Exactly. Ridiculous, isn't it? Recruiters and hiring managers play games with nonsense like resume gaps (who DOESN"T have a gap, given what's happened the last 5 or so years) and culture fit (what does that even mean? And how do you measure it in an interview) when people just want to pay bills.
So it's mostly "fake it till you make it" approach. Resume "adjusting" is nothing more than "honest lying" to fit in required check-boxes. This is the reason why we miss great bosses/managers, because great people are honest above all, and mediocre managers are willing to "bend the truth" just to get the top position. It's a sad, sad world we live in.
@@udlrrldu621 You have to pass the filter first though. This layoff guy is right. They filter out majority of resumes if you don't structure it correctly. Your best bet is to have a separate resume for each application and tailor it to match requirement exactly. When I was looking last time, I had a database in format of recruiter-company-contacts-resume. Works like a charm. Gets you at least a screen every time. Lately it became even easier. Just ask ChatGPT to write you a resume based on job description and manager's wants.
No no no. Don't cheapen yourself like that. There's too much of that going around with companies expecting free trials and requesting presentations from applicants. @@udlrrldu621
So basically what I learned is that you have to be smarter than the ATS System. Know exactly what the system is looking for so your resume is first in line. Sounds honestly exhausting. I think it's also about who you know more than what you know. If you know the right people, you can land the job even if you are not exactly qualified.
It took me 10 months to find a new role in tech. Even the VP-level roles I was applying for had 1500+ applicants according to LinkedIn. I have 25 years of experience and a great background, but so do a lot of other people applying. It's never taken me more than 3 or so weeks to find a job before, and I've been working since I was 16.
I'm not saying this the the case everytime, but I would see recruiters calling managers to try to get more business. The managers would give them job profiles. However, there were no openings. Then when presented with pre-screened resumes the managers would find fault with 100% of the candidates. No one would be interviewed. These were fake jobs. It costs companies nothing so send recruiters on a snipe hunt. If they do this with 4 different recruiting agencies, then it looks like there a lot of open positions. Additionally, there is already a person choosen for the position, but to give the perception of fairness and equality in the hiring process, companies have to post the positions publically. It doesn't matter what you bring, you won't get an interview.
I feel ya, I am 4 months in myself and about to lose everything. I have nearly 200 applications not as much as you but good luck and I will keep you in my prayers. Hopefully something will break through for us soon.
@@Weasel_Meat I refer to this sort of crap as a Purple Squirrel hunt. Not all of them are bad fath. Some of them are just so picky about the ideal candidate they'd rather hold the job open indefinitely than accept a less than perfect candidate. So the end result is the same.
My boomer-minded brother told me it's "easy to get a job right now", which is his excuse as to why he looks down on service industry workers. I challenged him to put in a bunch of applications to see how quick he can even get a call for an interview. Guy got nothing but crickets.
@@kiki11974the ironic thing is I am getting rejected for jobs that I interviewed for year's ago now. I will admit I dropped the ball in these interviews but still give rejection and say "not enough experience" even though a few years ago I did have "enough experience"
The original purpose of ATS were to help "standardize" hiring because of bad recruiting/HR experiences. This video is a fantastic highlight of the weakness of the system, and the game is now for job seekers to "play to the test" on the resume. The problem is still a broken recruiting system, just now with additional steps. You're doing great work here.
The original purpose was to help companies organize hiring, with the added benefit of reporting/standardization due to govt. requirements like AA reports. I couldn't imagine what a large company like IBM had to deal with before ATS systems existed.
@@cpK054L as a woman, I agree. Life was better when the best job a woman had was helping to raise a family, and build a family business. There are true exceptions in corporate/academic settings - but I know many blue collar couples that started as partners and built strong businesses and wealth, together. Husband was a plumber or electrician, wife was the bookkeeper and "sales rep, et al". But you never hear much about those stories because it doesn't support the corporations
Yeah, I'm shocked at the unprofessionalness of a lot of recruiters. It's like being recruited by high school kids who get bored and move on to something else.
Do you get interest from recruiters from the "built-in" linkedin resume but when you send in your real resume file by direct message you get ghosted? I'm 59 and have a 30 year experience history and I suspect somehow the "built-in" one loses some of the date/years but then my resume file has my actual history years. I don't see the point in obscuring my age, they'll find out obviously.
@@manw3bttcks I no longer share all of my history on LinkedIn due to recruiter scamming. I don't want everyone to know my history unless I know who is getting the resume.
I totally see the point of obscuring my age! I was asked to send my education credentials and obscured the dates. They will find out eventually, yes, AFTER I've signed the offer and show up on my first day and have to submit my ID to HR. Any time sooner is a no-no. I even colored my few grays just for the interview.
So a "good" recruiter just narrows down applicants based on keywords? Seems like anyone could do that. Why even write a resume? Just submit a document with the job posting in resume form and you'll land an interview? This is very discouraging. It would also mean that changing careers or industries is very unlikely. I think we need a better way.
This video confirms what I suspected about jobs with hundreds of applicants (which is basically every good job). There is almost certainly someone who looks better on paper and/or has connections they can leverage. It feels futile to apply.
You actually do that, if the way you describe your (existing) experience is different than the one on the description, than you beeter modify your wording to match the description.
Recruiters are midwits. Put another way; if you aren’t a midwit, would you be a recruiter? The process described in this video is absolutely unhinged for the reasons you mention, but recruiters literally don’t have the cognition to understand it.
Yeah it's insane. I used to write my resumes to be read by a person, which often are much more detailed and specific but don't hit all the keywords. Now I basically copy the job desc as much as I can and when HR reaches out I email them my 'real' resume.
I wont even lie. Im mad that i cant find a job with a degree and years of tech exp. Im angrier that these moron recruiters are the reason while crying about how hard clicking the sort button is. God forbid they have to think. Forget AI. If they arent even reading the resume then they could be replaced by a well thought out switch statement.
When I was laid off I thought it would be rather easy finding a new role. So I dialed it in and focused on what I could learn in parallel as a software engineer. Listened to my job coach, networked applied to over 450 jobs to finally start getting interviews. Took about 4 months but I learned so much ☕️ I also came across your channel as a resource and applied it to what my job coach was guiding me on. It aligned well, didn’t make the stress go away but it made it more manageable. Thank you for sharing your valuable knowledge. Cheers, The Hopeful Autistic 🤟💙☕️
2 years ago I had recruiters calling me, and I wasn't even looking. Now, recently laid off due to a merger, it's mostly crickets, except the week before Thanksgiving when my phone seemigly blew up. But even after that, something changed - new job leads dried up, hiring managers had budget for new jobs pulled out from under them, and I'm back to crickets. Been in the work force 37 years, 30 in my profession, never seen it this bad. Agree with Bryan, when you're one competing out of 1000, even as a top candidate it's still a roll of the dice to even get a recruiter call, let alone an interview.
Correct, some job positions & descriptions are custom made for a specific person the hiring manager has in mind and will hire, either internal employee or someone referred by a friend or colleague. They just post it as a formality, because it’s a requirement. Which is another reason why external applicants doesn’t receive a call or communication from a recruiter or hiring manager. 🙄
Your resume has be damn near close to 100% to get a chance for an interview. I remember the days when recruiters would reach out and hiring managers weren't looking for the "perfect" candidate. I need a time machine
Yeah I'm struggling. I have had a bunch of interviews and have not gotten an offer. It always feels like I'm in the top 2 or 3 because they string me along until the person they offer the roll to accepts. They don't reject me until the other person says yes. It's irritating af.
as a tech worker its really tough right now, even for the top players. Love all of your advice, sometimes I need reminders to focus more on my own marketing rather than proving technical skill
Trades are just as bad bud I'm mid level experience and it took me 4 months to find a job I'd probably still be there if it weren't for cashing in favors
Nepotism is also a big reason, companies can put out an add to demonstrate to HR that they are actively looking outside for a candidate, only to reject each person and eventually hire a friend or family member of the boss! I know this because I’ve experienced it first hand and seen it all. I’ve been in a company where a woman hired her husband then they hired their son, so now they have 3 company cars in their driveway all the company benefits set for life, then hired a family friend and so on, at the top it’s all just friends hanging out together they made it so air tight and political that nobody could move up within the company unless you were their family friend🤦♂️ also to note: The Did Not Own The Company! It was owned from overseas but the managers that got their hands on the business treated it like a backyard family business that hire based on friendship not merit!
@@august21xp Unfortunately, it isn't illegal to hire friends and family. There's nothing you can do about it. If their reports look good, good luck in getting executive support.
I think I've seen this in large orgs that have government contracts. The org wants to keep their talent inside but I suspect Fed regs have requirements that job postings against federal contracts must be exposed to the public for a certain time. So the scam they use is to fill the job reqs with ridiculously stringent requirements that's tailored for someone inside the org that they "really want". That way even if some super star applies they have a ready made excuse not to hire them ("nope he didn't have 3 years of version Oracle version 1.2.5 experience on AIX unix")
Unemployment rate only counts the people getting money from the system. It doesn't count those who work part time, which disqualifies you, gig work, which disqualifies you, quitting previous job, which disqualifies you, or timing out and using up all the allotted money, which disqualifies you. I couldn't care less what the claimed rates are, they only represent like a fifth of the actual amount of people whose career has come to a screeching halt for one reason or another.
