To say that when applying for jobs some people should just make more effort?

[cocktailclub]

I hear all the time that people have applied for 'hundreds' of jobs and not even had an interview. I hear this from graduates as well as more mature candidates.
I've been recruiting to my team over the last year and advertised about 7 or 8 roles. They BFF e been fairly popular and I have sifted around 120 cvs per role in the first two weeks.
My point is that only about 10% of applicants ensure their cv is tailored to the role.
I spend about 3 minutes looking at each applicant so need to be impressed quickly.
Most CVs start with a statement looking for a career in science' when the role is complaints manager for example.
By making a few changes to a CV so it highlights the skills for the role you want would be easy to do but very few even try.
So I'm not surprised people have no luck in their job search when they can't be bothered with the application.
AIBU to think this is the reason they are rejected?

[sweetpeapea]

Hmm I'm not too sure. I have a CV that if I tailored to every job I applied for I would have no time for anything else.
So I send my generic one in. I'll tailor it for a special job. It's horrific atm applying for jobs though. And really sad. Even worse, I worked in an recruitment agency and it made me sick what went on in there (I wasn't a recruiter)

[L1ttledrummergirl]

As an applicant and intelligent human being, if it's full of jargon- even if I understand it- then I move on. If it's riddled with spelling and grammar mistakes or over complicated in any way then I pass it over. If it doesn't mention a salary, or the salary is low for the job description then I don't bother.

This is the big one for me though, I have a c.v, I will write a covering letter to go with it, I will happily fill in a basic application form with additional information. What I won't do is rewrite my c.v ten different ways to fill in the over complicated forms employers seem to want.
I'm a straight forward person, this is my skill set, this is what I've achieved in that field. If it works in your vacancy then interview me to find out more, if it doesn't then move on. I've no desire to work for someone who is too stupid to extrapolate key information that they have been given.

Oh, and when you employ someone because they have skills you advertise, don't then refuse to let them use those skills because you are scared they can do that part of the job better than you.

[NurseryNurse10]

I've had nanny roles which have been a simple interview and then others even for nursery and teaching assistant roles which have been ridiculous. Hours spent on maths tests, English test, long drawn out application form etc. All for minimum wage. Can see why people get frustrated. It's a ridiculous system for part time or low paid work.

[3rdOfHisNameBreakerOfPens]

I find it very strange that the expected standard of English and CV writing is so high for roles that do not require literacy.

Minimum wage roles that never require a candidate to pick up a pen or type, yet employers want graduate level literacy skills. Why?
Does using the right homophone translate into cleaning better?
Does not slicing commas guarantee good customer service skills.

You have to wonder, if people applying to these basic roles really had all the unnecessary skills asked for, surely they are selling themselves short.

Nevermind the fact it's direct discrimination against those with dyslexia or who are not neurotypical and unable to navigate unnecessary social bullshit.

People need to start valuing the actual skills needed for the role and not someone's ability to write reams of bullshit.

[CollieWobble22]

Quite right @3rdOfHisNameBreakerOfPens - that's why this comment was shocking to see upthread

For a bright, normal applicant it's easy to get hired

I have since shared it on Twitter and LinkedIn, people are hurt and upset by this exact attitude.

[76543br]

I've wondered about this before. I applied to around 5 graduate roles in 2020 (during COVID) and got interviews for all of them. My CV is not particularly impressive aside from having a first class degree from a pretty average uni, I had no extracurriculars and very limited work experience. In contrast, a lot of my friends and coursemates applied to hundreds of jobs with no luck. A year later I did the same and applied to 3 roles and got interviews for all of them. I spent a time crafting each CV and cover letter to the role, it doesn't take long but seems to make such a difference.

[ByTheGrace]

export to pdf

Actually now you've mentioned that, I have a question for the CV reviewers here. I always send everything in pdf format, it avoids formatting issues.
DD applied for a job, I said pdf your CV, she didn't get an interview, asked for feedback and they had ruled her out because she'd sent a pdf, which wasn't compatible. So my name was mud. But what is the expected file format? Should she send Word doc and pdf? No clue on the advert, just email your CV. She'd spent bloody ages on it too.

