Applicant Tracking System: The Secret to Dominate Job Search

Dominating the Applicant Tracking System once and for all!  Welcome.

• Welcoming video to get started on dominating the Applicant Tracking System once and for all.

Dominating the Applicant Tracking System once and for all!  What's in this training for me?

Let’s face it, for those of us seeking job opportunities in this ever-competitive environment, especially with companies changing their business models and job requirements on the dime, it’s quite a challenge.

I know, I have been in the same frustration pattern as many of you when it comes down to just trying to get in the door for an interview. It seems today, those “thanks but no thanks” emails are a very common occurrence.

This Applicant Tracking System course will address today's frustration when applying for a job, tips on conquering the ATS, avoiding the "kick-out" questions, salary, etc.

Dominating the Applicant Tracking System once and for all! Know your Instructor.

Paul Connell introduces himself and laying out how he can help conquer the Applicant Tracking System as a social media expert. He has helped thousands of professionals grow the visibility of the client's brand and job applicant approach by making their social media presence impactful!

Dominating the Applicant Tracking System once and for all!  Agenda

In this course, we will be covering:

• Applicant Tracking System basic information.

• Why there is an Applicant Tracking System.

• Kick out questions.

• Tips to help avoid the rejection email.

• Customize your resume for better ATS scrubbing.

• Some common complaints

Dominating the Applicant Tracking System once and for all!  Basic Information.

An Applicant Tracking System (ATS) is a software application (SaaS – software as a service) that handles recruitment needs electronically, thus applying search engine technology to the hiring process. The ATS handles a surge of applications, automates the screening out of applicants that fall outside of the requirements, and comply with federal employment law and reporting.

• Applicant Tracking System is a very complex system.

• ATS is fed a job requisition and an algorithm is created.

• Resumes are put up against the algorithm and the best matches rise to the top.

• Keywords matter when dealing with the Applicant Tracking System.

• How do you know when an ATS is involved when applying for a job?

Dominating the Applicant Tracking System once and for all!  Why There Is An Applicant Tracking System.

Given the ever-changing working environment, specialty jobs, global presence, remote technology, etc., companies are taking the human out of human resources when fielding applicants.

Here’s why:

• One Recruiter works on an average of 20 requisitions – tops – at a time and can receive up to 1,000 applications per job ad. Of course, this depends on the job.

• If you do the math, 1 Recruiter X 20 requisitions X 1,000 applications = 20,000 resumes to look at. This is quite a number and there is no way a human being can look at 20,000 resumes.

Dominating the Applicant Tracking System once and for all!  Kick Out Questions.

An Applicant Tracking System may be programmed with Kick Out Questions to automatically screen-out candidates in or out.

Here are some common “Kick Out” questions you may run into:

• Do you have less than five years’ experience? Yes or No (Yes = your application is the screen through, but at a lower level of considerations than those reporting “5 – 10 years”).

• Do you have 5 – 10 years’ experience? Yes or No (Yes = screened in for further consideration).

• Do you have more than 10 years’ experience? Yes or No (Yes = screened out (automatically removed from consideration)).

Dominating the Applicant Tracking System once and for all!  Applicant Tracking System Tips.

Make sure before you get started applying for jobs, you have your most current resume set up for success. The days of a standard resume are behind us. Your resume must be a true marketing document showcasing your capabilities, skills, etc. that contain keywords to by-pass the Applicant Tracking System.

• 23 Tips will be covered in this lecture.

Dominating the Applicant Tracking System once and for all!  Customizing Your Resume.

• Your goal is to customize your resume to the job you are applying for.

• As much as possible, have your resume “speak” the same language as the job description.

• To help navigate the Applicant Tracking Systems, find keywords using the Word cloud applications like www.tagcrowd.com.

• Also, www.jobscan.co (this is not a ".com" site) is a site you can load your resume on one side of the page and the job description on one side to see where your resume may miss the mark.

Dominating the Applicant Tracking System once and for all!  Common Complaints.

I will go over a shortlist of common Applicant Tracking Sytem complaints in this lecture but keep in mind it’s certainly not all-inclusive.

• I can’t get past the salary question. It won’t let me put “negotiable” in there.

• No one uses cover letters anymore (or do they?). Should I even bother uploading or copy/pasting?

• I can’t get past my “year of graduation”.

• It takes so long to fill this thing out!

Dominating the Applicant Tracking System once and for all!  Course Summary and Closure.

• Applicant Tracking Systems is a SaaS that handles recruitment needs electronically and automates screening that falls outside of the job requirements.

• Customize your resume to the job you are applying for. This does take work.

• Keywords matter when dealing with the Applicant Tracking System.

• Have your resume “speak” the same language as the job description. Use the word cloud application www.tagcrowd.com and resume / job description comparison site www.jobscan.com to see where your resume may miss the mark. Remember, if employers are using robots, so should you.

• Kick-out questions are not always obvious so make sure you answer all the questions accurately.

• There are many kinds of Applicant Tracking Systems out there. Some examples are iCIMS, Workday, ADP, Workable, JobVite, Kronos, BullHorn, etc.

• When applying for a specific position, include that job title on your resume.

• After you apply for a job, check your email inbox, junk, and spam folder. You just never know where that response will land.

• Applicant Tracking System has a memory – all previous submissions remain in the system.

• You do need to make sure you customize your resume for the position being sought. “One-size-fits-all” does not work with Applicant Tracking Systems.