Another language besides English in the USA that's a way to go. Spanish is in need if you can do both you'll get a WFH much faster. Some other languages in the USA like Dutch, Japanese, French, and Mandarin. Airlines will hire WFH for those. I hate to agree with @cpK054L but yes, almost all call center jobs in the USA are now what looks to be outsourced to India, Sri Lanka, and those parts of the world. They may even be in the USA but they'll hire their cultural fit for these jobs.
@@udlrrldu621is it worth it? I am evading sales because I am afraid I won’t be able to pressure enough people to make money. I got customer care interviews but I currently live in Mexico and they want me to live in the US but I am not going back to the US for 15/h. I see that when it comes for sales they have a lot less requirements but I wonder if I will just lose my time.
That's not true, MLMs are thrilled to talk to any of us who they think they can trick to work for $0 an hour! 15 is being far too picky if your goal is reaching the interview stage.
I swear, job hunting is like dating these days, and conventional online searching seems pointless. I just got a new role by being recruited by a hiring manager, and my old role was backfilled internally w/no job posting. Seems like networking and self-marketing is the name of the game
Dating from a man or woman's point of view? Is this saying that the woman is the all-powerful all-mighty employer and the man is the lesser, lower insect?
I got rejected without an HR screen for a management position at company i was perhaps uniquely qualified for. Later I saw the person they hired had minimum experience that didn't even meet the job description. Every opening i look at has a couple hundred applicants.
A lot of job postings aren’t real in the sense that the company isn’t intending to fill them in the near term but only post them to test the job market.
I have recently discovered that some jobs are not real in the sense that even the company is not quite real. I applied for a entry level hardware engineering job. Visited their site and at first glance looked like it was ok company with some real products. I got an email for online interview accepted the date got postponed for a week after 3 days than canceled after another 4 days. I went back to their site and looked a bit more careful at their products and none of it made any damn sense it was all nice 3D renders and no substance. The company linkedin listed 2 employees one of which the CEO . And that is how I wasted about 5 hours of my life last month. LOL.
And still… after all is said and done, you still never hire best, most qualified candidate in that process. 1 major thing that you don’t see in someone’s resume is their personality. I have hired people who have a much better personality over people with better experience and would do it again. Hiring managers often forget, PEOPLE CAN LEARN. A person willing to learn something or better themselves is much higher priority to me over someone who wants to focus on what they know, even if they are the best. Notice how CEO’s, Directors, or any high up position, the people there usually aren’t good at their job? They are there bcuz they are willing to make the tough decisions most people don’t want to, and do it for the good of the company over the employee more often than not. The best never make it to the top in work world.
this is insightful and pretty much what I thought was happening. The filters are understandably required to keep things manageable. The system is still fundamentally broken.
Three months ago I landed an IT management position following most of Bryan’s advice. Now I’m recruiting and seeing all his insight from a different perspective. It’s incredibly humbling.
@@ALifeAfterLayoff Three things so far 1. In my area, the number of poorly written applications is staggering. Very few candidates even bother to tailor their resumes. I’ve learned to recognize well written applications partly because I honed that skill myself so I know what to look for. 2. I average 40 seconds reviewing an application before making a decision. I caught myself doing this and recognized how quickly a decision can be made concerning one’s application. 3. Being rejected by a candidate you make an offer to sucks! LOL! You go through the entire process - code examination, interview, offer and then bam negotiations don’t always go your way. A win when they do. Related is that team retention is now something that keeps me awake. Two devs resigned but one ultimately stayed. There’s just more at play now that I’m on the other side. It’s eye-opening and has made me realize who were really good bosses to me in the past. I’ve been applying select advice from a book called Peopleware. Fascinating stuff.
Thank you for trying to improve. Yall got any help desk roles for a really kind, curious middle aged women? I just recently learned I didn’t need experience for this job 😭
I LOL'd at the industry filter. Probably worked in a dozen industries over my career. Everyone thinks their industry is special. In almost every case, it's not as special as they believe - especially for areas like IT or Operations.
in the last month i got rejected by 2 different companies (finance and coffee machine maker) for basically the same position (365/Azure) because i didnt have industry background, as if 365licences or Azure resources behave differently. For the record: the Finance company recruiter clearly stated that my salary expectation and experience were a fit, while the Coffee company sent me automated email after i honestly replied no in the application form's radio button about coffee industry background
I noticed after applying to remote roles for over a year. All rejections. I just could not compete because I don’t have bachelors but I do have an associates and 10 years of experience. Soon as applied locally I got 3 interviews. And sometimes they might pick you but the pool is just too large.
I have a bachelors and experience and it’s the same thing . Probably have applied for 100 or more remote jobs since January and only get phone interviews if the pay turns out to disgustingly low
I've had the same experience. B.A. in a job-related field (but not the EXACT field employers seem to be looking for), over 10 years of experience, etc. Biggest problem is, I work in a very competitive field and live in a more remote rural area where my current employer is located, in a state with few people/jobs. So working remotely is the best option but I've had no luck going that route. When I apply in-state/locally on the rare occasion a job comes up, I get a lot more interest, but then I'm stuck with low pay that's par for the area, and is not an improvement over my current situation. Sometimes seems like an endless loop.
@@KT-bg7hf that sucks sorry to hear. Most people I know who are in a poor job market usually relocate but that can be really tough. I thought about it briefly.
@@ryanharrison9501 Thanks-it's a "chicken-and-egg" situation where it's difficult to relocate without having a job in the new location, and can't get a job in the new location without living there already. And like you said, the pool in the job market I'm wanting to relocate to already has too many candidates. But I haven't given up hope yet! Gotta keep on keeping on
Despite coming out of college where they told me that "the job hiring process is fair" in reality these days it's more about who you know than what you know (depending on your networking). It's similar to when parents tell their kids that "life is unfair."
@@ronhoover5516 I've gotten quite a few positions where I didn't know anyone at the hiring company. I think the "who you know" is more of a thing on your first few jobs. My first job here in Maryland was totally due to who was there. The PM went to the same college I got my BS. He literally told me he would tend to hire applicants he saw from the same university.
Same. I haven’t given up trying, but I have largely given up hope, especially after reading some eye-opening statistics about how much long-term unemployment affects your chances. Recency of employment is, more than anything else, seen as a proxy for competence. Once you’ve been unemployed for six months or longer, the odds of being interviewed - let alone hired - fall off the cliff.
As a job seeker don't take it personal if you don't get the job. Most of the time there is an internal candidate for the job posting. Employers only interview externally just in case that internal candidate changes their mind on the job offer. I interviewed with Southwest Airlines for the Baltimore location in person and made it to the final stage of interviews, then flew to Dallas, TX at the HQ to interview. I was shocked I didn't get the job but it was a fun experience flying out of state for an interview.
It's because there was a huge push to hire Pyhton programmers. The bootcamp thing added to the chaos. Now everyone is a self-declared "programmer" and applications are flooding everywhere. Also, there's no thought process behind applying for a job. These candidates are literally sending out hundreds of applications a week, with no discernment whatsoever. It's making it worse for the truly qualified people. It's such a mess right now.
Welcome to my world with RUclips mechanics think I saw a guy on RUclips fix this 100k skidsteer I can do it to then either fix their shit repair or work with them and want go on a search for high pressure leaks with my hands ( look up what I mean on that)
In my country, you have to apply for four or more jobs to get benefits. So some apply for jobs with no intention to do the job just to keep getting unemployment.
In other words - the more things change, the more things stay the same. 1. Make sure your resume is tailored to the job requirements. 2. Network with people in the company. Since it would be time consuming to write a resume for each job, I wonder if there is a way to leverage AI to help with this. This would be more for people who may not have the time, such as are already employed but they’re looking for a better opportunity.
This is why when you want to climb the corporate ladder, apply for VENDORS with those big name companies. Vendors work in the same offices of the big companies, you often work side-by-side with people with that company and you can be hired on as a Full time employee if you play your cards right. And some vendors have excellent benefit packages depending on the company.
@@danawhiteisagenius8654 that’s where I started. My fall back career was Records Management. I worked for a records management vendor at a tech company and saw a few people get hired on by the company.
@@foodiusmaximus that’s the tricky part, most vendors make employees sign NDAs. You just got to cast a large net. Also looking at the location of the job can give you a clue the company is a vendor for a larger corporation.
Based on your example, EVERY skill must be an EXACT keyword match, or one risks the chance of being disqualified. Spelling variations (e.g. Skillset vs Skill Set) or industry-specific synonyms used to describe the exact same function or task could boot someone who is completely qualified. Am I correct in my understanding? What about people who tailor resumes and still don’t get called? Doing this takes a lot of time and constant rejection out-of-pocket takes a toll on job seekers. Desperation has caused me to resort to spray and pray, assuming I’ll just be rejected anyway.
@@stanislavkindiakov6334 Or what if you are a tech lead, but don't have enough tech lead experience? Say you have lead 20 projects, but the interviewing company wants someone who lead 25...you are out of luck Chuck!
