Do Away With the Resume

Recruiters are their own worst enemies. They perpetuate their own misery by creating websites and cultivating mindsets that focus on getting lots of resumes. Most recruiters bemoan the fact that they do not have enough of the right kind of candidates, yet they still advertise and promote in a way designed to attract all sorts of people, qualified and unqualified alike.

Consider these quotes from recruiters:

“I have received almost 500 resumes in the past two weeks. Over 90% of these people are not qualified or not what my company is looking for.”

“I have been overwhelmed with candidates. Some fit our needs, but most don’t even take the time to read the job description. I wish I could reply to every candidate, but if I did, I would not be doing my job!”

I think recruiters live in fear of not having any qualified candidates at all, so they broaden their reach to include way too many people.

To reduce resume flow while increasing quality, create websites and marketing materials that are targeted at a particular kind of candidate. This keeps candidates from feeling as frustrated as they do now.

Over the past five years, I have consistently heard candidates say things along the lines of:

“Now, as a candidate going through a very bad dry spell in finding recruiting work, I rarely experience this common courtesy among recruiters who post jobs that don’t exist and fail to follow simple due diligence.”

“I’m a downsized corporate executive who has been repeatedly appalled by the way companies and recruiters are treating candidates during this economic downturn.”

So what does the overworked, overwhelmed recruiter do? How can you narrow the supply, increase the quality, and provide more responsive service? Read on for my advice on crafting precise job descriptions, using profiles instead of resumes, and adopting technology to your benefit.

Don’t Post Job Descriptions, Unless They Are Specific

I have taken an excerpt from a job description I found on a website that is representative of many I see every day. Who, with even a modicum of technical ability and a dash of experience, will not feel qualified for this job? There are no specifics, no details, and no firm requirements! I almost feel that I could apply for this and justify why if asked.

You’re looking for more than just a job in Information Technology. You want a career that challenges your IT experience while giving you the freedom and support to succeed. Look no further than Xxxx. Our Professional Services offerings span the entire application life cycle, giving our customers a complete solution and our employees the opportunity to excel on all platforms. With our technical focus and emphasis on delivery, we strive to hire experienced information technology professionals with broad skill sets and the desire and versatility to learn new businesses and skills. We are selective in hiring and serious about retaining those we do hire. We are looking for candidates with the Oracle Financials experience; Oracle 11i application development experience; and strong PL/SQL.

I am sure that this has generated many hundreds of unqualified resumes. Unfortunately, most job descriptions are written this way deliberately so that they will generate a large number of responses.

When we lacked technology and reach, this was a marginally acceptable approach, but today it creates big problems. Most candidates are very concerned with applying for an appropriate job, but how can they really tell from the way descriptions are written? Are the specific requirements spelled out? Are you using technology to screen for these?

We need to focus on a building a new mindset. We do not need mass-marketing for most positions, we do not need to generate hundreds of responses to make sure we’ve “covered the field,” and we can’t ignore hundreds of applicants because of our own inadequacies. Many of us have attitudes that would be similar to those of a store clerk who, when overwhelmed with customers, simply walks off and leaves them.

Use Profiles and Interactive Tools, Not Resumes

Resumes are increasingly useless. With the Internet and the wide variety of tools that allow for interactive and progressive screening, the resume actually becomes a liability. It’s something you have to store and keep and respond to.

With a profile, you get the information you need to make a decision and then move on. The new recruiting tools and systems have built-in tools for communicating, screening, and maintaining relationships with candidates.

However, the sad fact is that after these systems are purchased, only a fraction of you use their powerful communication and screening features. Most of you are failing to serve your customers, the candidates.

Instead, ask candidates to interactively provide information and take various screening tests. This ensures that candidates are getting feedback on their qualifications and your positions. You can reduce the overall numbers who pass through your screen. Well-designed websites with targeted marketing messages, job previews, fun-to-take simulation tests, and other tools can make applying fun. At the same time, it can help to eliminate unqualified candidates.

Relationships and Referrals Are Keys to Your Success

Posting job descriptions is a process with limited benefit and underlines the desperate nature of most corporate sourcing. Social networks such as LinkedIn and Ning can provide partial solutions to building candidate relationships.

I am not advocating technology as the complete solution, because it still has many limitations. What I am advocating is that recruiters begin to accept the advantages technology offers and start using such tools as instant messaging, SMS, live chat, and social networks to augment and enhance the way they communicate with candidates and the way they screen candidates.

Targeted marketing, interactive and well-designed websites, the use of new communication tools, and social networks all let you do more with less.

Sure, there is a learning curve and a lot of experimenting needed to find the right mix of tools and approaches as well as messages. But the benefits are huge and lasting. The way we have done things cannot endure, and the faster you try new approaches, the more you will ensure your own survival and growth.