How to Get Past the Resume Keyword Checker

How to Get Past the Resume Keyword CheckerHow to Get Past the Resume Keyword CheckerApplicant tracking systems (also known as ATS) are used to screen out and organize job candidates for recruiters or hiring managers. ATS software solutions and executive recruiting software also serve as resume keyword checkers.Learning how to communicate with ATS software solutions, and eventually, peopleare vital steps to making your resume stand out. As a job candidate, to think of an ATS software solution or executive recruiting software as a resume keyword checker, is not too far off from reality.Find My Profession explains the proper way to get your resume past the resume keyword checker and in front of the eyes of the right recruiters and hiring managers.Use the K.I.S.S. principleYes, when it comes to making the resume keyword checker happy, keep it simple and stupid (KISS). You may have the education and skills to make your resume shine like a Times Square billboard, but a resume keyword check er works better with simple resumes and simple formats. ATS software solutions and executive recruiting software prefer conformity and simplicity over creativity.After you get the interview, you can explain your resume and strengths in greater detail. Until then, delete any form of creativity.Dump the creative fonts, pictures, logos, or shadings. Try to avoid headings that you either decided to invent or thought would show your individuality.Speak a language an ATS understandsAll professions, people, ATS software solutions, and executive recruiting software have a common language. To make the resume keyword checker happy, fill out your resume with words that schirm your familiarity with a language. You have to use the right keywords to show you are a proper fit for a job.Warning Do not open a thesaurus and start copying and pasting familiar words you find on Google. Eventually, your resume will get in front of the eyes of a recruiter or hiring manager. This action may land you an in terview, but the interview will end quickly when you reveal you knew what to write, but have no relevant experience.Special tip Never keyword stuff your resume. It makes your resume incomprehensible to the people who will eventually read it.Use qualifications NOT objectivesThe resume keyword checker, like most recruiters and hiring managers, knows this section has been quickly disappearing over the last few years. But it still shows up on resumes from time to time. Career objectives on a resume have lost importance.Companies and people decided candidates who applied already showed their objectives, most importantly, the companys objectives were more important in the hiring process.With that understanding, the resume keyword checker happy adding a summary of your qualifications. Present your achievements and skills using proper keywords. Both the ATS and human reading your resume will appreciate itATS software solutions demand proper spellingIt goes without saying that spelling mista kes are buzzkills for humans. The resume keyword checker is a much harsher critic It will dump your resume, not because they think you cant spell, but because it has no idea what you were trying to communicate.One of the best apps for spellchecking is Grammar.ly, which you can use as a Google Chrome extension. It is also useful for checking grammar, if you need that, too.Yes, the ATS can be a bit of mindless screening method, but if you pay attention to how it works you will get your resume in front of the hiring manager faster. And getting an interview is an important step to getting hired.Would you like to see if your resume is up to snuff? Check out our resume services on Find My Profession.

