds for this.
6. Education.
Whether you like it or not, I will work only with those who graduated from college, and in most cases - has a master’s degree. This is mainly because, as I have already indicated above, I need the best candidates for my clients. Of course, I understand that education in itself does not mean that the candidate is the best, but this is one of the other determining factors. In addition, all my clients require candidates with at least a bachelor's degree.
7. “Flyers”.
If you have changed 6 jobs for the last 4 years or you have an “flyer” employment record - goodbye. I understand that there are reasons for changing jobs, and these cases fall into the very 20% of the 80/20 rule. I can not define the concept of "flyer", but I immediately calculate it when I see it in the summary. 3–5 seconds.
8. Functional summary.
I do not read them. It’s obvious that a functional resume is meant to be something, and I rarely take the time to deal with them. 1 second.
9. Obvious things.
Errata, poorly designed, misspelling, too long, verbose and incoherent. If, after reading them, I still can not understand what you are doing - goodbye. 5-10 seconds.
After all this, 80-100% of resumes are discarded. If some people still remain, then I take them and already really read carefully.
- Brad Remillard, a recruiting manager with more than 25 years of experience, conducted over 50,000 interviews and participated in more than 1,000 direct searches for candidates (headhunting). A Chartered Accountant and Graduate of California State University in Fullerton, Brad previously served as president of CJA Executive Search, which was recognized as one of the leading recruiting firms in Southern California. Brad has been recruiting candidates across the country for Fortune 500 companies. His experience includes working on senior management positions (CEO, COO, GM), sales and marketing, manufacturing and operations management, accounting, finance, HR management and information technology.
You can learn more about Brad on his website: http://impacthiringsolutions.com , and write your comments and read his other articles in his blog: http://impacthiringsolutions.com/careerblog/ .
The original article is located at: http://www.higherbracket.ca/article_recruiters_ten_second_resume_read_br.php
How recruitment agencies read resumes in 10 seconds and faster.
(Translation is published with the kind permission of the author, comments in my brackets)
')
10-20 seconds to read the resume? - probably, it will seem to you defiant. It even seems disrespectful to some candidates - how can you read a resume during this time? Some even get annoyed with us, recruiters, when we talk about it. I hope this article will help everyone understand how we do it. I understand that not everyone will like it, and many will still be angry, but at least you can understand how this happens.
First, I would like to clarify that I have been engaged in the recruitment of staff for over 30 years. I am sure that during this time I reviewed at least 500,000 resumes. I can’t prove it, but I reasonably believe that this is so, because 46 resumes per day is quite an average. I remember when I analyzed hundreds of resumes per day and most of them in less than 20 seconds. I would even say that, on average, each took 5-7 seconds.
So I want to note that if you hear and read about “reading a resume in 20 seconds,” this is not entirely true, since it is even more likely “ reviewing a resume in 20 seconds.”
Here I describe my approach to analyzing hundreds of resumes in a short time; others can do it differently, and I will be happy for your comments (see the link to the author’s blog below).
First, I set the hierarchy Certain items that must be in the resume are required, otherwise - your resume is rejected. That is, at first I just put the little wings. Basically, 80% of my time is spent on this culling (in the original “knockouts”). There are exceptions, but here I am dealing with the 80/20 rule. Kryzhiki are not cumulative: if I find out while viewing your resume that one of the items is missing in it, then I exclude you from the further process.
1. Place of residence.
If my customer is in Los Angeles, and you are not - goodbye. Almost none of the clients will want to pay for your move from their own pockets, and I don’t think that for most of them it’s worth it. Especially in big metropolitan areas like Los Angeles. If they still need to consider the relocation of the candidate, it is only for a position that requires some completely unique experience that exists in the units. This I can estimate in about a second.
2. Industry
If my customer is from the banking sector, and your experience in manufacturing is goodbye. These two industries are so different that the client often will not even discuss it. This is true in both directions: if you worked in production, then I am not going to consider someone from the banking sector. 2-3 seconds to determine this.
3. Official duties.
If I am looking for someone in sales, and you are not engaged in sales - goodbye. In general, companies pay recruiters for the most suitable candidates. We are never looking for the ideal , but we should look for those closest to the ideal. Clients do not need recruiters who are looking for someone with a completely inappropriate job profile. 2-3 seconds to decide on this item.
4. Level.
If I’m looking for a candidate for the position of vice president, and your position is a “middle manager”, and you have never worked at the level of vice president, goodbye. There are, of course, exceptions, but let us recall the 80/20 rule. Again, the customer pays me for the most suitable candidate. Basically, this is too big a leap from the level of the middle manager to the level of vice-president, all other things being equal. The converse is also true: if I am looking for a candidate for the position of manager, and you are a vice president, goodbye. Yes, I know that you can competently perform the work of a manager, but it is clear that you have already made a career in the past. Most clients and recruiters are not eager to risk losing you in this position if the position of vice president is revealed. Less than 5 seconds to understand this.
5. Recent experience.
Partial overlap at this point. If I’m looking for someone with international sales experience in the aerospace industry, and the last time you occupied a similar position in the industry 20 years ago, working in retail since then, goodbye. I can find people with more suitable experience, and this is exactly what my customer expects of me. 5 seconds for this.
6. Education.
Whether you like it or not, I will work only with those who graduated from college, and in most cases - has a master’s degree. This is mainly because, as I have already indicated above, I need the best candidates for my clients. Of course, I understand that education in itself does not mean that the candidate is the best, but this is one of the other determining factors. In addition, all my clients require candidates with at least a bachelor's degree.
7. “Flyers”.
If you have changed 6 jobs for the last 4 years or you have an “flyer” employment record - goodbye. I understand that there are reasons for changing jobs, and these cases fall into the very 20% of the 80/20 rule. I can not define the concept of "flyer", but I immediately calculate it when I see it in the summary. 3–5 seconds.
8. Functional summary.
I do not read them. It’s obvious that a functional resume is meant to be something, and I rarely take the time to deal with them. 1 second.
9. Obvious things.
Errata, poorly designed, misspelling, too long, verbose and incoherent. If, after reading them, I still can not understand what you are doing - goodbye. 5-10 seconds.
After all this, 80-100% of resumes are discarded. If some people still remain, then I take them and already really read carefully.
- Brad Remillard, a recruiting manager with more than 25 years of experience, conducted over 50,000 interviews and participated in more than 1,000 direct searches for candidates (headhunting). A Chartered Accountant and Graduate of California State University in Fullerton, Brad previously served as president of CJA Executive Search, which was recognized as one of the leading recruiting firms in Southern California. Brad has been recruiting candidates across the country for Fortune 500 companies. His experience includes working on senior management positions (CEO, COO, GM), sales and marketing, manufacturing and operations management, accounting, finance, HR management and information technology.
You can learn more about Brad on his website: http://impacthiringsolutions.com , and write your comments and read his other articles in his blog: http://impacthiringsolutions.com/careerblog/ .
The original article is located at: http://www.higherbracket.ca/article_recruiters_ten_second_resume_read_br.php
Source: https://habr.com/ru/post/86147/
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