[Motorina]

That's crazy - PDF should be accessible for everyone. That's why I use it!

[Raddix]

I always tailor my CV and cover letter. I get lots of interviews because I’m well qualified and articulate. Then I get rejected every single time as soon as they meet me and realise I’m autistic. Or maybe they don’t realise I’m autistic, but they know I have some sort of disability and they don’t like it. If I put autism on my CV I get zero interviews.

[dutysuite]

No problem with getting an interview it’s what happens during the process I find frustrating. My husband has just been through five rounds of interviews with a company, two of those being at 7.30am, and 11.30pm and spent hours putting together the various presentations they required; however it’s all gone radio silent. He is 52 so definitely facing ageism now anyway but again, I’m starting to think this was a case of a free bit of consultancy for the company - he’s probably had a lucky escape but it’s outrageous to treat people this way.

[Raddix]

@ByTheGrace

export to pdf

Actually now you've mentioned that, I have a question for the CV reviewers here. I always send everything in pdf format, it avoids formatting issues.
DD applied for a job, I said pdf your CV, she didn't get an interview, asked for feedback and they had ruled her out because she'd sent a pdf, which wasn't compatible. So my name was mud. But what is the expected file format? Should she send Word doc and pdf? No clue on the advert, just email your CV. She'd spent bloody ages on it too.

That’s insane! PDF is the only way to reliably retain the formatting and font and layout. I’m likely to have used a font that the reader doesn’t have on their computer, so a Word document could look like shit when they open it.

[Bubblebubblebah]

I believe pdf may not be as accessible as word document.

They should clearly state what they want though if it is such an issue

[CollieWobble22]

Imagine working for a business who can't use PDFs 🤣

🚩

[Dixiechickonhols]

@Rapidtango

Blooberry, I ran a B&B - so not so much clients as guests, and they would obviously tell a prospective employer I cook a mean 'Full Scottish ' and the loos were spotless but it's a bit of an odd 'relationship'. When I've actually managed to speak to an HR person, I've explained the situation, offered on line reviews as a way of getting an idea of who I am (18 years worth!). My customer service skills are second to none, but I don't fit in a required box. I have years of prior professional experience, but many of my previous referees are, well, dead, or I have no idea where they are!

Sorry, I seem to have hijacked OP's thread with my tales of woe .

Anyway, I'm doing some online training to try and improve my skills so onwards and upwards.

Volunteer and then use that as reference.
Or a try a very small family company. Where I once worked they wanted a pt receptionist Lady who got it had previously early retired and lived abroad for years so no referees. It was a case of she turned up, was clearly suitable (plus had been a gp receptionist) and hired on spot - my boss was only one to make a decision no hr. Whereas she wouldn’t have made it through an online application for a large firm.

[L1ttledrummergirl]

@Bubblebubblebah

I believe pdf may not be as accessible as word document.

They should clearly state what they want though if it is such an issue

Why would they need to access the document? They only need the information written on it. As long as it prints, job done.

[NeverDropYourMooncup]

@Rapidtango

Eeksteek, one of the jobs I've applied for has the following as a job description.

'We provide an enabling service to all vital services of Xx City Council. The Business Support teams are flexible and responsive and there will be opportunities to move between teams to gain experience of the services across the council.

If you are a team player who is enthusiastic and committed to providing an excellent customer focussed service, we would welcome your application.

You will be working in a reactive team supporting one of the many services within the Council. You will have excellent communication skills, the ability to deal with challenging situations and work to statutory or regulatory deadlines. You should have the ability to multitask and deal with changing priorities. It would be an advantage if you have previous experience of working with a case management system. You should be fully familiar with data protection and the use of MS Office / Office 365.'

And that's it. If it wasn't so frustrating it would be hilarious.

Call centre. Being shouted at by residents about bins, social services, repairs, neighbours and school places. With 2 minutes to complete every call including getting them to report it online and complete a short customer satisfaction survey or you'll be on a performance plan for actually talking to them.

[thecatsthecats]

@CollieWobble22

Imagine working for a business who can't use PDFs 🤣

🚩

I'm genuinely considering selling myself as a business costs consultant, because I've found that so many companies are paying for shit they don't need.