I know several hi-tech people who were so smart and picked up hi-tech skills so quickly that they were hired by companies directly out of high school. Ten, twenty years later-None of them can expect to land a job through online applications. No college graduation, which is usually a requirement for the online application. Most of them have years experience, rose through the ranks at multiple companies, and have often earned six figures per year. And they are filtered out because they lack a piece of paper from years before. Filtering for “college degree” is lazy and dumb. It filters out a lot of qualified candidates.
ppl like this don`t send application through apps\websites, it would be weird to to that, if you are already a "rockstar" in your industry. But technically yes, it is kind of ironic, that they could be filtered out..
It's true. I was getting hammered by rejections (and until now I'd never even had to apply for jobs because recruiters came to me). And then, I realized that the rejections were being emailed at midnight on Saturday. No one was working then, and I discovered that I was getting shut out by bots. When you're applying for remote jobs, the competition is insane. So I went with JobScan and was able to clear the bot hurdle.(It was crazy. One employer referred to writing new content as "prototyping," which isn't even a term used in publishing. But I tweaked every resume, every time. And I got interviews. Now, my problem is that I get through tests, phone interviews, preliminary interviews, etc. And then the last interview kills me. I was actually told in one case that they wanted a "face" for the brand. Apparently my face didn't meet the bill. So now what do I do? Are they finding something on social they don't like? I'm not young but I'm not ugly. Is online reputation management my next step? I've been working for online publishers since 2007 and my online presence is pretty huge. Maybe it's setting me back?
I already have experience in a lot of fields, but one thing I always found funny is... The baseline requirements for entry-level positions are _"must have experience"_ if a company says this, it's not a company worth applying for. They have no competency in the staff writing the positions out or try to manipulate the language for a hidden agenda behind it. - Usually tax reasons !
My majors were genetics and biotech, back then it wasn't popular and we had only 5-8 ppl in a class. No one wanted it. Now when I apply for a job I see at least 300-500 candidates. Where did they all come from?
This is a broken process. Just because someone has a Bachelor’s degree and the skills doesn’t mean they are the best candidate. I know several people who do not have a bachelor’s degree and are smarter and more successful than most people. Companies need to do a better job on their hiring process because there may be the ideal candidate out there that does not meet all the requirements but will be the rock star employee.
@@cpK054LI disagree with this. The degree has nothing to do with the field. There are tons of people working jobs that are not in the same field as their degree.
If you apply for jobs that are paying anywhere from $15-$18 dollars an hour, you will get a lot of offers. If you apply to jobs that pay $19-$22, you will need 3-5 years experience no matter the industry. If you apply to jobs paying $23-$30 dollars an hour, you will be offered a salaried position with Supervisory responsibilities, 3-5 years experience, and a 40-50 hour work week including weekends. This would include you being a working Supervisor not just an overseer. If you apply to jobs paying more than $30 an hour, you will need 5-8 years experience, certifications in management, 4 year college in your respected field of study, solid references, offering a salaried position with full responsibilities and a team to supervise, coupled with weekend work if needed, and travel if needed. A 3 month probationary period, with an “at-will) signed letter in case they find someone more suitable in the future. Or cheaper. If you can code, the world is at your feet. Enjoy your bean bag.
This is why I hate hearing people recommend folks skip college and claim that it doesn't matter anymore. Just because a company says they won't "require" a degree doesn't mean they won't still filter for it when they get 500+ applications for the job. In a hierarchical system (like the job market) you're only putting yourself at a disadvantage if you skip higher education.
I went to the cheapest four-year college, and only got a bachelors degree, but I have a big leg up when it comes to education amongst people that are perfectly smart, but have no degree at all. It doesn’t make sense, but it is what it is.
@@udlrrldu621 No, they won't. First off, some jobs just plain require a degree; in many cases the law requires it. You want to be a teacher, pharmacist, or nurse (to name three good middle class careers)? Good luck with no degree! Even for jobs that don't require a degree for professional licensure, when companies get 500 applicants for each job, they won't even consider the ones with no degree.
The people saying to skip college are usually also recommending that people go into skilled trades that pay high salaries; like electricians, plumbers, and machinists. Those jobs do not require a degree and pay better than many jobs that do require one (like teaching). No one with any intelligence tells people who want white collar jobs or professional jobs (like teaching or nursing) to skip college, because in those fields, no degree = no job.
@@udlrrldu621 I worked for a FAANG company as a recruiter for 2 years. We never hired a single person based on "skills" who didn't also have at LEAST a Bachelors degree.
Shortlist my ass. I got a phone interview with an internal recruiter. Interview went great and I thought I was going to the next round to interview with the hiring manager but a month later I got an automated rejection email. That's corporate America for you.
@@robd7934 same thing just happened to me. recruiter call, she said I was a great fit, scheduled time for next interview, then two days later, form rejection. discouraging.
The best is waking up early in the morning to rejection emails that were sent in the middle of the night. Obviously, an ATS system with zero human interaction!
Easy. 'They let me go while I was on leave for some medical treatments, even though I made a complete recovery' is all it takes. Something along those lines. Don't go into specifics.
I find it hard to get back into the grind after spending nearly a decade as a caregiver. I want to get back into the working world but I feel like everything has left me behind.
It has not, this is a bad time to go back in. If you can avoid this right now, pass it by until things get better. I was a caregiver for years and companies do not look favorably upon this. Mainly because America sees taking care of family and those in need elderly, kids, and the sick as something secondary and unimportant. You'll get better reception if you go into CNA or medical field, they seem to understand this the best. Make sure you go to school or get some kind of certification in the medical field so that you can compete with others who want that job just like you do. Corporate America may have an issue with your kindness and empathy! It seems to have an issue with mine. So what, I took care of kids, pets, a husband, a sick parent, and a whole lot of other things. This means that I am capable of handling life and all the mess that comes with it! If I can do that, I can certainly do the job you hired me for and I've never had an issue learning new skills or failing due to it being out of my comfort zone. You'll do fine but have a game plan in place and choose your time to start that. Best of luck!
Same with me but I'm the opposite. I've been working in retail and customer service for years. I'm trying to get out of retail and get a full time job but I keep getting rejected!
It's probably for the best. I worked for Chick Fil A and you know what l think? Religious propaganda for financial gain. And I'm not afraid to say so either. This world is fake and it's always been that way. They want to keep everyone stuck but you have to be strong and break through the mold. And don't be afraid to speak out
Thanks for this!💯 Had no clue the process the recruiter goes through and the filter actually makes sense. Just crazy being on the other side and not knowing. Excellent video! Thank you!
Just network with people in the company. Bypass that evil ATS system. Talking with someone will put your name out there as you’re not just a name on a spreadsheet.
@@TheRuggedWay there's laws that say they have to be publicly available. I had an internal candidate I was going to promote one time and the company would not let me do it without posting it externally for some period of time, despite the fact we never wanted to look at anyone else. We had a perfect fit, but we had to post the job. HR said it was the law.
I really appreciate you showing this, because people refuse to believe how ludicrous the system has become. If the ATS doesn't like your resume, oh well, instantly filtered out and rejected. Yes you can optimize for that, but you can't cover ALL your bases. Just goes to show why most jobs nowadays are filled through nepotism, because clearly the route of going through normal applications is messed up beyond repair, for both the recruiter and the applicant. Let's just go scorched earth and start again with a system that 1) doesn't reduce people to a line in a spreadsheet and 2) doesn't overwhelm the recruiter with applications, to the point where they have to use these ridiculous ATS tools.
I have to say that when I applied to companies directly, I was likely granted an interview; all the recruitment agencies bar one actually saw my worth & tried to help me. A lot of rectuitment agents are so hung up on you having a degree. A company will look at your actual experience a great deal more. I'm done with recruitment agencies - they don't see the bigger picture from my experience.
Exactly ! You said it all they just don't ! They just act like the perfect student and follow companies criterias. An average HR outsourcing first step
Today I received an offer for my senior level engineering dream job! I exclusively watched your videos for resume prep, getting noticed, networking, video interview prep, in-person interview prep, etc. In just a 9-day period of time, I went on 7 quality interviews. I also had up to 50 recruiters contact me in a one week period this month. Thanks Bryan, you are truly the one stop shop!!
I stumbled across a diff vid in my feed (the woman that recorded her layoff/HR jerkin her around) when I was about 2 Google something totally unrelated. Prob not a coincidence that it came up tho knowing the grind I’ve been on trying 2 find ADDITIONAL/SECOND jobs, PT jobs, hustles etc and STAYING frustrated that I get NO BITES. All I can say now is WHERE have you been ALL MY LIFE?!? I HAVE ALWAYS WANTED & NEEDED 2 KNOW THE WHY’S & more from AN HR PERSPECTIVE!! 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽*proceeds 2 binge the rest of your vids
I've been lucky in my career so far. Each of my jobs have lead to the next one after it was finished, which after adding it to my resume, completing my bachelors and starting my masters put me in a perfect position for my next job and a at minimum 50% raise.
It’s frustrating that so many companies ask for a Bachelors but the job doesn’t really seem to require it. Or in my case I have 9 years experience but no BS, so I’ve been rejected, even when I had a person recommended me to the department head that he knew personally. The HR staff would not budge on using experience over BS. So I know getting thru an ATS is impossible for us with experience but no paper. Even if the posting says “or industry experience” I wonder if they just filter for BS anyways as it makes a recruiter job easier than reading a resume for experience words.
