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As many of us are starting our weeks looking at new job postings and trying to figure out where to apply, how close our resume fits with the job, whether we should tweak our resume for every application (I am a big believer that you should,) I wanted to share some things you might try to incorporate into your own search. I’ve been in staffing and talent acquisition for many years.

First off, I’ll start by saying I’m NOT a fan of using AI to generate your entire resume. It can sometimes generate bullets that aren’t an accurate representation of your experience if the prompts are not detailed enough, and sometimes just write descriptions that come across more like a dictionary than a story of your career. BUT, I do think it’s a valuable tool for *editing* your resume and here’s some ideas (and reasons why).

For anyone who is saying the ATS isn’t stopping your resume from reaching the hiring managers, I’ll say that is about to be a thing of the past. Many ATS/CRM systems companies use is releasing updates almost weekly with new AI incorporations and I think eventually, it will be a helpful thing, once the majority of people are actively adopting the use. Right now, early adopters are coming out on top.

How is AI being used to sort candidates? It is comparing your resume to the job description and assigning a percentage match based on key words. In instances where managers have 100+ applications to ONE job, the lower your percentage match, the less likely your resume will be *seen* before the manager feels they have enough profiles to start interviewing. Before you go run off and add a skills section with keywords, understand that managers don’t just want to see the keyword on your resume, they want a real example of its application in your experience.
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Here are some prompts you can toy around with:
1) Please compare this resume to this job description and determine if it is a strong fit and carries enough key words in the bullet points. Please suggest areas to include more key word bullet points if lacking.
2) Please create a 5 point sell pitch for this resume against the job description.
Point 1: Education and years of relevant experience.
Point 2: Certifications.
Point 3: Most important skill required in the job description and its recent application in the resume.
Point 4: Other important skills required in the job description and their application in the resume.
Point 5: Focus on the candidate experience that exist with different industries.

(If you’re wondering why I put this here, if you’re not working with a recruiter, this is a good thing to put at the top of your resume to get the manager instantly engaged in why you make sense for the role. Good agency recruiters always include a sell message, there’s no reason why you shouldn’t do the same when applying on your own!)

Please suggest any areas of the resume that can be removed for irrelevance based on the job description.
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These are not meant to be end all be all suggestions, but rather a jumping off point. I think applying to fewer jobs while taking the time to increase your odds for each one is a more sustainable job search strategy that will improve your results and save your sanity.