Resume Submittal Options: Job Search Vault Message Board (Sometimes It Works)

Vault Message Board: Job Search

Topic Name:	Resume Submittal Options
Message Name:	Sometimes It Works
Date Posted:	05/07/2001
In Reply To:	I am of the suspicion that submitting resumes online is an inferior and possibly even a counterproductive way to conduct job applications. Everyone who I know and have asked tells me they have never even heard back from a company after submitting resumes online. And I know a lot of college classmates who were ignored when they applied online for jobs, yet readily obtained much better positions elsewhere after applying in other ways that necessitated them finding and interacting with a real human. It seems like the best way to apply for a job, if you find it posted on the internet, is to print it out, figure out where the office is, and then barge in with the job printout in hand and say you'd like to fill out an application. Look enthusiastic and have a portfolio under your arm. You see, sending a resume online is so easy for anyone to do, and now there are these "resume zapper" services that mass mail resumes to thousands of companies. I suspect that in the majority of cases, companies don't bother to read them at best, and at worst, use online submittals to screen out lazy or unmotivated people who can't show up in person. Or maybe it's a rats-in-a-maze type of scenario where you are presented with the pre-employment test of digging up human resources department contact info (which is almost never publicly available anymore except for e-mail addresses IF YOU'RE LUCKY). First one to find an actual phone number gets the job! What do you all think about this? Also, I would like to hear from just one individual who decided to apply at a company and then submitted an impersonal online form and got any sort of response (other than an instant auto-response), even if it was a NO.
Message:	I have had many interviews from resumes that I submitted on line. Usually the reason I got the interview was because the resume was forwarded to the hiring manager and no HR screening was done. I have had four interviews in the last month from online applications. I have found that agencies while useful for some, will not look at me because I only have a year of experience (I am still not sure why I don't qualify for many entry level jobs????? I have a BA, worked all the way through college, as well as while I SR in High School and have over a year of full-time experience but that is another topic!) So far for me the on-line application process has worked. However I do know many companies where the online applications go into a black hole, such as Intel, who uses agencies almost exclusively and your best bet is to go through an agency. For large companies I think it is easiest to find out who their vendor on premise HR agency is, Intel uses CDI, Nike uses Kelly, NAI uses Manpower. These on site recruiters deal with the hiring managers. For smaller companies I think the online application process works relatively well. I am not sure that faxing the resume works any better or that going in person helps either. Probably a mix of all three is a good strategy. Amy

Post a Reply to this Message || Go to the Job Search Vault Message Board