Did you know your resume can be accepted or rejected in under 7 seconds? Have you ever found yourself applying for a job where a minimum of 200 other applicants are also submitting their applications at the same time?
Competitions are over there, but there are some basic rules to avoid these competitions and get yourself shortlisted.
I have tested and know all of these because I spend time on both sides: as a candidate applying for jobs and as a hiring panel manager who shortlists candidates. I always follow this 7-second rule to decide whom to select and whom to reject in the initial candidate shortlisting process.
Look at this funnel and get to know exactly what’s happening from the hiring panel managers’ side:
Most of the people always do it like this:
Saw a job post on LinkedIn > Clicked on Easy Apply > Done > Waited so long without any responses.
Have you ever seen LinkedIn messages about ‘Want to get your application noticed by <Company Name>?’ Then directly message this hiring manager.
Many people ignore this and do not send messages, losing the chance to win the job.
It doesn’t matter whether you will be hired or not, but it matters at least to get your chance for visibility in the eyes of the hiring manager.
I have crossed and jumped through many companies, some of which are listed on my resume, and some are not. But you know I have stabilized myself over the past few years and started keeping myself busy building a team with hiring managers and helping them with the shortlisting process.
How do hiring managers and hiring panels work?
Hiring managers are those people who post job openings on job portals for their companies with many openings, but the hiring panel is the group that wants the candidate in their team exactly as they envisioned.
So, the overall decision on whether to shortlist a candidate or not lies with the hiring panel.
Being on the hiring panel, I am always swamped with other daily tasks on my list, and shortlisting becomes a secondary job. So, I always block my time during the lunch break and shortlist candidates. I only have 15 to 30 minutes for selecting and shortlisting candidates. I receive 200 to 500 applications where I need to select only one candidate for that position, which means instead of hiring, I need to reject, and it’s a significant job when you are rejecting candidates. It’s really hard.
But anyway, it’s our job. So, first, let’s take a look at how I was rejecting candidates and how to select the best match.
Here is the 7-second rule that I was following:
Let’s suppose that in under 30 minutes, you are going to review 200 to 300 applications and resumes from the job portal dashboard. Now, how much time do you have for each?
30 minutes x 60 seconds = 1800 seconds / 7 seconds = Approximately 257 resumes.
A realistic approach is to view around 200 resumes in that blocked time.
But assuming your resume is to be viewed in under 7 seconds then how should this optimization of your resume should be done so that, at least, you get shortlisted in the first phase?
Step One:
If you are seriously seeking that position, read the job description (JD) first, and then optimize your resume with relevant words:
For example, if they are looking for a Senior Product Manager or an Executive Director, optimize your resume header below your name example like this:
Rohan K
Senior Product Manager
Nisha S
Executive Director
Now, if your question is, ‘Hey, I am a Product Manager, so how can I write?’ The answer is yes, you can write your desired designation to catch the eye of the hiring panel and manager because they have minimal seconds to review your resume. To be more clear, you can write in the summary section, ‘5+ years experienced Product Manager seeking a Senior Product Manager role. I have worked on over 5 products that have reached millions of users in the Indian market. I have optimized user experiences promptly and reduced user bounce rate by this percentage,’ like that.
Step Two:
Skills: List your skills in a visible area. Most of the time, the human eye moves from left to right, so it’s better to keep your top skills on the left side. These skills should also match the keywords you found in the job description (JD).
Step Three:
Contact Information: Place your contact information just above your skill sets. This way, while they are looking at your skills, they can also see where you are from because the location is also important. They may want a candidate who is nearby or is willing to relocate, etc.
To get yourself shortlisted in under 7 seconds in the first phase, these three pointers are crucial.
Extra Important Part: Initially I wrote about this:
“Have you ever seen LinkedIn messages about ‘Want to get your application noticed by <Company Name>?’ Then directly message this hiring manager.
Many people ignore this and do not send messages, losing the chance to win the job.”
This really works. When you apply for jobs, you should immediately connect and send a message along with your resume directly to the Hiring Manager or the Job Poster you applied to. So, when they are shortlisting candidates, they will see your resume for the second time on their dashboard, which can double your chances of getting shortlisted.
Stay Tuned,
Vikash Jha
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