Government Job Application Process

Government Job Application ProcessGovernment Job Application ProcessOnce you send your job application to a government agency, you have kicked off a process that is largely out of your control and almost always invisible to you as an outsider. Government organizations are bound by laws and regulations in handling job applications so that all applicants receive a fair opportunity at getting the job. Some job application systems, such as the US governments USAJobs, have functionality built into the system, which allows applicants to see how their applications are progressing through the organizations hiring processes. This online functionality reduces the number of phone calls and e-mails the philanthropisch resources department receives because applicants can look up critical information for themselves within a few minutes. Outlined below are the basic processes that human resources staff follow in hiring for a government job. The hiring process can be lengthy, and you may be contacte d by both a human resources professional and the hiring manager or supervisor. As a result, there may be some back and forth if theyre interested in you. 1. Posting Closes Once you submit your application, you must wait for the job posting to close. When government agencies post jobs, they almost always have an application deadline. They do this so they can manage how many applications they receive and so they can move forward with the hiring process without adding additional applicants throughout the process. In the interest of fairness, human resources departments stick to closing dates and do leid allow managers to consider late applications unless all late applications are accepted. There is no fair reason to accept one late application and not another if both applicants turn in applications that meet the minimum requirements listed on the job posting. 2. Applications Are Screened Once the human resources department knows they have all the applications the organization w ill consider, they read each application to make sure that each candidate meets the minimum requirements specified in the job posting. For instance, if the posting said that the new hire must have a bachelors degree, a human resources specialist will remove from consideration all applications where the applicant does not show completion of a bachelors degree. Therefore, it is important for applicants to ensure that they clearly outline how they meet the knowledge, skills, and abilities required for the job. 3. List of Finalist Is Compiled Once all the applications have been screened for the minimum requirements, the human resources department and the hiring manager work together to make a short list of finalists they would like to interview. For the sake of equity, the decisions are based on the information included in the applications. Depending on the department youre applying to, dont be surprised if youre contacted by human resources requesting references or additional infor mation that can include writing samples or essays. 4. Interviews Are Scheduled The human resources department or thehiring manager calls applicants who earned an interview. If an applicant chooses to withdraw from the process, the organization may decide to either interview the next most qualified candidate who did not earn an interview at first or continue the process with one less finalist. The decision largely depends on how close the next most qualified applicant was to being chosen for the original group of finalists. If you are contacted for an interview, you may be interviewed in person or over the phone. Some open positions receive many applications from qualified candidates. As a result, phone interviews are necessary to screen applicants further. 5. Necessary Background and Reference Checks Are Conducted At this point in the process, many organizations conduct background and reference checks. It does not make sense to perform ansicht checks on all the applicants fr om both cost and staff time perspectives. Once the finalists are selected, the checks can be performed on the small group. The benefit of running the checks at this time is so that there is no added delay if the chosen finalist turns down the job offer. Some organizations wait until they are ready to make a job offer until they run the checks so they do not incur the cost of running checks on individuals they will not hire. 6. Interviews Are Conducted Groups of finalists are usually composed of three to five people. The number of finalists to be interviewed and how many people will be conducting the interviews largely determines how long the interview process will take. If there are only a handful of finalists to be interviewed, the process may only take a week to conduct all of the interviews. However, if there are many finalists and interviewers, the process will likely take much longer. 7. New Hire Is Selected After the interviews have been conducted the interviewer or th e interview panel decides which finalist will receive the job offer as well as the rank order of the other finalists in case the chosen finalist declines the job offer. 8. Job Offer Is Extended A job offer is extended to the chosen finalist, which is usually done verbally so that salary and start date negotiations can begin. A letter documenting what the hiring manager and chosen finalist agreed to is sent to the chosen finalist to accept. 9. Job Offer Is Accepted A chosen finalist formally acknowledges the job offer verbally or in writing. The organization begins paperwork necessary to hire the chosen finalist on the agreed upon start date. Please be aware that some government departments have additional security requirements resulting in a waiting period before you receive the proper security clearance. For example, in the Department of Homeland Security, the security clearance process can take anywhere between two weeks to one year but usually takes approximately three mo nths. 10. Candidates Not Selected Are Notified Once the organization and chosen finalist have agreed upon the terms of employment, the organization typically notifies all the other applicants that the position is filled. However, there are some departments that do not notify applicants of a filled position. Some organizations choose to notify only candidates who are interviewed but most organizations that follow this practice state their policy in their job postings or on their web page that contains the application process and information for job seekers.