@@cpK054L if you're halfway there. Just continue. Have heard from some devs, good amount of companies don't background check. Especially if you have prior experience
You just need to guess a few absolutely unknown parameters which must be included in CV and also a proper CV format so it get recognised by automation tool 😂
I'm scared to even fire up LinkedIn. Just being honest and humble is such a disadvantage, while bullpoopers and application flooders just bruteforce their job offers. What the hell? And hearing recruiters talking about tweaking, adjusting and overall fluffing up resumes for the job you do really want sounds like a very cruel joke. Recruiting is broken beyond repair... I'm so lost.
Let's be honest, the first filter for the vast majority of roles is "do you require visa sponsorship?" That takes out 85% of your single day applicants that are just spamming everything trying to get into the US.
@@ekyas because if they don't have a business entity in that location it gets messy from a regulation and taxation standpoint. They may not want to deal with certain areas and their worker protections, for example California is the US or France internationally
The competition issue is something I have noticed a lot of people don’t think about…..no matter how qualified you are, there WILL be candidates who are better..we live in a world where remote work is becoming more and more A norm, and that means competing with people from anywhere…..
Thanks! I just discovered your site. You are amazing! I was laid off a few months ago… going to school for certs, and I still feel overqualified… I need this site!!
Hey Brian, thank you for that clear explanation. I have suffered for years with this. Now my strategy is to follow this and work with the ats software and take my chances when I get the call.
How specific do the skills get? I've had one recruiter say my resume was good, another say it wasn't specific enough which felt odd as getting too technical can bloat a resume.
Just out of curiosity, why are there so many applicants right now in general? Are many unhappy with their current job or just testing the waters? It seems like the perfect candidat is already employed but just keeps applying to every position so nobody else gets a chance.
I've gone through several hiring processes in the last few months and was told by them that they would be sending an offer. Shortly after I was told the budget for the position was cut and I can't move forward. I am not sure if they are just saying that to let me down easy or if that is real. Any thoughts?
I've had it happen to me 3 times internally at my company. But then I see many other less capable people being elevated quickly. One person I even recommended to my old manager who's a director now and that person had less experience than me. Lot of prejudice and favoritism. They'll never tell you the whole truth
I interviewed three times for positions that I am very qualified for, and after speaking candidly with the hiring managers, and having them explain to me what the job entailed I was still not chosen. I believe there are a lot of gatekeepers that will not hire talent they see as a threat to their positions.
@@javaman8844 lol I have a permanent source of income on top of a job. Now I don't have that job because I don't want to deal with diversity hires. It's not worth the 126k/yr
Ok. Two things. 1) Doesn't this just encourage resume and keyword stuffing? 2) I've seen hiring managers who focus heavily on "culture fit." What does that even mean? What happens if you make it past this stage, and you get judged based on "I would like a colleague who I can go to lunch with."? (Had a buddy who was hiring for a role say just that. And I went OFF on him). I like your videos, and this was very helpful in terms of knowing what goes on when you get instantly rejected. But, this video is also a bit of a downer.
Yeah, I'm a black dude, and have run into shocking situations where I was extremely qualified, even got interviews, and was rejected. For high level roles. I never really mentioned race, but I've even had white friends say to me "Corporations can't handle a guy like you." I actually think women have it much easier, though. Regardless, I really do like these videos, I just didn't connect with this one. @@davidcrawford9026
The tech fields competition is disgusting. So many highly trained tech employees are laid off, now they're applying for positions as easy as Tier 1..... I'm thinking about going into another field all together.... So many people are taking up tech in college and going to boot camps, getting certs way to many people... Think outside the box...
I was born with hydrocephalus and cerebral palsy. I’ve worked in retail and office jobs my entire career, but I was laid off January 11th. I’m tired of lying on my resume just to get an interview just to get a job. I’ve been through temp agencies, and I’ve had people “forward” my resume to others in their companies but still never hear back. They need to eliminate the whole “public burden” part of application processes, especially if it’s a job where you sit in front of a computer all day (most of my jobs). I also believe if all I’m doing is typing and being on the phone, I should be able to work from home. I’ve worked from home twice in my career, but never long enough to continue; I just want to WFH forever.
B. Your content is purely excellent. I have two of your programs and they are gold. I plan to acquire the rest of your training. Sir, you are so correct that you have to market yourself. I am now blogging on LinkedIn and have my own personal website to show case my blog and writing skills. You are so correct sir that you have to market yourself. Keep doing what you are doing sir.
Graduated with my bachelors Dec 2022 and have been job searching since. Thousands of applications and tons of interviews and still no job. The tech industry is brutal right now for entry level candidates trying to break in.
Absolute insanity out here. People just want to pay bills.
Capitalism and freedom! Haha!
Exactly!
Pay close attention to what I'm teaching, and use it to your advantage.
Amen!
Exactly. Ridiculous, isn't it? Recruiters and hiring managers play games with nonsense like resume gaps (who DOESN"T have a gap, given what's happened the last 5 or so years) and culture fit (what does that even mean? And how do you measure it in an interview) when people just want to pay bills.
It's easy to get a bad job, but it's hard to get a good job.
Good luck getting either
I can't even get a simple retail job.
@@Bonniethebunny The military always has positions open. There are always bad jobs available.
Yep.
Ride a buffalo until you can find a horse
So it's mostly "fake it till you make it" approach. Resume "adjusting" is nothing more than "honest lying" to fit in required check-boxes. This is the reason why we miss great bosses/managers, because great people are honest above all, and mediocre managers are willing to "bend the truth" just to get the top position. It's a sad, sad world we live in.
@@udlrrldu621 You have to pass the filter first though. This layoff guy is right. They filter out majority of resumes if you don't structure it correctly. Your best bet is to have a separate resume for each application and tailor it to match requirement exactly. When I was looking last time, I had a database in format of recruiter-company-contacts-resume. Works like a charm. Gets you at least a screen every time. Lately it became even easier. Just ask ChatGPT to write you a resume based on job description and manager's wants.
No no no. Don't cheapen yourself like that. There's too much of that going around with companies expecting free trials and requesting presentations from applicants. @@udlrrldu621
Not true at ALL @HARD-R-MUD-DEMON
@HARD-R-MUD-DEMON not with spelling like that.
I had managers, I had to train them. One of them was an assistant of store manager. LOL
It’s insane. I received a rejection email for a job I applied to months ago. I even forgot that I applied there. I hate this so much.
I got followup email asking if I am still interested in position after about three years.
Same, you don’t want to work for those POSs anyways
At least you’re _getting_ a response. I just get ghosted.
@@amicaaranearum oh I’ve gotten that too.
I've heard from places a year after applying. I'm like dam I don't even live in that state anymore.
"Let's make finding a job as awful as online dating!" said Satan.
Underrated comment
must be a man. Women have the advantage in life. Is this to say that women are the all-powerful employers in dating?
Satan wins
So basically what I learned is that you have to be smarter than the ATS System. Know exactly what the system is looking for so your resume is first in line. Sounds honestly exhausting. I think it's also about who you know more than what you know. If you know the right people, you can land the job even if you are not exactly qualified.
That’s exactly true
Both aproaches are true. In the IT world it's more about who you know, than what skills you have.
i dont even think the CEO of that company could get a job at his own company
It took me 10 months to find a new role in tech. Even the VP-level roles I was applying for had 1500+ applicants according to LinkedIn. I have 25 years of experience and a great background, but so do a lot of other people applying. It's never taken me more than 3 or so weeks to find a job before, and I've been working since I was 16.
Ditto. 30 years in high tech here (Vp level etc) and it’s insane right now
I'm not saying this the the case everytime, but I would see recruiters calling managers to try to get more business. The managers would give them job profiles. However, there were no openings. Then when presented with pre-screened resumes the managers would find fault with 100% of the candidates. No one would be interviewed. These were fake jobs. It costs companies nothing so send recruiters on a snipe hunt. If they do this with 4 different recruiting agencies, then it looks like there a lot of open positions.
Additionally, there is already a person choosen for the position, but to give the perception of fairness and equality in the hiring process, companies have to post the positions publically. It doesn't matter what you bring, you won't get an interview.
@@Weasel_Meatthere needs to be laws against this BS
I feel ya, I am 4 months in myself and about to lose everything. I have nearly 200 applications not as much as you but good luck and I will keep you in my prayers. Hopefully something will break through for us soon.
@@Weasel_Meat I refer to this sort of crap as a Purple Squirrel hunt. Not all of them are bad fath. Some of them are just so picky about the ideal candidate they'd rather hold the job open indefinitely than accept a less than perfect candidate. So the end result is the same.
My boomer-minded brother told me it's "easy to get a job right now", which is his excuse as to why he looks down on service industry workers. I challenged him to put in a bunch of applications to see how quick he can even get a call for an interview.
Guy got nothing but crickets.
People who haven’t switched jobs in the last 10 years have no idea how hard is it out here
@@kiki11974 Ironically he's been at the same job for about a decade.
@kiki11974 the manager that fired me 4 months ago just recently got laid off himself.
Get fucked. 😂
@@kiki11974the ironic thing is I am getting rejected for jobs that I interviewed for year's ago now. I will admit I dropped the ball in these interviews but still give rejection and say "not enough experience" even though a few years ago I did have "enough experience"
😂😂😂😂 I just know that felt at least a little awesome to prove that point in that manner. Lol.
