Have you ever applied to a job that you KNEW you were perfect for only to never hear anything from the hiring company? The biggest reason for this is Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS).
Three-fourths of all resumes never even get seen by human eyes, according to a study from job search services firm Preptel. Instead, they’re scanned by a piece of software, known as an applicant tracking system, or “ATS.” Depending on how highly this machine ranks your resume, you could be first in line for an interview or buried so far down the list recruiters never find you.
More than 95 percent of Fortune 500 companies use an ATS to streamline the recruiting process and keep up with the thousands of applications received weekly, but plenty of smaller employers have embraced the tool too, according to data collected by Jobscan.
So if you want to get hired, you’ll need to beat these bots.
Thankfully, that’s not hard to do. It just requires tweaking your resume to deliver exactly what the software system’s been programmed to search for — and nothing it hasn’t been told to want.
Join us on May 4th at 1:00pm Eastern/9:00am Pacific for a live and interactive conversation on optimizing your resume to get past Applicant Tracking System bots.
What is an Applicant Tracking System?
An Applicant Tracking System (ATS) is a tool that corporations use to manage their recruitment and hiring processes. While each system varies in features, the primary purpose of an ATS is to help companies collect, organize, and filter job applicants.
When you hit the big (pink) APPLY button on StyleCareers.com and the system takes you to a company website, you are applying at that company’s ATS. If you don’t leave StyleCareers.com after hitting the APPLY button, you are NOT accessing an Applicant Tracking System and your application goes to a real person.
Why do companies use ATS?
The ease of submitting online job applications has resulted in a large number of applications, many of which are from unqualified job seekers. Sorting through these applications manually can be a time-consuming and challenging task for recruiters and hiring managers. To keep themselves organized and efficient, they use ATS. This is particularly crucial for larger companies that are simultaneously hiring for multiple positions and departments.
In addition to organizing job applications, ATS offer Customer Relationship Management (CRM)-style tools to streamline the hiring process. These tools include communication with applicants, distribution of job postings, and proof of government compliance for things like the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). By using an ATS, companies can enhance their recruitment process, reduce the time to hire, and find the most qualified candidates for the job.