There is currently a lot of scare language out there, that if your resume is not properly optimized, it will never get seen by a human. If you resume is not ATS optimized, it won’t be seen!
This is not entirely true. Say you’re applying via Indeed, a human hiring partner sees all applicants in Indeed, their system does not discard or hide anything from the human hiring partner. With Indeed, the feature that can set you apart are the skills tests. Often, employers will post a skills test to see if you are qualified for the job you are applying for; acing that skills test will count for a lot more than ATS optimization.
With other versions of ATS software, such as Greenhouse, the system is only used for content management. A hiring partner is shown each resume as-is, so there are human eyes on each resume.
Some systems, such as Taleo, Workday, and iCIMS allow for resumes to be sorted by keyword match. When applying via these systems, it is best to have a resume where the keywords on your resume match the keywords on the job posting as much as possible.
It’s all about maintaining balance. Ideally a resume should appeal to ATS systems that rank by keyword as well as a human hiring partner, without having too many tailored versions. You never want a hiring partner to end up with two very different versions of your resume, for instance, the one you sent and one a friend of theirs forwarded because you weren’t a good fit for Company A, but they thought you might be a good fit for Company B.
If you have any questions about ATS optimization and how important or not important it may be in your case, feel free to reach out to us at Full Circle Resumes.