The original purpose of ATS were to help "standardize" hiring because of bad recruiting/HR experiences. This video is a fantastic highlight of the weakness of the system, and the game is now for job seekers to "play to the test" on the resume. The problem is still a broken recruiting system, just now with additional steps.
You're doing great work here.
The original purpose was to help companies organize hiring, with the added benefit of reporting/standardization due to govt. requirements like AA reports. I couldn't imagine what a large company like IBM had to deal with before ATS systems existed.
@@ALifeAfterLayoff Many emailed resumes
Because the employers, hiring managers and recruiters are benefiting from the broken system.
They don't want it to change.
@@ALifeAfterLayoffThey would have hired before the machine and probably got some good workers.
I'm starting to think corporate America's hiring process is completely f'ing broken
It has been for decades.
It's worse now
Guess who works in HR that's responsible for it?
@@bobsanders5488 Karen?
You think? Hahahaha, of course it is. It is all broken - convid should have taught you this
Everything today is diluted in quality. HR people are some of the worst gatekeepers.
"Modern HR". Smh. Smh. H@lfw!t R€s0urc€s.
They should have kept women out of the office
@@cpK054Lhow do you reckon?
@@cpK054L as a woman, I agree. Life was better when the best job a woman had was helping to raise a family, and build a family business. There are true exceptions in corporate/academic settings - but I know many blue collar couples that started as partners and built strong businesses and wealth, together. Husband was a plumber or electrician, wife was the bookkeeper and "sales rep, et al". But you never hear much about those stories because it doesn't support the corporations
Best is hr that had no idea what the worker drops are doing or think it is below them
The worst part of my job search: 1/ Ageism 2/ Recruiters who are scammers out of India 3/Ghosting - unprofessional recruiters 4/ etc
Yeah, I'm shocked at the unprofessionalness of a lot of recruiters. It's like being recruited by high school kids who get bored and move on to something else.
Same here, but I have also been getting recruiters from China. And being ghosted by recruiters on LinkedIn.
Do you get interest from recruiters from the "built-in" linkedin resume but when you send in your real resume file by direct message you get ghosted? I'm 59 and have a 30 year experience history and I suspect somehow the "built-in" one loses some of the date/years but then my resume file has my actual history years. I don't see the point in obscuring my age, they'll find out obviously.
@@manw3bttcks I no longer share all of my history on LinkedIn due to recruiter scamming. I don't want everyone to know my history unless I know who is getting the resume.
I totally see the point of obscuring my age! I was asked to send my education credentials and obscured the dates. They will find out eventually, yes, AFTER I've signed the offer and show up on my first day and have to submit my ID to HR. Any time sooner is a no-no. I even colored my few grays just for the interview.
So a "good" recruiter just narrows down applicants based on keywords? Seems like anyone could do that. Why even write a resume? Just submit a document with the job posting in resume form and you'll land an interview? This is very discouraging. It would also mean that changing careers or industries is very unlikely. I think we need a better way.
This video confirms what I suspected about jobs with hundreds of applicants (which is basically every good job). There is almost certainly someone who looks better on paper and/or has connections they can leverage. It feels futile to apply.
You actually do that, if the way you describe your (existing) experience is different than the one on the description, than you beeter modify your wording to match the description.
Recruiters are midwits. Put another way; if you aren’t a midwit, would you be a recruiter? The process described in this video is absolutely unhinged for the reasons you mention, but recruiters literally don’t have the cognition to understand it.
Yeah it's insane. I used to write my resumes to be read by a person, which often are much more detailed and specific but don't hit all the keywords. Now I basically copy the job desc as much as I can and when HR reaches out I email them my 'real' resume.
I wont even lie. Im mad that i cant find a job with a degree and years of tech exp. Im angrier that these moron recruiters are the reason while crying about how hard clicking the sort button is. God forbid they have to think. Forget AI. If they arent even reading the resume then they could be replaced by a well thought out switch statement.
When I was laid off I thought it would be rather easy finding a new role.
So I dialed it in and focused on what I could learn in parallel as a software engineer.
Listened to my job coach, networked applied to over 450 jobs to finally start getting interviews. Took about 4 months but I learned so much ☕️
I also came across your channel as a resource and applied it to what my job coach was guiding me on.
It aligned well, didn’t make the stress go away but it made it more manageable. Thank you for sharing your valuable knowledge.
Cheers,
The Hopeful Autistic 🤟💙☕️
"Listened to my job coach, networked applied to over 450 jobs to finally start getting interviews."
That...wow. That's a lot.
Hi friend- can you elaborate on what is meant by network applied?
Glad you learned something valuable.
@@CaptWuppazz He forgot a comma. "networked, applied"
As an accountant, I was laid off in January 2023. I'm still looking for a job.
2 years ago I had recruiters calling me, and I wasn't even looking.
Now, recently laid off due to a merger, it's mostly crickets, except the week before Thanksgiving when my phone seemigly blew up. But even after that, something changed - new job leads dried up, hiring managers had budget for new jobs pulled out from under them, and I'm back to crickets. Been in the work force 37 years, 30 in my profession, never seen it this bad.
Agree with Bryan, when you're one competing out of 1000, even as a top candidate it's still a roll of the dice to even get a recruiter call, let alone an interview.
I think it’s also important to understand a lot of job postings are already meant for someone specific
Correct, some job positions & descriptions are custom made for a specific person the hiring manager has in mind and will hire, either internal employee or someone referred by a friend or colleague. They just post it as a formality, because it’s a requirement. Which is another reason why external applicants doesn’t receive a call or communication from a recruiter or hiring manager. 🙄
Or for a job that doesn't even exist.
Truth
Your resume has be damn near close to 100% to get a chance for an interview. I remember the days when recruiters would reach out and hiring managers weren't looking for the "perfect" candidate. I need a time machine
Protect this dude at all costs. He’s giving out secret Shaolin wizardry.
Yeah I'm struggling. I have had a bunch of interviews and have not gotten an offer. It always feels like I'm in the top 2 or 3 because they string me along until the person they offer the roll to accepts. They don't reject me until the other person says yes. It's irritating af.
Emotionally exhausting
I feel you brother!! I am facing the issue
Been dealing with the same thing for almost a year now it's frustrating
as a tech worker its really tough right now, even for the top players. Love all of your advice, sometimes I need reminders to focus more on my own marketing rather than proving technical skill
true… it’s a gambling game
Trades are just as bad bud I'm mid level experience and it took me 4 months to find a job I'd probably still be there if it weren't for cashing in favors
Good tip
Nepotism is also a big reason, companies can put out an add to demonstrate to HR that they are actively looking outside for a candidate, only to reject each person and eventually hire a friend or family member of the boss! I know this because I’ve experienced it first hand and seen it all. I’ve been in a company where a woman hired her husband then they hired their son, so now they have 3 company cars in their driveway all the company benefits set for life, then hired a family friend and so on, at the top it’s all just friends hanging out together they made it so air tight and political that nobody could move up within the company unless you were their family friend🤦♂️ also to note: The Did Not Own The Company! It was owned from overseas but the managers that got their hands on the business treated it like a backyard family business that hire based on friendship not merit!
Report it!
@@august21xp I did ofcourse and the people at HR were………. Their family friend!! It got nowhere but made my life worse so I had to go
I’ve been through this once or twice! It sucks!
@@august21xp Unfortunately, it isn't illegal to hire friends and family. There's nothing you can do about it. If their reports look good, good luck in getting executive support.
I think I've seen this in large orgs that have government contracts. The org wants to keep their talent inside but I suspect Fed regs have requirements that job postings against federal contracts must be exposed to the public for a certain time. So the scam they use is to fill the job reqs with ridiculously stringent requirements that's tailored for someone inside the org that they "really want". That way even if some super star applies they have a ready made excuse not to hire them ("nope he didn't have 3 years of version Oracle version 1.2.5 experience on AIX unix")
the problem isn’t the unemployment rate; its the percentage of employed people looking for different or additional work.
Unemployment rate only counts the people getting money from the system. It doesn't count those who work part time, which disqualifies you, gig work, which disqualifies you, quitting previous job, which disqualifies you, or timing out and using up all the allotted money, which disqualifies you. I couldn't care less what the claimed rates are, they only represent like a fifth of the actual amount of people whose career has come to a screeching halt for one reason or another.
Yup. When I hear the unemployment rate on the radio, I always feel like they’re wasting everybody’s time even saying it.
@@lauracoutinho5478I am living off my savings while looking for work, so I wouldn't be classified.
It’s almost impossible to get a interview for a remote job unless it pays $15 an hour
Start learning Hindi and change your last name to Gupta
Another language besides English in the USA that's a way to go. Spanish is in need if you can do both you'll get a WFH much faster. Some other languages in the USA like Dutch, Japanese, French, and Mandarin. Airlines will hire WFH for those. I hate to agree with @cpK054L but yes, almost all call center jobs in the USA are now what looks to be outsourced to India, Sri Lanka, and those parts of the world. They may even be in the USA but they'll hire their cultural fit for these jobs.
@@udlrrldu621 you also post doublepayroll
@@udlrrldu621is it worth it? I am evading sales because I am afraid I won’t be able to pressure enough people to make money.
I got customer care interviews but I currently live in Mexico and they want me to live in the US but I am not going back to the US for 15/h.
I see that when it comes for sales they have a lot less requirements but I wonder if I will just lose my time.
