Gretchen Ledgard is a Sr. Technical Recruiter at Microsoft. Here she describes four verbal patterns she seeks out in resumes.
If you’ve read many resume writing tips, you probably know that most recruiters employ “keyword searches” when hunting for resumes. Sometimes these keyword strings are extremely sophisticated and specific (like 10 line-long Boolean phrases), and sometimes these string are ultra-simplistic (one word). But no matter if a recruiter is searching for resumes in Monster, Google, or his own in-house Applicant Tracking System, keywords becomes both the savior and executioner of many an applicant.
If you’ve read many resume writing tips, you probably know that most recruiters employ “keyword searches” when hunting for resumes. Sometimes these keyword strings are extremely sophisticated and specific (like 10 line-long Boolean phrases), and sometimes these string are ultra-simplistic (one word). But no matter if a recruiter is searching for resumes in Monster, Google, or his own in-house Applicant Tracking System, keywords becomes both the savior and executioner of many an applicant.
I’ve seen applicants try to “beat” the keyword system by loading their resumes with possible search terms … everything from technologies (C++, Java, SQL, etc) to soft skills (creative problem solver, strong interpersonal communicator, etc). And they actually include these keywords in a special section entitled “Resume Keywords.” Wow, there’s no hiding the intention there!
Thanks JD for the link