Hire a Veteran to Fight the Battle of Business Uncertainty

Hire a Veteran to Fight the Battle of geschftliches miteinander UncertaintyHire a Veteran to Fight the Battle of Business UncertaintyHire a Veteran to Fight the Battle of Business Uncertainty Thompson, author of The Anywhere Leader How to Lead and Succeed in Any BusinessWe owe veterans a debt of gratitude for their service to America, but thats elend why we should hire a veteran. We should hire them because they have what it takes to lead in an ever-changing, ever-disruptive global economy.Frankly, its disturbing to feel the need to make that point. But the facts are even more disturbing.The unemployment rate for vets who served since 2001 is 2.6 percent higher than the general population, according to a report in September from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Thats about 235,000 veterans who want a job but dont have a job.We say nice things when we pass military personnel in the airport Thanks for your service Sure do appreciate you but thenwe dismiss them when they drop a job ap plication on our desk Sorry, your skills dont translate Youre just not qualified. They are losing out on opportunities to feed their families, but its corporate America thats really losing out.In The Anywhere Leader, I make the case that the one thing we can count on in business is uncertainty. Most of us, however, arent trained to lead through uncertainty. Thats just not a class you find in many business schools.But the military teaches it and it teaches it extremely well. Theres never been a greater need for leaders who are capable of leading through the unknown, and Ill argue that no group brings more experience or is more prepared to lead through uncertainty than veterans. They are amazing Anywhere Leaders.Anywhere Leaders are Driven for Progress, Sensationally Curious and Vastly Resourceful. Which of those traits do you not value in your employees? Todays veterans bring all ansicht job skills to the workplace heres how.Veterans Driven for ProgressVeterans didnt join the mil itary just to earn a paycheck theyve got an emotional commitment to a country that they love. They are dedicated to a purpose or mission thats greater than self. So they are daring (but discerning) in the anthroponym of progress. And they are determined, especially in the face of adversity. Thats what I call Driven for Progress.Veterans Sensationally CuriousYou might not think of veterans as Sensationally Curious. They are known for following orders, not asking questions. But my research and my own experience as a veteran taught me that its the behaviors associated with curiosity that make the difference.If you are curious, you are reflective, receptive and perceptive. Those behaviors allow you to relate well with others, even foreigners, so that you can build strong teams internally and with those who are very different from you.The veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan, more than any veterans before them, have taken on the role of cultural bridge-builders. They fight the enemy while tr ying to win over communities. They know how to build trust in teams and communities that arent like them in any way, shape or form without sacrificing the mission.Veterans Vastly ResourcefulTheyre also Vastly Resourceful. Thats always been the case in the military. They are trained to make do with whatever resources are available. Todays veterans come from a pretty well-equipped military, but war is the great disrupter of shiny, new equipment.The enemy is literally trying to kill them, and they constantly and quickly have to counter that enemys tactics. So they figure out on their own how to reinforce the armor on the bottom of a Humvee or make a replacement engine pulley from a Meals Ready to Eat (MRE) box and some Duct tape.This resourcefulness, curiosity and drive for progress give veterans the traits needed to figure out the skills they might be missing for most jobs these traits make them great leaders regardless of the job.But dont assume they dont have skills. Veterans hav e played a number of roles in a military thats trained them not just to fire weapons, but with specific, transferrable skills in technology, media, communications, medicine, logistics, management, leadership and countless other areas.Fighting the Battle of UncertaintyThe business case for hiring veterans is simple You battle uncertainty every day in your business and it will only get more intense and extreme. Theres nobody who has battled uncertainty more than these soldiers.Maybe you dont have bullets flying by your ear at your office, but dont you want somebody whos been under that kind of pressure and intensity and shown a resolve, commitment, aptitude and skill to succeed?The victories, small and huge, in Iraq and Afghanistan are amazing, and the sacrifices by the men and women fighting there are enormous. We can, and should, thank them when we see them with words and with jobs.Author BioMike Thompson is author of The Anywhere Leader How to Lead and Succeed in Any Business Envi ronment (Wiley, 2011). He is founder and CEO of SVI, a leading organizational development company whose clients include Wal-Mart, Mercy Health, Sams Club, Dillards and Tyson. Previously he was founder and president of ThompsonMurray (now Saatchi Saatchi), the leader in in-store marketing. He is a regular contributor to industry trade publications.Learn More about Hiring a Veteran