That's not true, MLMs are thrilled to talk to any of us who they think they can trick to work for $0 an hour! 15 is being far too picky if your goal is reaching the interview stage.
I swear, job hunting is like dating these days, and conventional online searching seems pointless. I just got a new role by being recruited by a hiring manager, and my old role was backfilled internally w/no job posting. Seems like networking and self-marketing is the name of the game
Yes 100. It’s all internal and who you know
Dating from a man or woman's point of view? Is this saying that the woman is the all-powerful all-mighty employer and the man is the lesser, lower insect?
And this is why going forward i will flat out lie on my resume. This is nothing but the hunger games.
ATS = Application Trashing System
Exactly
I got rejected without an HR screen for a management position at company i was perhaps uniquely qualified for. Later I saw the person they hired had minimum experience that didn't even meet the job description. Every opening i look at has a couple hundred applicants.
A lot of job postings aren’t real in the sense that the company isn’t intending to fill them in the near term but only post them to test the job market.
Worse. Some companies are squirreling applicants away for later. Collecting them like pervs.
I have recently discovered that some jobs are not real in the sense that even the company is not quite real.
I applied for a entry level hardware engineering job. Visited their site and at first glance looked like it was ok company with some real products.
I got an email for online interview accepted the date got postponed for a week after 3 days than canceled after another 4 days.
I went back to their site and looked a bit more careful at their products and none of it made any damn sense it was all nice 3D renders and no substance. The company linkedin listed 2 employees one of which the CEO .
And that is how I wasted about 5 hours of my life last month. LOL.
@@pllpsy665 !!!! It used to be a numbers game, but now it just feels like playing Minesweeper.
Or to fill internally
exactly.
ATS systems are the worst.
Always try to talk to a human being if possible.
Theyre disgusting.
Agreed - that's why targeted networking on LinkedIn (for example) is a preferable option. Skip the recruiter!
That and also a referral. Fortunately, most companies still take referrals seriously
Humans are worse. The ATS is giving you mercy
And still… after all is said and done, you still never hire best, most qualified candidate in that process. 1 major thing that you don’t see in someone’s resume is their personality. I have hired people who have a much better personality over people with better experience and would do it again. Hiring managers often forget, PEOPLE CAN LEARN. A person willing to learn something or better themselves is much higher priority to me over someone who wants to focus on what they know, even if they are the best. Notice how CEO’s, Directors, or any high up position, the people there usually aren’t good at their job? They are there bcuz they are willing to make the tough decisions most people don’t want to, and do it for the good of the company over the employee more often than not. The best never make it to the top in work world.
Thx for the explanation. Recruiters are playing poker out of applicants' hopes.
this is insightful and pretty much what I thought was happening.
The filters are understandably required to keep things manageable. The system is still fundamentally broken.
Three months ago I landed an IT management position following most of Bryan’s advice.
Now I’m recruiting and seeing all his insight from a different perspective.
It’s incredibly humbling.
What's your biggest takeaways from this new perspective?
@@ALifeAfterLayoff
Three things so far
1. In my area, the number of poorly written applications is staggering. Very few candidates even bother to tailor their resumes. I’ve learned to recognize well written applications partly because I honed that skill myself so I know what to look for.
2. I average 40 seconds reviewing an application before making a decision. I caught myself doing this and recognized how quickly a decision can be made concerning one’s application.
3. Being rejected by a candidate you make an offer to sucks! LOL! You go through the entire process - code examination, interview, offer and then bam negotiations don’t always go your way. A win when they do. Related is that team retention is now something that keeps me awake. Two devs resigned but one ultimately stayed. There’s just more at play now that I’m on the other side. It’s eye-opening and has made me realize who were really good bosses to me in the past.
I’ve been applying select advice from a book called Peopleware. Fascinating stuff.
Thank you for trying to improve. Yall got any help desk roles for a really kind, curious middle aged women? I just recently learned I didn’t need experience for this job 😭
I LOL'd at the industry filter. Probably worked in a dozen industries over my career. Everyone thinks their industry is special. In almost every case, it's not as special as they believe - especially for areas like IT or Operations.
I don't disagree at all.
@@ALifeAfterLayoff Which means you agree.😉
in the last month i got rejected by 2 different companies (finance and coffee machine maker) for basically the same position (365/Azure) because i didnt have industry background, as if 365licences or Azure resources behave differently. For the record: the Finance company recruiter clearly stated that my salary expectation and experience were a fit, while the Coffee company sent me automated email after i honestly replied no in the application form's radio button about coffee industry background
@@firmaleggibile4130 They probably espouse some poppycock about "out of the box thinking". But only hire people who are already in the same box.
@@firmaleggibile4130 I saw one video where one guy submitted 1200 applications and didn't get any response.
I noticed after applying to remote roles for over a year. All rejections. I just could not compete because I don’t have bachelors but I do have an associates and 10 years of experience. Soon as applied locally I got 3 interviews. And sometimes they might pick you but the pool is just too large.
I have a bachelors and experience and it’s the same thing . Probably have applied for 100 or more remote jobs since January and only get phone interviews if the pay turns out to disgustingly low
Bitch please, I am about to finish a masters and it's the same.
It's not until they find out that I am starting my doctorates that they get WET
I've had the same experience. B.A. in a job-related field (but not the EXACT field employers seem to be looking for), over 10 years of experience, etc. Biggest problem is, I work in a very competitive field and live in a more remote rural area where my current employer is located, in a state with few people/jobs. So working remotely is the best option but I've had no luck going that route. When I apply in-state/locally on the rare occasion a job comes up, I get a lot more interest, but then I'm stuck with low pay that's par for the area, and is not an improvement over my current situation. Sometimes seems like an endless loop.
@@KT-bg7hf that sucks sorry to hear. Most people I know who are in a poor job market usually relocate but that can be really tough. I thought about it briefly.
@@ryanharrison9501 Thanks-it's a "chicken-and-egg" situation where it's difficult to relocate without having a job in the new location, and can't get a job in the new location without living there already. And like you said, the pool in the job market I'm wanting to relocate to already has too many candidates. But I haven't given up hope yet! Gotta keep on keeping on
Despite coming out of college where they told me that "the job hiring process is fair" in reality these days it's more about who you know than what you know (depending on your networking). It's similar to when parents tell their kids that "life is unfair."
It always was who you know.
@@ronhoover5516 I've gotten quite a few positions where I didn't know anyone at the hiring company. I think the "who you know" is more of a thing on your first few jobs. My first job here in Maryland was totally due to who was there. The PM went to the same college I got my BS. He literally told me he would tend to hire applicants he saw from the same university.
8 months looking now, not a single call. Thankfully I’ve been able to contract in the meantime but it is rough out there.
Same. I haven’t given up trying, but I have largely given up hope, especially after reading some eye-opening statistics about how much long-term unemployment affects your chances. Recency of employment is, more than anything else, seen as a proxy for competence. Once you’ve been unemployed for six months or longer, the odds of being interviewed - let alone hired - fall off the cliff.
As a job seeker don't take it personal if you don't get the job. Most of the time there is an internal candidate for the job posting. Employers only interview externally just in case that internal candidate changes their mind on the job offer. I interviewed with Southwest Airlines for the Baltimore location in person and made it to the final stage of interviews, then flew to Dallas, TX at the HQ to interview. I was shocked I didn't get the job but it was a fun experience flying out of state for an interview.
It's because there was a huge push to hire Pyhton programmers. The bootcamp thing added to the chaos. Now everyone is a self-declared "programmer" and applications are flooding everywhere. Also, there's no thought process behind applying for a job. These candidates are literally sending out hundreds of applications a week, with no discernment whatsoever. It's making it worse for the truly qualified people. It's such a mess right now.
Welcome to my world with RUclips mechanics think I saw a guy on RUclips fix this 100k skidsteer I can do it to then either fix their shit repair or work with them and want go on a search for high pressure leaks with my hands ( look up what I mean on that)
In my country, you have to apply for four or more jobs to get benefits.
So some apply for jobs with no intention to do the job just to keep getting unemployment.
In other words - the more things change, the more things stay the same.
1. Make sure your resume is tailored to the job requirements.
2. Network with people in the company.
Since it would be time consuming to write a resume for each job, I wonder if there is a way to leverage AI to help with this. This would be more for people who may not have the time, such as are already employed but they’re looking for a better opportunity.
This is why when you want to climb the corporate ladder, apply for VENDORS with those big name companies. Vendors work in the same offices of the big companies, you often work side-by-side with people with that company and you can be hired on as a Full time employee if you play your cards right. And some vendors have excellent benefit packages depending on the company.
That’s a good idea especially in tech
Nah, I don't want to be an officeslut.
@@danawhiteisagenius8654 that’s where I started. My fall back career was Records Management. I worked for a records management vendor at a tech company and saw a few people get hired on by the company.
How do you go about identifying vendors?
@@foodiusmaximus that’s the tricky part, most vendors make employees sign NDAs. You just got to cast a large net. Also looking at the location of the job can give you a clue the company is a vendor for a larger corporation.
Based on your example, EVERY skill must be an EXACT keyword match, or one risks the chance of being disqualified. Spelling variations (e.g. Skillset vs Skill Set) or industry-specific synonyms used to describe the exact same function or task could boot someone who is completely qualified. Am I correct in my understanding?