My boss was pretty red-faced when I told her that she should be using Teams, not paying extra for Zoom, and exporting pdfs from word, not paying for Adobe.

If you get rejected from a job because they can't open a PDF then you have dodged a bullet HARD. Because a company that thick will not give you skills to progress.

[Puzzledandpissedoff]

The 3 mins is the starter ... then if you get past that, we look deeper in

IME most folk with sense realise this, but if "3 minutes" is the tag phrase which applicants who simply can't be bothered find handy then 3 minutes will be used

I find it very strange that the expected standard of English and CV writing is so high for roles that do not require literacy

I agree that degrees certainly aren't necessary for everything, but it's hard to think of roles which need no literacy at all. Even those who won't be writing anything themselves often need to follow written instructions from a screen or whatever, and it kind of helps if they can make sense of them

[NeverDropYourMooncup]

@Bubblebubblebah

As a woman of fertile age and an immigrant, I actually veryuch welcome blind recruitments😁

Having been a woman of fertile age and disabled, they're shit because they mean you've got great big gaps that have to be explained by disclosing everything they're not supposed to ask - and the good things you did do in that time are discounted because it would mean they're being unfair and not blind recruiting.

[YouSirNeighMmmm]

@Rapidtango

Blooberry, I ran a B&B - so not so much clients as guests, and they would obviously tell a prospective employer I cook a mean 'Full Scottish ' and the loos were spotless but it's a bit of an odd 'relationship'. When I've actually managed to speak to an HR person, I've explained the situation, offered on line reviews as a way of getting an idea of who I am (18 years worth!). My customer service skills are second to none, but I don't fit in a required box. I have years of prior professional experience, but many of my previous referees are, well, dead, or I have no idea where they are!

Sorry, I seem to have hijacked OP's thread with my tales of woe .

Anyway, I'm doing some online training to try and improve my skills so onwards and upwards.

Maybe the problem is that potential employers know that you know that being miserable working under a crap boss for a crap company isn;t something everyone needs to? They want people who are willing to be miserable working under a crap boss for a crap company because they don't know any better.

I have a pretty low opinion of most companies and bosses!

[ClottedCreamAndStrawberries]

@tuttifruit

Might be hard for you but it's even harder for job applicants who are expected to fill out multiple forms and individual cover letters and CVs for each job application - which often turn out to be an inactive/internal post that they have no chance at anyway. Use a recruitment agency if you cba to sift through bad ones

Definitely this. When I used to work in the office, I’d see the external candidates come in and think ‘your poor bugger’. Because 9/10 the manager had already decided who’d got the job. I swear I only got in because the person who was doing my job fixed term previously stormed out of her interview halfway through after yelling ‘it was too difficult’ (it was pretty hard tbh)

[Blix]

On the other hand what about employers who waste applicants' time because they don't post salaries. It's pretty crucial.
DS works in tech and is looking for a career move. So many jobs advertised with no clue as to salary.
He applied for one last week to a large companyundergoing a huge new project. The job sounded perfect, he ticks the boxes but no salary. He emailed the named person who replied that it wasn't company policy to advertise pay grades. So it wastes their time as well as the applicant.

[Bubblebubblebah]

@L1ttledrummergirl

Why would they need to access the document? They only need the information written on it. As long as it prints, job done.

Accessible for some support programs which for example read it out to peoplr with visual impairments. We had this mentioned at work a while ago. Some encountered issues

[Puzzledandpissedoff]

On the other hand what about employers who waste applicants' time because they don't post salaries

Or even worse those who lie about it
Admittedly it's years ago now, but I well recall an interview where the guy actually smirked when saying the sum was "a typing error" ... and clearly a common one, since exactly the same wage appeared when they had to re-advertise

[thecatsthecats]

Re: IT, I used to find it funny but now find it maddening that HR bods have no idea that 'data administrator' and 'database system administrator' mean very, very different things. My job involves the latter, but they benchmark salaries against the former.

And you'd think that was a small company thing, but my husband pointed me at job ads from KPMG, and there were three roles with an implied chain of command, but a proper bollocking up of responsibilities, and no salaries to help you untangle.