Writing a CV in the 21st Century
for Human and Machine
When writing a CV it is important to know that your CV will be read by both human and machine. A little knowledge on what this signifies for you means you will get rewarded by being found rather than missed by recruiters.
For example, you may apply to a position or company by submitting a CV electronically via their website, or a third party, such as this job board AccountantJobs.ie. You expect the recruiter at the other end to open your CV, read it, assess it against available jobs and then decide whether to interview you or leave you in the system. It’s not that simple.
A machine – the recruiter’s database, where all applications are stored, known as a recruitment management system (RMS), also assesses you. Some large companies use an RMS to score your application automatically according to keywords in your CV; resulting in only those with high scores being read.
Agencies and company recruiters use RMS too, for example, when asked,
‘Find me an accountant, ACA qualified, audit experience, FS clients, Big 4 experience’,
the recruiter first checks the RMS to find matching candidates for that spec. They type in the keyword search tool of their RMS spec words such as: ACA, Audit, Auditor, FS, Financial Services, PwC, KPMG, Deloitte, Ernst and Young, they hit the search function and up pops the list of candidates by keyword search ranking. If the list is lengthy, say over 50 candidates, they may reduce it by asking the RMS to show only applications submitted in the last 3 months.
Recruiters can also add detail to RMS, after the initial screen of your CV, by adding specific keywords against your detail on the RMS to assist them in searches, for example how many people you manage.
What does this mean for you?
It means you must second-guess what keywords the recruiter may use to find you and you have to think like a machine by assisting it to score and rank you highly. Your CV must not only sell you it must be filled with keywords that may be used to score your CV or used in searches.
For example,
If you are looking for an audit role, make sure you use variations of auditor: audit, auditing, audited.
If you have FS clients
Use variations and synonyms: financial services, FS, banks, insurance, funds/fund, anything the recruiter might enter in the search tool.
Some RMS prioritise candidates with higher keyword counts, therefore repetition of main keywords is good but resist from detracting from the sellability and readability of your CV,
3-10 repeats of the same keyword is better than 50 because your CV must still look professional and sellable.
Place important keywords towards the top of the CV, as RMS sophistication can score keywords higher when found towards the top. If you are still looking for a job two months later send your CV in again to remain a recent applicant.
So there you go, by thinking like a human and a machine you stand a greater chance of getting to the top of the list of any applications and searches using RMS.
Recap:
- Know your keywords, look at job specs, pick keywords out and make sure you have them on your CV
- Use synonyms and variations of keywords
- Under ten repetitions of a particular keyword is fine
- Resend your updated CV in to the recruiter, via their RMS, if you are still looking for a role two months later
Written by Clare Reed (RTO Group) Senior Interview Coach, ex Head of Recruitment for Deloitte Ireland, 2009 ©
RTO Group is based in Dublin 2 and specialises in interview coaching, CV writing and psychometric testing. www.rtogroup.ie
