The Hunt Blog

To those Job Seekers who are engaged in the Modern Job Hunt, we salute you. This is the first in a series of blog posts I plan to write detailing some of the experiences you’ll face as you undertake a complex, multidimensional challenge. This week, I want to focus on Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) and how these HR hiring solutions necessitate a new approach in your job hunt—Customization.

Long gone are human-to-human interactions that defined job hunts as recently as a decade ago. Now, over 75% of the applications you submit will never be seen by a human being. When you upload your resumé to a company hiring portal, it is automatically evaluated by keyword-driven (or, in some cases, AI-based) ATS software platforms. These solutions scrape the textual data from your resumé (sorry, all that beautiful formatting will never be seen) and they compare that information against the job post. If the defined job attributes they are looking for don’t clearly show from your vita, you are automatically rejected. In many cases, actually demonstrating the desired attributes in your background is secondary to matching those attributes word-for-word to pass the ATS keyword comparison test.

Take a moment to curse the technology gods. Then calm yourself. You need to learn the new job hunt technique: Resumé (and Cover Letter) Customization. For each and every job you apply to, you must first get through the ATS maze. Only resumés that do that will actually get in front of a hiring manager. So, you need to build a custom resumé for every single job you apply to that includes the required job attributes (e.g., credentials, skills, background, etc). Your resumé must closely hew to the job attribute keywords in the job description.

At Callings.ai, your ‘base’ resumé is used to drive your job hunt on our site. One of the key features we offer is an AI-powered Custom Resumé tool which carefully reads the job post, then proposes changes to your resumé to help it ace the ATS review. Our Custom Resumé Tool creates a new resumé and then calls out the suggested changes and the reasons for those suggestions. Here’s a screenshot of the tool showing suggestions for my resumé:

Our tool gives you three options:

• accept the proposed changes
• keep the original text
• rewrite the entry manually (the resume tool includes a full text editor)

We don’t believe that a job seeker should allow AI to rewrite their resumé automatically. AI hallucinations, like inventing skills or experiences a job seeker doesn’t have, can be catastrophic for professional applications. And they aren’t as rare as we all hope. So, the job seeker should review any AI-generated results.

Callings.ai also provides Cover Letter customizations too. While it is unlikely that this document will be evaluated by digital systems, it will likely be read by the hiring manager if you get through the ATS. So be sure to put some effort into your cover letter.

There are other best practices for navigating ATS systems. Here are a few tips that our friend ChatGPT offers:

• Use a Simple Format: Stick to a clean layout, standard fonts, and avoid tables, columns, or graphics.
• Standard Section Titles: Use headings like “Work Experience,” “Skills,” and “Education.”
• Include Keywords: Match skills and terms from the job description.
• Stick to Standard Formats: Submit as .doc, .docx, or PDF (if allowed).
• Bullet Points for Clarity: Present achievements concisely.
• Avoid Headers/Footers: Keep critical info in the main body.
• Be Specific: Use precise job titles and measurable results (e.g., “Increased sales by 25%”).
• Avoid Special Characters: Stick to basic symbols and avoid fancy designs.
• Spell Check: Ensure no errors that could confuse ATS.
• Test Your Resumé: Use free ATS tools online to evaluate it.

Finally, remember, dear reader, that the modern job hunt is a maze designed by a lunatic. To get through, start with the maze’s first challenge: getting your resumé past the ATS system and in front of the human hiring manager. To do that, customization is the key.

Callings.ai offers powerful tools for accelerating this customization work. The platform also offers a comprehensive set of capabilities beyond customization, including a Tracker to manage your whole job search, AI job matching tools that use your resume to find jobs you’re really qualified for, tools for doing Hiring Company research, Interview Prep reports, and much more. You can sign up for free for the Callings.ai beta here (link).