What about people who tailor resumes and still don’t get called? Doing this takes a lot of time and constant rejection out-of-pocket takes a toll on job seekers. Desperation has caused me to resort to spray and pray, assuming I’ll just be rejected anyway.
Yes, misspellings can cause you to not pull up in a search query. (I'm not a great speller, myself)
If you are a Tech Lead, but company needs a Techlead… sorry, you are out of the window 😢
Im thinking about building bots to spray and pray the whole market with one click
@@stanislavkindiakov6334 Or what if you are a tech lead, but don't have enough tech lead experience? Say you have lead 20 projects, but the interviewing company wants someone who lead 25...you are out of luck Chuck!
It’s brutal out here. In 2021, every time I applied for something, I got invited to a phone screening 😳
I know several hi-tech people who were so smart and picked up hi-tech skills so quickly that they were hired by companies directly out of high school. Ten, twenty years later-None of them can expect to land a job through online applications.
No college graduation, which is usually a requirement for the online application.
Most of them have years experience, rose through the ranks at multiple companies, and have often earned six figures per year.
And they are filtered out because they lack a piece of paper from years before.
Filtering for “college degree” is lazy and dumb. It filters out a lot of qualified candidates.
ppl like this don`t send application through apps\websites, it would be weird to to that, if you are already a "rockstar" in your industry.
But technically yes, it is kind of ironic, that they could be filtered out..
because they ask for pay and just hire the cheapest one
It's true. I was getting hammered by rejections (and until now I'd never even had to apply for jobs because recruiters came to me). And then, I realized that the rejections were being emailed at midnight on Saturday. No one was working then, and I discovered that I was getting shut out by bots. When you're applying for remote jobs, the competition is insane. So I went with JobScan and was able to clear the bot hurdle.(It was crazy. One employer referred to writing new content as "prototyping," which isn't even a term used in publishing. But I tweaked every resume, every time. And I got interviews. Now, my problem is that I get through tests, phone interviews, preliminary interviews, etc. And then the last interview kills me. I was actually told in one case that they wanted a "face" for the brand. Apparently my face didn't meet the bill. So now what do I do? Are they finding something on social they don't like? I'm not young but I'm not ugly. Is online reputation management my next step? I've been working for online publishers since 2007 and my online presence is pretty huge. Maybe it's setting me back?
I already have experience in a lot of fields, but one thing I always found funny is...
The baseline requirements for entry-level positions are _"must have experience"_ if a company says this, it's not a company worth applying for. They have no competency in the staff writing the positions out or try to manipulate the language for a hidden agenda behind it. - Usually tax reasons !
It's gotten to the point where it is all meaningless. There is no control. It's just sadness...one massive degredation trip.
@davidcrawford9026 We are all to blame for the horrorshow. Tomorrow we're homeless, tonight it's a blast.
My majors were genetics and biotech, back then it wasn't popular and we had only 5-8 ppl in a class. No one wanted it. Now when I apply for a job I see at least 300-500 candidates. Where did they all come from?
This is a broken process. Just because someone has a Bachelor’s degree and the skills doesn’t mean they are the best candidate. I know several people who do not have a bachelor’s degree and are smarter and more successful than most people. Companies need to do a better job on their hiring process because there may be the ideal candidate out there that does not meet all the requirements but will be the rock star employee.
I don’t disagree but how do you find the candidate who has the “potential” to do the job, but lacks a requirement in a sea of 1000+ applicants?
The bachelor's degree is to prove your commitment to the field not prove the skill.
Especially when the degree isn’t a specialized one nor related to the position.
@@cpK054LI disagree with this. The degree has nothing to do with the field. There are tons of people working jobs that are not in the same field as their degree.
@@SJones-kk5lgI agree with this 100%.
If you apply for jobs that are paying anywhere from $15-$18 dollars an hour, you will get a lot of offers.
If you apply to jobs that pay $19-$22, you will need 3-5 years experience no matter the industry.
If you apply to jobs paying $23-$30 dollars an hour, you will be offered a salaried position with Supervisory responsibilities, 3-5 years experience, and a 40-50 hour work week including weekends. This would include you being a working Supervisor not just an overseer.
If you apply to jobs paying more than $30 an hour, you will need 5-8 years experience, certifications in management, 4 year college in your respected field of study, solid references, offering a salaried position with full responsibilities and a team to supervise, coupled with weekend work if needed, and travel if needed. A 3 month probationary period, with an “at-will) signed letter in case they find someone more suitable in the future. Or cheaper.
If you can code, the world is at your feet.
Enjoy your bean bag.
This is why I hate hearing people recommend folks skip college and claim that it doesn't matter anymore. Just because a company says they won't "require" a degree doesn't mean they won't still filter for it when they get 500+ applications for the job. In a hierarchical system (like the job market) you're only putting yourself at a disadvantage if you skip higher education.
I went to the cheapest four-year college, and only got a bachelors degree, but I have a big leg up when it comes to education amongst people that are perfectly smart, but have no degree at all. It doesn’t make sense, but it is what it is.
I hate to say those degree will not gurantee any job offer it only guarantees student loan
@@udlrrldu621 No, they won't. First off, some jobs just plain require a degree; in many cases the law requires it. You want to be a teacher, pharmacist, or nurse (to name three good middle class careers)? Good luck with no degree!
Even for jobs that don't require a degree for professional licensure, when companies get 500 applicants for each job, they won't even consider the ones with no degree.
The people saying to skip college are usually also recommending that people go into skilled trades that pay high salaries; like electricians, plumbers, and machinists. Those jobs do not require a degree and pay better than many jobs that do require one (like teaching). No one with any intelligence tells people who want white collar jobs or professional jobs (like teaching or nursing) to skip college, because in those fields, no degree = no job.
@@udlrrldu621 I worked for a FAANG company as a recruiter for 2 years. We never hired a single person based on "skills" who didn't also have at LEAST a Bachelors degree.
My biggest takeaway is that it’s a game of chance but if your application checks all the boxes, then when it’s picked up, you get shortlisted.
Shortlist my ass. I got a phone interview with an internal recruiter. Interview went great and I thought I was going to the next round to interview with the hiring manager but a month later I got an automated rejection email. That's corporate America for you.
@@robd7934 Damn
@@robd7934 same thing just happened to me. recruiter call, she said I was a great fit, scheduled time for next interview, then two days later, form rejection. discouraging.
The best is waking up early in the morning to rejection emails that were sent in the middle of the night. Obviously, an ATS system with zero human interaction!
I was just fired while going through cancer treatment. I don’t think I can really explain that to potential employers.
I thought they said they were family though?
Easy. 'They let me go while I was on leave for some medical treatments, even though I made a complete recovery' is all it takes. Something along those lines. Don't go into specifics.
@@krayziejerry An abuser’s own family members are often subjected to the most abuse.
Are you the famous person that got fired while on treatment via email?
@@TheTillmanSneakerReview They lady at Wayfair? No, but she and I know each other now.
It's ageism also, add that to the reason. Picky managers
I find it hard to get back into the grind after spending nearly a decade as a caregiver. I want to get back into the working world but I feel like everything has left me behind.
It has not, this is a bad time to go back in. If you can avoid this right now, pass it by until things get better. I was a caregiver for years and companies do not look favorably upon this. Mainly because America sees taking care of family and those in need elderly, kids, and the sick as something secondary and unimportant. You'll get better reception if you go into CNA or medical field, they seem to understand this the best. Make sure you go to school or get some kind of certification in the medical field so that you can compete with others who want that job just like you do. Corporate America may have an issue with your kindness and empathy! It seems to have an issue with mine. So what, I took care of kids, pets, a husband, a sick parent, and a whole lot of other things. This means that I am capable of handling life and all the mess that comes with it! If I can do that, I can certainly do the job you hired me for and I've never had an issue learning new skills or failing due to it being out of my comfort zone. You'll do fine but have a game plan in place and choose your time to start that. Best of luck!
You have one reply, but it doesn't show.
I am in a similar situation.
i got rejected by chick filet and target lol i worked many years in retail and i just want a partime job smh
Same with me but I'm the opposite. I've been working in retail and customer service for years. I'm trying to get out of retail and get a full time job but I keep getting rejected!
It's probably for the best. I worked for Chick Fil A and you know what l think? Religious propaganda for financial gain. And I'm not afraid to say so either. This world is fake and it's always been that way. They want to keep everyone stuck but you have to be strong and break through the mold. And don't be afraid to speak out
Thanks for this!💯 Had no clue the process the recruiter goes through and the filter actually makes sense. Just crazy being on the other side and not knowing. Excellent video! Thank you!
Just network with people in the company. Bypass that evil ATS system. Talking with someone will put your name out there as you’re not just a name on a spreadsheet.
Might as well copy the job description into your resume.
That one works actually. I've always done that for all the jobs.
@@levinski888 lmao
How narcissistic is it that we need to do that?
Or reason you’re getting rejected is they already have an internal candidate that they are planning to hire
Then why post it publicly if they aren't government jobs?
@@TheRuggedWay because they have to post legally. Or that’s what I have heard from some HR folks.
@@TheRuggedWay there's laws that say they have to be publicly available. I had an internal candidate I was going to promote one time and the company would not let me do it without posting it externally for some period of time, despite the fact we never wanted to look at anyone else. We had a perfect fit, but we had to post the job. HR said it was the law.
