To think this is a bit dodgy (job application related)

[CrumpledCrumpet]

I applied for a job over the weekend (fairly senior, semi-specialist role). CV and covering letter. I didn’t think I would get the job, it was a bit of a punt, but I did meet all the criteria they had set out.

Deadline for applications was midnight on Sunday, my application went in about 11pm. By 9:30 on Monday morning I had a rejection email (after careful consideration, high volume of applicants etc…).

I don’t think I have ever been informed of the outcome of a job application less than 2-3 days after the closing date - how have they completed the sifting before many people have even poured their morning coffee? What’s going on here?

@Bookworm20

It is most likely automated software which has read your CV and deduced you do not fit the shortlist criteria.

Its really crap when agencies or companies do this because basically if someone submits a CV which is laid out differently or contains elements the software wasn't able to 'read' they can be rejected.

If for example your CV was a PDF, or contained tables or images or fancy fonts, or even headers and footers, there is a chance the software was unable to read parts of it, whereas a basic no frills word document would have a much higher chance of key words being picked out and thus the CV shortlisted for an actual human to read.

Is this true, about pdfs not bring as ‘readable’ as Word docs, and would you recommend only using Word?

Also I’m aghast at the poster whose saved-draft got a job offer - well done, obviously deserved, but I never guessed it was possible to read draft submissions which obviously aren’t the candidate’s best or final work??

@SarahDippity recruiter may have made offer based on CV alone. Lots of automated systems follow a standard format with space to submit things that aren't really required!

In my industry cover letters aren't really required. Candidates whose CVs' pass the first sift will be given a technical assignment/interview.
There's space to upload but it's usually marked cover letter (if applicable) and I've never uploaded one

@Yummypumpkin

V interesting thread.

If it is a director role, its reporting to the MD, right?

These people know what they want and so although you say you had all the skills, your university, your degree subject, your past employers could all have ruled you out.

I think for director posts reporting to the boss the 'fit' becomes super important and that boss' personal idea of who he is looking for goes beyond skills, because you're looking for someone who will geo with the exec team etc

Not saying it is right but it is v different from posts that don't report directly to the top.

Yup. I got a very warm rejection from one employer who said that they thought I was fantastic, but unfortunately they wanted a contrasting personality for the board. I literally did nothing wrong.

Not ignoring the fact that however good you think your application is, you can get beaten out by half a dozen better candidates.

Not ignoring the fact that however good you think your application is, you can get beaten out by half a dozen better candidates.

Yes I’m not hugely surprised not to get to interview - I ticked all the boxes but it was a plum role and I’m sure it would have been pretty competitive. I was 50-50 whether I would get an interview or not.

What had thrown me was simply the speed of the rejection!

I’m going with the theory that they had been assessing applications as they went along and they didn’t have much to do on Monday morning. I’d hate to think I was rejected by a computer or because they’d already made a decision. It definitely wasn’t an internal recruit because it was establishing a new team and in a new area for the organisation and they wouldn’t have had wualified internal candidates.