J Patrick + Associates Blog

Is Your Resume Ready for Mobile Recruiting?

Posted by Daniel Sullivan on Tue, Sep 18, 2012 @ 11:00 AM

Is Your Resume ready for Mobile Recruiting_

The job search game has changed, yet again!  Just as you learned job search tactics for your resume to be digested on social media, your resume has to now contend with being read on iPads, iPhones, Android phones, Blackberries and every other type of old and new tech device in between.

One Sunday night, I had a friend of mine send me their resume in the spirit of networking asking if I could facilitate any introductions. As I opened the document on my iPhone, I noticed that the contact information on the resume was missing. The employer’s information was absent, as well. Just blank spaces on the resume where this information should have been placed. Yet when I opened the document on my PC, the contact and employer name information was where it was supposed to be—it was just placed in a table. I learned (and my friend learned the hard way) that information placed in tables are not read by iPhones.  

While I have been reading resumes on smartphones of some type since 2006 or 2007, it is now apparent the job search and the recruitment model is going mobile like many other industries. How can job seekers be ready for these technological adjustments and what should they expect?

Here is how to get your resume ready for mobile recruiting

Make your communications ridiculously concise

Cover letters should be as short as a screenshot. For certain social media channels, you have to convey your intent in 140 characters or less to get the pingback from the job poster to contact them offline.

Test your resume and cover letters on various mediums and devices to ensure they open and appear properly

I have been opening resumes on PDAs, and now smartphones, since 2006 (maybe 2005).  Some recruiters have been doing it much longer than me. Resumes in dated Word versions have a lesser chance of opening on a newer phone. Are your Mac docs compatible with PC, Droid, and other non-Mac gadgets? Can your PC-based docs open on iPhones and iPads?  Perform some quality controls with your documents and see what can open where.

Use your mobile phone number on your resume—remove landlines from your applications

This will enable you to receive recruiting SMS text messages from employers who use this technology. ATS (Applicant Tracking Systems) such as Bullhorn and Bond Adapt house this information in applicant data files and can send out mass job alerts via SMS text, as well as email, automated phone messages, etc.  Landlines cannot receive texts—and who knows if your kids or parents will answer the phone!! Yikes!

Get your QR Code

The jury is out on how these codes will be used en mass by corporate and search firm recruiting departments to benefit from their features in an economy of scale capacity. But until that is figured out, get your code and look like you are cool, hip and happening (without using those words, of course). QR Codes are being used at job fairs for all types of candidates, especially technology and digital jobs, and at various types of industry conventions at vendor booths and promotional venues. Currently, they are in use and can help vying recruiters find you as an early adopter of this technology. 

Engage recruiters online on Twitter, LinkedIn and other appropriate social media venues (blogs, industry groups, networking groups) for your career. 

If a company is seeking a social media savvy marketing executive, they will not post an ad in the NY Times. They will find relevant sources and viable candidates where they expect this next hire to already reside. Be the job you want—and they will find you.

Get your resume posted on online and social media forms 

A paper resume is often the last version of your resume a recruiter will see. Your personal website, LinkedIn profile, Twitter bio, Branchout/Facebook Timeline, About.me or VisualCV may be the first thing they see in searching online for people like you with your credentials. Those virtual documents need to be equally as engaging as your print resume, as they are often the first impression seen by others.

Embrace the use of job search apps on your phone

These are very much in development for many companies and organizations. The major job boards and social media channels all have a mobile version (Monster, LinkedIn, Facebook, Indeed.com, TwitterJobSearch, etc…). These can help you keep track of responses on your submissions and comments and stay up to speed on new job openings posted by the recruiters you follow.

Mobile recruiting is still in its infancy for many industries and companies. But if you are in a progressive industry or profession, it is paramount that you embody these new trends into your daily job search activities.

By Lisa Rangel, Chameleon Resumes


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Tags: Recruiter Tips, Social Media, Job Search, Networking, Resume Optimization, Career Strategies