@@TheRuggedWay stocks, & because it's legally obligated to make the available position known or else they can get in trouble
I am a recruiter and this is right on the money
I really appreciate you showing this, because people refuse to believe how ludicrous the system has become. If the ATS doesn't like your resume, oh well, instantly filtered out and rejected. Yes you can optimize for that, but you can't cover ALL your bases.
Just goes to show why most jobs nowadays are filled through nepotism, because clearly the route of going through normal applications is messed up beyond repair, for both the recruiter and the applicant. Let's just go scorched earth and start again with a system that 1) doesn't reduce people to a line in a spreadsheet and 2) doesn't overwhelm the recruiter with applications, to the point where they have to use these ridiculous ATS tools.
I have to say that when I applied to companies directly, I was likely granted an interview; all the recruitment agencies bar one actually saw my worth & tried to help me. A lot of rectuitment agents are so hung up on you having a degree. A company will look at your actual experience a great deal more.
I'm done with recruitment agencies - they don't see the bigger picture from my experience.
Exactly ! You said it all they just don't ! They just act like the perfect student and follow companies criterias. An average HR outsourcing first step
Today I received an offer for my senior level engineering dream job! I exclusively watched your videos for resume prep, getting noticed, networking, video interview prep, in-person interview prep, etc. In just a 9-day period of time, I went on 7 quality interviews. I also had up to 50 recruiters contact me in a one week period this month. Thanks Bryan, you are truly the one stop shop!!
That is awesome! Congrats!
I stumbled across a diff vid in my feed (the woman that recorded her layoff/HR jerkin her around) when I was about 2 Google something totally unrelated. Prob not a coincidence that it came up tho knowing the grind I’ve been on trying 2 find ADDITIONAL/SECOND jobs, PT jobs, hustles etc and STAYING frustrated that I get NO BITES. All I can say now is WHERE have you been ALL MY LIFE?!? I HAVE ALWAYS WANTED & NEEDED 2 KNOW THE WHY’S & more from AN HR PERSPECTIVE!! 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽*proceeds 2 binge the rest of your vids
I've been lucky in my career so far. Each of my jobs have lead to the next one after it was finished, which after adding it to my resume, completing my bachelors and starting my masters put me in a perfect position for my next job and a at minimum 50% raise.
It’s frustrating that so many companies ask for a Bachelors but the job doesn’t really seem to require it. Or in my case I have 9 years experience but no BS, so I’ve been rejected, even when I had a person recommended me to the department head that he knew personally. The HR staff would not budge on using experience over BS. So I know getting thru an ATS is impossible for us with experience but no paper. Even if the posting says “or industry experience” I wonder if they just filter for BS anyways as it makes a recruiter job easier than reading a resume for experience words.
My dream job requires a Ph.D, because a lot of bachelor idiots slipped through the cracks and further education weeds out the weak
Time to lie.
@@cpK054Lshould lie then. See how far it gets ya. Who knows, they might just take your word for it and push you through.
@@eegernades lol because NVidia can't afford a few hundred dollars on a quick background check, right?
I'm basically half way there anyways
@@cpK054L if you're halfway there. Just continue.
Have heard from some devs, good amount of companies don't background check. Especially if you have prior experience
saw axel rose at power trip about a month ago, you should totally hire him. he will shred the organization forward hah.
You just need to guess a few absolutely unknown parameters which must be included in CV and also a proper CV format so it get recognised by automation tool 😂
This isn't entirely true...
@@ALifeAfterLayoff but every joke… has part of a joke
I'm scared to even fire up LinkedIn. Just being honest and humble is such a disadvantage, while bullpoopers and application flooders just bruteforce their job offers. What the hell?
And hearing recruiters talking about tweaking, adjusting and overall fluffing up resumes for the job you do really want sounds like a very cruel joke.
Recruiting is broken beyond repair... I'm so lost.
So basically, even though I have 20 years experience, without a Bachelors degree I'm SOL.
Let's be honest, the first filter for the vast majority of roles is "do you require visa sponsorship?" That takes out 85% of your single day applicants that are just spamming everything trying to get into the US.
It does screen out some, but not 85%.
I have seen this question on remote applications. Why would they ask for that?
@@ekyas because if they don't have a business entity in that location it gets messy from a regulation and taxation standpoint. They may not want to deal with certain areas and their worker protections, for example California is the US or France internationally
The competition issue is something I have noticed a lot of people don’t think about…..no matter how qualified you are, there WILL be candidates who are better..we live in a world where remote work is becoming more and more
A norm, and that means competing with people from anywhere…..
Thanks for the inside look in the application process!!!
The ATS portion is really eye opening, actually seeing it in action, we’re legitimately not even people just documents being filtered.
Thanks! I just discovered your site. You are amazing! I was laid off a few months ago… going to school for certs, and I still feel overqualified… I need this site!!
Hey Brian, thank you for that clear explanation. I have suffered for years with this. Now my strategy is to follow this and work with the ats software and take my chances when I get the call.
How specific do the skills get? I've had one recruiter say my resume was good, another say it wasn't specific enough which felt odd as getting too technical can bloat a resume.
Thanks for the excellent demonstration. And wow-45 reqs!!
Man! this breakdown is priceless!! Thank You so much!
Just out of curiosity, why are there so many applicants right now in general? Are many unhappy with their current job or just testing the waters? It seems like the perfect candidat is already employed but just keeps applying to every position so nobody else gets a chance.
Lawd have mercy! No wonder it’s tough.
Mmm 🤦🏾♂
Excellent insight!Thanks for walking us through the recruiter perspective
I've gone through several hiring processes in the last few months and was told by them that they would be sending an offer. Shortly after I was told the budget for the position was cut and I can't move forward. I am not sure if they are just saying that to let me down easy or if that is real. Any thoughts?
What industry?
@@ravenoftheredsky business development and technology
I've had it happen to me 3 times internally at my company. But then I see many other less capable people being elevated quickly. One person I even recommended to my old manager who's a director now and that person had less experience than me. Lot of prejudice and favoritism. They'll never tell you the whole truth
Thanks for this detailed information 🎉😊
I interviewed three times for positions that I am very qualified for, and after speaking candidly with the hiring managers, and having them explain to me what the job entailed I was still not chosen. I believe there are a lot of gatekeepers that will not hire talent they see as a threat to their positions.
one trick i found useful is lowball your desired salary requirement during initial stage, later bait n switch.
I'm guessing you haven't held many high paying jobs
i'm guessing u only have had 1 source of income
@@javaman8844 lol I have a permanent source of income on top of a job. Now I don't have that job because I don't want to deal with diversity hires. It's not worth the 126k/yr
Ok. Two things. 1) Doesn't this just encourage resume and keyword stuffing? 2) I've seen hiring managers who focus heavily on "culture fit." What does that even mean? What happens if you make it past this stage, and you get judged based on "I would like a colleague who I can go to lunch with."? (Had a buddy who was hiring for a role say just that. And I went OFF on him).
I like your videos, and this was very helpful in terms of knowing what goes on when you get instantly rejected. But, this video is also a bit of a downer.
Yeah, I'm a black dude, and have run into shocking situations where I was extremely qualified, even got interviews, and was rejected. For high level roles. I never really mentioned race, but I've even had white friends say to me "Corporations can't handle a guy like you." I actually think women have it much easier, though. Regardless, I really do like these videos, I just didn't connect with this one. @@davidcrawford9026
Culture fit means popular person in high school
The tech fields competition is disgusting. So many highly trained tech employees are laid off, now they're applying for positions as easy as Tier 1..... I'm thinking about going into another field all together.... So many people are taking up tech in college and going to boot camps, getting certs way to many people... Think outside the box...
Its who you know more so versus what you know.
these filters feel like sending lambs to slaughter. its just brutal
I was born with hydrocephalus and cerebral palsy. I’ve worked in retail and office jobs my entire career, but I was laid off January 11th. I’m tired of lying on my resume just to get an interview just to get a job. I’ve been through temp agencies, and I’ve had people “forward” my resume to others in their companies but still never hear back. They need to eliminate the whole “public burden” part of application processes, especially if it’s a job where you sit in front of a computer all day (most of my jobs). I also believe if all I’m doing is typing and being on the phone, I should be able to work from home. I’ve worked from home twice in my career, but never long enough to continue; I just want to WFH forever.
B. Your content is purely excellent. I have two of your programs and they are gold. I plan to acquire the rest of your training. Sir, you are so correct that you have to market yourself. I am now blogging on LinkedIn and have my own personal website to show case my blog and writing skills. You are so correct sir that you have to market yourself. Keep doing what you are doing sir.
Awesome, thank you Paul!
Graduated with my bachelors Dec 2022 and have been job searching since. Thousands of applications and tons of interviews and still no job. The tech industry is brutal right now for entry level candidates trying to break in.
Cant get a job because lack of experience. But can’t get experience if no one will hire you. Its ridiculous.
A vicious cycle
I got rejected from a job that I spent 9 months interning for. Not even an interview
Everyone wants those ever dwindling number of remote positions.
Because it is stupid to commute into an office everyday to do the exact same thing you can do from home. Its a waste of time and money.
I follow these tips. They are very useful. I find that I am short listed a lot and work in IT where there is a lot of competition.