ATS or Applicant Tracking System is a widely used resume scanning software. Recruiters and employers extensively use it during the hiring process to collect, review, sort, and rank the job applicants they receive. Though it was initially created for large companies with several thousand job applications, the ATS software is now used by almost all companies, regardless of their size. This has made it very important for job applicants to create an ATS-friendly resume with the help of a CV writer service that can help you create the perfect resume that passes the ATS scanning.
How Does It Work?
ATS acts as an electronic monitor for hiring managers. It divides the content of a resume into categories and scans it for relevant and specific keywords. This helps determine whether the candidate should be passed along to the recruiter. The basic goal is to strain out the unqualified applicants so that the employer can save time and focus on evaluating applicants more likely to fit in the position. Hence, ATS is only for tossing the least-qualified candidates rather than identifying the perfect fit. Therefore, if a resume is not written as per the keywords by keeping the ATS system in mind, even the qualified candidates can be passed over. This makes it extremely necessary for job applicants to seek help from a CV writer service to create a resume that is ATS friendly.
Why do recruiters use ATS?
When hiring new employees, recruiters face a tedious task since the internet has made it extremely easy for candidates to submit their applications, most of whom are unqualified. Going through hundreds of applications for a single post is time-consuming and not viable. Hence, corporate recruiters now use ATS systems to automate, simplify and speed up the hiring process, thus saving time and money.
Features of an ATS system
- Advanced search: enables you to filter applications by specific job titles, skills, keywords, experience, education, etc.
- Resume parsing: extracting data from a resume like work history, skills, contact information, and educational background.
- Email templates: ensure that all the correspondence with candidates is consistent and professional.
- Various integrations allow ATS to connect with different types of software like accounting software, email marketing software, and CRM systems.
- Advanced analytics and reporting: to generate detailed reports on hiring trends, job seekers, etc.
- Candidate sourcing: allows active search, identification, and connecting with potential candidates for open positions.
- Multi-channel candidate sourcing: search for potential candidates using social media, job boards, and employee referrals.
- In-built CRM software: to cover all the needs in one platform.
- Real-time collaboration: to enable people from different parts of the organization to involve in screening, sourcing, and decision-making about new hires.
- Ability to schedule interviews: automating the interviews saves a lot of time.
- Automation is based on certain conditions, meaning that the ATS is triggered to do something specific only in a specific scenario.
Creating an ATS-friendly resume format
For a resume to successfully pass the ATS test, it should have a standard format, such as a hybrid resume format with a professional summary section at the top of the document. This summary outlines the key skills and qualifications, combined with the chronological work history section, explaining how you have capitalized these qualities so the employer can commercialize them.
Most ATS software is good at reading and interpreting a hybrid resume format since they rely on chronological data to analyze the resume. Therefore, make sure that you avoid a functional resume format that focuses on your abilities rather than a chronological work history.
Running an ATS resume test for compliance
This can be done in two easy ways.
Converting your resume into a plain-text file
For this, you need to copy the content from your ATS-friendly resume and then paste it into a plain-text document to review the results. If this version of your resume is missing details from your original document, looks disorganized, or has characters that are saved incorrectly, then your resume requires editing in order to be ATS compliant.
Requesting an ATS scan
You can contact a resume writing service for an ATS scan and review before you submit your resume to the recruiter. They will give you feedback about the content of your resume and also guide you through its ATS compatibility. The first part of the review usually offers an objective look at what your resume is doing well and what needs to be added. After this, teh resume review will show you exactly what things will be pulled from your resume by the ATS and what content will not be identified and retrieved by the software. It will also tell you what top skills and keywords in your resume will likely increase your ranking. However, your resume may need further optimization to pass the ATS compatibility test.
Wrapping Up
With Artificial Intelligence rapidly taking over the world, the recruitment sector is no exception. Corporations have extensively used ATS technology to identify candidates and conduct initial interviews. Therefore it has become crucial for job seekers to create an ATS-friendly resume to pass the ATS test.
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